Photo Marketing Mentor

When I was kid there used to be a commercial that would air every night that asked the question “It’s 10 P.M. do you know where your children are?

I was thinking about that commercial recently and it got me thinking about your clients and customers.

Do we know where they are? More specifically do we know where the ideal ones are?

When I say I ideal, I’m talking about the people you absolutely love to work with.

In my opinion these are the characteristics of an ideal client: Read more »

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Before I go into the topic of this week’s article I want to share with you what inspired it.

It was my sister’s birthday last week and I called to give her my well wishes. During our conversation she informed me that our father was reading my new book, her exact words were that he was reading it cover to cover.

Without going into too much detail about my family’s history this was huge deal for me. Often times the ones we receive the least amount of support -or- the most criticism is from family and “close” friends.

This is not to say that those who love and care for us go out of their way to put us down. It’s just their way of attempting to protect us from disappointment or discomfort.

So when my sister shared this with me it had a greater impact than perhaps I realized in the moment. Immediately after our conversation I began thinking about all the things I was grateful for in my life and I decided to make a quick post on Facebook to share the news about my dad.

But before I do that I’ll tell you how this story ties into today’s article.

After I made my post to Facebook I immediately began receiving comments and “likes”. A couple dozen to be exact, definitely more than I’ve ever received for any of my previous posts.

Apparently parental support is a huge issue for a lot of us. So this got to me thinking about the power of sharing bits and pieces of our personal story with our followers.

I’ll be the first to admit that I don’t always feel comfortable sharing intimate details of my personal life on the web, especially in regards to my family.

But I’ll tell you that I learned something very valuable when I shared that tidbit about my dad on Facebook, the first being that our followers deeply desire to connect with us on a deeper level.

In general I believe we deeply desire real connection, we all want to know what connects us, what makes us relatable?

I have no doubt that some of you reading this have gotten flak from someone close to you who doesn’t understand your decision to turn your passion for photography into a livelihood.

Maybe it’s a close friend, a spouse, your parents or a sibling who’s suggested (perhaps numerous times:-) that you should forget about this “picture-taking thing” and go get a “proper job”.

If you’ve experienced this in your life then you can understand how having the support of the people closest to you can make a significant impact on your life. Just having someone tell you that they’re proud of you can totally shift your energy and make your journey less lonely.

I believe that one of the most important things you can do for yourself is to remember what you’re grateful for in your life.

It could be the clients you do have, having access to camera gear that works, definitely a supportive family member or friend.

Or it could be that at this stage you truly know what you want out of your life regardless if you’re living the outcome you initially envisioned at the moment.

Whatever it is, I suggest you write it down.

• Start your day and end your day in a state of gratitude.

• Share what you’re grateful on your Blog or Facebook like I did.

• Call someone, send an email or a hand written note to tell someone that you’re grateful for them being in your life.
• Stop going it alone and get support.  I offer a monthly support call for this very purpose.

The Benefits for Expressing Gratitude:

• Regular expression of gratitude is the key to having more opportunities show up in your life to be grateful for.
• Studies show that people who regularly express gratitude are less stressed and have better relationships.
• People love to connect with people who are real and transparent. Freely sharing what you’re grateful is the bridge towards genuine connection.

Your homework:

• Try expressing gratitude for what you have in your life presently. It could be anything or anyone. Try it for a week and notice how you feel.
• Tell someone one close to you that you’re grateful for them being there. Do this with no expectation.
• If you’re active on social media share one thing your grateful for this week. Alternatively you could post it to your blog.
• Check out a website called GratitudeLog.com.
• If you’d like to learn more about my monthly support community visit my website to learn more about my book. It includes FREE access to my monthly support calls.

I’m a member of the site and it’s a great forum to connect with others who have made a commitment to live a life dedicated to gratitude.

I’ll leave you with this quote:

“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order and confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.”
~Melody Beattie

There are many, many things in my life for which I am grateful. If I named everything I would be here all day, but for starters I tell you that:

I’m grateful that you inspire me to continue to do the work I do.

