Photography Tips: One Night Stand Marketing
“ONE NIGHT STAND” MARKETING
There are several photographers who are SO good, they can get away with one night stands. They dress up real nice, smell good, take you to a nice studio, & turn on the charm. They will even do fancy lighting & hot posing, end the session on a crescendo (and does it well I might add), & sell the snot out of their images. Then they move on to the next session.
No follow up phone calls, no thank you notes, & no little surprise gifts, and they certainly won’t stay in touch. They hope they were SO good that the client tells another client how amazing he was during the session. Sure, it CAN be done but I wouldn’t bet on it with my family’s future.
Building a long term business with this model must be hard!
“ROMANCING THE CLIENT” MARKETING
How often are you romanced as a client? How often do salespeople follow up? Rarely is probably the answer. Most businesses try to survive by getting new business. Well folks, getting NEW business is the most expensive way to grow any business. Nothing beats having your clients come back and send you referrals. It’s the best marketing dollar you can invest!
Romancing a client takes continual courting/effort.
You are…
* Putting your best foot forward
* Staying in touch consistently
* Doing more than expected
* Doing the little things
* Saying nice things
* Giving surprise gifts
* Showing appreciation
* Saying Thank You & Please
* Always trying to delight the client
* Putting the relationship before the transaction
* Sending “Thank You” notes
* Having a Lifetime Member Program
* Remembering Birthdays
* Sending Newsletters
What will happen if you do these things? People will CARE about YOU and YOUR BUSINESS in return. It’s reciprocity. It works.
You NEED your clients to care about you. You also NEED to occupy the part of their brain that yells out YOUR NAME when someone mentions “photography”.
What happens in most relationships when the courting ends? It ends!
Sending a newsletter consistently to your clients is the best way to stay in touch with your clients Does “courting” cost you money? You bet it does. I ran across a quote you should read. “Doing Something Costs Something. Doing Nothing Costs Something. And Quite Often, Doing Nothing Costs a Lot More”.
I challenge you to THINK about how you ROMANCE your clients. Building a true business is like a long term marriage. You want your clients to stick around. Don’t take them for granted. Make them feel special. Make them feel loved.
George Dean
PhotographyNewsletter.com
PS If you are not courting your clients, there are 20 new photographers in your area that would LOVE to get their hands on your clients. Heck, you have already trained them to buy portraits! Protect your clients with a wall of love. One that can not be broken down by cheaper prices from the new guy in town who has yet to learn that “P” does NOT stand for Professional.
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