IN[FOCUS]

 

• self-taught
• partially colour-blind
• married to one wife
• master to two cats
• owner of three cameras
• a member of the eventdv top25 2008 all-star team

In running a photo+video studio (as well as a portrait photography studio) every day I am confronted with the gap between photography and videography in the areas of workflow, profit potential, and street-cred with brides.  I love the process of telling stories with moving pictures that are emotive and visually appealing but the aforementioned reasons certainly cause me concern.

Why is our industry in the state that it’s in?  Is it good or bad?  How did we get here?  What are we doing well? What can we do better?  Where is the industry going? How do we get there both collectively and individually?  And why should we care?

[IN]FOCUS is both a question and an answer.  That’s why I’m excited to be an IN[FOCUS] blogger to explore these questions and find answers along the way.

Matt Ebenezer

Hello In[FOCUS] Reader,

Two years after we began our business as part timers, Corbin and I quit our corporate jobs on the same day in November 2003 with zero weddings booked for 2004 and hardly anyone to refer us. Our business lost money in 2004 we barely broke even in 2005.  We needed a low-cost, high-return marketing strategy or our company wasn’t going to last long.

Fast forward to 2008.  Here are our stats from last year:

• total inquiries 169

• weddings booked 36

How did we adjust our marketing in the in-between years to increase our bookings so healthily?  One of the main solutions was by building relationships with wedding planners.

Here are more stats from 2008:

• total inquiries from wedding planners 43

• weddings booked from wedding planner referrals 16

• money brought in from referrals by wedding planners – $54,900.
• average $ amount per event referred by a wedding planner – $3,431.25

Only 2.5 months into the current year, we have booked 12 weddings thru planners for a total of $42,000 in capital.

So, how does one go about finding wedding planners and having them fall and stay in love with your business.

Here’s how we did it:

Find Planners to Target:

• planners have local organizations: American Association of Certified Wedding Planners, JWI, AWP

• check your local magazines.  Our locals: DWeddings, Brides of North Texas

• look at online resources: The Knot, Wedding Wire, Strictly Weddings, Martha Stewart W eddings, Perfect Wedding Guide

• ask other vendors which planners they enjoy working with: Professional Videographer’s Association of DFW

• talk to the planners at the weddings you’re already working.

Found Them, Now What:

• don’t be shy, planners are always looking for new talent.

• send them your samples, handouts and a hand written note briefly explaining who you are, your sevices and that you’d like to meet in person

• if another vendor referred you to them, find out from that vendor a restaurant that the planner enjoys.

• keep your follow-up emails or phone calls to a minimum.

The Meeting is Set:

• arrive early.

• get to know them as people, not just as someone to send you business.
• explain to them your business, your style and review your packages and pricing information.

• keep your follow-ups to a minimum (mailing a new dvd of samples is a great way to follow-up)

Working With the Planner on the Wedding Day:

• planners typically provide a timeline of events.  show up earlier than you are listed and call to let them know you have arrived.

• if your coverage doesn’t take you to the end of the night, let them know 30 minutes before you are scheduled to leave.

After The Wedding:

• keep contact to a minimal at this point.  write a “thank you” note or e-mail them when a preview is online. we’ve also started providing online versions we call Sneak Previews, which is great for the planners website or Facebook Page

• provide them a copy of the finished dvd, it’s promotional material for them and YOU!

• don’t contact the planner letting them know what days of the year you’re available, they’ll contact you if you served their bride well.

The next marketing resource in a later entry: Photographers!!!

Dave and Corbin Baxter