CHARLES J. LEWIS ONLINE NEWSLETTER
Marketing & Sales Secrets For Charles Lewis
Photographic Members ONLY!
HOT-TIP
Photographing weddings can be a real PAIN IN THE YOU-KNOW-WHAT. Don't get me wrong, the emotion of the day is wonderful, and I LOVE creating images of the couple on
their big day, but let's be honest: I'd much rather NOT have to work long hours on nights and weekends!
So, my philosophy is this: If you're going to photograph weddings, let's make sure we make GREAT money doing it.
And, now for the BIG SECRET HERE - the one that most photographers never really think about or realize:
Every wedding you photograph is a HUGE PHOTOGRAPHY MARKETING OPPORTUNITY FOR YOU!
Aside from just making great money from photographing the wedding itself (and any family orders after the fact), remember that every wedding has anywhere from 50 to sometimes 500 or more people attending! THAT'S A CAPTIVE AUDIENCE WHO IS GOING TO BE SEEING YOU AT WORK!
Now, you need to capitalize on this chance to market yourself, all WITHOUT detracting in any way from the wedding itself.
Here are some thoughts about this:
Just imagine - what if we could do something at the wedding that would be a GREAT service to the bride and groom, that would also allow us to charge MORE for each wedding, AND would also be one of the best ways EVER to bring in NEW CLIENTS - all at once! How great would that be?
Well, you CAN do just that. It's called the "REFLECTIONS" program, where you create photographs of the bride and groom PRIOR to the wedding, and you put these images to music and present them as a "slide show" at the reception in front of EVERYONE ATTENDING!
This is such an awesome thing - because the clients love it, everyone at the reception loves it, and after the presentation, you'll have tons of people coming up to you asking about your photography! FREE MARKETING - in fact, the client PAID YOU MORE to do this for them! (Be sure you are the one who introduces this exciting presentation at the reception - that way everyone there now knows who you are!)
Now, here comes the part you need to do right. Once people start coming up to you (or your assistant while you're taking photographs at the reception), it's very important that you have something powerful to give them (NOT just a business card), or better yet, you capture their name, address, and email address so YOU can take the initiative of sending them more information.
YOU MUST BE PRO-ACTIVE HERE!
Don't just expect that people are going to remember you and seek you out after the wedding. We must go after them, but in a way that does not feel like pressure or "slick salesmanship."
So, here are 3 ways I would recommend to take action at the wedding to get NEW clients who are ready to work with you:
#1 - My FAVORITE WAY - when someone comes up to you after the REFLECTIONS program (or anytime, even if you don't do the reflections program), GET THEIR NAME, address and email address. The way I like to do it is to actually WRITE DOWN THEIR INFORMATION myself as I chat with them briefly. This builds rapport with them, and shows that you're taking an honest interest in them by taking the time to jot down their info and talk with them.
Again, you might not have time to do this yourself, but if you can, DO IT! Otherwise do this....
#2 - NEXT BEST THING - when someone comes up to you after the REFLECTIONS program (or anytime, even if you don't do the reflections program), GET THEIR NAME, address and email address. The best way to do this is to either give them a business-card sized card with a pen. The card looks something like this:
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Notice how simple this card is. Nothing fancy, and it doesn't need to be. They fill it out, and give it right back to you or your assistant. Now, YOU can take action to followup with them, instead of waiting for them to followup with you!
After you get this card, or their name and info from method #1, you do a sequence of mailings, the first of which is this special report. It gives them great information, as well as a special offer to have their photography done.
You now have their name and address, so you can followup with them as many times as needed.
#3 - Give them a liftcard with a special offer, a call to action, and a deadline on it. This is so much more powerful than just giving them the typical business card, since the liftcard has photographs and testimonials on one side, and GREAT rapport-building copy on the other that includes a call to action, a deadline, and lots of reasons to respond NOW. As you know, if we don't get them to take action right away, they will never do it. So, we must give them honest and compelling reasons to ACT NOW.
That's why I like #1 and #2 better, because we are taking the initiative to contact them instead of the other way around.
Even if you don't do the reflections presentation at your weddings, make sure you use this technique to build your list anyway. You'll no doubt still have some people that come up to you during the wedding and reception to ask about your work. Now, you know what to do!
Keep your eyes open for the next HOT-TIP coming soon!
Charles J. Lewis
"Use Your Weddings To
FEED YOUR PORTRAIT BUSINESS - How To Make More Money AFTER The Wedding Than During It!"
By Charles Lewis
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