The Importance of Blogging for Photographers
As someone who’s been blogging for photographers for years now, I’ve seen both sides of the coin. I’ve seen blogs drive inquiries years after they were published. On the other hand, I’ve seen business owners pour time into blogging… with absolutely nothing to show for it.
Most photographers know they’re “supposed” to be blogging. What they don’t always know is why or what actually makes a blog work. In an AI-heavy world where it feels easier than ever to copy, paste, and publish something in five minutes, that confusion makes total sense.
But when it comes to blogging, if something feels too good to be true… it usually is.
What are the advantages of blogging?
In the simplest terms:
Blogs help your website show up in Google for specific searches your ideal clients are already making.
When your website is established and you publish strategic blog content, you’re giving Google more information to crawl, understand, and categorize. Each blog becomes a signal that says, “This website knows what it’s talking about.”
When you intentionally use keywords and phrases people are actively searching for, Google begins to recognize your site as a relevant, trustworthy source. That’s how websites earn first-page visibility over time. There are no guarantees, and it’s not instant, but when done correctly, it works! I’ve seen it firsthand repeatedly.
Why don’t AI blogs perform well?
We’re in an era where AI can write an entire blog in seconds. Just like you, I’m running a business in this economy & I understand why it seems like the obvious option over paying someone to handle a blog for you. From a cost perspective, it’s tempting. The question you should be asking yourself, however, is are AI blogs effective?
AI tools can absolutely help with outlining ideas, speeding up drafts, and breaking through writer’s block. However, at the end of the day, AI is just a tool & it can fall short. Why?
They don’t know what people are actually searching for.
If you’re a ShowIt user with a WordPress blog, you may even be getting those precious two green lights from Yoast with your AI-generated blog. It may be chock full of great information and written in your own voice. The kicker is that those two green lights just mean that you have followed the appropriate steps for a keyword, but if the keyword isn’t researched and strategic, you’re essentially just throwing spaghetti at the wall.
Without research and strategy behind it, blogging becomes content for the sake of content. And blogging just to “check a box” doesn’t help your business, it just eats time. That kind of defeats the purpose, doesn’t it?
Every now and again, people get lucky and accidentally use a phrase that gets traction. Most of the time, they don’t. Now, with the added goal of being found on AI, now isn’t the time to abandon those SEO basics, it’s time to build up on them.
What is SEO Blog Strategy?
The biggest difference between blogs that work and blogs that don’t is strategy when it comes to keywords.
Before I invested in professional keyword research tools, I still did research, just manually. I’d:
search topics directly in Google
pay attention to auto-suggested phrases
review “people also ask” questions
look at related searches
That alone made a difference! Now, with dedicated keyword research tools (the highest monthly expense in my business, mind you), I can pinpoint exact phrases people are searching. I make decisions on which keyphrase to use for each blog based on estimated monthly search volume & compare similar phrasing to find higher-opportunity keywords
You’d be surprised how much wording matters. One phrase might get 10 searches a month, while a slightly adjusted version gets hundreds.
That, my friends, is the magic of strategy. And that is what my clients pay for.
And beyond the copy itself, a complete blog includes:
intentional keyword placement
internal linking strategy
optimized meta descriptions
image alt text (which also helps with ADA compliance and image search visibility)
proper formatting on the site
indexing so Google knows the blog exists
Publishing is only part of the process.
Why SEO Blog Strategy Matters Long Term
Another piece people don’t talk about enough: blog cannibalization.
If you’re repeatedly targeting the same keywords over and over, you’re not strengthening your website. It means the opposite, actually: you’re competing against yourself.
Strategic blogging means planning content intentionally and tracking what’s already ranking. That’s how blogs continue working in the background long after you publish them!
What’s the difference in DIY Blogs vs Outsourcing?
If you’re in a season where you want to DIY your blogs, that’s okay. But it’s important you understand the purpose behind what you’re publishing.
Is your goal to bring people to your site, support new services, create long-term visibility, or reduce your dependence on constant social media output? If so, you’re going to need time, research, and consistency.
On average, a client blog takes me around two to three hours (more for guides) because it includes research, writing, formatting, optimization, indexing, and ongoing performance monitoring.
If you don’t have that kind of time to spare, outsourcing is always an option! Everyone has different needs & budgets, so with me, you’ve got choices.
DIY with Support
Through Copy Desk Consultation (a service I launched at the end of 2025), I provide the keyword research and strategy needed to make DIY blogs successful. We’ll meet via Zoom to discuss your goals & any upcoming projects so that I can tailor my research and recommendations to fit your needs. I’ll provide the focus keyphrase along with supporting keywords so that your blog is more easily found. This $75 investment doesn’t require an ongoing contract or a marketing agency price tag.
For business owners who are ready to hand off blogs altogether, I’ve got that covered too!
SEO Blogging for Photographers
Hey, I’m Amanda! I work with photographers, permanent makeup artists, and service-based business owners who want marketing that keeps working even when they’re offline.
Evergreen marketing exists so you don’t have to be plugged in 24/7.
I like to support my clients so they can enjoy the businesses they built without turning “I quit my 9–5” into “I work 25/8.”
If you’d like help building a blogging strategy that actually brings people to your website, I’d love to support you! You can view my blog services here or reach out with questions to see if it’s a good fit. Let’s build something that works while you live your life.