How to book more portrait photography clients
The secret to booking more portrait clients is to get inside your prospect’s head and then show them why your service is perfectly matched to help them get what they want. This post explains how you do it.
Do you sweat like an Eskimo in an oven every time you have to try and book a new client? Do you wonder why some photographers seem to be able to charge vastly more than you despite their photography being no better than yours?
This post explains how to book more portrait clients by getting inside the mind of your client and helping them see the value in choosing you.
I recently wrote about this same subject from a wedding photographer’s perspective, so you should check that post out too.
Speaking of ‘perspective’, that’s actually the beginning of the secret to booking more clients. You need to think from the prospect’s perspective. What do you think is going through their mind when they’re contacting you? The better you understand the answers to that question the easier it is to give them want they want.
What’s holding you back from a great photography career?
A little bird told me many people have chips on their shoulder and some of those are holding you back from a great photography career.
We’re all great at thinking up excuses about why we’re not where we want to be in the world. This video explains what’s holding you back from a great photography career and how to overcome the issues.
I know exactly how it feels. You feel you’re not as smart as everyone else, or you’re not as naturally gifted at photography. Maybe you don’t feel confident around people. Perhaps you feel lost and just don’t know where to start because launching a new business is pretty overwhelming.
Take a look at this video – I’m sure a lot of my experiences will resonate with you. Best of all, I explain how I overcame the chips sitting on my shoulder.
If you’d like to read more on this subject then you’ll like my post ‘A Photographer’s Biggest Competitor is in Their Head’.
Please leave a comment if you have a sec – I’d really appreciate it.
Showing clients all the photos
This is a powerful demonstration of why you shouldn’t show clients all the photos. This isn’t the whole story though, in some respects I do encourage you to provide ‘all’ the photos…
Looking at this photo, no wonder photographers are often treated with as much affection as serial killers and lawyers (not necessarily in that order!). This photo of Beyonce at the Super Bowl is a perfect example of why you should never show clients all the photos. There is a slightly grey area though. The word ‘all’ can be rather flexible – well, in the eyes of a lawyer anyway!
Even the most wonderful photographer on earth is going to catch people with drunken eyes because they’re half way through a blink. There will always be photos that should never be exposed (if you’ll pardon the pun).
With family portrait photography I try to keep the selection of images down to around 20. If you start creeping up too high then clients get information overload and they can’t make a decision. This is catastrophic for your sale. If you’ve been reading this blog for any length of time you’ll know I always recommend you meet portrait clients in person when presenting your images to them. If you have too many images they will ask to take home proofs or ask you to pop them online so they can decide later. The resulting sale is nearly always pathetic and the client ends up confused and overwhelmed.
The wonderful thing about keeping down to around 20 photos is that you have time to lavish on each photos so that when they view them each one looks utterly gorgeous. It’s not about quantity, its quality. You only need them to invest in one or two decent sized wall portraits anyway – that’s where the money is and that’s where the satisfaction is for your clients too. The opposite of quality over quantity is selling the dreaded CD of the session. My portrait photography system is set up to avoid this at all costs as CDs give the Continue reading
How can photographers make money fast?
Would you like to get more enquiries, book more enquiries and make more from each client? Read on.
When things are tough most wedding and portrait photographers instantly press the panic button and follow this dangerous three step process:
- Undercut the competition so they get more enquiries.
- Spend a lot of money on advertising telling everyone how cheap they are.
- Rinse and repeat!
They quickly realise that the small increase in orders doesn’t cover the decrease in average order value.
They then quickly jump onto Google and type in ‘How can photographers make money fast?’ and get saved by reading this post! You’re about to learn the six quickest ways to bring in more profit to your photography business. Some of these ideas work instantly and others will take a few minutes, days or weeks of your time, but they’re all extremely effective.
But why doesn’t reducing your prices work?
OK, let’s rewind and analyse why reducing your prices is the kiss of death.
6 sicknesses that prevent your photography career from taking off
The 6 sicknesses that stop your photography career from taking off are all to do with your head.
In this post I explained how you need to think of all the problems and concerns your client may have and then think of ways to help them overcome them. This time we’re going to look at some of the problems your business has and what you need to do to overcome them. Actually, to be technically correct, your business doesn’t have these problems, your brain does. But then you ARE the business, so if it’s not working you have to kick your own ass and set things straight.
Today I’m going to kick your ass for you! So, I apologise in advance if any of this sounds less pleasant than a dentist appointment. However, the more this information hurts, the more you probably needed to be told it…
Don’t worry though, you’re not alone. We all suffer with some, or all of these afflictions at some point. In fact I actually highlight what I did to overcome each issue. The key is to acknowledge the problems and set out a plan to deal with them.
