Tips to Help You Be More Successful at Selling Your Photography

In person sales meetings can be tough for a lot of photographers. Let’s face it, no one wants to feel like they are a pushy sales person. Follow these five tips below and you will be feeling more confident at these meetings in no time.

1) Make a personal connection with your clients. Find some common ground with your clients. It could be that you are a mom and have kids, maybe you have similar interests, etc…The only way to do this is to get to know your clients. Ideally you should have get to know them before the shoot. At the sales meetings talk about the common ground you share so it makes it more relaxing and not so “salesy”.  Remember to always be sincere.

2) Position yourself as an expert. You want your clients to feel that they are in the hands of an expert. When you are showing your photos, give your expert opinion on which ones you like best and why. Some other ways you can share your expertise at your in-person sales meeting are by letting your clients know which images you think would look great as a main image and which would look good as complimentary images on their wall. You might give them some tips on caring for their images or even tips on how to design their wall gallery. 

3) Have samples of what you sell.  I once heard the phrase “you sell what you show” and it couldn’t be truer. In my photography business I didn’t start selling albums until I started showing albums. Bonus tip here is if you want to sell BIG then show BIG. And I’m not necessarily referring to the size of the album. This could also refer to the upgrades of the album. When you order your custom album samples pay extra for those upgrades. Most album companies do give a discount on sample orders so why not upgrade the kind of paper, leather covers, engraving and more! That way your clients don’t have to “imagine” the upgrades, they’ll actually be able to see them. Plus, emphasis is on the word “custom”. They are ordering from you because they want something customized. Whether it’s a custom frame, custom canvas or custom album. When you think of customizations also think of personalizations. People love to personalize, especially when it comes to weddings and children. If you have the option to get a name engraved on your album, frame or even add their name to the canvas even better!

4) Have special promotions ready.  Have 2-3 special offers that are available at the time of the in person sales meeting. After you go over the promotions ask which one your client is most interested in and then see Step 5. So your clients will be expecting it, let them know in an e-mail prior to the meeting that you will be having some special offers when they come to see their photos.

5) Use limited time offers and sweeten the deal. Make sure you let them know that the special promotions you have available are only available during this meeting. Take the offer that they said they are most interested in and sweeting the deal by adding something to it. Maybe you throw in an extra 8x10 or an album upgrade. Something to help close the deal.

Need more tips? Check out my top 5 Tips for a Successful In Person Sales Meeting.  Or you might like the 7 Sales Tips I Learned From a Mall Kiosk Lady (who was trying to sell me a high end flat iron).  Marketing is all around us if we take the time to notice. You never know what little gold nugget you might pick up from other businesses you come in contact with in your every day routines. Just keep your eyes open.