Clients

What is the trick to Marketing? Quick answer: Relationships. 

How to do this: Try everything, see what sticks, but only base some of your future marketing on what you learned in the past. I know this is tricky; we must try it all, keep experimenting, and DO NOT LIMIT OURSELVES only to what has worked in the past.

We all know how important marketing is in our business—it’s everything. Yet, there is no set plan for it; there is no absolute, definite “this must happen.” Of course, your website needs to be correct and up-to-date, but marketing as a whole has to be more experimental. I see it as throwing spaghetti against a wall and seeing what sticks. However, we can’t rely on just one approach over time; we have to continuously try new things.

Marketing is heavily based on relationships. I often get calls from clients I didn’t even know would remember my name, but we had a nice connection a year ago or even three years ago. When you get yourself on a list, clients remember you and want to stay in touch. The more we put ourselves out there, the better. We need to try everything, see what sticks, and not solely rely on what’s worked before. Do more of what works, but also explore every possible avenue to connect with clients.

Bidding on a job requires fact-checking client answers. Often they are slow to come in or don’t get responded to. What do we do? Try a new way – make your questions form a cohesive list to be answered by attention-getting dashes, bullet points, or (my fave) numbers.

You know when you’re bidding on a job and the contact at the agency or client isn’t responding to your questions? It seems like they’re missing something. I assume they’re rushed and don’t have time to go through a full email, or maybe there’s too much chatter instead of getting to the point. We need to make our emails extremely clear and concise. Don’t be afraid to keep asking the same questions until they get answered.

I know we don’t want to make the person uncomfortable or make the communication awkward, but you have to keep asking. Try doing it in a different style; perhaps they’ll understand better if we lay it out differently, using bullet points, dashes, or numbers—numbers are very helpful in an email. If that doesn’t work, consider trying a phone call; maybe they’re not into emails, and that’s why it’s not working. The important thing is to keep trying, even if it feels awkward.

Learning why we DID NOT get the job can be the most value-packed free resource, and I’m surprised by how available it is to us if we ask. With a bit of timely follow-through, we could potentially receive the clear strategic feedback every business needs.

I’m finding that we can get more information about why we didn’t get certain jobs if we put some effort into asking. It’s strange, but for some reason, clients seem more open to sharing the specific reasons why we weren’t selected. We just have to ask them and make sure we pose the question. It’s not that hard; we just need to put ourselves out there.

Clients need to trust us if we want to create open and honest communication. One way to keep it honest is to change the bidding categories they requested on the 1st revision instead of adjusting other costs/conditions they may not notice.

I have a personal tip regarding estimating when bidding on a job. When I send a bid and the client responds with changes or questions, I sometimes feel uneasy about modifying other aspects of the bid that weren’t part of the original discussion. If I do make changes, I have to assume that the client may not read through the entire estimate again and might miss the updates, which can come off as sneaky or unprofessional.

Therefore, I believe it’s important to inform the client if any additional changes are made beyond those initially discussed. This transparency is something I find extremely valuable, and I wanted to share it with you.

NEGOTIATING TIP 101: 

Get the most information in the shortest amount of time with a good old-fashioned client Phone Call. Use the phone time wisely to get those “awkward to ask” questions about budget, first choice, competition, and lowest bid topics. It’s that one-to-one camaraderie with off-the-cuff, less self-aware personalized touch moments. 

Negotiating over the phone is more effective than doing it in person or via Zoom. In our experience, more information is shared once people warm up and get to know each other on the phone. We’re unsure why this is the case, but perhaps people may be less aware of themselves on the phone, making them more likely to share information. We recommend trying an old-fashioned chat for negotiations.

Q:

How do I follow up with someone who appears to have opened my newsletter repeatedly, but I don’t have any relationship with them, and their agency doesn’t appear to do work that aligns with mine? This makes it hard even to know what to send as a follow-up. It’s hard to know how to open the conversation without the incredibly creepy “I see you’ve been opening my newsletter a lot this week.”

A:

SUCCESSFUL MARKETING = ENGAGEMENT

Our long-term marketing efforts are the goal, as we know how creatives move around rapidly from one client to another. While you have the correct landing info for the ones who open your promos – USE IT! Get on LinkedIn, Instagram, or their personal website, or email them and connect so you can take advantage of this rare (and expensive) opportunity. 

Q:

When approaching a big ad agency, who should I connect with? I usually hit up a mid-level art director, but should I be approaching producers? I tend to send expensive DM pieces, so I can’t ship to everyone!

A:

The decision-makers at big ad agencies include the Creative Director, Art Director, and Producers. All three are involved with different roles, but the AD usually chooses which photographer will be the “recommend” to the client for the final decision. My method is to contact all of them and see who responds, giving me better odds of a more personalized, well-received marketing piece.

Q:

Do you have to turn jobs away because of low budgets, or do you make it work? If you photographers are in a slow period, does that make you more open to taking on these jobs?

A:

I do have to turn jobs away regularly because of low budgets. 

My checklist to consider these lower-budget projects:

1. Can this lead to future larger-paying jobs with this client or others?
2. Is this a paid test that will benefit my photographer’s portfolio?
3. Will the usage rights be controlled to match the budget?
4. Would this be a regularly reoccurring client where fees add up as a regular gig?
5. Does adding the client name to your client list help?
6. Is there any chance of the low budget restricting the job quality, and if so, this is a definite NO WAY. 

Q:

How do I get hired as I am just starting with my photo business? Will it help if I lower my prices to bring in more clients?

A:

Newer up-and-coming photographers can be more flexible to help build their portfolios. The flexibility of giving more of your time, post work, and more options like video can help get you started. Still, be mindful of the long-term by not lowering the value of your image usage licensing rate. 

STOP WASTING TIME DOING ESTIMATES YOU DON’T NEED TO DO!

It’s wild how many bidding requests we get from random clients that don’t even pertain to us. We must find out the budget before we waste our time. Even though that is the exact info clients usually refuse to give us, we have to push through by asking if their budget is between certain amounts. That type of “yes/no” question usually sparks a client to respond if it’s over what they have available to spend. Give it a try.

Do not waste your time doing estimates you don’t need to do. Photographers should avoid wasting time on estimates and calculations for clients who may not have the budget for their services. Instead, photographers should ask for a budget range upfront, so they can quickly determine if the client’s budget aligns with their own rates. By doing this, photographers can avoid spending time on clients who cannot afford their services and focus on those who can. Self-employed photographers need to be mindful of their time and avoid wasting it on unproductive activities.