There are many hard and fast rules when it comes to designing an effective mailing piece and I know many of them work. And you will find some of the rules such as headlines and a call to action in my own marketing materials but what you will find even more prominently is what I like to call “The Mom Factor”.

The Mom Factor is the response a mom might have when she views one of our postcards. It is the design elements, wording and the session example images that tug at her heart making her feel that she absolutely must have her child’s portrait created by my studio. As a mother myself with both boys and a girl, I know what tugs at my own heart and I transfer that feeling to my own postcards to send out to other moms. If the post card doesn’t make the mom feel this way, it doesn’t have the right amount of Mom Factor ingredients. If you aren’t sure if it’s enough, just ask a mother with the age appropriate child and see how she reacts to the postcard.

I have 2 marketing strategies as of this writing that I use. First is my web site and second is a 4×6 postcard.

If you don’t have a web site, I can’t stress to you enough how important it is to have one. Not only to attract new clients from search engines, email or advertising but also so that when they receive one of your postcards or business cards they can review your work in their own home before calling.
We also use our web site to keep parents up to date on when our next Limited Edition session will be occurring. We have an entire year of Limited Edition sessions with dates listed on our web site and believe me, parents print this list off and refer back to it. I was recently in a client’s home, and on her fridge was my LE session calendar! They and new clients can also refer to this calendar of LE sessions and view a sample image from each theme.

Work on your marketing calendar for the next 12 months and post it on your website. You must give people advance warning on these so they know they need to call you!

My second and most effective marketing piece for Limited Editions is the 4×6 postcard. Each theme of course changes but the basic layout and information contained on the card are generally the same. This makes it so much easier to keep up with and quickly design your postcards for the whole year.

Here are my top tips to make sure to include in your postcard mailings for Limited Editions.

Headline – Something to grab the reader’s attention as it is usually the first thing they may read. A headline can be as simple as the name of your session or a catchy and emotion invoking phrase such as “Don’t let time slip by”. The goal of a headline is to get your reader to quickly see what this is all about and make them want to know more.

The Offer and Call to Action – Sounds simple doesn’t it? I was at the local mall a few weeks ago and a photographer had a display there with cards for people to take with them. Amazingly there was no offer; nothing to make people want to call. No special pricing or event was made aware to the reader. It was just an oversized business card.

Every postcard or sales letter that you send out needs to have some sort of offer or reason to make the person reading it want to call you. An offer could be as simple as “Call by 6/15 and receive a framed and matted 5×7 for just $99”. That’s an offer and I’ve given them a deadline.

Contact Information – Please, whatever you do make sure your contact information is somewhere on your postcard. I know you’re thinking “well duh Misty!” Believe it or not I’ve seen designs and I have seen it actually get mailed out to a mailing list with no contact! Your studio name (or logo), phone number, website and if you have enough room, your address needs to appear on every piece you send out.

Sample Image with Testimonial – Nothing speaks the truth more than a real testimonial from a client who has loved your work. Once you have the program going and have past customers from a theme contact them and just ask them how they felt when they saw their portraits. Tell mom you would like to feature her child in your promotion for the next LE session and they will most likely be thrilled to give you a testimonial.

Learn how to grow your email list to keep a steady flow of traffic and business coming through to your website. With these steps your email list will grow faster and stronger each day giving you more and more people to market to.

Add a “share with a friend” option on any articles you publish, blog posts or anywhere else you leave your message. If you aren’t sure how to do this, there are many plug-in widgets available online that will enable this feature for you easily depending on what application you are using. For example, if you are using Word Press you can check the plug-in section and add a plug-in to support this requirement.

Add a sign up form on your home page and include it in any side menu’s that are consistently shown on every page within your website. If you are offering something of value such as a weekly emailed tip, news and announcements or something informational, people will want to sign up and this is an easy way to let them opt to sign up themselves. As an added bonus you may want to offer an initial sign up incentive when they register their email address such as a special discount or e-product giveaway.

Start your own informational newsletter. People who are interested in the service you are providing are often happy to receive information they can use to research and find out what’s going on with your business and your products. Newsletters can be managed with a subscription based service such as Constant Contact or through your own email sign up database that you create to collect the email addresses on your home page, mentioned in the previous tip.

If you are attending a trade show, place a box in your booth to collect names, emails and addresses as a process to register for something you are giving away during the trade show. For example, if you are attending a pet show, you might offer a pet pampering service as a giveaway and collect names of potential pet owners by allowing them to register for this item.

