I receive questions about photography & about being photographed almost daily. I share some of my favourite questions on the blog, so that everyone can benefit from the answers.
Q: I get really nervous when doing consultations. Can you please describe your first meeting with a potential wedding client?
These days I get so many wedding enquiries that I don’t generally get to meet the couple in person before a booking, as it would be a bit of a logistical nightmare, especially when there are more than one couple interested in the same date, which often is the case. I do try to meet with my wedding clients before their big day, though, whether at their engagement session or at a book consultation where we’ll look at some samples of albums and get to know each other better.
My main prerogative is to learn more about the client and their story, and to educate them about my process (although I do this with my material prior, so generally in meetings it’s more of a reminder), and to connect with who they are. Quite a few of my clients are based abroad, so sometimes meetings take place over skype, technology really has made such a difference to our lives in such a short space of time!
If you’re just starting out, and nervous about consultations, I think the best thing for you to do is to try to focus completely on the people in front of you and ask questions about them, rather than going in with a sales pitch and thinking you need to impress them with who you are and what you do.
After you’ve gotten to know a little bit more about the couple, do invite them to ask you questions, and then try to provide solutions for those answers. When it comes to talking about your pricing, practice makes perfect. Make sure you know your prices and are comfortable with them. You can even practice saying your prices out loud, so that when it comes to a consultation situation, you are able to do it confidently and calmly.
Don’t worry, after you’ve been meeting with potential clients for a while, you won’t even remember why it made you nervous in the beginning!
Are you a photographer or an aspiring creative business owner? Her Lovely Heart is my way of helping heart-led creatives to run their businesses with purpose, freedom, and joy. By subscribing to the Inspire Your Inbox letters, you’ll gain access to a library of free resources and worksheets, plus regular letters of inspiration from me straight to your inbox. Click here to join and receive instant access to The Library.
Great article with some sound advice. I don’t think pitching to people is the best idea, instead simply chatting to them about their day and being more of an informer than a salesman will break the ice/ nerves and make them feel at ease.
Great advice, it soften nerve wracking meeting clients as you feel that a sale hangs upon how you sell, but the most important thing to remember is they mostly need to know you are human, professional, and passionate about what you do. I always remember that it is about them, rather than me, so I don’t go for a sales pitch, but will always answer their questions.
Sometimes clients don’t know what to ask, so I occasionally refer to the ‘most asked questions’ which of course I have the perfect answer for, this is a great way of showing them just how professional you are.