It’s dusk. A single pier juts out across the mirror stillness of a quiet lake. A narrator’s voice says, “When it comes down to what’s important in life ….” Two dogs trot down the pier towards the woman”. The narrator’s voice continues “…it’s good to know what to expect. “  

This is an ad for?

1)      Financial planning

2)      Digestive health

3)      Dog food

4)     Sunsets
Think about this when you are putting together your website & marketing materials. Is your message clear? What are you selling? “I’m a professional photographer selling photographic services.” Is that all?  Nearly every photography website or wedding photography pricing list says about the same thing. “Here’s a list of the things that you get.” It’s about as inspiring as reading the side effects of taking aspirin. Huge. Snooze. Number one, on Zookbinders’ blog,10 Ways to Sell Wedding Albums Without Even Trying is, “Show high quality albums on your website, blog and social media – live and breathe them!” Photographers often say, “My customers don’t ask for wedding albums.” Well do you SHOW them? Unlike the commercial above – be direct. Your potential customers are not doing a faith-based search of potential vendors. They’re going to have to see something awesome to ask for it.

What to show? Step back and think on this. You’re hired. What do you envision the end result to be? What’s your photog-mantra? Write it down. “I want my couples to shed tears of joy as they download their digital files.” BUZZZZ! Try again.

“Providing my clients with a professional wedding album is the ONLY way to archive one of the most important events of their lives. It’s my duty as the professional to provide this to my clients. Their wedding photo album is the end goal.” – BRA-VO! What else do you offer? Do you do personalized engagement sessions with custom designed wedding sign-in books? Do your wedding collections all have beautifully handcrafted leather wedding albums filled with gorgeous imagery telling the story of one of the most romantic celebrations a couple can have? Then show your work.

Try this. Get crafty – literally. Go to your website – take screenshots  of your pages. Print them. Cut out all the individual assets, images, text etc. Lay out the pieces randomly on a table. Now, read your photog-mantra – out loud. Does it connect with what you see in front of you? Is this the complete story of you photography business? What parts are missing? Is there a picture of you?  Where are those professional wedding albums? Get your sample wedding albums out and photograph them – beautifully. (Don’t have samples? – order them.) Add these images to the collage of your business. What do you see now?  A picture of a 12×12 Zookbinders Lustre Book covered in glove leather opened to a panoramic image of a couple walking across a field gazing into each other’s eyes. So romantic!  A detailed shot of a Zook Book’s rounded corners, the thick pages and the silver gilding. Show shiny pretty things! Show the lay flat pages – the custom designs and acrylic covers. An image of parent albums next to a thank you note addressed to Mom & Dad. Pull at those heartstrings! This is your story. Show the end goal. Show your work. Elevate the message of your business.

Your clients won’t have to ask for a wedding album. They’ll know just what to expect.