We are artists. Most of us are very serious about what we do, and want to be proud of our photography. But here’s a fact: Your photography marketing and selling skills are way, way more important than your photography skills. Now, don’t get me wrong – you do have to consistently produce a quality product that your clients love – but there’s way more to it than just that.
You have to have your photography marketing and sales express what is truly “artistic” about you. By that I mean you can’t just have a pretty website, or a pretty photography brochure and think that’s going to bring you in enough clients to make the kind of money you dream of. It takes way more than that. Your photography marketing has to have an artistic feel to it, yes – but it also MUST be PERSUASIVE! If it’s not persuasive, not enough people will take action and contact you – and your photography business will fail.
So if you want to be here tomorrow, and the day after, realize right here and now that “Pretty Isn’t Good Enough” when it comes to your photography marketing. The words are way more important. Tell your prospects what it is that separates you from all the other photographers in the area. (I call these your “Unique Factors” and they’re really important.) And talk artistically, in an EMOTIONAL way – since we know that people invest in photography for emotional reasons. And always, always include testimonials and photos from clients who loved what you did for them. Doing these things will make your photography marketing artistic and emotional, and most importantly – persuasive.
And for your photography selling – sell like an artist – using your enthusiam for your craft! Be just as passionate when you present your photographs to your clients as you were when you were creating those images. And, for goodness sake, PROJECT your images for your clients – do NOT show them “thumbnails” or any kind of “Proooooooof.” No way. Your time and your skills are way too valuable to do that! Use a digital projector to project your images into a 40×50 frame over a sofa. This will make both you and your client very happy. They will end up with a beautiful photograph on their wall, and you’ll end up with a client who tells all her friends how amazing you are as an artist.
Remember, people buy what you show them. Show them beautiful wall sized images, and many people will invest in those!
Do you have any comments or thoughts about this subject? Let me hear from you if you do.
All the best,
Chuck Lewis
