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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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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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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Wow what a difference seven days makes. Since we last connected I’ve experience quite a few changes in my business, more specifically around my new book.

For starters I experienced my first interview where I was the ‘interviewee’ instead of the interviewer. In case you missed it, I was a guest on the internet radio program ‘Social Media with Nan Ross’. http://bit.ly/i2GB5o

Nan was a gracious host and considering the seriousness of the topic selected we managed to have quite a bit fun as you’ll hear when you listen the replay.

I shared with the audience why so many new freelance business owners struggle needlessly in the first 12 months of operation. I shared three common reasons why this happens and of course I revealed three remedies to turn the odds in your favor.

Click here to listen to the replay of our discussion, I promise you’ll find some very powerful tips that will help you make immediate shifts in how you work with clients.

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I was reminded several times this week about the power of collaboration.

It has been my contention since I started the Photo-Marketing-Mentor blog that the fastest path to cash flow in your business is through relationship building and sharing resources. If you focus on those two things with care and consistency you can’t help but succeed.

One such recent collaboration happened while I was hanging out on Twitter recently. I noticed a tweet on my followers feeds by photographer, professional blogger and now publisher Cris Mitchell. You can find him on Twitter http://www.twitter.com/crismitchell

Cris and I connected when I first started the Photo Marketing Mentor blog over two years ago, but we lost touch over time. As a matter of fact I hadn’t spoken to him directly in about a year. But recently he continued to pop into my mind so when I saw him on Twitter I thought “Why not reach out and reconnect?”

Figuring the present moment was as good a time as any I sent over a message and within 20 minutes we started chatting.

I share this bit of information with you to illustrate how powerful trusting your intuition and maintaining relationships (especially those on social media) can be to your business. In a moment you’ll see just how powerful so keep reading.

For starters Cris is an awesome guy, he produces Pro Photo Resource an amazing blog for professional photographers. On the blog you’ll find everything from camera buying tips to the latest news and information on software, printers, editing techniques and so much more.

Cris works his tail off to provide timely content that not only affects the way pro photographers manage work flow and execute assignments but how they run their businesses.

Don’t miss his recent blog article on how one photographer is using his talents on the ground in Haiti to help underfunded organizations raise needed funds to assist those most in immediate need.  Please do give it read it a read if for the nothing more than to view the arresting photography.

Recently Cris launched a publishing division of his company called Pro Photo Publishing. As of this week Pro Photo Publishing offers 14 titles including yours truly. Yes, I’m very pleased to announce that Cris recently added my book to his growing roster of titles exposed to an audience of almost 10,000 pro and semi pro photographers world-wide!

As of last evening he informed me that sales are brisk and holding steady. Needless to say I was very please to hear this. If you would to learn more about the entire library of titles click here to visit his site.

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While I’m on the subject of collaboration I have another powerful one in the works with new colleague and fellow Pro Photo Published author Zach Prez.

Zach is the author of a fantastic new book the Photography Web Marketing Guide: 4 Essential Areas To Grow Customers Online. As a matter of fact our books compliment each other perfectly which is why we have decided to collaborate on a couple of upcoming projects the first being a brand new tele-training launching in just a few days.

If you own a blog or website that ranks low or non existent in the search engines.

Or if you experiencing consistent traffic but you’re not converting that traffic to new clients and customers this will be a a tele-training you don’t want to miss.

If this sounds like you you’ll definitely want to clear your calendar and listen to this exciting new interview I’m doing with Search Engine Optimization Expert for Photographers Zach Prez.

Keep a eye open for an email from me tomorrow with the details (date/time/place) for How To Get More Photography Clients Online my new tele-training with Zach Prez

PS: If you’ve been in the fence about picking up my new book you don’t want to miss this new tele-training. I will be announcing a something that will make your decision a no-brainer.

Have a productive week and we’ll be re-connecting soon.

All the best, Rodney

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Today’s video was created by author and Portfolio and Marketing Consultant for commercial photographers Selina Maitreya!

In it she talks about the power of asking questions prior to presenting your portfolio during a sales call.

And speaking of sales calls, Selina has tirelessly developed an exciting new program based on calls, 14 of them of to be exact.  This new program is called Clarion Call 2011!