If you are a business that receives customer or prospective customer phone calls, always ask them “Can I add you to our mailing list?” before ending each phone call. This way even if you didn’t land the sale on that call you will continue to be on their mind and have an additional chance to sell them later on through email.

Join in on the social networking websites such as Facebook and MySpace to take advantage of unlimited contacts. These social networking websites will allow you to develop closer relationships to your customers by “talking” on your social website through such tools as your Facebook wall page. Social networking websites also make it easier to gain new friends, which means adding more and more people to your email list.

Promote a contest on your home page or blog about a special prize or giveaway when they subscribe to your email list from your website. This is great incentive to get more and more people to sign up directly as well as get them to refer their friends to your website as well.

Resources:

• Lucrative List Building: How Everyday People Are Building Huge, Highly Profitable Opt-In Email Lists from Scratch to Make Millions Online
• Opt In Email List Building: How to Build and Run a Successful Opt In List

Have you ever walked through the grocery store and noticed in the cereal section a large selection of generic cereal in bags rather than those highly branded, colorful and well designed boxes? Which ones are priced higher? Which ones seem better? Which ones seem cheap?

This isn’t the case only for cereal. If you are delivering your finished portraits in a plastic or paper bag with no protection from being bent or scratched and absolutely no elegance about it, you are generic cereal!

Your portraits are a highly customized and highly valued work of art. Not only should your packaging include the same high standard as your portraits, but it should remain consistent with the image of your studio.

When my clients receive their finished portraits, they are given a very nice looking package that makes it seem like Christmas. Each of our orders is packed in a chocolate brown box that is tied up with leopard print ribbon and displays our gold foil logo on the lid. Inside, their portraits are safely packaged and protected in our signature leopard print tissue paper. Of course, doing all this extra packaging is an added expense, but it is one that my clients’ appreciation for a high-end product far exceeds. And for my business, it is part of our branding. Leopard print and chocolate brown colors are our thing and you will see it throughout on everything we do.

Suppliers for packaging are available all over the Internet but I am especially favorable to Bags N Bows. They have a large selection to match any branding need and are priced reasonably.

Remember that it is not only the larger chain stores that must brand their company. Small business owners like photographers can take advantage of branding to create loyalty and remembrance among clients and prospects. The important thing to remember is to be consistent in all of your marketing efforts. Everything should work cohesively; letterhead, business cards, web site, packaging, and yes even the décor of your studio.

For small photography businesses on a limited budget, a display is the perfect tool in your marketing arsenal. Displays build credibility for your business, build brand recognition and is almost an endorsement from the company that you are displaying in. There are many aspects of using displays effectively including the design of the display, the marketing materials and the relationships you will be building with business owners. Check out these steps to get the most out of your photography displays.

What exactly do you include in a display? Most displays consist of one or more larger wall portraits, either gallery wrap canvas or framed print. Many photographers also may choose to actually decorate the area with flowers, tool or other items, to give it a more upscale look. Local boutique displays are especially prime for this.

What type of images should be used in a display? The images themselves should be your absolute finest work. They should also “fit” the scheme of the location you are displaying in. For example, if you are displaying in a children’s clothing boutique, you wouldn’t display a wedding photography. Instead you would display children, dressed in high fashion clothing, maybe laughing, colorful, etc. Fit the theme of the store! Your logo should also be printed on every image you display either directly on the print through digital magic or other means.

What about handouts? You should have material available to take home for the people who view your display. Some people leave just simple business cards, but I do not recommend it. Business cards are small and get lost in purses. And your display may not show the same type of image that you may have on your business card. Instead, you should leave out what are called “lift cards”. A lift card is a postcard that your clients lift out and take home with them. They are often printed as 4×6 postcards, front and back, and are displayed next to the prints in a brochure holder.

Where should you display your work? This is a great marketing attempt to help anyone get over his or her shyness! To start with make a list of possible location that you would like to have your work displayed in. This would include such places like:

• Children’s Clothing Boutiques
• Dr. Offices and Lobbies
• Hair Salons
• Nail Salons
• Spa’s
• Restaurants
• Hospital Maternity Wards
• Pediatric Units
• Gift Shops
• Antique Shops (the nicer ones)
• Birth Centers
• Corporate Office Collections
• Home Builders
• Bridal Shops
• Banks
• Flower Shops

Ask for the display. I recommend having a small portfolio of images with you, bound in a nice album and showing the type of work that you would like to display in their store. Have your offer, written on paper, almost like a sales letter, telling them exactly how this display will benefit them! You may even offer to photograph the owner and their employees for free. Most importantly, DO NOT talk about how this will benefit you. They don’t care about you. Only talk about them. Tell them how the people who appear in these photographs will bring their friends to this store to show it off and that brings more business. Tell them how their store will now appear more inviting, cheerful and friendly, and that makes people want to spend more money.

