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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Summer is typically a very busy time for wedding photographers, but what if you don’t photograph weddings?

Well, if you’re a portrait photographer you’re in luck because if you’re active on Facebook (or even considering it) boy do I have an opportunity for you!

Facebook is a brilliant platform for photographers of any genre but none better than those who shoot portraits.

With just a little ingenuity you can set up a very simple and affordable event offering Facebook Avatar portraits for your fans and friends on and off Facebook that can yield you a very nice return for a day’s work. Even if you aren’t currently active on Facebook (and why aren’t you?) setting up a presence on the popular social media platform is quite simple.

Once your account is active all you need to do is invite your colleagues, current and former clients and associates to join your fan page. Next, invite your associates to your studio or to a central location, I know of one photographer who recently held a Facebook Portrait day at a local furniture store.

You’re clients come in to have their portrait taken, of course you take more than one, and you deliver one freebie pre-formatted for their Facebook Avatar and of course they’ll want more and that’s where you’ll make money. The originator of this program made well over four figures for a day’s work hosting a Free Photos For Facebook Day.

These events are so easy to set up and run, that once you do it you’ll be hooked!

6 Benefits of Hosting a FREE Photos for Facebook Day:

1. You’ll be building good will within your community
2. Attract new potential long-term clients into your sales funnel
3. They’re a built in promotional opportunity that if done properly can actually pay for itself
4. Increase in cash flow, everybody needs a cash flow injection now more than ever
5. You’ll be providing a much needed service, (many local business leaders don’t even have one good photo let alone one for social media)
6. Some of your clients will definitely want to work you for a higher ticket 1-on-1 session

As I mentioned earlier these events are fast, fun and very affordable to set-up especially when you know the in and outs of how to do it. And speaking of that I have a wonderful product called FREE Photos For Facebook “Step-by-Step Quick Start Action System”. Last year I was introduced to the idea via the very talented portrait photographer Monica Sigmon.

Monica got the inspiration to host a free-photos for Facebook portrait session day at her studio in Williamsburg Virginia at a time when sales as well as the morale of her staff were down.

Sigmon took a look at her assets one of which was a growing presence on Facebook. The idea evolved when she made note of the “crappy” avatars of many of her fans and the light bulb went off. So she decided to invite her growing fan base to come into her studio to have their avatar’s updated.

Initially the idea to host the event was just a way to bring some energy into her studio. But once her clients begun arriving they got caught up in the excitement and that led to the success of the event. Of course as a photographer Monica provided many images to choose from and so as clients viewed their shots they wanted more than the promised freebie, much more. To tune of well over four figures!

The event was so successful that Monica and I got on the telephone where she revealed the entire process soup to nuts. I then took that audio recording and had it transcribed, we then added her templates that she actually used in customizable Photoshop PSD format, and I laid out the entire process visually using a process map.

Since then many portrait photographers have purchased this system and used it with similar stealer results. I’d love for you to get you’re hands on it and implement it in your business. Visit my page to get more information and to secure a copy.

For the ridiculously low price of $47 dollars this program is a steal. We wanted to keep the price low because we understand that times are still tight for photographers and didn’t want price to be a barrier.

Special Bonus: If you purchase the FREE Photos For Facebook Step-by-Step Quick Start Action System by Wednesday June 16th, I will throw in a personal 1-on-1, 30 minute telephone consult to answer any questions you may have. I generally charge $197 dollars for a strategy session so to get 30 minutes of personal time with me PLUS+ the course that can increase your income immediately you’re getting an unheard of opportunity at $47! So don’t wait. Act FAST…

Remember you have until Wednesday June 16th to get the private consultation with me plus a proven step-by-step system that will actually show you how to make money doing something you love while providing a much needed service to your clients all delivered via social media!

Order your copy TODAY!

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I was scanning through the news feeds coming through on my Facebook page recently and I noticed several things that got me thinking about what I feel are some very ineffective (and in my opinion) unprofessional ways people are using this powerful platform.

Again I completely understand that every individual has their own reasons why they use social media but for the purpose of this article I’ve chosen to speak about practices that could potentially tarnish your image in regards to business connection and client attraction.

First of all I want to point out, that these are just my opinions, so if you do any of these things please don’t take offense.  But please be aware that these actions could be actually be hurting – more than helping you grow your business.

1.  Frequently posting non-sense. For example, providing up to the minute blow-by-blow accounting of every step you take through out the day.  Nobody really cares what you ate for breakfast, lunch or dinner or that you’re at the bank, post office etc. You may occasionally share a tid-bit  about something of that nature, but don’t overboard. Think of this way, if you wouldn’t dial up and apprise your closet friend of your every move then don’t plaster it all of your facebook page.

