Who Is Nigel Merrick

Nigel Merrick of Prime Focus Lab is a business coach and mentor to many photographers. He is also a prolific author, penning some of the most useful business guides in the photography industry.

Check out his books:

Interviewing Nigel

I recently recommended some of the best books you should read in the coming new year.

In this short video interview, Nigel and I talk about his new book, From Zero To Booked.

In it, he helps you identify your ideal clients, create compelling marketing that makes an impact on them, and shows you how to turn them into paying customers. It's a terrific read and I encourage you to read it.

This book by Nigel Merrick is particularly applicable if you are a wedding or portrait photographer who is either getting started in the business or who has been at it for some time but has started to feel a little burned out. Nigel offers clear-cut solutions to market to the clients who are right for you and who will see you as a good fit for them as well.

Want to get a taste of Nigel Merrick's writing before you invest in his books? I highly recommend you read this article on his site: The Phone Call That Almost Killed My Photography Business.

Are you ready to go From Zero To Booked in your business? Comment below! Or, ask Nigel questions that I am sure he will be able to answer given his wide breadth of knowledge and experience working with photographers just like you.

Blog post version 1: marketing for photographers

I wrote a draft of this blog post with some very generic information about marketing for photographers. Then I read it. And I didn’t like it! I didn’t think it was as valuable to you as it could be.

As I was reading it I was thinking “how many times have I read this kind of stuff before?” And the answer is too many times to count.

How much value to you is some generic information that is written by someone who doesn’t know your situation, doesn’t know who you are, what you love, what you hate, what your goals and dreams are? Someone who doesn’t know what type of photographer you are or who your clients are.

So it was back to the drawing board…

Blog post version 2: smart marketing for smart photographers

This second version of the blog post is completely different.

This blog post is not for everyone.

This blog post is not for you if you want some generic marketing strategies handed to you on a platter.

This blog post is for people who want to find the marketing strategies that are really effective at attracting more of the right kinds of clients – for YOU!

This blog post is for people who are willing to do some work!

So, are you up for the challenge?

You can reach your goals. And you can get all the clients you need. But it’s going to take some work. And the work starts now.

In this first of 5 blog posts we are going to work through some of the basics. These are things you should have clear in your head before you even think about building a SMART marketing plan.

They are:

Marketing basics

Your message

Your ideal client

Your philosophy/beliefs/values

About you, the photographer(s)

What do you have that is unique and worth talking about (remarkable)?

What have past clients loved and talked about?

What is the #1 reason why clients should/would choose you?

What other things do you offer that will make your ideal client sit up and take notice?

To help you on your way here’s an example:

Our message:

We photograph dogs and only dogs! We love our dogs – our furbabies – and know you love yours too. We are experts at capturing their quirky, unique and lovable personalities.

Our ideal client:

A couple, with no children, who are passionate about their dogs (they “are” their children). In their mid 40s, both working, with a disposable income and they can afford to invest in a photographic session with their beloved pet/s. They enjoy the stage of life they are at. They value their down time and love nothing more than to spend it with their dogs. They value (and can and will pay for) luxuries when it comes to their furbabies.

Our philosophy/beliefs/values:

Fun. Love. Laughter. We believe that life is too short not to have fun. We value love and laughter in both our personal lives and our business.

About you, the photographer(s):

We are L and P, husband and wife. Our passion is our furbabies many of whom have come to us as rescues having had difficult and traumatic pasts. For us though they are our children, we love them for all their quirks. We have been working together as a partnership in business since 1996. Out of this grew an interest in photography and we’ve discovered a way to blend the art that L loves so much with the technology that is P’s keen interest. We’ve decided life is too short to not enjoy what we do to earn a living so we’ve started our photography business and we love every minute of it.

What do you have that is unique?

Casual, relaxed atmosphere – we don’t mind getting down to their level and doing whatever it takes to get those great images. We love animals, this isn’t a job for us, it’s a passion – doggy kisses are ok!

What have others loved and talked about?

“They get to know our pets”
“They don’t rush, they’re happy to work with our pets and their moods”
“They are friendly and personable”
“They go the extra mile to get that perfect shot”

What is the #1 reason why clients would choose you?

