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Service is king
Developing Strategies to Stay Ahead of the Curve
By Will Crockett/Ira Gostin
As photographers and business owners, we would like to share some vital business information
with you regarding the economic climate and how it affects our commercial photo industry. Using
the current downturn in business travel as a gauge (airlines, hotels, rental cars are all down
severely) combined with the stock market decline, layoffs, and the overall skittish mood in the
corporate sector, we are convinced that the "ripple effect" of the World Trade Center tragedy
has pushed our fragile economy over the brink and snowballing into a nasty looking recession.
We hope we are wrong about that, but things do not look good. We also believe that the volume of
commercial photography that is hired on a daily basis will be reduced to at least half of its
current volume as will budgets for photography in the months ahead. This means you will have to
work harder to get the shooting jobs you want or need to stay afloat, and your competition will
be getting tighter. That's the bad news.
But, ( and there is good news coming!) we are writing this to let you know that it's not going to
be fatal. Based on our experience in past slowdowns, we have seen that photographers who are
prepared for this type of economic slump usually do very well. We want to share the following
information about what we are doing to stay in front of the curve (and out of the loan office
for our own bail outs!).
1. Service is King. Top notch customer service is one of the best ways to keep your business growing.
Ask yourself: Are you returning phone calls immediately? Are you honestly looking at ways to save
your client's money during a shoot? Is your follow-up concise and professional? And are you letting
your clients know you appreciate their business?
2. Mass Mailing Won't Work Well. Mass mailings of postcards are great for showing glimpses of your
work and keeping in front of clients, but tend to lose their effectiveness when times are tight.
During troubled times, business needs to be more "touchy-feely." No cheesy address labels stuck on
envelopes- everything should be cleanly printed. Try to add a personal touch with a hand written note.
Also, make sure there is a cover letter, do not just send out mailers alone.
3. Target Marketing Works Best. Create a quality promotional piece /Web site /portfolio and deliver
it carefully to a "warm" contact with whom you have already communicated. Follow up with a call. Ask
for a meeting to show a portfolio or make a PowerPoint/Director presentation. Find out what they need
and then tailor your marketing efforts accordingly. This is vital.
4. Personalize Your Contact. Now is the time to put some major research into your database to find
current names and titles of the potential clients you are marketing to. It is imperative that you
make contact with them before and after a promotional piece is mailed.
5. Reduce Your Debt. Pay off credit card bills; sell all your unused gear on eBay; think about leasing
that new digital camera instead of buying it. Meet with your financial planner and accountant, look at
ways of streamlining your operation, and investigate a cash reserve line with your business bank to help
smooth out the expected increase in the time it takes your clients to pay. Preserving your cash will
give you more options down the bumpy road ahead.
6. Invest in Marketing The time to upgrade your logo, Web site, contact materials for a more exciting,
slick, or professional look is right now. Please don't wait until January when it's too late. Put all
your extra effort and funds into prepping your marketing materials today. If cash is tight, maybe there
is a designer or agency you can trade with to fulfill your needs.
7. Self Produced Promo Pieces. (Epson or Fuji PG) are the way to go, but don't be in a hurry. Make sure
your designs are clean, concise and professional looking. Have someone proof them for you. Again, make
sure your materials present you as the professional you want to be perceived as.
8. Ask Your Existing Accounts for More Work. Contact your current clients and ask them what other types
of photography services they buy, and see if you can provide it. For example, ask a client you shoot
products for if they hire photographers for corporate headshots. Then ask to submit a bid for the next
headshot job.
We hope we are not frightening you with this unusually pessimistic tone, we just want to warn you so that
you can benefit from the preparation. Photographers tend to be procrastinators and as we've seen in past
economic slowdowns, the sluggish photographers are the ones who cry the loudest.
We should look at ourselves as business owners first, photographers second, and we must maintain solid
business practices to weather this impending storm. Please prepare yourself and your business.
And please, do it now.*
© Ira Gostin/Will Crockett.
Even though in different parts of the country, Will Crockett and Ira Gostin
are collaborating on a variety of future projects. Crockett heads Crockett & Co. a commercial photography
company in suburban Chicago. He is also a photography lecturer and educator. His current project is
www.shootSMARTER.com. Ira Gostin is a corporate and editorial
photographer based in Reno, Nevada. In addition to assignments he teaches at workshops and has written
many articles for leading photography magazines. His current program is titled Adventures in
Marketing: Self-Promotion made easy.
For information:
Will Crockett-www.shootSMARTER.com
e-mail: will@xnet.com.
Ira Gostin-www.gostinphoto.com
e-mail: ira@gostinphoto.com.
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