All of the articles and books I continue to write, the tele-classes I conduct, your comments and feedback, to my affiliations, partnerships and colleagues I am grateful for it all.

I’m grateful to all the people who continue to inspire me with their courage and tenacity for that I am most grateful.

And finally if you’re reading this I can easily tell you one thing I’m truly grateful for… YOU!

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CLARION CALL 2 is AVAILABLE NOW!

Secure Your Ticket By Clicking On The Image Above

Let’s speak candidly for a moment. Are you tired of struggling to find new prospects and then struggling to get them to become paying clients?

When you ask a prospective client about their budget for a job you’re bidding on do you often hear the following statements, “We don’t have one” or “We don’t have a lot of money” or the always frustrating, “Oh, I have a brother or a friend whose just graduated from art school, maybe I’ll get them to shoot it for their portfolio”.

Let me ask you another question? How do you respond? Read more »

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If you’ve followed me for any length of time you know that I talk a great deal about marketing.

Obviously I love marketing, well… good marketing anyway.

But, today I want to talk about something that I truly believe is not only the cornerstone of success, but the foundation of any successful marketing campaign. Want to know what it is? It’s very simple. It’s the ability to dream big and take action.

I was listening to a podcast recently with “Chicken Soup of the Soul” author Jack Canfield and in his interview he talked about the power of dreaming big.

As a matter of fact his direct quote was, “It doesn’t take any more time to dream BIG than it does to dream small” – end quote.

Jack’s words truly resonated with me ~ so much so that it inspired me to write the article you are now reading.

I pondered his words continually as I wrote and I want to share those thoughts (inspired by Jack) and how you can directly apply them to your marketing efforts.

1. Take 5 to 10 minutes everyday to visualize yourself experiencing success. This is self explanatory, but even if you think visualizing is woo-woo there is tremendous power in actually seeing yourself accomplishing something you truly want to experience.

If you have trouble visualizing, think about this way: visualizing is not hard when you realize that you already have hundreds (if not thousands) of random thoughts running through your mind all day, everyday anyway.

So if you’re going to think thousands of thoughts daily, why not carve out a small amount of time everyday to think the kind of thoughts that actually support you? Try it. Not only try it, but commit to it. It does work.

2. Be a joiner. I believe that the biggest problem facing most self employed people (especially Creatives) is isolation. No one knows better than me about the power of the computer and the internet.

“Get out of the house, put down the Blackberry, leave the laptop at home and take the time to actually connect with people face to face.”

Using myself as an example I love to sit at my laptop either at home or at a coffee shop writing, sometimes for hours.  Second to writing my next favorite thing to do is image editing either for myself or for my clients.  Sitting at your computer for hours tweeting is only one way to get the word out about your services and connecting with others. At the end of the day nothing beats face to face contact.

Personally, I believe that as we continue embrace the digital mobile lifestyle our internal need to connect with real live people will continue to grow stronger. So, in nut shell: Get out of the house, put down the Blackberry, leave the laptop at home and take the time to actually connect with people face to face.

Don’t assume that the only places where you make business connections is via stuffy networking groups. On the contrary, the venues where you can connect with others needn’t be stuffy nor pretentious.

For example, you can meet people while waiting in line at a gourmet food truck (don’t laugh, they’ve become all the rage here in Los Angeles) or over drinks (just be mindful of your alcohol consumption) or at a class, seminar, workshop or gallery opening.

Freely share who you are and what you offer (just don’t turn your introduction into a long sales pitch) more important that you demonstrate genuine interest in the people you connect with.

Support others in accomplishing their goals and be sure to exchange contact info and finally (this is key) . . . follow up!

3. Pour your purse into your head. In other words, invest in yourself. Don’t resist buying that book, taking that course, calling that mentor or key contact that you met at a networking event.