Clarion Call features some of the most respected names in the world of professional photography all of whom will be sharing their tips, tools and insider information on how to find clients, increase sales, leverage and grow your photography business.

To see the incredible lineup of speakers and to secure your seat click on the following link to secure your space!

Remember it totally free to attend but your must ACT SOON!

Clarion Call – February 11 and 12th 2011!

All the best, Rodney

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“If creativity is a commodity it just isn’t that creative” that’s a quote by Bruce DeBoer

DeBoer is the founder of Permission To Suck who started the blog as a “think tank” if you will of creative folks and their musings about what it takes to keep fresh and motivated.

Whether it be photography, music, writing or fine art every creative individual struggles with coming up fresh ideas and remaining relevant to their audience.

Using an an interview process PTS provides a platform for creatives to learn and become inspired. Deboer’s goal is to provide his readers with an insiders view into the rarely seen world of the artist, their process, and what’s required to live their passion.

The video clip provided today is of the blogs editor Bruce DeBoer. Listen closely as he shares his own personal process and the insights he’s gained over the years, first as a photographer and then as a publisher and then back to photography.

As you watch pay close attention to the insights you glean and can perhaps apply to your own process.

Talking with Professional Photographer Bruce DeBoer from PermissionToSuck.com on Vimeo.

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The article you’re reading today was inspired by Michael Gerber, New York Times best selling author and creator of the E Myth.

If you aren’t familiar with Gerber’s work on the subject of business development and entrepreneurship I highly suggest you investigate his material.

I recently read an article on the authors blog titled, “Entrepreneurial Artist to Business Owner” if you’d like to give it a read I’ve provided a link here for quick access. I’d suggest you read it as a basis for the tips I’ve provided below.

After reading Gerber’s article it got me thinking and it inspired me to take it a step further by providing you with some additional tips and steps that you can implement immediately into your business. With that said I took Gerber’s 5 myth’s and decided to turn them into 5 tips + 1 additional and here are my 6 tips to ‘Owning’ Your Own Business

In Gerber’s article he discussed 5 myth’s that are stereotypically associated with artists in business and they are:

1. Artists are childish
2. Artists are absentminded and forgetful
3. Artists are disorganized
4. Artists don’t care about business
5. Artists are all a little crazy
6. (Insert your own here)

In his Gerber’s article number six was listed as (Insert your own here) so I did, and this is the idea I’d like you to consider, “Artists are frightened”. We’ll discuss this more in moment but for now read on.

BUT, before I get into the 6 myth’s I want to reiterate that the author did not say that artists are these things, his point was that artists are mistakenly viewed this way. I just want to be clear.

So let’s examine the 5 Myth’s to ‘Owning’ Your Own Artistic Business

1.  Artists are childish – I say bravo, not I’m suggesting that adults should behave poorly with clients and vendors. No, I’m suggesting that artists maintain a child like since of fascination and curiosity about their business or how else can they create? Keep this in mind, a curious mind finds to solutions to business challenges, a closed mind does not. I believe maintaining a child like curiosity can be an asset to an entrepreneur, not a liability.

In other words I’d like to suggest that artist hold on to that same degree of curiosity and fascination in the marketing and running of their business. How? By closing the gap between the distinction of “this is creative i.e. fun” and “this is business i.e. drudgery”. Successful artists embrace business believing that running one can be very creative especially when you remove your mental blocks and see how your work affects the people you connect with.

2.  Artists are absentminded and forgetful - No more so than any over worked or stressed out individual. How can you overcome this? Write things down, refer to your to-do list first thing in morning before you do anything else. Centralize your daily tasks by placing important meetings, calls and correspondence into your iPhone or online calendar. Utilize timers and alarms to remind you of what needs to get done.

If you’re still having trouble getting tasks completed ask yourself, “can this be passed on to someone else?” Typically when we procrastinate it’s often because we’re trying to force ourselves to do something that’s not a strength. There are some experts out there that will tell you to “strengthen your weaknesses.” I say strengthen your strengths and hire out your weaknesses. If making sales calls is not your thing hire someone else to do it.

