The Road to Seasonality - Part I

by Skip Cohen

It would be so easy if there was just a button on your keyboard you could hit and have all your ideas in place for this coming holiday season. Well, there isn't, but that doesn't mean you can't come up with everything you need to give 2021 one of the strongest finishes you've ever had!

It's Marketing Monday and August 16 - just a month ahead of the start of fall seasonality and into the fourth quarter, the busiest time of the year for photographers. What are you doing right now to start planting seeds for ideas for your clients with imaging products?

​This will be an ongoing weekly series because no single post could cover everything you should be considering. But here's an ideal place to start:

What are you offering this season that's unique or, at the very least, new to your target audience? Here are some things to consider:
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• There's a renewed sense of family in the world. It came out of the pandemic and brought with it a greater appreciation for being together. Knowing that, what's grandma missed the most? Her family! That's the perfect lead-in for family portraiture.
• Call your lab and ask, "What's new?" And remember, while canvas prints may be old to you, they're not old to your clients. 
• Put together packages: From single portrait sittings to on-location "Day in the Life" shoots, be creative in what you're offering. When you sell prints by the size and quantity, you turn your work into a commodity item.
• Remember Beverly and Tim Walden's comment about what you're selling - "You're not selling a portrait but an experience!"

Here's my point - September is two weeks away with kids going back to school (if they're not already), Labor Day, and Fall. October brings in Halloween, and by November, we're already into Black Friday specials from companies all over the world. That makes NOW the time to get your ducks in a row and have plans in place to capture the seasonality. ​

It doesn't matter where you are coming from. All that matters is where you are going.
Brian Tracy

So, where is your business going for the rest of the year?