Spring Seasonality in Photography - Are You Ready?

LUMIX GH3 with 12-35mm lens

It might not feel like it weather-wise, but according to the calendar, we're into the first week of Spring. And, with the next few months comes the second biggest hit of seasonality in professional photography. I write just about the same post every year at this time. Sadly, too many of you will play the you-snooze-you-lose game and miss an opportunity to create a little excitement as well as revenue to kick off the new year.

Everyone thinks of the first quarter as the slow season, but it's only as slow as you want it to be. Wrapping up the first quarter, opportunities are everywhere for you to create strong brand awareness, partnerships, a sense of giving back in your community, and let's not forget revenue! 

• Mother's Day: The holiday is close, but still far enough away for you to put together a portrait promotion and the possibilities are endless.
  • Call your lab and ask, "What's new?" Come up with a special Mother's Day portrait program with an updated family portrait printed in a unique way.
  • Announce a "Grandma Campaign" with a new family portrait as a unique gift.
  • Create a joint promotion with a florist and a local venue that's popular for Mother's Day brunch.
• Prom and Graduation: From taking advantage of Marathon's BOGO program for graduation cards to portraiture, proms and graduations will be taking place all over the country. Searching Google I found the high school graduation count is anticipated to be over 3.5 million in 2019 and college graduates; all degrees are over 4.0 million. 
• Father's Day: Women make 98% of the purchase decisions to hire a professional photographer in the portrait/social categories based on a Kodak survey over 20 years ago - I don't believe the number has changed a single point over the years. So, what are doing to plant the seed of an idea for an updated family portrait for Dad?
• Business Campaign: With Spring comes a whole new mindset. The weather is getting better. People are going out more, and in business, everyone is looking for a fresh look. Now's the time to launch a headshot promotion!
• Teach a class: No matter where you live, there's someplace where people gather. It might be your church or temple; a local community center, Boys and Girls Club, etc. Position yourself as an expert in photography and offer a free class to help everyone take better pictures. There are things you do every day you take for granted - so help your community raise the bar on the quality of their photographs with a class on composition, exposure, posing and storytelling. Even if the only camera they own is a cell phone, you've got the expertise to get them excited about their images.
• Blogging: If you've got a blog, now is the time to get people thinking about photography. Use your blog to plant the seed for ideas on updating family portraits, headshots, improving your readers' skill set and great gift ideas. Your website is about what you sell, but your blog is about what's in your heart. Use your blog to help create more excitement for the products and services you sell.
• 'Tis the Season: Last on the list, simply because it's Spring - the second quarter is ripe for opportunities at various events, fund-raisers, and walkathons. It's an opportunity for you to get more involved in your community. Remember, people like buying products and services from companies they perceive as giving back.

And there you have it - seven topics to help you make this Spring a record-breaker. But, nothing happens if you procrastinate through April, May, and June and the "should" on yourself as you look in the rearview mirror and say, "You know what I should have done?"