[MUSIC PLAYING]
So many people ask me, how do you make money on Instagram?
And Cyrissa is living proof that it
can happen in a very short period of time
if you invest in the relationship first
and absolutely engage authentically on Instagram.
Right?
Big.
So the story of Cyrissa is she saw
me speaking on CreativeLive.
She's a photographer.
Yeah.
Did it come over from the photography channel
or did you-- how did you know I was speaking?
I get notifications all the time through my email
about CreativeLive courses, and I usually
watch the photography ones.
And I saw this Instagram one.
And at the time, I had one account.
It was kind of business, kind of personal.
And I really had no idea what I was doing.
My version of hashtags was like the Jimmy Fallon,
Justin Timberlake skit.
OK.
So when I watched your course, I was like,
oh my gosh, this girl's magnetic.
So we were on vacation in Cape Cod,
and that's where Sue's from.
Yeah.
I just kind of stalked you.
OK, so you saw the CreativeLive courses.
Yes.
Did you buy the course?
Yes, I did.
OK.
You need to do that if you haven't done it already.
It's incredible.
OK.
So she saw me on CreativeLive, and she
learned from what I taught from the stage for three days.
It was an 18-hour course-- amazing.
And then in the summer, I live on Cape Cod,
because I run my store, Sue B. Do, on Cape Cod.
And Cyrissa followed the geotag--
Right.
--to my store.
Because I teach that when you tag your photos with a geotag,
it makes it easier for people that
want to find you to be able to do so, especially
since my store is down this long windy road--
It was an adventure.
--and hard to get to, the geotag is really important.
And also, when you geotag, the photos
are curated with everyone else that uses that same geotag.
Yes.
So Cyrissa followed the geotag to Sue B. Do and to--
There it is.
Sue B. Do.
And I wasn't at the store at the time.
I was getting my nails done, because I
love to get my nails done.
See the anchor?
Yeah.
So she barged into where I was getting my nails done right
in the Popponesset Marketplace, and we met.
And she's like, "OMG."
And all I wanted-- I told my husband,
all I wanted was my hashtag picture with Sue.
And then when we started talking,
we realized we were actually a really good fit.
And we kind of feed off of each other's energy,
which is what I love.
And that's what I love about Instagram,
is developing those relationships.
I have a client, a bride of mine who's now living in Australia.
And through Sue, I've met an Australian chocolatier--
"Chocolate Johnny"--
Chocolate Johnny, we love you.
And because I developed a relationship with him,
I had him ship chocolates to my bride, who
they are both on the Australian continent,
and she's expecting her first.
So because of that relationship, I
was able to love on my own clients.
And it's just really cool to see the way
those relationships develop in a way that
can't be done on some other social network platforms, which
is what I really enjoy about it.
Right, especially the international relationships
that you just mentioned.
Yes.
So all you wanted was that hashtag picture.
And by the way, there is another video here on YouTube
showcasing that encounter when we first met.
But the reason I wanted to bring Cyrissa back on,
is to talk to you about the money.
Everyone's like, how do you make money?
So Cyrissa-- I hired her, of course, to do my photo shoot.
I flew her in from Ohio.
She came on Cape Cod, and we did a whirlwind, flat-out 6 hours,
10 out for change, on the Cape this summer.
32 gigs of photos.
I wanted the photo session to be all
about nautical-- nautical vibe.
And it was in the summer, and it was fabulous.
And so I have a fabulous client, Jill Boudreau.
She is a luxury real estate agent
here in Wellesley, Massachusetts.
And she needed new photos.
So I said, you have to hire Cyrissa.
She is awesome.
And the best time to have her come, in my opinion,
for real estate, is in September,
when the leaves aren't completely changed,
and the snow isn't on the ground.
And it's not in the middle of summer,
where there's no green leaves.
And Boston in the fall is just beautiful, no matter what.
You can't beat that.
We wanted Jill's photos to not be--
--just that.
We wanted them to be evergreen.
So when I said to Cyrissa, would you come?
Would you shoot?
She's like, "Absolutely."
Right?
Oh, absolutely.
Yeah.
And working with Jill, she's been so incredibly nice.
We've really been able to start to capture--
we've already finished Day One.
We're doing Day Two today.
We've started to capture the vibe and her brands.