Keep this in mind: an opportunity is only as powerful as your ability to take action on it when it presents itself.

Commit to investing a percentage of your income back into growing yourself personally and professionally. With that said, I want to point out something: when you invest in yourself personally you’re actually investing in yourself professionally and vice versa.

If you haven’t yet figured this out: You are your business.

So to recap keep these three tips in mind as you move forward:

1. See it – Take just 5 minutes everyday to see yourself achieving (as well as experiencing) your dream.

2. Join it – Make a commitment to get out of the house at least once a week to connect with real live people.

3. Invest it – No one can invest in your dream if you don’t.

Starting this month, ear mark a certain percentage of your current income back to growing yourself personally/professionally.

It could be a new book or a class, it could be a new shirt to wear to social gatherings or it could be a massage or new journal. The amount doesn’t matter as much as your commitment.

And speaking of investing and connecting you can get started today by adding my new book Eye On Marketing: 41 Days From Struggle and Confusion to Clarity & Profits to your business building toolkit.

This book continues to garner attention that surprises me beyond words.

Eye On Marketing is a step by step daily action guide and resource designed to help you grow your photography or any creative passion that you want to turn into a profitable business.  Visit my page to read all the endorsements from industry insiders as well review all of the benefits and bonuses I included:

Over $97 dollars worth to be exact and my latest bonus includes a private readers only monthly Q&A call.  As a matter of fact our next call happens on Wednesday April 27th at 4 P.M. PST/7 P.M. EST.

Our monthly calls are the perfect opportunity for you to receive on-the-spot support.

I designed these calls to provide you with direct answers to your most pressing marketing and business building questions all for an unheard of investment.  Less than $25 dollars!

So please stop going it alone. Get the support and resources you need to turn your passion into a profitable business. Take the next step join us here.

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There are some school of thoughts in the online marketing world who believe or least predict that email marketing either doesn’t work or will soon die.

I still believe that no matter what you do to market your business online having a list of pre-qualified subscribers who have raised their hands and said yes, yes I want to hear from you, I want you to teach me something, show me something and yes eventually offer me something that I can purchase from you is like having an ATM machine on your desktop.

In this brief tips article I want to share with you 5 tips that will put you on the road to turning your inbox into a ATM.  Now I don’t know about you but there is no better feeling than finding receipts in your inbox full of purchases made while you slept.

It’s not necessarily free money, (there is definitely work involved) but I can tell you from personal experience, when it works, it will certainly feel like it.

Today’s article is a brief introduction to the process of email marketing, enjoy it and after you’re done reading take my FREE poll and tell me what’s on your mind.

1.  Focus on building a ‘real’ relationship with your audience. People to love to work with people that they feel like they know like and trust. Any attempt to market your photography services, prints or stock images will fall on deaf ears or in this case ‘eyes’ if you fail to do this.

In the beginning stages of building your list focus your efforts on establishing that know, like and trust factor with your readers.  How?  Easy, by finding out what’s on their mind and developing and delivering compelling content that answers questions and engages them on a consistent basis.

2.  Don’t assume anything. This ties directly to relationship building in tip #1. Part of getting people to like and trust you include listening to them.  Your readers want to feel heard and that’s why you want all of your email marketing efforts to be engaging.  What’s the quickest way to accomplish this? Ask questions.

You may have an idea around a particular package or program you want to design that excites you but may be less than exciting to your readers.  Don’t assume because you can, you should.

3.  Use surveys and polls to engage with readers. Short surveys or polls are an easy way to ask your readers questions about new products, packages or programs you’re considering.  A service I use regularly is called Survey Monkey.  Survey Monkey will allow you craft surveys up to 10 questions for free.  More than ten requires a minimum monthly charge of $19.99 per month.

If you own a blog you may want to consider a service called Polldaddy.  Polldaddy isn’t as sophisticated as Survey Monkey in my opinion but it’s an easy way to get quick answers to specific questions.  Either strategy will let you take the temperature of your readers before investing in a creating a service that could be a snooze.

