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This past week, I gave a talk to the members of CoPA-MKE about the value of Twitter, and how it can serve photographers. It was a fun talk to give, as I’m a big fan of the “micro-blogging” site. While I had my own ideas about the value of twitter, I recognized that a BIG part of the value I got from Twitter was in the people I met through it. So, I reached out to a couple photogs I’ve met through Twitter, though not in-person, to see what they get out of Twitter. Here’s the responses I got…
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Naina, from India, in a series of tweets said:
It provides marketing & advertising reach by way of “word-of-twitter” ( instead of “word-of-mouth” ) that money can’t buy.
As photographers, we owe it to our work to allow it to reach viewers who would otherwise never be exposed to it.
Being on Twitter also implies comfort with “selling”, which in itself is a credibility-builder with clients.
Being on Twitter not only provides exposure to the photographer’s work but also to the clients who hire that photographer.
Our discussion then led Naina to create a full blog-post on the topic…
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Cengiz, based in Chicago, but a frequent photoj in the Mideast had a great response via email:
“In regards to the type of photography and journalism I tend to work on, Social Media is the most important tool after my camera and notebook. I’m not talking about using it for advertising, building an audience, or selling finished products. Social Media, specifically Twitter and Facebook, for my photography is all about connections and the sharing/gatherings of information that keeps me safe and helps complete my stories. It’s the bridge between myself and someone on the other side of the world. It’s how I find if friendly forces control the road I’m about to drive down or if I need to wait another night. It’s the easiest way to find a translator in a dusty Jordanian city and the best way to know when tear gas is fired at a crowd. Put simply, social media is deeply woven into the way I work and I wouldn’t be where I am professionally without it.”
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As for myself, Twitter has been a wonderful tool to keep in touch with my current clients, to reach out to potential clients, and as a real easy way to engage with the world beyond the borders of Milwaukee. Thanks to Twitter, I have regular interactions with photographers, comicbook creators, social activists, policy wonks, reporters, and more folks from around the country and around the world! Twitter has been a way to spread information about breaking news, to get information re: variety of topics from the “Twitter hive mind”, and to even just get updates on local traffic. I use Twitter to keep track of WI politicians, to see what locally-owned businesses are up to, and to see what my other Milwaukee creatives are talking about. Suffice to say, Twitter has a LOT of ways it can be utilized – it just depends on your own needs and interests!