Q&A - 3.5 ways to ensure your first meeting is off to an amazing start

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Quick Caveat - Even though I’m talking about meeting with a bride at a wedding consultation, this applies to any first-time meeting with a potential client.

When you sit down with a bride and groom for the first time, you’re going to be tempted to unload the full force of your fantastic photography as fast as possible.

But let’s hang on a sec, buckaroo. Before you skin them smoke wagons, take a look at a few ways to make a solid connection BEFORE you meet, so the “show and tell” part of your presentation is as powerful as possible.

(And NO, I won’t be using any more alliteration. It’s out of my system, I swear)

1. How can I make a positive first impression during a consultation?

• Be on time, or better yet, be early. If you’re meeting at a neutral place, get a good seat with good light and get everything all prepared. This puts you in control of the surroundings and control = confidence.

• Show them you’re happy to see them. Stand up, smile, shake hands and tell them how glad you are you could get together. NOTE: I didn’t say, “Thanks for meeting with me.” Saying this starts things from a position of weakness. Instead, try, “I’m so glad we could get together.” This is both true and balanced.

• Listen to them. If you ask them something, listen for the answer and follow up with something BASED ON what they say. Everyone likes to be heard.

2. What materials or presentations should I bring to a consultation?

• Bring more than you’ll need. Albums, books, prints, whatever photo samples you use to sell your services - bring plenty. You never want them to see your stuff and feel like, “Is that all?”

  Let them finish with one album, see the other four and think, “OK, this photographer has the goods!”

• Bring your rates and a version they take home. I use this cool bound presentation booklet that we both look through together, and then I leave it with them. I almost always got a surprised look when they realized they could keep it.

  And if they don’t hire you today, they can easily pass your rates along to a friend…which they do.

• Also, don’t try to be too salesy and “close” them on the spot. Be classy and confident and encourage them to look around if they’d like. If they’re smart, they’ll be back.

3. How do I handle objections or concerns raised by potential clients?

• Objections will come up, BUT you can keep them to a minimum if you do one simple thing…Address the objections before they come up.

  This might sound difficult or like a mindreading trick, but if you put yourself in the shoes of the bride (not literally, of course) and run through your pitch, you’ll find those holes where the objections lie.

  “Are you the only photographer on the day?”

  “What happens if you get sick?”

  “How long before I see my photos?”

  Those are just a few of the common ones. Ask yourself what the bride might be thinking or ask and bring those up BEFORE she does.

  If you bring them up first, they are no longer objections.

And here’s your Bonus .5 Q&A

3.5 What happens if a bride wants to book me without meeting up first?

Repeat after me, “I should definitely meet with the bride before I book the wedding.”

You're going to meet a lot of people at weddings. It's not uncommon for a guest or a bridesmaid to have seen your work at a wedding you both attended, love the results and want to hire you on the phone. Please, just take a little time to talk to each other before you move forward.

It doesn't have to be a specific length of time, especially when it's a bridesmaid or a sister of a wedding you shot. They know you, but people are different, and it's important that you know more about THEM.

Meeting with a bride is fun. I know that's not what you signed up for when you chose to be a wedding photographer, but it's an important part of the selling process, so you might as well enjoy it.

Every wedding you shoot starts with either a meeting with a bride and groom, a bride and her mom, a bride and the whole family or just the bride alone.

I DO NOT recommend booking a bride without talking with her first. And let me tell you, it will be oh-so-tempting to do so.

You'll get a call from a bride, and she'll say something like, "I absolutely love your work and I want to book you for my wedding! Reserve June 5th for me right now, please."

Even if it's a Zoom call, you MUST have some conversation with the bride first. Find out what she's like, what she likes and doesn't like, and how she envisions her wedding day.

You need to know if her wedding dreams line up with your ability (or tolerance) to fulfill those dreams.

This conversation is so important because you're going to have access to her wedding day like no other vendor, and the wedding day is not the day to find out your personalities...don't appreciate each other (that's a nice way to put it).

It's good for you, it's good for her, it's good for the groom and the whole family for both of you to fully understand and appreciate each other.

When you invest a little time in your wedding meeting prep, you’ll see huge returns each and every time you meet with future brides. Every bride is different, and every meeting you take makes you more comfortable.

Comfort also = confidence, btw.

Meeting with the bride (and having a GOOD meeting) is one small part of the "inner game of wedding photography. THIS is what I write about each week in this newsletter.

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If you're interested in becoming a wedding photographer but don't know where to start, I can help.

Shoot me an email at [email protected]