Fast Food Friday - For Professional Photographers

4/13/2018

The purpose of this series is to keep sharing easy to fix ideas to help you raise the bar on qualities related to being a professional. We're all so close to our own business that sometimes we miss the most obvious challenges.

I started Fast Food Fridays to help you focus on things to give you a stronger presence. You know how to focus your camera, but what about everything else?

So, just like a diner with a daily blue plate special, I'm breaking things down into small "plates." There's a new one every Friday, and this is the ninth in the series.

On the menu for today are easy-to-implement tips to be more accessible for your customers. Why make it hard for your target audience to contact you? And, when they do find you, let's make it an experience they smile about as opposed to shaking their heads and contacting your competitor!

Are You as Accessible as You Should Be?

We live in a world of instant fulfillment and gratification, yet I'm amazed at how many photographers insist on making it hard for potential clients to contact you. You've bought in on the idea that an email contact form on your website trumps personal contact. That couldn't be further from the truth!

Nobody can sell you like you! A successful professional photography business is all about relationship building. It's built on trust, personality, integrity, credibility, and COMMUNICATION! Yet, so many of you hide behind the anonymity of a contact form. It's time to get more personal...

Give people a way to contact you directly with a phone number!
Smile when you're on the phone - people can tell the difference.

Develop a system so that if you're out of town or just away from your phone, somebody checks your messages and get back to people as quickly as possible.
If you work out of your home, don't answer the phone if there are kids screaming in the background, the dog barking or you're watching TV! This is about professionalism. You're much better off letting it go to voicemail and then call back ASAP when you've got control over your environment.
Have a dedicated line exclusively for your business. Phone service is so inexpensive today, and it's so easy to look more professional.
Since 50% of the wedding industry, for example, are part-time photographers and work out of their home, it's okay to not put an address on your contact form, but give people an email address along with your phone number and then the contact form on your site. The whole idea is to give people as many options as possible and make yourself accessible!
Answer every email that comes in through your contact forms as quickly as possible. A fast response not only shows you're interested in their request, but it just might get you in ahead of a competitor.