New photographers will often write us and ask us how come they can’t book any sessions, they are giving them away for free but it seems like no one wants it. If you’re having this problem, we are here to help!
It’s like the theory of the couch sitting on the side of the road. If the word ‘Free’ is on the couch, NO one will take the couch because they assume something is wrong with the couch. However, if there’s a price tag of $75 on it, the couch will be stolen before the next morning. The price tag adds value to the couch, which adds a want aspect to the person looking at the couch.
Please note: No couch theft is actually occurring in this photo. 😉
The same holds true for your photography. If you are on your fan page posting that you are giving away free sessions (or extremely cheap) and asking who is interested, my guess is you may or may not see some interest. If you are always posting that you have these sessions available, potential clients will not hold a value to your work. I see this happen all the time where photographers will devalue their work on their own Facebook page and they don’t even realize that they are doing it.
Please be careful what you say on your social media sites. If a client did not pay an invoice, please do not announce it to the world. It’s making you look bad and you are devaluing your own work. Let’s say you are booking mini sessions and you only have 6 slots available. Right away, they are all booked and then a few days later, a client drops out. Don’t say something about the client dropping out, just mention that you have another opening available. Some of these thoughts might seem like no-brainers but I’m telling you – sometimes other photographers need to hear this.
Let’s look at these two statuses and you’ll see which one sounds better:
- Sample Status 1: Well, just had someone back out of one of my mini session slots. Please please please know ahead of time if the time you select will work for you and your family. Mini session scheduling can be so frustrating!
- Sample Status 2: I have some AWESOME news for you guys! We have another opening available for our mini sessions on (insert date). I can’t believe the response we have had for these sessions! If you are interested please email us at (insert email address) to reserve this spot! I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but this slot is first come, first served. I wish I could give one to all of you!
See how sample status 2 just really makes it look like people are flocking to your photography studio? People want that. If they see this kind of want for your mini sessions and that you are…gasp, dare I say it…turning people away, this will make them JUMP at the chance of getting into one of your next mini sessions. You have to build anticipation.
Have you ever offered a client a great deal or a free session and they didn’t show up? If you add value to your work, they are not going to miss out on a session that is normally expensive. But if they think that the session is extremely cheap or even free to begin with, the chances of them not showing up is increased.
Maybe your work is on point, but you can’t get people to buy at the price you’ve set. Let’s talk now for a minute about how to hold the value of your work and book clients at your price-point. Let’s say you’ve advertised on your social media, but nobody wants to book at the price you’re selling at.
This happened to me when I first started selling weddings. I live in a small town and people here didn’t want to pay my asking price. There is a nearby town, however, where everything is more expensive. Everyone has a place like this in their region. There are more boutique shops here, the cost of living is more expensive and high end. I decided to heavily target that area to see if that would bring in more business without me having to discount my work.
It worked, and because of this, I booked a ton of weddings in that part of town and only a handful in my own hometown. If you’re not booking the types of clients you want, you have to look at where you’re marketing. Also remember that the type of work you produce is the type of client that you will attract. If you want high end fashion-forward clients, you need to be posting photos of fashionistas as your portfolio work. If you don’t have anything like this in your portfolio, try posting a model call for clients in a fashion-forward area of town. This will help you draw in more of the clients that you want.
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