The hierarchy of why people hire a professional photographer in the portrait/social categories goes brides, babies, pets. With brides in the number-one spot, weddings represent a huge potential for a never-ending demand for your work, plus an incredible opportunity to sell new products and services.
I want to get you thinking about some fresh ideas along with a few tried and true standbys to increase your revenue. Let’s offer your clients a greater selection of add-ons.
Before I hit you with a list of things you should be offering, let’s talk about pricing. I bet that at least half of you have priced your product too low. As Sal Cincotta once said in an old video, and I’m paraphrasing a little, there’s no greater way to screw up your business than to wrongly price your products and services.
Review all your costs. Compare what you’re offering with your competitors. Understand the margins you need in order to eat something other than macaroni and cheese every night. Expanding services and products won’t help your business grow if you’re already running below an acceptable level of profitability.
This is a shameless plug for my Lynda.com videos: Search my name on Lynda and check out my video on pricing. I had a lot of fun doing it, and it’s loaded with solid tips and other resources to get you on the right track.
If you don’t have a solid profit foundation to start, none of these ideas will help you very much.
Engagement Shoots
Not every idea I want to share this month is new. Here’s an old idea—one that I’m amazed more photographers don’t use.
The primary reason to always do an engagement shoot has nothing to do with expanding your product line. It’s about establishing trust with the client. An engagement shoot gives you and the couple the chance to get to know one another. It’s about relationship building. On the wedding day, you’ve already established trust, so you’re more likely to get the natural expressions you want during the shoot.
Videos, Posters, Save-the-Date Cards, Stationery
If you do a great job on the engagement shoot, you should have plenty of images for the couple to share on social media. Here’s your chance to demonstrate pure creativity.
- Engagement videos: It’s the perfect extension of your storytelling ability as a wedding photographer. I’m a big fan of Photodex and ProShow Web. Create a slideshow from the engagement shoot, and you’ve got a great first chapter of the story of a new couple. What’s even more exciting is taking full advantage of technology and bringing together a few short video clips with still images and great music.
- Posters: Two years ago, Marathon Press launched Bella Art Prints, which offer a great way to promote the love story you’ve been hired to capture. Think about a Hollywood movie poster starring your bride and groom. If you don’t have the design skills, find somebody in your community who does. Bella Art Prints gives you a way to create an affordable poster that becomes an extension of your product line and an amazing surprise gift to your clients.
- Save-the-date: Use your still images to create a postcard, video or stationery in a format your clients can mail. I know this isn’t a new idea, but it is if you take control of the process. You’re the one who implements the idea, working with a local printer/design company. Marathon can help you through each step of the process.
Holiday Cards
A holiday card is the perfect addition to the albums you’re going to create for the client after the wedding. As you’re shooting the engagement and wedding images, look for that opportunity to shoot something spectacular for the couple’s first holiday card.
Shooting for the Silver Frame
I’d love to take credit for the idea, but it belongs to wedding photographers Justin and Mary Marantz. The “silver frame” refers to an image that’s so outstanding it can stand alone, outside of the album. It’s the image the parents will have on the piano or fireplace. It might be a classic portrait or simply something unusual. This is a quality image with impact that shows off your skillset.
“What’s New?”
All it takes is one phone call to your lab to ask that question. Labs are always coming up with new products and ways to share images, but you won’t know about them if you don’t ask. While walking ShutterFest gives you a chance to see new products firsthand, you don’t have to wait until April every year.
“What’s Old?”
It’s not a typical question you’d ask your lab, but while you might be tired of canvas prints, many of your clients have never seen one, let alone owned one. I have two oversize canvas prints in my home, and I’m always surprised by the response from friends who visit.
We might be tired of canvas prints as members of the photographic community, but the public isn’t close to getting bored with the idea—especially when they’re the subject in print. A great lab can print on virtually anything. This is an opportunity for your creative skills to shine.
One Big Print
When a couple is scheduled to come in to see their proofs, wedding photographer Joe Buissink creates a special surprise gift. He picks one of his most favorite images and prints it nice and big. He frames and hangs it in his studio before the couple comes in. It’s his gift to them before they even begin thinking about their album.
Here’s one more piece of brilliance from Joe. He always signs the print. Why? Because he wants them to remember he’s an artist, and artists always sign their work.
Jump Drives, Proofs, Prints and iPads
Technology has given you the ability to do whatever you want with digital files. One of my favorite digital content companies is PhotoFlashDrive.com. It offers an ample collection of creative ideas for the packaging of jump drives, prints, etc. You’re the only one who can create the excitement around the services you provide. If you don’t elevate the value of the images to the level they deserve, nobody else will.
First-Anniversary Sittings
Here’s an idea I learned from photographer David Ziser years ago. He would do his best to contact every bride within a reasonable travel distance of his studio on the couple’s first anniversary. He always wanted to be the first to wish them a happy anniversary. His special gift was a complimentary portrait sitting.
The younger the bride, the more friends she has who will be getting married. This is a word-of-mouth business, and a surprise call from the photographer who shot the wedding is going to spread to every friend and family member of the bride. You couldn’t ask for better PR.
All of these ideas can help you build a stronger wedding business, but don’t forget your skillset comes before pricing. You’ll never be able to justify your pricing if your skills aren’t better than Uncle Harry’s. Your clients deserve the very best, and so do you. You’re not just working to be an outstanding artist, but, in the wedding world, the ultimate storyteller.
