Are You All Tooled Up and Ready For the Upturn?

This is a guest blog by Boston-based photography consultant, Selina Maitreya.

For months many photographers have been laying low, few of them actively marketing citing financial setbacks and slow economic times. However proactive photographers have been working on their portfolios, updating databases, sending out direct and visual email and going on sales calls.

Who’s going to be in the running when the assignments start rolling in? My guess would be our proactive friends. No surprise there.

If you chose to cut back on your sales and marketing efforts in the last months or even years, NOW is the time reboot your business. Here is my checklist (in order) that you can use as a reference as you seek to re-charge your efforts.

VISUAL PRODUCT: Your body of work is your product. Make sure you have a deep body of work 25-40 images that represent your visual approach to your subject area. Go back and make sure all examples are current, and applicable to your vision. Edit and repaginate.

DATABASE: When was the last time you used your database? If it’s been a while, check with your provider and restructure your contact list. Make sure you have enough contacts for your outreach efforts (direct and visual email) to show a healthy return (1000-1500 names). If you don’t have a list. Invest in one. Contact AgencyAccess.com. They have a super team.

Develop Sales and Marketing Tools:

1) Get a print book fill it with the same images that is in your main web gallery and use it.

2) Choose locations 1 hour North, South, East and West of you and choose 75-100 contacts from your database and create an in person sales call list.

3) Set a goal for yourself for appointments you need to have per month and get going.

4) For my wedding folks your numbers for contacts will be smaller but if you look to see function hall contacts, wedding planners etc. you should have lots of in person leads.

5) Develop inexpensive post card mailers and plan on sending one every other month.

6) Develop and plan on sending out emails on month’s direct mail does not go out.

Social Networking:

If you have been a bit intimidated by social networking or only communicating with other photographers get your self-educated about the use of Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn as business applications. These helpful contact tools cost nothing but your time and attention.

I’ve given you what may seem to be a very large task, but if you take these suggestions one at a time and facilitate them you will be in great shape when the economy turns, and my wish is that it turns in your favor!

Follow Selina on Twitter, connect with her on Facebook and or LinkedIn. She is also the producer and voice behind The View From Here, an audio (MP3) program for photographers. If you found Selina's post here useful, you are going to LOVE The View From Here. Simply use “FOSSES” when you check out, to get it for $199 $99! (Yes, that's an affiliate code)