Who run the world? The Internet, no matter what Beyoncé says. People are spending most of their time online, either on social media or just navigating around. Once used only for occasional research, the Web is now our go-to for anything we need. A review of the newest iPhone. A restaurant recommendation. The photographer who will shoot your wedding. This is why having a stunning photography website has become an absolute must.
Long gone are the days where clients will check out different studios to meet various photographers and see which one is the best fit. Nowadays, their decision will be nearly completely based on your online presence. That includes not only the work you showcase but also the amount of information you provide them. Here’s where a good contact page comes into play. Offering clients everything they need to reach out to you with minimal effort will play a major role on how many actually talk to you. Ready to get those messages rolling? Follow these tips to learn how to create a contact page for your photography website:
Make it easy to access
Putting aesthetics over usability is one of the biggest and most common portfolio mistakes. What good is it to have a clean, beautiful website if visitors are incapable of finding any information? The balance between looks and functionality will play a major role in the success of your photography online portfolio.
If you want clients to contact you, make sure it takes them a few steps as possible to do so. That’s why your contact page should be a main part of your site. You can either create a standalone contact page or add a contact section on your homepage. Either way, it should be linked to your navigation menu and clearly identifiable. Try to stay away from vague phrases such as “Info” or “Get to know us”. Following these two simple tips will result in fewer visitors getting lost on your site and giving up on messaging you.
Include the basics
To cover the bare minimum requirements of a contact page, you’ll have to include a contact email, an address, and a contact form. However, the fact that this is enough doesn’t mean you should refrain from making further efforts. The main reason why you should do more is that your clients want to see that you care about them. Dedicating the time and effort to curate every detail of your photography portfolio will lead to happier visitors who are more likely to contact you.
This is what a basic and caring amount of information entails:
Publish your email as a link so clients won’t have to copy-paste it or, worse, type it themselves.
Add links to your social media accounts to expand your follower base.
Consider getting a business email address for a more professional look.
Add your name, address, and phone number – this will do wonders for your local SEO. Maintain these three elements across all your online channels for optimal SEO results.
Offer more than one way to contact you. More on this in 1, 2, …
Build a contact form
It may seem that offering an email address is enough, but you might be surprised by how many people prefer to use contact forms instead. Because each of these options targets a different audience, your contact page should include both.
When creating a contact form through our free form builder, you should keep the numbers of fields to a minimum. Essentially, you should only ask for name, email, and message. Three fields yield the highest conversion rate at 25%. Any additional information you might need can be asked once the communication has started. Stay away from drop downs, as they tend to reduce engagement. And don’t even think about asking for phone numbers. People dislike calls so much that businesses experience an average 5% dip in conversion rates when including this field on a contact form.
Get creative with your words
A contact page doesn’t necessarily require text, but it can definitely be a nice addition to the section. Writing a couple of sentences can help indecisive visitors take the final step to contacting you. Try not to go overboard, however, as that could distract them from taking action. For best results, make sure you keep it short and value oriented. Save the long explanations for your “About Me” page.
Remember that you’re selling an experience and don’t be afraid to let your personality shine through. Don’t be afraid to add some jokes or references to your work style. Think of this text as the final touches of your photography services page. After all, it’s very likely they want to ask about these services and some doubts that came up after reading through it.
Keep it simple
The sole purpose of creating a contact page for your photography portfolio is to be contacted. Being straightforward with your content will limit the number of potential distractions for clients. You don’t need to include a selection of your best photos. And, please, keep the self-portraits for your “About Me” page.
If you want to add visual elements, make sure they provide added value and not just repetition. For example, you can include a map of your exact location for visitors to browse and see how far from each other you are. Or simply put all the information over a simple shape that separates it from the background.
Stay on brand
Treat your contact page with as much care as you treat the rest of your photography website. This section should integrate seamlessly with your work. There are two main things you should pay attention to in order to achieve this: style and tone.
One of the easiest ways to nail the style is by paying attention to the contact pages when choosing the best template for your photography portfolio. By doing so, the page’s design will already be aligned with the overall brand. As for the tone, simply focus on who your audience is and what the best way to connect with them is. This will result in a homogeneous message across all sections of your website.
Don’t limit it to a page
The only thing more important than creating a contact page for your photography website is including your contact information on every page. Ideally, clients need to be able to contact you from anywhere on your site.
To ensure they can do so with minimal effort, simply pin your email address to your header or footer. This, in addition to showing your contact page on the navigation menu, will encourage them to reach out at any moment. Another great and increasingly popular way to have customers engage with you is including a live chat on your website.
Additionally, you might want to create an FAQ page or section to provide answers to the questions you receive more often. This will decrease the number of people who contact you, but result in higher intent messages that will generate more leads.