Take rejections with class. Don’t let it get you down. So what. You probably will never see them again anyway. Take the no, say thank you so much for meeting with you, leave them a card and be on your way. But don’t get depressed about it. Above all don’t give up!

Make this part of your marketing routine each week. Pick a day to get out in your community and just go shopping. Eat out at restaurants. Look at their walls. Is there space for a display? Chat up with the owner a lot. Make him remember you for next time you come in. Because next time you come in, it will be with your husband or friend and you will casually happen to have your portfolio with you. And you might drop the idea on his head, along with a business card, telling him you will call him tomorrow when he isn’t so busy.

PR or public relations is often a misunderstood term that deserves a little clarification. Many people assume it is just another word for marketing. While they are related in some ways there is a big difference between the two.

Marketing

The idea behind marketing is to promote a specific promotion or product for your business. Marketing focuses on your customers needs and expectations and tries to deliver exactly what they want to encourage sales. Marketing defines a target market so that you know who to market to and it outlines a strategy to attract and keep customers.

Public Relations

Public relations is focused more on the business itself. Your public relations campaign will be more concerned with the way the public views your business and it’s reputation rather than the products you make (although these may sometimes go hand in hand). Public relations will increase your visibility to the public and show that you are an expert and an industry leader.

The public includes your fellow business owners, clients, neighbors, community leaders and anyone else that you and your business may come in contact with. As you can imagine, with the overwhelming number of possible “public” to build a relationship with, it could become quite involved. Because of this many small business owners would rather just advertise in traditional methods than to take the time to build a strong public relations campaign. But a strong public relations campaign can strengthen your position in the market place and give you a competitive edge that traditional advertising methods just can’t offer you. And in many cases, public relations doesn’t cost nearly as much as marketing and advertising campaigns will. Take a look at just a few public relations ideas.

• Speak at local groups and organizations. They are always looking for people to speak at their groups and it will give you a chance for face-to-face contact presenting you and your company in a positive light.

• Write articles or how-to tips for your local magazine or newspaper. Not only is it once again putting you in their minds, but it sets you up as the community expert for the topic you are writing about.

• When something happens with your business or yourself, send out press releases to newspapers.

• Volunteer for something in your community that generates a lot of press and shows your business as being involved in the community.

Public relations is something that you will have to consider and work at every day. It should become habit to you to constantly consider how the public views your business.

As photographers, we aren’t the type of businesses that people need on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. We are more of your special occasion type of business. The down side to this is that our clients don’t necessarily have a relationship built with us to remember us for every need. So how do we combat this inability to be on our client’s minds constantly?

The answer my friend is constant contact with your clients!

Before sending out even your first newsletter you need to define what its purpose is. Is it to promote your business? Is it to build customer loyalty? Is to remind your clients “Hey we’re still here!”? Is it friendly and warm or very business oriented? The answer is all of the above! To do all this, our newsletter cannot just be about us. It can’t be just another advertisement. It needs to be informative and fun for your clients to read.

Know who your reader is! For my business, my readers are most likely loving mothers. Put yourself in your client’s shoes for a moment. What would they like to read about: Tips on parenting, craft ideas to do at home with the kids, child safety articles, toy and product reviews, or trivia games to call in to win prizes? Of course your client will also want to hear about new and exciting things happening with your business, which includes special promotions that you have coming up. Just be sure to talk about what they are interested and less of yourself and your business.

Keep your writing in your newsletter very clear and easy to read. Talk in a casual pattern like you would normally speak in a day to day basis. If it helps, record yourself talking about the topic you want to address and then type it out. This will keep your newsletter friendly and inviting feel for your readers.

Don’t forget that the way your newsletter looks is just as important as what its content is. If you have the extra funds in your budget a single page, front and back color newsletter is an excellent way to go. But black & white print can get the job done just as well if your newsletter is well executed. You may even want to consider investing in a color laser or wax printer from Xerox if you have the volume to back it up.

So why am I only talking about a print newsletter? I am sure many people would recommend having an email newsletter for your clients. And in some businesses that is probably fine. But from my own research newsletter emails are not as effective. First, a large majority of your email newsletters may end up going through your client’s spam filter and they would never even see the newsletter. This could lead to some very upset clients who miss out on a special promotion because they never got the newsletter. Second, emails that do make it through spam filters will often be deleted anyway because of the number of junk mail we each get in our mailboxes every single day. Yes of course it is free, but remember, it doesn’t matter how free something is if your customers never get it. My advice is to invest the little money it takes to build a good solid print newsletter. And if cost is an issue, take it down to mailing once every other month.

