The “Foundations” class is being offered in Adelaide on the 24th of September at Atkins Photo Lab in Kent Town. A minimum of 10 attendees is required. Read more about this class.

Instructor: Derek Clapham (Twitter / Facebook / Email)
Time: 9am-5pm 
Class: Foundations
Food: Morning and Afternoon tea will be provided. Please pack your own lunch

Location
Atkins Photo Lab
89 Fullarton Rd
Kent Town SA 5067

Foundations / 1 Day Course / Face-to-face

The “Foundations” class will give each attendee a solid understanding of how websites, SEO, social networking and blogging can be used to boost the effectiveness of your online presence. The class covers a number of theoretical and practical topics (listed below).

The day is very interactive. The instructor will make sure that each student is getting practical benefit from the exercises performed in class. We aren’t afraid of questions, and make sure that there is plenty of opportunity for questions and robust discussion on how the online component of your photography business might be enhanced.

Below is a summary of what the “Foundations” class covers:

Theory:

• Why having a website is more important than you think
• The importance of knowing your why and how to amplify it through your website and social presence.
• The importance of developing a customer archetype / avatar
  • Outcome: You will have a clear picture of who your target customer / audience is. This will direct every decision you make whilst developing your web strategy.
• Social networks. How they are the best and worse thing for your business
  • Outcome: You will develop or refine a social recipe for your business which you will use to draw traffic to your website and turn that in to sales.
• Search Engine Optimisation (SEO). What is it and how to make it work
  • Outcome: Using your why and customer archetype / avatar you will develop a short compelling argument that can be used as the foundation for your “target words and phrases”.
• Why mobile matters. Understanding the importance of being visible in the mobile / tablet world.

Practical:

• Build your very own website including a blog (if desired) and shopping cart (if desired)
  • The website will be “on-brand” for your brand
  • The website will accurately represent you as a photographer
  • The website will contain a beautiful portfolio of your best work
  • If desired, the website will allow your clients to log in to view and even purchase their photos
  • The website will contain all pertinent information about your business as well as your contact details and a contact form.
• Connect social channels and enact the social recipe developed during the theory session
• Connect in-depth metrics / stats to your website (Google Analytics, Facebook Insights, Pinterest for Business)
• Understand how your workflow needs to change in order to unlock the potential of your web presence and increase sales.
  • Uploading
  • Creating a blog post for each client
  • Promoting the post via social networks
  • Handling enquiries
  • In person sales (IPS) and how it fits in to your new online workflow

What to bring:

• Laptop (WiFi will be provided)
• USB Stick containing:
  • High res PSD or PNG of your logo (preferably with a transparent background)
  • High res versions of your best work for all genres that you shoot (this will be your portfolio)
  • High res version of at least 3 client galleries (this is optional, but highly recommended)
• Lunch. If you know the area and want to buy lunch somewhere locally, that’s fine as well.

Morning and afternoon tea will be provided however lunch will not be provided. Please bring a packed lunch as there may not be food to buy nearby. There will be a 20 minute morning and afternoon tea break as well as a 1 hour lunch break.