4.  Launch your products and programs as an event. Think about it, we all love the idea of a good party.  With that said don’t just casually mention a product, program or service in your newsletter. No, if you want results make an announcement of it.

Think of it this way, when Macy’s wants to increase the foot traffic in their stores they don’t just say “We’re having a sale on Saturday if you’re in the neighborhood please come in”, or worse, they say nothing at all.  Macy’s announces a 1-Day Sale Extravaganza complete with blockbuster deals, limited quantities, balloons etc.

5.  Seeding your audience breed’s excitement. When you know you have something big coming up again don’t casually mention it.  No, seed it. Seeding is like dropping hints that something is coming.  Something big.  If you know that you want run a special or promotion or something big, start dropping hints to your subscribers several weeks before you actually announce your offer.

For example, a executive portrait photographer could seed his/her audience that their will be an opportunity coming soon where by they can have their portrait taken while being exposed to several key contacts in the local community and receive several business building strategies.

Do you see how someone on your list would see the value in this?

Now I would like to peek your curiosity with an opportunity that I’m working on and will be announcing very soon, but until I do this I want to ask you for something.

Below this article I have a short poll featured about a new program I’m working on that will teach you everything I know about email marketing strategies that work.

If you could be so kind to participate in this poll it would mean a lot and help me create something that will help you get results.

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It’s been said that it’s easier to keep a current client happy than to find a new one. Well, in todays business building tip article I will provide you with 6 ways to keep your current clients engaged and raving about you to their network colleagues and contacts.

1. Create a pre-session client questionnaire. This is your golden opportunity to learn your clients likes and dislikes.  For example: ask questions regarding their favorite things to eat and drink.  You can inquire about favorite music styles, type of flowers, room temperature etc.

The more you can learn about your clients personal preferences and then provide them during (or send as gifts) after the shoot the more impressed they will be with your attention to detail.

2. Schedule a brainstorming session with a business mentor or colleague to develop new and unique ways to provide a premium experience for your client

3. Setup an account with Sendoutcards.com to handle the delivery of custom note cards and small gift item fulfillment.

4. Publish an ‘experience’ magazine using a service called Magcloud.com – The magazine of course will feature your images plus articles and/or stories, suggestions, tips etc. Mail these exclusively to your ‘premium’ clients.

5. Think in terms of a ‘total’ experience. What I mean: from the moment the client says “yes” all the way to delivery of the images, leave no stone unturned. Examine and improve everything from your print materials to the packaging.

Offer a private members viewing area on your website, add a custom blog and registration area, send birthday note cards, cater a private lunch etc.

6. Try partnering with other businesses that can provide complimentary service. For example, restaurants or private chefs that can offer catered meals. Spas that provide facials, massages, makeup artists, hair stylists, etc.  Basically anything that can enhance your client’s experience and keep them talking about you in a positive way is golden.

Bonus Tip: Pick up the book “The Purple Cow” by Seth Godin. It is an excellent resource of ideas and inspiration to help you create a dynamic experience for your clients.

Did you like today’s tip article?

Would you like more tips, checklists, training resources and support to turn your passion for photography into a profit generating business?

If you answered yes consider adding my book Eye On Marketing: 41 Days From Struggle and Confusion to Clarity & Profits to your business building toolkit. This book is your “daily action guide” and marketing blueprint to a photography successful business.

But I will tell you that the suggestions and resources I provide in this book and complimentary online Jump Start Program can be by used any small business owner or creative professional.

Click the book cover featured above or right here to secure your copy today.  The book is available in both print ($24.95 +s/h) and $20.00 immediate digital download.

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Never has there been a more perfect medium for photographers to get the word out about their products and services than through video.

As visual artists you already have a built in treasure trove of content that easily translates to video.

In today’s article, I am going to illustrate how you can take images from your existing portfolio and use them to create high impact marketing videos that will attract new clients all with the push of a button.

