What are you doing for Valentine's Day?

by Skip Cohen

​We closed the door on 2023, and most of you would like to kick back for a few weeks and chill. I get it, and that's fine if it fits your goals for the new year. But there's an opportunity coming up that, with a little planning, can be your first step into building stronger revenue for 2024.

Valentine's Day is a perfect time for boudoir and family portrait artists to ramp up a little business, and NOW is the time to spread the word. But it's also important to have something going on that gets your target audience excited...

• If you're a boudoir artist, check out one of my most favorite products from photoflashdrive.com: their Luminous Photo + Flash Drive Box. It's the sexiest product on the market and fits perfectly with prints and a flash drive from a boudoir sitting. And with the lock and key feature, it's so appropriate to convey a special message. (Click on the image to the right to visit the website.)
• Call your lab! All you need to do is ask, "What's new?" Look for something easily shown in an image or two on your website or in an email blast.And if you don't see something you like that's new, remember - you might be tired of canvas prints, but they're still exciting for most consumers.
• Multiple Targets: On the boudoir side, women are the obvious targets. But there are other approaches beyond boudoir: Mom is ideal, as you suggest getting Dad something special for Valentine's Day. And Dad is obvious - because he rarely takes control of planning an updated portrait of the kids or even scheduling a sitting for a couple's portrait.
• Cross-promoting: Valentine's Day doesn't mean you have to fly solo. Think about cross-promoting with a spa, restaurant, or florist - the target is Dad, and the pitch is centered around romance.
• Date Night: Find a local restaurant in your community that's ideal for a romantic evening. Cross-promote in a unique way. You're looking for a venue to sell you a gift card at a discount. That gift card for dinner goes with you doing a couple's portrait at the start of the evening, and it's all one package - the sitting, dinner, and whatever you think is a strong offer for a print.

Here's my point - it's great to kick back and chill, but if you've got the skillset, a Valentine's Day promotion is low-hanging fruit. It's perfect to get back in the swing of things and remind your audience what you do for a living...you help people create and capture memories!

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