I always get asked my advice for photographers just entering our professional ranks. My best advice is to find out what everyone else is doing and do the opposite, but do it very very well. I cannot stress enough how important education is. You have to be great at what you do to succeed and education is what will set you apart from your competition. Learning has always given me more passion and respect for my craft.
Obviously I believe the internet is huge in marketing with tools like Facebook, Twitter, etc. but think about how much you purchase and research online now. We all spend a lot of time purchasing this way. My clients even have the option of booking their portrait session online. I use a company called Brownbook www.brownbookit.com to manage this. With this system clients do not see your entire schedule – they only see what is available based on the type of session they selected and what is available the day they select. Brownbook is customizable and you can log in and see your own appointment schedule from anywhere. Last week we booked 4 online appointments in one day. All of them pay for the session fees online through this service. It is pretty fun to make money and book appointments while you are sleeping. If you are interested in trying it out free for 60 days use my code “rodevans” to get an extra 30 days free.
I also have been selling my low-resolution images on CD to my high school senior clients for three years, and it is not what you might think. I have not lost my mind and I am not giving them images to go have printed at a discount chain store. I have a system in which they pay a significant fee for the ability to have low-resolution images and then order prints from our regular lab at a very discounted price. This way we retain quality over our final prints, the client orders at their convenience, and we make the amount of money we need to for the time invested. It is similar to how commercial photographers charge. I have more information on that topic at http://www.rodevans.tv
I also think video is going to be bigger online. We need to be ready for that – more education for clients, more interesting presentations that include video. It’s going to be big and photographers have to embrace that change and stay ahead of the curve or risk being left behind.
I know this may seem lame, but I think HIGH QUALITY and UNIQUE photography is the foundation of long term successful marketing. I think finding a niche and developing a style that is done exceptionally well is critical to your success. Then go out and market that style to show your uniqueness.
We use our mall display effectively by advertising different promotions and collect potential clients’ names with giveaways. We run promotions when we need the business and no promotions when we are swamped, like in the summer or just before Christmas.
One of the most successful and cost effective ways we promote our business is with Facebook. Facebook promotions are not limited to seniors only, but also work well for young couples, and mothers with small children. By having a Facebook profile and a business page you are connecting with clients where they spend a lot of time. If you are giving them a reason to connect with you – give them specials for being a facebook fan – you will grow a following of clients who constantly see your new photographs and will eventually be spending money with you because they have spent time with you and trust you.
It does take time to use Facebook. We spend about 15 minutes a day updating our status, checking comments and uploading a couple of images from each session to get some buzz going. We also advertise on a Facebook. It is very targeted and effective for us. We run promotions for high school seniors and family portraits and target specific ages, education, zip codes, gender, and more. This form of advertising costs MUCH less than traditional advertising and has great results. Facebook takes time to learn and manage, but you can be successful with very little money. I prefer investing a little time rather than big money on marketing. I have more tips on www.rodevans.tv