Creating a newsletter can be a very beneficial business tool for your business. It helps to maintain constant contact and in turn reminds your customers that you are there for them, when they need you most.

Direct mail is a great way to advertise but usually it isn’t the ONLY means to get the word out about your business. Direct mail is best used in conjunction with other marketing methods. To be considered successful the obvious measurement is that the response must generate enough revenue to cover the cost of a mailing list, postage, printing and paper. This would break even and still get the word out about your business. Success beyond that is determined by your own expectations on what you want to generate. However, it is interesting to note that to most industries a standard successful response rate is only 2-3%!

There are a large number of mailing list companies out in the world. The problem with mailing list companies is that they are only as good as the information provided to them. So don’t go into a mailing list expecting 100% accuracy. For a good list try www.info-usa.com or for senior lists try www.americanstudentlists.com. Both are great companies and both provide great lists at reasonable rates.

Lastly, don’t forget to send direct mail to your current clients. When you first make contact with a client, gather as much information about them as you can, i.e. name, address, email, phone number, children’s names and ages (even birthdates). Keep a good client database and make sure every client, every contact hears or sees something from you several times thru the year. Monthly is even better. You need to keep your name and product in front of them as often as possible so that when they need a photographer, you are at the front of their thoughts. Research shows that it’s five to six times more costly to gain a new customer than retain an existing one. So stay in contact with them!

As a new home photography business, money is always tight. And even if it isn’t, why spend thousands of dollars when some of the best marketing ideas are inexpensive or in some cases free with just a little leg work! Check out some of these marketing ideas to help you get your home photography business off to a great start!

1. Join a “like-minded” business for some unique co-op advertising. This type of advertising cuts your advertising cost and gets your name in front of your partners clients, almost using them as a spokesperson for your services.

2. Register a memorable domain name for your business and include it on every piece of collateral material you distribute such as letterhead, business cards, postcard mailings, fliers, etc. Make sure it is easy to remember. If multiple spellings may be issues, purchase the domain name with multiple spellings all leading to the same website.

3. IF you are going to have a website, it is better to have a well crafted website or nothing at all. Having a bad website is WORSE than not having one at all. It only ruins any credibility you may have had. The photographer on a marketing budget can call around to local colleges and find a design student who is willing to do it for their portfolio for free or dirt cheap or purchase a website template!

4. Talk to local charitable organizations that have your target market as contributors. Offer to sponsor an event or donate an item to their cause to be raffled off.

5. Research online publications that your target market reads. Offer to submit articles that would benefit their readers.

6. Host an annual open house at your studio. Hold a special purchase opportunity available only during the open house hours.

7. Start talking with the people you do business with on a personal basis. Who does your hair? Who is your dry cleaner? Show them what having some of your work displayed in their business can do for you them.

8. Publish a monthly or quarterly newsletter for your clients. Fill it with articles and useful information for them and not just advertising for yourself. Use this as a reminder to your clients that you are still around, waiting to service them!

9. Join a chamber of commerce in your city. Many of these organizations have “after hours” networking events each month. This is the perfect opportunity for you to mingle with other business owners and get the word out about your business.

10. Work with a sign company to design the perfect detailing on your vehicle promoting your business. Be sure to include not only your phone number but your web site as well.

11. When was the last time you displayed your products to the public? Most cities hold annual trade shows or local activity events such as Women’s Expo, Children’s and Baby Expo, Bridal Shows, local artist fair, etc. Get out there and show your stuff!

12. Build your mailing list by collecting names from other businesses. Develop relationships with various business types where your target market shops such as hair salons, boutiques and other similar stores. Put up a monthly drawing for a free portrait creation and gift print. Collect the names and addresses and put out a nice box for collecting the entries. Draw one each month and gain additional sales from the winner and enter all of the non-winning entries into your mailing list!

13. Develop your list of local news contacts including email addresses and mailing addresses of all local papers and their editors or other contacts your may have. Find interesting ways to spin news about your studio into something newsworthy for the community.

14. Promote an online value. A great way to track your inquiries from the web is to give out a promotion code for people to give for a percentage off their order when they find you online.

15. Develop and print up a testimonial brochure. This is different than a basic pricing brochure just like everyone else has. This is a tri-fold, professionally printed brochure holding images and testimonials from your best clients!