3.  Artists are disorganized - I’ll give you a simple tip that will help you get organized and get a handle on clutter immediately and it’s quite simple. When ever something crosses your desk don’t let it settle there. Instead do one of three things with it, 1.) deal with it immediately, 2.) pass on it, or 3.) toss it. That’s it.

Having gone through a major clearing out myself I’ll tell you, when you get into the habit of holding on to stuff (especially papers) believing that you’ll get to it later chances are you won’t. Remember out of sight, is out of mind. Generally all you’ll end up with is a pile of papers that you won’t want to deal with until you have to and even then you’ll just end up throwing out 90% of it.

Don’t go there, get into a habit of handling correspondence as you receive it, eventually disorganization problems will gradually take care of themselves.

4.  Artists don’t care about business – I’ll admit there is some truth to this statement and I addressed some of it in tip number one, but I want to take it further. I do agree that some artists aren’t necessarily in love with business, but they are interested in money. So with that said you can’t want money and not be interested in business, even if it’s a 9 to 5 job.

The way to get over this I suggested earlier by replacing apathy with curiosity and fascination. Did you know that are some artist out there like the infamous Jeff Koons for example that embraces business as much as art creation? How? By applying the same childlike since of wonder to marketing and getting his work out there to the public. In other words he’s just as excited about having his work seen and appreciated by large audiences as he is devoted to creation of the work itself.

I’ll give you a simple exercise to stimulate your thinking, grab a notepad and pen and jot down as many ideas as you can come up with to get your work seen by a large audience, let’s say 100 people. Once you have several ideas jotted down on your pad pick at least three that you can move on immediately.

Don’t attach yourself to the ideas just “test” them to see what results you receive. Did you reach 100 people? If so great, now expand the number 500, 1000 and on and on. Our subconscious mind lives to solve problems and to come up with creative solutions. Give it something to do.

5.  Artists are all a little crazy – No crazier than the frustrated postal worker who goes on a shooting rampage. No crazier than half of Hollywood, (have you watched any reality shows lately?) and certainly no crazier than going to a job you hate year after year after year. My suggestion, be crazy. Remember my suggestion from above all it takes is one crazy idea to turn your whole world around. Take that crazy idea and put it out there, the world will let you know how they feel about it. Just promise not to shoot anybody.

Okay so these are my 5 tips based on Michael Gerber’s article Entrepreneurial Artist to Business Owner. Now as promised here is my (fill-in-the-blank) tip number 6 and one that I feel is a fundamental truth.

6.  Artists are frightened – At the end of the day I believe this is the number issue that stops Entrepreneurial Artists from becoming Business Owner’s. Let’s face it, it’s not easy to put yourself or your work out there into the world to be judged. The truth of the matter is that some people just won’t get it, or they’ll ignore you, leave negative comments on your blog, scoff at your ideas, think that you’re any -or- all of the above five myth’s listed above. “So what?”

I’d like to leave you with this thought. Ask yourself, “Is creating art my life purpose?” If you know down to your bones that the answer is yes then not creating art or worse, failing to get your creations out into the world to as many people as possible is no longer an option. It’s an obligation to create and sell your art work. Yes I said sell your art work!

In other words when you approach your purpose in this way then you understand the role you are here to play in the world and if part of that role is to maintain a child like since of curiosity about your marketing, set up systems to organize and run your business, care about your customers and employees then you’ll eagerly own your crazy ideas.

From this place all the previous ‘myth’s’ listed in Gerber’s article will remain just that, myth’s. It’s okay to be afraid just don’t languish in it, now go forth and create.

Additional Resources:
http://blog.entrepreneurthearts.com/
http://www.artistswhothrive.com/
http://craftside.typepad.com/craftside/

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If you’re familiar with social networking then you’ve most likely heard of Facebook. Facebook is arguably one of the most popular social networking tools available for photographers and creative service providers on the Internet.

As a creative marketing consultant I spend quite a bit of time exploring various fan pages that I am invited too by creative professionals. Unfortunately on many I find the a very vital key of client attraction missing from their pages and that’s the topic of today’s article, how to create a client attractive Facebook Fan page.