1. Target the images you select for your video to a specific client. If your current body of work represents several distinct genres, you’ll want to tailor the images you select for your video with the same care and consideration as you would for your physical portfolio.

In other words, if your goal is to attract clients to hire you for food photography jobs then you only want to select images of food for your video.

Obviously the same rules as your print portfolios apply here.  You only want to use the best of the best.

2.  Resist the urge to make the video too long. Your goal is to entice the viewer to take the next step.  Remember you’re not creating a feature length film here.  In this instance you’re using your video to market your services to prospective clients.  Therefore, you want to show a targeted sampling of what you have to offer and to get to the point quickly.

If you have many images you want to show in your video, consider combining them in groups of two on a single frame using an image-editing program like PhotoShop.  To see an illustration of this see the image sample I created below using images from my own portfolio. These are two separate images joined together,

The goal is keep your video presentation to about two minutes or less in my opinion.

Quick Get Into Action Tip:

There’s no need to purchase an expensive camera or professional video editing software. To get your feet wet with video consider signing up for a free account with Animoto.com.  Animoto is an online video development and distribution service that will turn your photos into a professional high quality slideshow style presentation complete with music in a matter of minutes.

Again, check out the stunning video I created in less than 30 minutes using Animoto’s free service.

The video is less than 40 seconds in length but that’s enough to get my work out there in front of thousands of potential clients and customers.  Of course Animoto offers a variety of payment plans when you’re ready to upgrade your account.

The advantage of the advanced plans is that they are very affordable; as a matter fact you can get started for as little as $5 dollars a month.

Why would you want to upgrade?

Simple, if you want to create longer videos, longer than 30 seconds, then you’ll want to upgrade your account at least to the Plus Level priced at $5 a month or $30 annually.  Or if you want even more control over the videos you develop, including removing Animoto’s corporate branding, you may want to consider opting for either a Plus or a Pro account.

Advanced users have the most options including more audio tracks, more unique video styles and finally, what I believe is the most powerful feature, “end of video” buttons that appear at the end of your video.

These data collection forms are fantastic for capturing your viewers contact info without directly having to go to your website.

But again, if you just want to try out the service you can do that for free.

3.  Leverage the reach of your video to attract greatest number of prospects. Once you create your video your goal then becomes getting eyes to view it and you have several ways to accomplish this.

First, you’ll want to post the video to your existing blog and/or website.

Second, you’ll want to distribute the video on all of your existing social media outlets like YouTube, Twitter and Facebook if you have accounts (and you should and if you don’t, now is the perfect opportunity to set them up.

Third, e-mail a link to your video to your existing online mailing list.  Again, if you don’t have one, now is a great time to start building one.  As a matter of fact, you can use your video to actually build your list.  I’ll show you how in Step #4.

Finally, brand your video using your logo or business card into the actual video.

4.  Use your video(s) to build and grow your online mailing list. Video is engaging which is why it’s so popular.  And yet we are bombarded with thousands of messages on a daily basis.  So if you don’t want your marketing messages to fall through the cracks, you must focus on capturing the attention of your target audience quickly or you may lose the opportunity to ever engage them in a meaningful way.

It’s predicted that YouTube alone will garner more searches than Google in the coming years.  That’s why now is the perfect time to get started integrating video into your marketing plan.

Click here to see a sample of how I used a simple video to grow my mailing list.  Remind you that it’s a 30-second video (the limit posed by Animoto for trial subscribers), but obviously you can make your video longer.  The point I want to make here is not about the length of your video, but the impact you can create with it.

For starters, 30 seconds may be all you need to get your visitor to take the next step with you and that’s the point.  So I’m going to show you step by step how I create a 30 second video with my existing images and existing website and that video to ask people to sign up for my mailing list.

For a recipe that includes step-by-step instructions on how to create a branded video in Animoto, download my free guide here.

