Uploading one photo is worth a thousand-word blog article.
Photo sharing
There are actually several ways of using your photos to get links. In photo blogging, you can either send photos in some photo blog directories or upload them directly to your own site. You can also upload photos in social media sites.
So how can photos be used to gain some more traffic to your site? There are actually two main “stages” here – content preparation and sharing. You take photos first and create your site (or vice versa). Of course, you need to make sure that you are taking the right photos for your intended market.
Then it’s for the world to see your works of art. Optimize your photos well when you are sharing them in order to get a lot of links.
So for you to be able to gain followers, I listed some tips for you to ponder on.
Know your target audience
Before doing anything, think of what photos will you put in your blog. Think about your target audience. What photos will catch their attention and what photos will best represent my site?
Uploading travel photos for a travel site would be a logical idea.
Unless you have an audience, no matter how amazing your photos are, they will be useless. Also remember that photos appeal to those who are familiar and interested with your subject. So be connected with the people who share the same interests with you.
Know your tools and channels
After the conceptualization part, you are now ready to upload your personal photo collection. It’s very crucial to choose the platform that fits your style.
Makeuseof.com lists some of the best sites that can be used for photoblogging.
Self-hosted sites such as WordPress and Tumblr are on top of the list. These sites offer paid and free themes. For WordPress you can download plugins to make it easier to manage your account, like Yet Another Photo Blog (YAPB) plugin. WordPress is still better for SEO because of its features.
Also check the hosted blogging platforms like WordPress.com, Blogger, Tumblr, and Posterous.
There are also self-hosted portfolio platforms like Pixelpost and Zenphoto.
Photo-sharing services like Flickr, 23hq, Yogile, Fotolog, Deviant Art, Phlog, and Smugmug are also great to use.
You can also try signing up for some online photo magazines like Photoblur and JPGMag. Here, you have a chance to get published in there magazines, which have a lot of subscribers. So, your photos can reach a broader audience.
Optimize your photos
One way of promoting the images is to maximize the use of keywords.
Some ways to make the photo more searchable is to use highly descriptive keywords. Next, use your keywords in the alternate text tags. It’s important because it tells the users and crawlers what the image is all about. Also use long descriptions – higher relevance in search rankings.
Do not settle for photos with lower resolutions. Upload the ones with higher resolutions (with higher quality) because search engines tend to prioritize them.
Provide some info
It is not enough that you upload some photos. These should also be provided:
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caption
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meta and EXF data from the photos – camera settings
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RSS feed
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blog commenting (enable this)
However, you are not required to provide all of these. It still depends on how much you want to share. You can just include a short description on how you conceptualized the photo.
Quality over quantity
It is important to constantly update your account but remember not to bombard your audience with photos from all your photowalks or shoots. It’ll get boring.
To make the photos organized, create several categories – portrait, landscape, macro, etc. By doing so, the readers will not get lost somewhere in your blog.
Work with other bloggers
An article by Kaiserthesage talks about reaching out to other bloggers. You can offer them your photos to be posted in their sites. Also you need to encourage them to post in your site.
Getting connected with a community will create brand awareness. But remember, work with those that offer high-quality content and with lots of followers.
Share your blog-link (or photo) in social media sites or blog articles
Some sites are dedicated to images. Pinterest is one good example. Images with some sort of catchy story (e.g. with rags-to-riches plot) often get re-posted most of the time.
You can also use photos as “fillers” in your blog articles. Blogs without images are like deserts – so plain.
So to create a bit of life and excitement in your articles, include some photos. Other than making your articles appear better, photos can explain some aspects of a story better than words.
Make sure that it’s your photo
One thing that’s really to be avoided is grabbing other people’s photos (without citing them). It’s really a big plus if you are uploading and sharing your works of art.
Try exploring sites that provide photo tips. National Geographic.com’s photography section has a good collection of different types of photos. It’s also a good starting point to learn a few photography basics.
Time to take some photos
Sharing your photos is really a chance for you to bring your art into the open – to be scrutinized. It’s also one fast way of promoting your craft if you are a photographer by profession.
So for those of you who want to get a bunch of links and followers, be shutter-happy!
Ric is one of the web content writers of AgentsofValue.com, a pioneer in providing outsourcing services to customers from over 20 countries around the world. You can hire a web content writer from us to market your online business.