2.  Sharing way too much information about your personal life. Remember potential clients (I hope) are reading your news feed.  So keeping that in mind I highly suggest exercising discretion when sharing intimate details about your health status, finances or personal relationships.  Facebook friends, are not necessarily personal “friends”.  Believe or not I constantly hear stories about solo entrepreneurs losing opportunities as a direct result of posting personal intimate information on their news feed.

3.  Venting about other people on Facebook or within your industry. Remember your news feed shows up every where.  If you’re using your profile for business networking then keep in mind that the “world” is reading your posts and unfortunately making judgements about you.  So just like you wouldn’t bad mouth your boss while he or she is in the next room at the office, don’t do it online.  Remember everybodies watching & reading.

4.  Re-posting ‘off color’ videos or jokes. Again what you find humorous doesn’t necessarily mean that everyone will share your humor.  So again, if you’re using this platform for self-promotion exercise good judgement on what you post as well as re-post.

5.  In appropriate photo tagging! I find this to be one of the biggest pet peeves among Facebook users. Essentially the photo tagging feature built into Facebook allows users to select a person in an image and then hot link it to their FB profile.  Nothing wrong with it inherently but why would you tag a person who isn’t even in the photo? This one is a big no-no.

The bottom line: Social media is wonderful tool to get your message out to the widest possible audience.  Social media for marketing purposes can help you reach and connect with your target market very inexpensively, but often I see it done ineffectively. The key is put your best face forward on Facebook and throughout all of your social media platforms.

Finally, as always, exercise good judgement, leverage the possibilities and reap the rewards.

As always please feel free to leave your comments below.

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Realize That You Have Cash Sitting On Your Hard Drive    - If you’ve been shooting for anything length of time it’s probably safe to assume that you have an extensive library of images on your hard drive just sitting there collecting virtual dust. Now is the time to go through work, print samples and breathe new life into your library.

Offer them on your website for sale -or- contact a small local gallery or perhaps even a coffee shop. Anyway you can get your work in front of eyes can be great way to raise your visibility. The benefits can range from direct print sales all the way to private commissions.

Expand Your Reach By Marketing Online As Well As Off - If you’re stuck on print marketing i.e. taking ads in physical publications or direct mail perhaps it’s time to start marketing your services online. Today we have so many options for getting the word out about our services from personal blogs to social media networking websites like Facebook, YouTube and Twitter just to name a few. I urge you not to dismiss these tools as the domain of high school kids, trust me when I say that major business is being conducted via these sites.

I’m personally constructing educational programs for photographers and making deals with prospects that I’ve never physically met. Get online and expand your reach, it’s practically free and the benefits can be business transformational.

Adopt An Attitude of Bold-Thinking - When times are tight financially our natural inclination is tighten our purse strings, understandably. And while you don’t want to be fool hardly with your spending you don’t want to be stingy in your thinking. (What I mean is that now is time to adopt an out-of-the-box attitude, don’t automatically assume that you have “spend” more money.

Think how can I make better investments? Sometimes your investment will require a financial commitment, but in my experience I’ve found that some of the most powerful investments you can make are in “Relationships”. (So now is the time to think bolder, resist retreat and encourage reaching out. Contact individuals that you can create joint ventures with. These relationships can be other businesses that can use your images, or photographic expertise to promote their services and vice versa.

For example, a small hotel or resort may be interested in promoting a weekend photo workshop, especially if you can bring in new customers for them. Going back to the first point I made in this article about cash on your hard drive, see if you have images that you could print and offer for sale in local boutique or shop. I recently brokered a deal like this for a client and it was great opportunity for both the photographer and the shop owner.

Finally, don’t allow today’s challenging economic climate to knock the wind out of your business. Use this opportunity to think bigger. Money likes speed, don’t wait; get started today. Create a list of potential joint venture partners and see how you create an offer that combines what you love to shoot as a photographer with businesses that need to bring in new customers.

And now I’d like to invite you to get instant access to my free Client Attraction Starter Package that includes my 5-part training audio course and special report: 5 Secrets To Attracting More Clients & Grow Your Photography Business.  You can pick this course and several other valuable bonuses when you visit:

http://www.photo-marketing-mentor.com

You’ll receive tips, tools, techniques and strategies to help you either get your photography business off the ground -or- increase your existing business by opening new markets today!

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