And we talked about how she wanted to appear on camera.
And so, we've really made sure that we've
been consistent with what she's presenting to her clients,
because that's another key piece.
Sue talks about curating what you have on Instagram.
And if you're posting, oh, a picture
of me with jeans on a Adirondack chair, and then
you're selling high-end luxury homes,
that doesn't really jive.
So what we're trying to do is develop images--
--around Jill's brand.
Exactly.
And I like that you said the brand,
because that's part of the acronym with my name,
with the new CD that I was talking about, which is--
and then if you are this person.
If you are this business owner, there's
four things I want to say right now.
And then in closing, we'll go back to the whole money piece.
The four things are S for Sue B. Start now.
Just get on Instagram.
Start.
Make a name-- consistent branding for yourself on there.
You don't need a website.
You don't need a fancy website.
You just need your cell s and Instagram to get going.
And what I love-- I have to interrupt for a second.
I love on your CreativeLive, you just
said, "Everyone starts somewhere."
Sue is huge.
And I know when I looked at it, I was like, oh my gosh,
I have 200 followers right now.
You just start somewhere.
It's OK if you're at the beginning.
Yes, you had 200 followers then, and you almost have 800 now.
And her conversion rate is amazing-- @immersephotography.
That's Cyrissa's account.
And so the S is for starting out.
The U is for understand your market.
Because if you really understand your market--
and Cyrissa clearly understands her photography market-- then
you will attract those that are attracted
to what you love to do and share with the world.
And the E is for everyone matters.
You never know who you are going to meet
on Instagram or in person as long as you take
the time to connect authentically from the heart.
And the B, which is what you just said,
is brand consistency.
So being super-uper consistent with your branding
on everything that you do, so it resonates
across multiple platforms.
And Instagram is no different than that.
So you can visually showcase your imagery
through storytelling on Instagram
and connect that with everything else
that you do on your other platforms.
Absolutely.
So that is my new CD-- "Insta Awesome Success Tips."
And I just wanted to bring it into this video,
because I think it's pertinent here.
But most importantly, understanding
that you should not lead with money on Instagram.
You shouldn't lead with follow for follow,
shout-out for shout-out.
It's all about engaging.
It's all about connecting.
This is living proof that what happened from Instagram
has now turned into a wonderful friendship,
and I want to say partnership, because I
won't be working with any other photographers from now on.
She is just amazing.
So I am equally appreciative of the relationship
that Cyrissa is.
So do you want to say any words in closing?
I just think the thing to remember with Instagram
is that it's all about being authentic.
One of the things that Sue talked to me about
is she's like when someone comments on one of your photos,
respond to them.
And a lot of us started out on Facebook.
And it was kind of creepy if somebody you didn't know
commented on a picture--
--or asked you to find you.
Yeah, that was always so weird.
But on Instagram, it's not like that.
So don't be afraid to contact someone and say
hey, thanks for the new follow.
Send them a direct message or just comment and engage
with them as though you're a friend of theirs.
And so when I have someone say something on one of my photos,
and they're like, oh my gosh-- because I
love taking photos of dancers-- they'll be like,
this makes me want to dance.
Perfect.
And I write back, and I'm like, I know.
Me too.
I wish that was me in that picture.
So just be authentic, and don't be afraid to shine who you are.
Because that's why people love you.
You are your brand.
So don't be afraid to shine.
Absolutely.
So what I'd like to say is subscribe to this YouTube
channel if you found some value, some fun, had some insight.
Button's right down here.
Leave a comment.
We want to know what part of this video resonated for you.
If you have any questions, I'd be happy to answer them.
And this is what I say.
Take a screenshot.
We have to do our screenshot pic.
First with the fingers-- and post it to Instagram.
Tag @suebzimmerman, @theinstagramexpert.
Also tag Cyrissa @immersephotography.
Or you can use the hashtag, #SueBZimmerman,
and it will be curated with all the other pictures
on Instagram--
And you'll be Insta-famous.
--that are also using the hashtag, #SueBZimmerman.
And I did an interview with someone recently,
and she told me about this hashtag on steroids
that I actually just love.
So we're going to do that too.
You ready?
Starts with your hands out.
And now you cross over, and I look up
and say-- So thanks so much.
You could be part of this fun.
Come with us.
We're fun.
[LAUGHS]