We care! As two photographers, husband and wife, working intuitively together we know and love animals and will use that knowledge and passion to capture the uniqueness of your pets.

What other things will make your ideal client sit up and take notice?

We work to your pets’ timetable, not ours – it takes as long as it takes.
Working on location, in an environment your pet is happy in, allows for a relaxed, fun sitting and better photos.
We look for the quirky, unique and memorable moments.

Now, what’s next?

If you would like to send your marketing plan basics to me using this form, I will select one and use it as the case study for the next blog post: Your marketing mix. How's that? I'll basically be writing your marketing plan for you.

If you don’t wish to send it to me, no problem. Complete it, hold on to it and have it handy for the next blog post where we will take this information and work though the key marketing strategies that should make up your marketing mix.

Let me guess. You spend at a minimum a $1.50 for a cup of coffee every day. If tea is your thing, I am still probably not too far off the mark. Even if you make your beverage of choice at home, your cost is probably around the 50 cent range. Am I right?

What would you say if I told you that you can learn to market your photography on 42 cents a day.

Yup! You read that right.

Now, I don't know about you, but when times are tough, I don't stop thinking of ways to get the word out. I do just the opposite. I obsess about the many ways I can let people know about my growing businesses – photographing business executives and relaxed portraits of couples and families in Connecticut.

When Alicia Caine (that's her on the left) at Served Up Fresh wrote to me and said she was working on a new guide that had everything to do with marketing for photographers, I couldn't wait to check it out. She actually made it rather easy for me to get a sneak peek at what she was about to launch. You can sign up here, to get a free chapter download link, too.

Alicia has a proven track record for producing useful guide books for photographers. You may have heard of her Easy As Pie pricing guide. Or, her Happy Place Business Plan. Each has been meticulously researched and elegantly designed. Her expertise comes from working as a photographer. Like you and I, she looked for and found a way to support a growing family, offering portraits in an area that was remote and economically hard-pressed. That should be enough inspiration (it is for me) for you to see how she was able to succeed in establishing a thriving photography business.

I am sure there was a lot of hard work. But that goes without saying. What is rarely mentioned in success stories like Alicia's is her marketing chutzpah. She is proactive at establishing local business relationships that constantly refer her work. She calls it “relational marketing.” And, I wanted to know more.

I was curious to how she set things up. What did she do or say to arrange for those meetings to take place? How did she approach them? What was her offer? How did she go about define who she was going to serve? How did set up her email marketing campaign? What changes did she make to her website to make it so attractive that clients had to book her portrait sessions?

You see where I am going with this?

I just had a lot of questions and this guide book – Piece of Cake – is a loud and welcome response to each of those queries and more. Like her previous guide books, this one isn't just an information dump. That kind of an e-book, in my opinion should be a thing of the past because it doesn't add any value. No, Piece of Cake is a whopping 108 pages, with seven worksheets that guide you from one section to the next.

I found myself reading, taking notes and then working through the questions in the worksheet. And no, I am not done going through them all yet.

Friends, Alicia is clear on one thing: this isn't a one-size fits all type of solution. I suspect, that's why the worksheets are important. The answers you arrive at after completing each one will empower you to approach your marketing in your own way. You don't have to copy what your competition is doing. In fact, what you do will be so unique and distinctive that it will be hard to be copied by your peers in the same market.

Now, who doesn't want that, right?

Full disclosure time: I invested in this guide. That's right. I paid full price for it because I believe it will help my businesses. And because Piece of Cake not only meets but exceeds my expectations, I have chosen to promote it here as an affiliate. I make a small commission that helps support this website, when you buy the guide book using one of the links in this post. So, if you feel you will benefit in getting clear on how relationship marketing can help your photography business, please buy this guide now.

You bet there is a time limited offer – from now through March 26th, Piece of Cake is only $169. After that date, the price is going to increase to $349. It should be fairly clear to you that if you act quickly, you save a bundle. In fact, I suggest you invest that $180 you will save by taking a few people in your town or city out to lunch, or a cup of coffee. Getting to know other business owners in your zip code is key to making your own business grow.

After you have had a chance to read and act on the ideas and suggestions in this guide book, please come back here and let us know how you fared. Tell us what you put into action and what the results were.

So, here's to your business growth in 2013 through relationship marketing!