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The system for how to be a successful portrait photographer
It doesn’t matter how lovely your photos are, you need a complete sales and marketing system if you want to be a successful portrait photographer.
OK, so last time I explained that New Year Resolutions were pretty pointless. I suggested that you need something much more concrete and measurable. No-one ever got successful at anything because they made a resolution. You need a system. I’m now going to share with you the system for how to be a successful portrait photographer. I’ll take you through step-by-step the process I use to bring portrait clients into and through my business.
This system isn’t unique to me. I learned it from Charles Lewis and most of the successful family portrait photographers I come across do something similar. I’ve learned that the people at the top of most industries tend to do things differently to everyone else, although similarly to each other. For example, successful marketing copywriters tend to follow very different rules to your average marketing executive. It’s obvious really. Successful people do things differently. If you do the same as the masses then it gives no-one a reason to choose you.
I’ve used this quote before, but I like it and it fits well here:
“The minority is sometimes right; the majority always wrong.”
George Bernard Shaw
It’s a great point, although you’ll be delighted to know that I’m not about to stop wearing clothes just because everyone else does!
How to book more wedding photography clients
The secret to learning how to book more wedding photography clients is to understand what your prospect is thinking and then be prepared with your answers.
Using serial killers as an analogy for brides may be a rather odd one, but bear with me! FBI profilers have learned how to catch serial killers by using psychological techniques to understand how they think. You can catch brides using a similar philosophy. To learn how to book more wedding photography clients you need to understand what your wedding prospects are thinking.
Wedding photography is a large investment and someone’s wedding day is clearly a big deal. So, naturally, your prospects are nervous. They’re worried that one wrong decision could ruin their special day.
I’m going to look at all the things your prospects are likely to be thinking and then show you ways to handle each one.
The successful wedding photographer’s mantra
The common thread running through all of this is that you’re demonstrating to your potential wedding client that you understand them, you’ve thought about their concerns and you’ve taken the time to present a solution. This positions you as a caring professional who offers a great service. This approach builds trust and when you’ve got trust then you have one foot in the door.
That said, you still need to ask lots of questions because you can’t presume to know everything that’s important to them or concerning them.
How to respond to email enquiries about photography
Do you get upset when clients email you for a price and then never respond after you’ve crafted a beautifully worded, helpful response? Learning how to respond to email enquiries about photography won’t just save you time, it will also book you more clients and at higher prices.
Isn’t it frustrating when you spend half an hour crafting a beautifully written response to an enquiry about your photography services, only to hear nothing back? Did you scare them off with your price? Did another photographer respond before you? Fret no more. This post and the video below explain exactly how to respond to email enquiries about photography.
Before you scroll down to the video, I want to provide you with some crucial background information.
- Never put prices on your website.
- Never put prices in your emails for the same reasons as above
- Always explain to the enquirer that it will be much quicker and easier for them if you go through everything over the phone. By the way. once you’ve got them on the phone you arrange a day to meet up for a chat.
There are two fantastic methods for responding to emails that will blow you away.
The first idea is one I got from the genius mind of Charles Lewis. The idea is to use a ‘drip campaign’. I’ve used drip campaigns in my marketing career before, but I never thought of using them as a way to respond to emails.
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Are female wedding photographers better?
Are female wedding photographers better? Selling wedding photography is all about connecting with the client on an emotional level and women are (on average) more hard-wired to do that.
I’ve noticed a lot more female wedding photographers entering the market in the last year and it’s got me thinking. I talk and write a lot about the fact that family portrait and wedding photography is purchased for emotional reasons. The clients who want something really special value our work because it touches their heart, it makes them cry. Our photography has no real practical use, although a decent sized, beautifully framed photo does enhance a room quite dramatically.
So, to help our prospects appreciate the value of photography we need to help them get in touch with their emotions. We need to encourage them to realise that family portrait and wedding photography is a permanent symbol of the most important things in their life – their love for their family.
How do you do all this?
You have to speak in an emotional way with a nice soft (but enthusiastic) tone of voice. You have to ask questions about their family that are designed to ensure that the prospect starts to think emotionally.
How much money does a photographer make?
People generally get into photography because they love it or because they think it's easy money. Just like any other business the people who do well are normally the people how understand sales, marketing, pricing, merchandising and branding. Money doesn't grow on brides or babies any more than it does on trees.
Aspiring photographers and photography clients think we make decent money. But how much money does a photographer make, really?
Why photographers must be rich
Wedding photographers cost hundreds or thousands of pounds and all for a few hours (yes I’m being sarcastic!) work. The paper and printing of a family portrait doesn’t cost a great deal, so charging £50 for an 8×10 should be about fair, right? Yep, photographers must be loaded.
The shocking truth
It’s actually quite surprising to most people how much Continue reading
