June 21, 2009

Image from Despair INC. Their funny people.

by Gavin Seim: How often have you walked from of a business, annoyed at the lack of service? Businesses close everyday because people didn’t care enough to please. No matter what you sell, you need to give customers a happy experience. As photographers this is especially true. We’re selling quality and an experience, not a piece of paper. Similar in many ways to a movie theater, so today I’m using them as an example.

Last night I went to a theater called the Majestic in Yakima WA. Yep, I’m naming names. This is one of the worst Theaters in Washington because they don’t care. Poor management and inexperienced kids run the show. This “could” be a really nice theater, but you can almost feel the chilling lack of interest the moment you walk thru the door.

I went to see UP with family (fun movie by the way). The last show of the evening started and about half way thru I went to grab snacks. I was met by dimmed lights and told by a group of kids around sixteen that they were closing and cleaning so they could go home. Questioning this, I was informed that the owners make the decision. Then one young employee proceeded to make snotty remarks saying she likes the way they do it just fine and that they have lives too! Not kidding.

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May 6, 2009

I’ve been making a point to attend more workshops and sessions this year. There’s just so much to learn and I owe it to my business, my clients (and you readers) to absorb information. We should all take the time to learn expand and share. Speaking of which I twitter favorite tips while I’m at sessions. You find my twitter feed here. In person workshops just have something more than you can get online.

wakeupcall

Last night I attended David Ziser’s Digital WakeUp Call. David is the legendary photographer who writes Digital Pro Talk. He’s also a great salesman and presenter and seeing him in person was a real treat. He talked marketing, workflow, lighting and more. Wow, it was a load of information and tips a short time. Not to mention that the extras you get make the low cost of admission more than worth it and that  there were loads of great door prizes.

I also met some of you listeners there which was super cool. Afterwords David, myself and a few others who had  helped David and his wife LeDawn (what a hard worker she was) with setup lounged around and talked shop for awhile. It was a fun evening.

If you can get to the WakeUp Call don’t miss it. You can get in for $59 if you sign up with promo code ZGSDWC09

wall-portrait-conf

Then last week I also attended the legendary Wall Portrait Conference lead by Ken Whitmire. It’s more spendy, but a six day INTENSE workshop focusing on taking your portraits and sales to the next level.

All I can say is WOW. Ken was such a neat old guy, and all week we had great speakers Like Bruce & Josh Husdon, Sam Gardener, and many more, filling our professional quiver with more arrows. Any photographer who’s not selling large portraits from their sessions as a norm needs to attend this conference.

The WP Conference is only once a year. I’m going to try and work out a discount for PPS’ers with Ken, so stay tuned.

I’ll be talking about workshops and all I’m learning more on the podcast, but the bottom line is get out there. Their worth the time and money. There’s even my own 3 day HDR workshop coming this fall where you’ll learn how to use HDR properly, avoid overuse and take images to the next level. Check it out here.

Gavin Seim

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May 2, 2009

seim-wedding-caveb-photo-47-650x299

19 Tips To Get 300 Client Inquiries: Special guest post by Matt McGraw.

1.
Vendors, vendors, vendors. Their important. From reception caterers to cake makers. I do a pre-questionnaire for my brides and grooms. In that questionnaire I find out who I am working with, from DJs ,to Florist, to cake people, to ministers to, reception places etc. I obtain all the contact information for these vendors. After the wedding I compile a list of photos that each vendor would find interest in. I splash my logo and email them the images, then say if they would like any of the photos in high res and without my logo to let me know.

For reception sites: If it’s somewhere I have never worked I’ll send them a 20X30 print with my logo splashed all over it and 4X6s of the same photo with my contact info to pass out to potential brides. I’ll also send them a disc with images they might be interested in and tell them they can use whatever photos they would like to.

Become buddies with the vendors too. For example, I’m on a “hug basis” with the sales directors of 5 major hotels in town. Their cell numbers are in my phone. I photograph their kids. I’ll sometimes meet them for a beer or two. I never promote my photography. It’s always buddy talk. Sure we talk shop sometimes, but it’s not my goal. They feel comfortable around me.

2.
Newsletter/blog: Start one… I use constant contact set up a page and send mine out once a month. My email list is 6300 strong. Most photographers have a webpage set up. We do not.. I’m not opposed to that but I just prefer the email newsletter.

Next question for you is how we get 6300 people on there. Anyone that emails me gets on the list.
The only people who do not get on my list are emails that are inquiring where I am not available. Also I advertise in two magazines where they provide a lead sheet. I’ll copy and paste emails of brides and grooms where I am not booked. I do this once a month right before I send out the newsletter.

3.
Advertising: In the beginning of your career, spend most of your advertising money online as opposed to print. Print is just name recognition. They’ll see or hear your name and see an ad and say I’ve heard of this photographer.

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January 21, 2009

by Gavin Seim: This weekend I had a booth at the Wenatchee Bridal Show. The confession I have to make is this. While I was happy with my setup and received great feedback, I ran into my typical problem. I was not a good enough salesman.

Now those of you that listen to Pro Photo Show know that I’m not a shy person. It’s as if like I sit in my booth making weird sounds as I flick my lip with an index finger making that interesting “buh buh buh” sound. Nope, I do fine interacting with people and being professional. Until it’s time to seal the sale that is.

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January 16, 2009

By Gavin Seim:  Being a fabulous photographer is great, but if you want to pay the bills with your passion you have to make sales and take great images. Here’s some great content from PPS and some other great sites to help out. I’ll be updating this post as I find great content on how to market and sell to your clients and a few posts dealing with shooting itself. If you know of some great articles on selling, post em up in the comments. For more good stuff see the Best Of Pro Photo Page

Good reads.

14 Steps To A Successful Sales Presentation:
Another good Ziser post. Fourteen steps David uses in his presentation to help him make great portrait sales.

How to Logo & Brand Your Images:
Branding is important and if you’re sending portraits out the door without it you’re throwing away money.

Selling to an out of town client:
Another Ziser classic. Full of tips on how you can keep sales high, even when you can’t meet in person.

The Portrait Consultation: Part1, Part2 A multi part series from David Ziser (we’ll update it as he publishes them). Selling a portrait is not just about getting a session booked. It’s about selling large prints and making the session profitable.

Large Wall Portraits. Why the 8×10 is stealing your thunder.
One of the host hotly discussed and perhaps the most valuable marketing articles ever on PPS. The ideas may be bold, but they absolutely work. whether you choose to listen or debate them is up to you. Join the discussion.

Copyrighting Your Images: It’s a part of the business that we tend to avoid, but it’s important and once you get the hang of it it becomes easy.

20 Ways To Appreciate Your Customers:
Can’t go wrong making happy customers.

Podcasts…

Pro Photo Show #60. Not Wearing Pants: A good episode overall, but starting at 1:34:10 we start getting into standing out and being something more than a weekend warrior. Then we move right into selling large portraits and how key it is. Be prepared for a few Gavin rants.

Pro Photo Show 53: This episode is a favorite and it’s full of good stuff. The whole show is well worth a listen, but starting at time index 44:28 we’re joined by Kevin Swan. Listen through to the end because the longer he talks the more you’ll glean.

Pro Photo Show 51: Another fun roundatble. At time index 52:33 guest photographer Scott & Adina Hayne talk about the marketing they used to build their wedding business in record time. This is also where they share info on leveraging Facebook to held build your business.

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