For the purpose of this training I decided to embed the file into this blog article allowing you to view it here.  But you shouldn’t limit your video to a blog post like this one.  This leads to the final step of your client attractive video.

5. Distribute your video wildly.  This is the final and most important step.  Every place online where you post your video, continually invite viewers to come to your website or blog.  Once they arrive invite them to sign up for your mailing list.  If your video is targeted and you’re connecting with the right people who want what you have to offer, you should have no problem accomplishing this.

Please visit my website to see example of how I did this.

Notice how I encouraged a call to action. I didn’t just ask visitors to sign up for my e-newsletter. I offered a complimentary telephone 15-minute consultation to discuss their next project -AND- I gave it an attention grabbing name.  This is key!

You should always speak of what you do using “benefit’s oriented language”. During that call I could offer a PDF tip sheet (see some examples of what I’m talking about below).

In my newsletter for example:

• I could write about using proper lighting techniques for food photography that evokes a mood or feeling
• I could show my readers ways they could use their images to drive more foot traffic into their store, or brand their products.
• Or I could create a tip sheet illustrating 10 ways my clients could use their images for their ongoing online promotions.  Then I could offer another one for offline promotions.
• If I’m interviewed for a food blog or magazine or podcast I could feature that in my newsletter and send my readers a link to read it or listen to the replay.

“The key here is to always engage my subscribers by encouraging them to take the next step!”

Of course I can always create more videos and send them by e-mail to my subscriber list.

I don’t know if you picked up on this?  But having the ability to create high-impact video for your photography clients could become a great additional profit center for your business as well.

Your action plan for this week:

Start investigating on how you can use video to attract more clients into your photography business.

As you can see with this lesson it costs you nothing more that a little bit of time to put one together.  Once you have it, you can distribute your video across all of your social media platforms to drive more traffic to your website.

Of course once they arrive you must have a data capture system in place to continue the conversation.

And finally, once you have their information you must actively engage them with relevant and timely content that will help them achieve their goals.

If you want more training on how to use video including How To Use Video Contests To Attract Clients, as well as how to set up your own e-mail management marketing system, consider getting a copy of my book:  Eye On Marketing:  41 Days From Struggle and Confusion to Clarity & Profits into your business building toolkit.

My book is like a marketing blueprint for creative professionals in a book!

In addition, book owners will receive my exclusive Eye On Marketing Jump Start Kit that includes 41 more ways to attract clients with referral marketing and e-mail marketing strategies.

You’ll also learn how to create a customer profile, plus you’ll get access to my checklists featured from the book to download, and much more, for a ridiculously low price of only $20 for the e-book or $24.95 for the print version.

To learn more and secure your copy visit my website at: http://www.eyeonmarketingsuccess.com/thebook.

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As a marketing coach and consultant I am always looking for ways to give my clients strategies they can use to acquire more and better paying clients.

But today I want to talk about something that is rarely spoken about for professional photographers.

And yet, it’s a subject that I know for a fact is vital to your success.

Focus On Providing Excellent Customer Service!

But before I talk about this I want to tell you what inspired this article.

Recently I decided to visit my local taqueria to get an order of my favorite Carne Asada taco’s. The restaurant offers really good food at even better prices, it’s a treat every time I go. I love the food but I can’t help noticing that no matter what I order or how busy (or slow) the restaurant it always to take fifteen to 20 minutes minimum or more to get my to-go order.

On a recent visit I noticed that they take phone in orders and so I thought “great, the next time I want dinner I’ll just phone it in”, pretty simple, right?

So a couple of days ago I was totally engrossed in work and I didn’t feel like cooking and remembered that my favorite taco stand takes phone orders. Instantly I grabbed my Blackberry, hit the speed dial (I’m a dedicated taco fan can’t you tell?) and within minuted placed my order to which I was told that my meal would be ready in 5 to 10 minutes. Great!

