Like many photographers, I enjoy looking around the web at other photographers’ work to take in all the different approaches, styles, web site designs etc.
Today I came across the web site of Angie Arthur, in Northeastern Ohio. The site has a lovely fresh look, and her work is wonderful.
You can check out the site here: Angie Arthur Photography
So many photographers (myself not excluded) have made the mistake at one time or another of ignoring their current clients. Some even make the worse error of referring to them as “past” clients.
The truth is that when someone becomes a client by allowing us to create photographs for them, we ought to treat them as though they are clients for life. They are now an integral part of our business family.
The only way to make sure that these people feel valued and a part of our family is to keep in constant contact with them – but without committing the sins of spamming or making them feel as though we’re constantly trying to sell them something.
So how can we keep in touch with our clients in order to remind them we’re there for them the next time they might be in need of photography services?
There are actually many ways, some of which might be obvious, others more subtle, but nonetheless extremely valuable:
With all of these methods, don’t consider them as marketing in a traditional sense, but think of them more like “touch points”. If all your newsletters are simply sales letters in disguise then your efforts may result in the client unsubscribing because they feel they are being sold to far too much. Keep newsletters to a more general or personal level with only the briefest mentions of special offers etc.
Cards in the mail, especially handwritten ones, are an amazing way to give your clients a feeling of personal attention. Send a thank you card after a consultation, when a client books, after a sale etc. If you photograph weddings, then a card on their anniversary says that you remember them – you can even include a complimentary portrait session as a special gift to encourage them to come back to the studio.
Occasional phone calls are also valued and very persona in nature. Everyone is busy these days and nothing says that you value your client more than giving up some of your valuable time to talk to them on the phone, perhaps to follow up after a sale or to simply check on them and pass the time of day.
Make it a point to cultivate your current clients and you will reap the rewards. After all, we know that it can be many times more expensive to find new clients than it is to keep the ones we already have. Don’t be misled into thinking that people will only buy from you once!
To sum up the intent of all this communication – in my opinion, I feel that people are best sold on you when they feel they are not being sold to.
Wedding photography is not an easy service to sell – we have to work hard at attracting prospective clients before we even have a chance to try to book them. Bridal shows, advertising, marketing campaigns – and many more avenues – all require huge amounts of effort just to get brides to notice that we’re there.
Then, the really hard work starts.
If we’re lucky enough to get a living, breathing, talking bride on the telephone we have the chance to find out as much as we can about their wedding plans, the kind of client they might be and whether or not they would be a good match for our business.
After all that hard work, we arrive at the end of the conversation and suggest that they meet with us for a consultation only to hear the response, “I need to talk to my fiancé or parents about this and then I’ll call you back to set up a time…”
Many of us at this point say, “Oh, okay, no problem. Talk it over and then call me back. I look forward to talking to you again soon. Bye.”
Of course, it’s more than likely that we’ll never hear from her again.
For a long time, I thought there was no solution to this problem. I assumed that I was being nice by not pressuring the bride and that they really would talk it over and call back.
Little did I realize that what they’re really saying is something like this: “I like what you’ve said so far, but you haven’t established a real connection with me or convinced me that I should hire you. There’s also another reason why I’m not sure about this, but I don’t know you or trust you enough to tell you what it is, so I’m going to make up an excuse to get off the phone…”
Knowing this, we can now see that the fault is entirely of our own making. Maybe we didn’t take the time to build enough rapport with her, or perhaps we forgot to find out what the most important thing about her wedding is. Did we educate her about the factors that separate us from the other photographers in the area?
Did we ask enough emotional questions? Did we show true interest in her and her wedding? How excited and passionate did we sound? Did we take the time to find out what the most important buying decision is for her?
More importantly, who was in control of the conversation? Usually, that’s the person asking the questions, which should be us. Even more importantly still, ask questions and then listen to the answers. It’s a fact that successful sales people spend more time listening than talking.
Now, when asked to arrange a face-to-face consultation, if they respond with, “I need to talk to my fiancé or parents about this and then I’ll call you back to set up a time…”, there are ways to find out what they really mean.
For example, you might reply with something like, “I understand what you mean. But, if I may ask, what do you feel they will say when you talk to them about what we’ve discussed today?”
This gives them the opportunity to voice whatever real concerns they might have. For example:
Now you have a chance to either address the problem or let them go based on the fact that they might not be qualified clients. I’ve come to the conclusion that every phone consultation I have should either result in a definite face-to-face meeting or a mutual agreement that I’m probably not the photographer for them. This eliminates all the frustration of waiting for people to call back, or having to chase them up with fruitless phone calls that waste both my time and theirs.
This can all be achieved without resorting to aggressive sales techniques or being pushy. Simply talking to the client, asking appropriate and emotionally based questions, and listening to the answers are all it takes
Remember, though, that we can’t work with every single person that calls us – we have to send some people away for one reason or another. Just knowing that puts us more in control of things and takes away some of the pressure we put on ourselves to be successful.
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