1. Target carefully and with intention - For example, the bulk of my clients are pro and aspiring pro photographers, and in my work one of the first things we examine is their social networking outlets. Typically the first thing I notice is photographers “following and friending” solely other photographers. In a typical conversation I’ll ask the question, “If you are a photographer who specialize in the portraiture of women –  and so for the sake of this illustration let’s say you photograph expectant mothers. Why then are majority of your followers other photographers? The point being in order for this photographer to find more clients he or she must start inviting people that fit their target profile.

As you build your base of fans and followers you need to ask yourself: “Does this person fit my client profile?” If not, you can make the decision whether or not to include them on your fan page, but for best results you should focus your efforts on inviting people that fit your ideal client profile.

2. Be informative - As your list of “targeted” fans grows make sure you provide useful content by sharing your knowledge and demonstrating your expertise. One way to do this is to post content that will educate and inspire your target audience. There are many opportunities to demonstrate your expertise via short articles, tip sheets, MP3 audio recordings, and video slide show presentations, behind the scenes videos or still shots with “diary” style entries.

If you do this properly much of the pre-selling will be done for you to the point that when your prospect decides to contact you they are 80 -90% ready to work with you.

Often content creation is where many photographers become stumped because they “think” that the only content they can offer is their photography. The bottom line, make sure that your content is engaging, solves a problem or answers a question for your client. This takes us to the next step.

3. Close with a strong call to action – Again clients hire you to solve problems and in order to do that you have to know what it is. All that’s left is to communicate that you are “the photographer” who can solve it. One of the easiest ways to do this is craft what I call a “call to action statement” or mission statement, emphasis on “call to action”. For example, I’ll share mine with you,

Call to Action Statement

“Are you photographer or creative professional who suffers with “marketing reluctance, but who understands that marketing is vital to client attraction?” If this sounds like you then you are in luck because I specialize in Client Attraction for Creative Professionals. As a matter of fact I have helped photographers and other creative professions develop systems that makes client attraction a snap!

If you would like to learn how you can attract more clients and grow your photography business I’d like to invite you to check out my program designed especially for solo entrepreneurs who specialize in the arts and it’s called the “Client Attraction Starter Kit” and it’s available for FREE on my website at photo-marketing-mentor (dot) com. Visit my website today to CLAIM your copy! -end-

Can you see how the above statement would be enticing to anyone who fits my ideal client profile rather than just a listing my name and contact information?

So to take this a step further, once you craft your “call to action mission statement” you can now use it on all of the content that you produce. For example, you can verbalize it at the end your audios, display it at the end of your videos and articles. Post it throughout your fan pages, website and blog.

This is how you make your Facebook fan page more client attractive. Let’s recap.

1) First, define your target audience and invite them into your space
2) Second, once you connect inform with content that inspires, educates and entertains them, and…
3) Finally, lead your fans into taking action by crafting a “take action” mission statement that will ensure they do just that, take action.

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A well crafted press release can be one of the quickest ways to attract attention for your business. The reasons why most people don’t use press releases generally falls into two camps, either, they don’t know how to write one (we’ll address that here in this article) Second, they’ve tried press releases in the past and received less than positive results so they gave up.

Press releases, especially online releases can get your business in front of millions of eyes in a matter of minutes. But before I get into specifics of crafting the release I want to assure you that if you follow the steps I’m going to outline below you’ll have the foundation of a winning press release that gets you noticed every time.

Here are my 3 keys to crafting an attention grabbing press release.

Key #1. An attention grabbing press release starts with an attention grabbing headline. Your headline is the most important part of your release. Why? Because it’s the first piece of text your reader sees and… most importantly if chosen properly it will insure that the reader will continue reading.

Open your release with a powerful question that stops the reader dead in his tracks.

Think about the results you want your reader to receive, what problem will you solve? For example, what questions have your customers been asking that your press release could address? I’ll give you a couple of examples.

For purpose of this article I’m going use a fictional portrait photographer and we’ll name her Jennifer. Jennifer specializes in portrait photography for business professionals, more specifically, people who hate to have their photos taken.

