Becoming a great sales person is vital to your success in photography. Yes, marketing is important. If your photography marketing sucks, no one will know you exist. But even with great photo marketing, if your sales skills are bad, you still won’t make any money.
Now, when I talk about ”selling” I do NOT mean trickery, manipulation or pressure. That’s not selling at all, and we want NOTHING to do with that.
What I do mean is you must discover how to be persuasive. How to be able to gently influence your client’s and prospect’s decisions in a good, positive way.
Here’s 4 powerful sales secrets that will revolutionize your photography business if you use them:
Sales Secret #1: You sell what you show, absolutely. So be certain you only show in your business what you want to sell. In my case, it’s wall portraits as fine home décor. So there is NOTHING in my studio smaller than 24×30 (and only one of that size.) I show 2 – 40×50′s, a 40×40, a 32×50, a 30×40 and one 24×30. That’s all! Each portrait is beautifully enhanced, framed and displayed just like it will be displayed in a client’s home.
Sales Secret #2: Your telephone is your most important tool – not your camera or computer. Basically, all your business comes through this tool. Yes, you have people email you, but eventually each and every prospect should end up talking with you in person on the telephone. So be sure you use this powerful tool correctly.
For today, let’s just mention the #1 best way to use the telephone – ask questions of your callers. Don’t just talk and talk about how great you are. Instead, ask her questions that show you care about what she’s looking for and why she’s thinking of having a fine photograph created at this time. This builds trust and rapport with her, and encourages her to “move to the next step” in working with you.
Sales Secret #3: Volunteer your fees before you are asked – this says two things – 1.) you’re worth it and 2.) you’re proud of the fees. Don’t try to avoid this. Instead, after asking several good questions, volunteer the fees yourself, before she asks you to. This is what I call the “Volunteer Statement” and it must be memorized word for word so you say it the same way, every single time.
Here’s our Volunteer Statement for our studio, for portraiture: “Before we go any further, let me give you an indication of what you can plan on investing. Is that okay? (Wait for her to answer.) Most people in your situation can plan on investing between $X and $Y and get a larger one for themselves, and a few smaller ones for gifts. Does that fit within your budget?”
Sales Secret #4: The first impression is the lasting impression, so be sure that first impression is a good one. This involves things like how you are dressed, the vocabulary you use, how meticulously clean the studio is, how the exterior of your studio appears as she walks up to the door, etc.
Remember, you are dealing in appearances. One of my favorite sayings is: “The reason people say ‘Don’t judge a book by it’s cover,’ is that everyone does.”
Put more of your time and efforts into perfecting your sales skills – it will pay off in a big way in your photography business!
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All the best to you and your photography,
Charles Lewis