I finished up some phone calls and then hopped in the car for a literal 2 – 3 minute drive to the restaurant. Once I arrived I told the cashier that I wanted to pay for my phone in order and confirmed my name. I paid and the cashier promptly disappeared, I assumed to retrieve my order or so I thought.

He didn’t and I waited.

Soon two minutes quickly turned to ten and then fifteen. The regular amount of time it takes to get an order when I just walk in.

Of course my immediate thought was “why did I bother to phone in the order if I am still going to wait 15 minutes anyway?”

Now I know what you might be thinking about now “What does tacos have to do with my photography business?” Well I’ll tell you, it’s simple, customer service.

In the case of my recent experience I am a regular with this business, but that aside, isn’t the point of ‘calling it in’ the convenience for the customer?

My point being is simple, as a business owner make sure that you always take good care of your customers whether you sell tacos or photography. Attention to detail is the cornerstone of customer service and good customer service is the name of the game if you want to have a sustainable business. Especially in this economy.

I’ll share a phrase with you that I love, “People don’t care how much you know, until you can prove how much you care”. In the case of my recent experience of course I realize that things happen. Perhaps they became inundated with orders right after I phoned in mine.

I certainly noticed a substantial line forming immediately after I paid but the point I want to make is not as much about the product as it is about the service.

Our clients have a lot of choices today, but for the purpose of this article I can practically guarantee that there is a photographer serving the exact same client as you, possibly in the next block. Certainly in the same town or city.

“People don’t care how much you know, until you can prove how much you care”

My point being is that if you can’t compete on subject matter or photographic style, and you certainly shouldn’t compete on price the only thing you have left is service.

Now more than ever how you engage and welcome new clients into your business, how quickly you deliver the goods, how cared for and acknowledged you make your clients feel goes a long way towards how profitable your business will ultimately be.

So you see at the end of the day it doesn’t matter what you sell. Business is business and customer service or the lack there of could be the deal breaker in how well your photography studio runs.

My challenge to you this week:

Take some time this week to explore how well you are connected to your clients, pay extra special attention to the way you service them before, during and after the transaction.

Some questions you should be asking yourself:

• How easy do I make it for potential or current clients to reach me?
• What is my current turn around time for deliverables? And can it be improved?
• Do I offer any premium services? Another way to look at it is, do I offer anything that’s special, that would stand out for a potential client?
• Do I make it easy for my current and former clients to give me referrals?
• Have I recently surveyed my current clientele to see how they would rate my level of service?

Finally make notes on how you could improve. Your people will tell you what they want if you ask them.

Final question: What could I implement this week to wow my current clients and make them pick up the phone or come in?

The bottom line: Even in this funky economy people are still looking for places to spend money. But more than that they want acknowledgement, they want to be heard and above all else they want excellent service.

Even if your current clientele base enjoys working with you but you do nothing to encourage them to maintain a relationship with you, then you can consider your investment of both the time and money to get that client a bad investment.

Why? Because you have work twice as hard to find another client to replace the one you lost. Have you ever heard the saying?, “It’s easier to get someone whose already done business with you already to do business with you again than it is to find a new client”

Your action plan:

Review the questions posed in today’s lesson

Put a plan in place today to wow the clients you currently have and/or find a way to reconnect with the ones you’ve lost contact.

And if you don’t want them back for whatever reason, create a profile of who you do want to work with and expend your marketing dollars and time to wow them.

Either way dedicating yourself to go the extra mile can go a long way towards growing your bottom line.

I would love to know one thing you do to wow your current clients! If you have an idea that has won over your clients and encouraged them to give you repeat business please share them in the comments below.

Join My Best Customer Service Idea Contest:

The best customer service related story or idea will win a FREE copy of my book (featured on the left): Eye On Marketing: 41 Days From Struggle and Confusion to Clarity & Profits.

This book has been a game changer for a lot of photographers who have read it.

The recently updated my book gives you 41 practical marketing and mindset strategies that you can use immediately.

To read the growing list of testimonials and get more details about the book visit this page.