Jennifer has a personality that relaxes her clients and puts them at ease, so as a result her clients walk away from their session feeling better about themselves and they receive great photos as well. Jennifer understands that a lot of people hate to have their portraits taken but they must for business purposes.

What’s your goal? What do you want the reader to DO after reading your release? In the case of Jennifer she wants to attract more prospects to take advantage of her free 15 telephone consultation where she can discuss their needs, put their mind at ease and then ask for the booking. To make this happen Jennifer needs a headline that addresses the issues of her prospect. Here is a headline Jennifer could use:

“Is The Lack of a Professional Portrait Hurting Your Business Opportunities? -or- Do You Dread Having Your Portrait Taken?”

These are questions that stops the reader in his tracks, it poises them to ask themselves is this something that I am doing? If the answer is yes, they will continue to read. If not, they will stop, if they do no worries, they probably aren’t your ideal prospect anyway and they’ll move on.

The second reason why question based headlines are so powerful is that they remind the reader of their hot button issues or pain points. Let’s face it, if we don’t experience some level of discomfort chances typically we don’t act as quickly. In the case of Jennifer’s ideal prospect she wants to remind them that they are potentially missing opportunities because they’ve been avoiding having a professional portrait taken.

Okay so now that we have opened the release with a hot button issue it’s now time to aggravate it. How? By pointing specifically to what/and or how they are missing opportunities and then bullet pointing these hot button issues. So on to key number 2.

Key #2. Have the body copy of your press release flow naturally from your headline. So, if Jennifer’s headline is: “Is The Lack of a Professional Portrait Hurting Your Business Opportunities?” The next logical text will flow from that headline. Jennifer would continue highlight the problems her reader will experience if they continue to avoid having their business portrait taken.

For example:
• Not being able to book high end speaking engagements for radio or television interviews with meeting planners & producers because they don’t have a professional photo.
• Not being able to build trust with their online prospects because no one knows what they look like.
• Reminding them that a quality photo speaks louder than words.
• If the reader is a book author they must have a photo for the publisher.
• Publicists won’t work with them if don’t have a professional photo. Slows done success, Impedes opportunities.
• Some companies require a professional photo of their upper management team for their annual reports, websites and brochures.

A key way to make sure your body copy flows from your headline is to use bullet points like I did above. Try to hit on at least 5 to 7 hot button points that your reader can relate to or identify with. Also make sure that your services address these issues.

Remember, you are a problem solver for your client. So once you’ve reminded them of their pain by asking a powerful question, aggravate it further by pointing out what they are missing out on via bullet points. Now it’s time to introduce them to the solution, your solution. This moves us on to key number 3.

Key #3. Know in advance what you want the reader to do before you write the press release. In the case of Jennifer our photographer specializing in business portraits she wants to schedule more pre-booking consultations. So after her body copy she must close the press release with a compelling offer that make readers pick up the phone and call her to book their free consultation.

Jennifer’s sample closing: “If you dread having your portrait taken and your fear is now affecting your business opportunities I’d love to help. Contact me for a complimentary 15 minute: My Best Face Forward Makeover phone consultation”.

Visit my website today at: www.mylastheadshotsucked.com (play on words) to schedule your FREE consultation and as a gift you’ll receive a copy of my special report: 5 Simple Wardrobe Adjustments That Will Make Anybody Look 10 Pounds Thinner.

This brings us to the final and most vital component of crafting a client attractive press release. Close your release with an action that the reader will be required to take. Jennifer makes an offer that her reader must follow through on to receive. In this case, her free special report. The one thing I want you take away from this article is no where in Jennifer’s press release does she talk about herself or her credentials.

She doesn’t need to (not at this stage) the point is to focus on the issues and problems of the reader and compel them to act. Once they visit her website and register to receive the special report and book the free consult Jennifer can then introduce her credentials, but the press release is designed to do two things and two things only, grab the readers attention and cause an action.

And now if you would like help with constructing your first attention grabbing press release or help navigating on any type of online marketing tools available for professional and prosumer photographers visit my website at www.photo-marketing-mentor.com. When you go there you can download a copy of my Audio program and free special report: 5 Secrets to Attracting More Clients and Growing Your Photography Business.

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