If you’re like most people, you’ve heard the term “Search Engine Optimization” (SEO) before.  You can’t really escape it – the importance of a good SEO strategy as part of your overall marketing plan is seemingly on everyone’s lips (and websites) these days.  In this new feature we’ll look at what SEO is and then cover how you can make SEO work for you with your PhotoBiz site.

What is the PhotoBiz Faceoff?

This is a monthly challenge put on by the PhotoBiz team.  Each month we will create a PhotoBiz Faceoff Challenge and post it on Facebook, Twitter and of corse, here on our Blog!

How can I participate and WIN?

Each month, the PhotoBiz team will pick the top finalists.  Once the finalists are chosen, you can vote and win too!  You can particiapate many places on the web!  *4 Ways to Win!!

(1)  You can enter yourself in the monthly competition by leaving a comment! (1 Entry)

(2)  You can vote for your favorite by leaving a comment to the post! (1 Entry)

(3)  You can vote for your favorite by showing your love on Facebook:  PhotoBiz Fan Club (1 Entry)

(4)  You can Tweet @PhotoBizBlogger who your favorite is!  You can also mention your love for PhotoBiz…  (1 Entry)

*Voting will begin once the finalists are chosen

Who Won?

You have to come back to find out!  The only way to find out the winners will be to come back to the blog next month!  Good Luck!

What is It?

Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of improving the volume or quality of traffic to a web site from search engines via “natural” or un-paid (”organic”) search results as opposed to paid search engine placement.

There are a number of factors that impact search engine optimization.  The most key thing to remember is that the search engines want pages with useful, relevant content that will be easy for a human reader to use.  You may have read some books or attended a seminar about SEO and heard about different things you can do to increase your page ranking.  We want to help you develop a good SEO Strategy – and equally important, avoid a bad one.
read full blog entry…

We have found the Best Background!

We were on the search for the best background built within the PhotoBiz Community.  After, almost 50 entries of our (+)13,000 clients, we have narrowed down the competition to 10 finalists.  And the Votes are in…

Congratulations to Smittee’s Airbrush

Smittee Zack with “Smittee’s Airbrush has won the Competition with the BEST BACKGROUND!  (Results Below)  They are going to be awarded with a Free Sub-Site.

Check out the Smittee’s Airbrush

Also, the Lucky Voter to Win a Free Sub-Site is Edit Crabtree who also happens to be a PhotoBiz Customer.

Check out Crabtree & Co.

**NOTE: You can click on each individual photo to view a larger version of it!

What is a Contributing Photographer?

With over 13,000 photographers using PhotoBiz, we realized that there is an abundance of talent and knowledge here.  The goal of our blog is to share our news, share industry news, and educate.  With that said, what better way to educate than to utilize some of the best photographers in the world.

Visit Hiram Trillo Art-Photography

About Hiram: I have been involved with photography for about 15 yrs.  I have always been infatuated with  photography.  From childhood I use to love the photography of the  1920′2 thru 50’s.  All the images where so captivating, from cinema to the great depression every image told a story.  I bought my first camera at the age of 17 from a pawn shop.  Most of my early photography was shot and developed guerilla style.  I would buy old film (yes film) from camera stores and would develop them at the univeristy campus darkroom even though I did not have a photography class. I got caught a few times, but I paid my way in by helping clean the room or anything they needed. I finally ended up taking a position at the university news paper and worked my way to becoming one of the sports editors.  A professor at the university saw some of my photographs and added me to an art exhibition that his senior students were having at a local gallery.  It was there that a soon to be bride approached me and asked of I would do a bridal portrait, I had never shot a bride before, but I gladly said yes.  After that I decided to learn more about the industry and just felt in love with the idea of creating art pieces for such a great occasion.

After working and learning under some great wedding photographers I decided to do it on my own.  I began honing my skills by learning everything in sight about wedding photography the likes and dislikes of it all and how I would take my artistic approach to this industry.  We created a couple of stand alone pieces for a friends’ wedding soon after that we had our first client and Hiram Trillo Art-Photography was born.

Your Brand  ::  Your Name

In this economy, business can get a bit frustrating.  From low balling customers to outrageous demands, we all want our money’s worth.  Although I love photography it can get hectic at times.  Photography is a very competitive business in which the competition increases by 21% each year according to Forbes November 2008 issue.  The good and bad news is that about .5 percent of those are actually good.  With an over saturated market and clients bombarded with bad photographers, you need something that is going to give you the edge over the competition. Building a brand is that edge.
read full blog entry…