flickr is a relatively new discovery for me, but one I’m keen to utilise to promote Fair Trade.

It is basically a photo-sharing website, but with a social media feel to it, as it allows you to connect with other users and comment on each others photographs. As a Social Media platform it certainly isn’t just for photographers keen to show-off their latest work.

 

My own business, The FAIR Trade Store, has embraced this media by building-up a flickr photo stream and creating meaningful “Sets” within that photo stream of relevant images, such as “Fair Trade India”, “Fair Trade Kenya”, “Fair Trade Thailand” etc, as well as product Sets such as “Recycled/Eco products”, “Fair Trade jewellery” and so on.

Signing-up and creating your own account was straightforward and uploading photo images was quick, easy and intuitive.

The key to getting your pictures found, however, relies on these tips :-

1/  Take time to carefully title each image. Think about what people might be searching for and entering in the search bar within flickr. This search term should be included in the title of each picture.

2/  Use rich keyword text in the description underneath each picture.

3/  Fully complete the “Tagging” section for each picture with keyword rich words and phrases. Again, think what people are searching for and enter these words i.e. “India” “landscape”, “poverty” etc.

All of this takes time, but is necessary for your photo stream and individual photos to be found.

And remember to comment on other people’s photos – they might just comment back!

In summary, flickr isn’t just another way to be found in the major Search Engines, but an enjoyable way to enhance your businesses credibility and standing in the field in which it operates. It allows you to get your message out there and tell your story in pictures rather than text.

See what YOU think of The FAIR Trade Store’s flickr photo stream and please leave your comments below.

“Why not now set up your own account with flickr?
Thanks for reading this Blog post” – Paul