Launching Highlights & Shadows Photography, calendar full by month three.
A husband-and-wife photography team launching their first business. SEOD built the site, ran launch SEO, and the calendar went from empty to booked-solid in 90 days, for 35% less than the "celebrity agency" launch they almost hired.
The client.
Highlights & Shadows Photography, a Bay Area husband-and-wife photography team launching a new business after years of shooting weddings on the side. Portfolio was strong, pricing was confident, but "I'm a photographer" doesn't rank in Google by itself.
What was broken.
Nothing yet, that was the problem. No website. No Google Business Profile. No reviews. No content. They were about to sink $3,000 into a celebrity-photographer agency's "launch package" before a mutual friend connected them to SEOD.
What we changed.
1. Launch-week website + portfolio.
Custom WordPress build in 10 days: 5 core pages, portfolio grid with proper image SEO, contact form wired to their inbox, booking integration with Tave. Mobile conversion rate tested before launch.
2. Local SEO from day one.
Google Business Profile with 25 category-correct photos. Bing Places + Apple Maps. 15 wedding- and portrait-directory submissions. Schema markup for LocalBusiness + Service + offers. Before their first published work ad, they were indexed.
3. Content around "how to book a photographer" search intent.
Eight SEO-optimized guides covering "what to wear to a portrait session," "how to plan a destination wedding timeline," "photography pricing explained." These ranked for long-tail search terms that brought in qualified leads, prospects who were ready to book, not just browsing.
4. Review acquisition system.
SMS-templated review requests sent 48 hours after each session delivery. First 20 reviews in 6 weeks. Google rankings lifted in parallel.
Having SEOD take care of our website development and initial SEO was the best business decision we could've made. They were partners with us in helping the business launch and fill our calendar with calls.
, Founders, Highlights & Shadows Photography
The takeaway.
New businesses don't need expensive "brand launches", they need foundational SEO done right the first time. We spent a third of what they were about to spend elsewhere, and the calendar filled anyway. Three months to a booked calendar. No paid ads.
Let's talk about your business.
Ten-minute call. Free. If SEOD isn't the right fit for you, Eric will tell you straight.
87% of clients renew at month 6. Most see traction inside 90 days.