Standing Out in a Saturated Market

As an aspiring wedding photographer and independent business owner, I expect many of my posts on this marketing blog to be about the photography industry. Years ago, when I was still figuring out who I wanted to be when I grow up, I would have never imagined that I was to develop an interest in professional photography. Back then, my knowledge of professional photography was very limited. I had no idea how large the industry really was or what the different specializations are (and believe me, there are countless). I imagined a professional photographer working with celebrities in fashion and creating magazine covers; photographing sports games; and photographing nature. And while, perhaps, there were other types of photography that didn't come to mind at the time, I think I'm not too far off when I say that since then, the photography industry has... well... exploded.

Our immediate communities are now surrounded by food photographers, wedding, portrait, children, lifestyle, product, commercial, real estate, pet photographers and more. Not only that, but with the decreasing prices in technology and photography equipment as well as the thousands of photography resources online that are available, the photography industry is saturated with hundreds of thousands of people who are leaving behind their day jobs to become photographers.

So how do I stand out?

Well, I think that by narrowing down the types of photography services I offer, by establishing myself as only a wedding and maybe portrait photographer I will be more likely to successfully target a narrower market than some who choose to do it all. My target market will be brides who want their weddings photographed as well as families who are in need of portraits.

Still, to me this is not a narrow enough market. Something I think about often is: "which niche will I target when begin to market myself?" Believe it or not, within the wedding photography industry alone there are specific markets photographers aim to target. Take the wedding photographer Jasmine Star, for example. Her target market is brides in their 20s and early 30s. Her success shows me that a brand can be selective in their target market and still be extremely prosperous. Of course, there are many other aspects of the Jasmine Star brand that have made her business successful, but narrowing her market has helped her to identify which customers she wants to target and thus making it easier to find out how to target them.

While I understand that customers demand good quality services and products, I also recognize that in order to grow a successful business, we must develop a good marketing strategy based on an established target market.

If you were a marketing consultant, what other advice would you suggest to me as I attempt to build my wedding photography business and brand?

Advertising v. Marketing v. Propaganda

I've heard and often hear all three of these terms in conversations, on the radio and in my news feed. Recently I finished reading the book "Zag" by Marty Neumeier and he talks about advertising and marketing almost as if they were the same thing and, frankly, not until very recently did I really think about these two words and what their different meanings were.

I am tempted to search online for definitions that will help me understand and write this blog post. Instead I will resist this urge and try to make an educated guess as to what each of these words are; how they are similar and different.

To me, the words "advertising" and "marketing" are almost synonymous. They both relate to the promotion of a product, service, organization, etc... If they do not mean the same thing, they, at the very least are complementary. I rarely hear one without the other following.

If I had to differentiate between advertising and marketing, I'd say that advertising relates more to the visual side of promotion. When I think of advertising, I see magazine, newspaper, television ads and billboards. Marketing is more about researching customers' wants and developing a plan that will help promote a product, service or organization. This plan may or may not include advertisements.

I've left propaganda to be discussed last because I don't feel it is related to advertising or marketing. While its purpose is to promote, I believe the word "propaganda" has a political, perhaps even negative connotation attached to it. One of the first things that comes to mind upon hearing the word "propaganda" is Hitler's Germany before World War II. In my high school European History class we spent some time studying Nazi propaganda. I've heard of climate change being referred to as liberal propaganda. While I, myself, do not believe it is, this helps me understand that propaganda refers to promoting a belief or ideology that relates to a given side of the political spectrum.

In today's hyperpartisan society, how can politicians and their parties manage the fine line between advertising and propaganda?