Web Site Management for Photographers
Marketing I

Would you pay a graphics designer $10,000 to design a business card for your stock photography business? Would you lease a 5,000 sq-ft office in downtown Toronto for that same business, even though you have no employees and you spend all of your time in the field? Would you hire a Web site developer to create a commercial Web site for you without first considering how it fits into your overall business plan?

What's the Point?

Let's rephrase that last question. If you embark upon a lengthy and expensive journey to an unknown destination, how will you know if you ever get there? You won't.

Without a business plan, you will not know if your business is on track towards your objectives and goals. You may have a simple business plan in your head, or you might have a formal, written plan. Every intro business book talks about business plans, so I won't.

What is your Web Site?

Is your Web site just an electronic business card? Is it a virtual portfolio? Is it an electronic store? You will never reach your objectives if you do not set any! Before you even start your Web site, decide:

Does a Web site have a place in your business plan? (Hint: It should fit into your marketing plans, more or less.)

What are the most important purposes of your Web site? (Let prospective photo-buyers know you exist? Show your portfolio on-line? Sell images or other products from a cyber-store?)

How will you measure the results for each purpose? (Number of hits? Number of qualified inquiries? Dollars of revenue generated within 6 months?)

How will you determine the cost-effectiveness of your Web site? (If your Web site costs $10,000 and earns $20,000, is that better or worse than spending the $10,000 on color promo sheets and direct mailings?)

If your Web site does not generate the desired results in a cost-effective manner, what will you do about it? (Hope for the best? Start over? Fine-tune your methods?)

I hate marketing, but without it I wouldn't still be in business after all these years. You can't live without it, either. In future columns, I will help you answer the previous questions. Next month, I will tell you why most Internet marketing books are just expensive garbage!