But to be considered for the drawing don’t forget to leave your best customer service story or idea that you’ve used to wow your clients and get repeat business.

I will personally read all of the comments posted here on the blog and the best one will receive a complimentary copy of my book: Eye On Marketing: 41 Days From Struggle and Confusion to Clarity & Profits.

Who knows? If I receive enough really interesting comments I may decide to sweeten the deal with an extra ‘surprise’ bonus or two.

Good luck!

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FREE Downloadable Mini-Workshop - Get Your Workbook Here

To learn more about my book Eye On Marketing: 41 Days From Struggle and Confusion to Clarity & Profits, including details on how to get personal 1-on-1 mentoring from me directly visit my website at: http://www.eyeonmarketingsuccess.com/thebook for details.

PS: Do you have a burning question about how to market your photography or creative services and products?

• Do you have difficulty staying motivated?
• Are money concerns starting to get you down?
• Are you less than pleased with type of clients you’ve been attracting lately?
• Are you confused about how to price your products and service?
• Are you tired of going it “solo” in your business?
• Finally, would like the support of a community of fellow photographers and artisans where you can connect, share and receive support?

If so come join me on Wednesday March 30 2011 at 4 P.M. PST/7 P.M. EST for my first Eye On Marketing: Q & A Support Call.

This is a new program that I’ve created exclusively for readers of my book.

To learn more about this FREE bonus program pick up a copy of the book (if you don’t already have:-) and register to receive instant dial info on this important call designed for the new tribe of creative entrepreneurs!

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Wow it has certainly been one action packed week!

For starters I began working with two powerhouse online marketers for pro-photographers Blogger & Publisher Cris Mitchell of ProPhotoResource.com, ProPhotoPublishing.com and Photographers Handbook and Search Engine Optimization Specialist & Author Zach Prez.

These amazing and generous gentlemen are graciously supporting me in helping get my message out to photographers by sharing my resources with their communities. In particular my new book: Eye On Marketing: 41 Days From Struggle and Confusion to Clarity & Profits.

The results I’ve seen this week have been nothing short of amazing with many copies sold over the past several days! It is clear that this book is shifting the way photographers and creative professionals create and build connections with their clients and customers.

I can tell you from personal experience that collaboration and sharing what you offer is the fastest way to increase revenues in your business. With that said without question the fastest way to experience similar results in your business is to make a commitment today to do the same.

I feel so strongly about this that I took it a step further!

As I mentioned earlier Zach is a Search Engine Optimization Specialist. But not just any SEO guy, but a specialist for pro photographers. How cool is that?!

Zach works directly with photographers in all genre’s helping them develop dynamic web pages and blog posts that get found, seen and read by their prospects many of whom become paying clients and customers.

Zach offers private one-on-one coaching, in addition to being the author of an amazing e-book titled the Photography Web Guide: 4 Essential Areas To Grow Customers Online.

I must warn you know that it’s a tiny e-book but boy does it pack a punch!

I purchased Zach’s book early last week and have slowly been going through it trying to absorb all of the great advice he shares. As a matter of fact I was so impressed that I reached how to Zach directly and asked him if he would agree to be interviewed by yours truly and he graciously said yes.

So yesterday I sat down with Zach for an amazing interview…. no, scratch that. It wasn’t an interview, it was a training! For example, one tip Zach shared will forever change the way I ‘speak’ about the images hosted in my own personal web galleries, it’s that powerful.

Anyway I could go on and on but instead I would rather invite you hear for yourself what this talented young man had to say. To catch the replay of our discussion visit this link to access the FREE MP3 and when you go there pay special attention to an amazing offer that Zach and I cooked up. I promise, it will literally transform the results you’re currently getting on your website and ultimately in your business.

Until next time, have a productive and profitable week!

All the best, Rodney

PS: There is a time limit on how long this recording will be available. I will be taking it down soon. So if you want to get it you need to act quickly!

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