LISTEN ON APPLE | LISTEN ON SPOTIFY

*Stares at blank about page wishing it’d write itself.* Feel familiar? Why are websites so hard? How can we actually set them up in a way that makes our dream clients want to inquire? And where are you currently blowing it? After writing 150 websites for photographers, I couldn’t think of anyone better to ask than my past client, Erica Comitalo, who also happens to be the owner of The Write Lens. Together, we unpack the #1 website copy mistake every photographer makes over and over again.

A Personality-Driven Copywriter

Erica shares about her journey from journalism into copywriting and how she found her niche in personality-driven words. She has a huge passion for helping women (like military wives) who may not otherwise have a fulfilling career outside the home. As she says, “if they can take on the burden of learning the art, I can market for them.”

She also helps us see that unlike many other industries, photographers can actually produce better end work if they connect well with their clients. “Photographers are a unique kind of service provider in that unlike something like say a florist, where as long as the flowers are pretty, who cares if you get along with them? It doesn’t really matter. But with a photographer, if the client gets along with or feels comfortable with the person behind the lens, the photos are immediately that much better.”

Because of this, she focuses (with a splash of conversion and SEO strategy) on writing words that help ideal clients feel like their meeting the photographer for the first time in person.

What’s Going On With Photographers?

However, instead of embracing what makes them so unique, they overcompensate for a lack of confidence by doubling down on a “professional” vibe in their copy. Erica redefines what professional really means and how it doesn’t have to contradict what makes you you.

“I always tell photographers that professional is not a tone, it’s an experience. It’s about how you communicate. About consistency of delivery. It’s about setting and meeting expectations. It’s about saying ‘this is what I can do’ and then doing it over and over and over again for everyone that pays you money. That’s what professionalism is. It’s not this fancy, fancy, fancy tone.”

She shares how her whole life, she wanted good grades to prove she was doing well. As adults, we still often seek this external validation, but we can’t find it, which results in photographers needing to “don the white coat” to prove they’re worthy of clients.

Don’t Get Lost in the Crowd

What happens is that everyone chases this singular voice in an attempt to be taken seriously. As a result, no one really stands out and relationships can’t be formed as strongly as they should be.

Thankfully, Erica gives us a few tips for how to fix it. It starts with an exercise to really get to know who we truly are. Once we know that, we must identify our ideal clients and what they need from us to feel comfortable moving forward.

And finally, she breaks down the three things you can do with that information to not only improve your website copy, but also your SEO… Tune in to find out how to avoid the #1 website copy mistake every photographer makes to ensure you’re not one of them!

Connect with The Write Lens

Erica offers both done-for-you website copy in just a week or DIY templates you can use to spark incredible words once you’ve completed the exercises we talk about! If you’re not quite ready for copy, but just want to get to know her better (or absorb fun tips), hang out with her over on Instagram!