Avoid LinkedIn
Back in early December, I didn't realize one comment was going to cause such a stir in my niche. I'm a blunt guy — I say what's on my mind and that's the end of the story.
What I said was simple: if you're a videographer or photographer and you're not on LinkedIn, get on it!!
I pull 80% of my clients from there. Do it and thank me later.And all of that is true. I'm a videographer, I'm a photographer, and 80% of my clients come from LinkedIn. Thousands of people engaged with it — and a good chunk of them accused me of gatekeeping. He won't tell us the technique. He won't share the secret. So here it is, right now, no gate. Everything I know. Fair warning, though: you might not want to hear it, because the truth is a lot of people get on LinkedIn to sell, sell, sell, sell.
The Whole Secret: Connect, Don't Sell
The way I run LinkedIn is simple. I just want to connect. And I don't mean the move where you hit the connect button, get accepted, and immediately slide into the DMs with "hey, want my service? Hey, want this? Hey, want that?" I've had plenty of financial and HR folks run that play on me — trying to hit their sales goals, they connect, say "hey, what's up," and then boom, here comes the quote. That is not what I'm doing.
Here's what I actually do. I connect with people in my niche and in the communities I want to serve. Maybe they run the social media, maybe they run the creative side, maybe they're the VP or the CEO — those are the important people. Sometimes I add someone just because they're in the same creative world I am. And then all I do is post what I make. I want their eyes on my productions. I want their eyes on my finished photos and videos. That's it. The work does the selling.
"But Nobody Hires a Wedding Photographer on LinkedIn"
If you're a wedding shooter, you might be thinking, "Gavin, nobody's on LinkedIn looking for a wedding photographer." And you're right — they're not. But I can tell you exactly who is on there: the people who need videographers and photographers to call when there are weddings at their facilities. Banquet halls, golf courses, event venues — there are so many, and I've connected with plenty of them myself, even though I stay as far away from weddings as humanly possible.
That's the point!!
There's always an avenue. You don't have to add people and pitch them. You can add people and simply let them see how you operate — what your products look like, what your productions involve, what your photos actually deliver.
Why Most Creatives Never Reach the Contract
Here's the real issue: a lot of people won't even make it to the contract stage, and that's not a bad thing. Creative business is personal. People have their own taste — some want bright, whitewashed color in their videos and photos, some want dark, deep, moody tones. Some folks don't want to do business with someone who talks like I do. I'll be honest, I cuss like a sailor, and I do it right on LinkedIn, so sometimes that steers people off before we ever talk. And that's fine. LinkedIn lets people self-select toward your style before anyone wastes a phone call. The right ones stick around because they already like what they see.
LinkedIn Is an Asset — Use It
At the end of the day, yes, you sell your product. You sell your productions, your photos, your creative mind, all of it. But if no one ever sees it, how are you going to sell any of it? LinkedIn is an asset. If you're a videographer or a photographer and you're not putting your work on there and connecting with people who might one day use you, you're doing it wrong. Plain and simple.
