Senior Reps
emeraldrose
Registered Users Posts: 324 Major grins
Has anyone ever done this? Did a free shoot for one or two rising seniors and had gave them promo pieces to hand out to their friends and then offered free prints for referrals? I would like to find out how people went about doing this. I have at least 2-3 highschools i currently can get into, but want to have all my ducks in a row, like contracts, how to deal with parents, how you decided how many referrals = different products and so on. Thanks in advance! :lust
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Anyone?
Firstly, I have only offered one "Senior Package", and plan to follow that same approach next year. I will be offering this years pricing on that package for next year's seniors who schedule in the fall......where those who wait until spring will pay the updated price. I am hoping this will help to unload me in the spring, give me room to schedule more kids, and avoid the mad rush I have experienced the last two years in March/April.
My Package....
20- 4x6 "proofs"
80- wallets
8- 5x7
2- 8x10
websized watermarked digital downloads from their proof gallery for their myspace or facebook pages.
I limit the prints to 20 poses chosen from our "on-location" shoot. Additional poses....for print....cost extra. This cuts down considerably on editing time.
Last year I began offering press printed books as an add on to the package. This year I will add tri-folded graduation invitations as an add-on.
I don't plan to do "senior rep" exactly, but will be giving out rep cards featuring the student to the first couple kids from each school. Thats it.
The truth here is that "good news travels fast". If you are doing quality work and offering a useful package at an attractive price, then the work will certainly come. I have been tempted to run ads in high school football programs or local newspapers, but have never gone through with it. Maybe I will try this next year....maybe not.
"Giving" my work away....even if under the guise of advertising (as in the whole "senior rep" idea) isn't a business practice I am fond of.
FWIW, allowing the kids to post web sized copies of their proofs (watermarked of course) on their webspaces has been one of the smartest "advertising" decisions I have made.
Jeff
-Need help with Dgrin?; Wedding Photography Resources
-My Website - Blog - Tips for Senior Portraiture
Thank you, do you have any advice on how to get started getting my name to the seniors? I have one high school where my name is definitely starting to take hold as my friend (the mom of the girl i just shot) and her children are marketing me like crazy, but that's one high school out of the like 30 in the area. I'm offering the watermarked web versions and even a sample of a graduation announcement and I too am doing only one catch all price. But I can't figure out where to advertise or even 'hang out' to get the word out. Teens aren't as easy to find as parents of small children.
Well this is never never land for me as I havent had to advertise, but...
- Our area has an abundance of social magazines....monthlies and weeklies that find their way into Dr's office waiting rooms and the like. THAT would be a good start.
- We also have a small newspaper that circulates once per week for the area that is immediate to me. Another good choice.
- Contact those schools and ask them who you should speak with about placing ads in football programs, basketball programs, yearbooks, etc.
- Ask those same schools about making a donation to them in exchange for placing advertising (signage) in the gym or a banner on the fence at football/baseball fields.
You could also simply print flyers and ask them to circulate them to the "senior" homeroom classes.
Jeff
-Need help with Dgrin?; Wedding Photography Resources
-My Website - Blog - Tips for Senior Portraiture
I have done 2 senior model shoots.
They get a free package in return for handing out our info and a $50. rebate on every senior they refer.
They talk a lot about all the interest they are getting but in the end I have only gotten 1 actual referral from it. I do not plan on doing it again.
Our market is saturated with local studios who buy lists of the seniors and do mailer campaigns. They have dominated the market for years and it has become family tradition in this area to have all the kids done at the same studio...even if they are crazy expensive....and they don't get the disk and they only get a few prints. Old school stuff but the locals are still buying into it.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/21695902@N06/
http://500px.com/Shockey
alloutdoor.smugmug.com
http://aoboudoirboise.smugmug.com/
I'm just now also trying to get into that. I had one Senior and also gave her 10 web images of her favorite shots, with my website address displayed on them.
D300 l 85/1.4 l 35/2 l 50/1.8 l 70-300vr l 28-105 l tokina 17-50/2.8 l 135ais l Sb600 and sb900 l Mac
keep them coming. I'd like to place ads where they hang out, but where do teens hang out anymore lol.
Teens hang out at Facebook, and to a lesser degree Myspace.
I have a house full of teens. If you want them to see it....put it on Facebook.:D
...and its free.
Jeff
-Need help with Dgrin?; Wedding Photography Resources
-My Website - Blog - Tips for Senior Portraiture
yeah that was my thouhgt lol I did start a facebook page where people can become fans and I have an ad that's been run and have gotten some visitor through that, but no calls yet. I would just start searching people and friending them, but it won't let you search for people under 18, so trying to figure that out. And if once they're a fan I can't see their profile to try and friend their friends unless you guys know somehting I don't.
This is something I am interested in doing, just havent had a chance to do one yet. Most of the teens I know have graduated in the last couple of years, so those avenues are closed now.
I was looking into this last spring, and someone mentioned some schools limit who the students can hire for the portraits. The photog needs to get permission from the school, to make sure they meet the requirements. Im still not sure who to ask for at the school when I call, I hate talking on the phone. : )
Now lol. In fact we're a little behind. the high school chosen photographers will be done by early sept. and that's usually when they will need all their pics in. Even if you don't do what's needed in the yearbook, as those are usually provided free by the school's photog, then you can market for grad announcements and such. If you just call the schools main number the secretary is usually the most knowledgable person and can direct you to who you need.
My biggest question is how to get my name out to seniors before school starts?
An idea I had was to get permission from someone that lives near the school, and put a small billboard type thing in their yard, that everyone would see going to school. : ) they would probably want to be paid for this, but it could be cheap advertising.
I advertise myself as the creative shooter, pictures for the Seniors who wants fun, creative pictures, that they want to show off for friends, actually hang on their own wall and give wallets to their friends. (I order Moo cards with fav pics from each session, add on the students info, but also who their photographer is: me) That's a $21 cost to me but it's worth it if they can haul in more work for me.
My last Senior session resulted in selling a package
D300 l 85/1.4 l 35/2 l 50/1.8 l 70-300vr l 28-105 l tokina 17-50/2.8 l 135ais l Sb600 and sb900 l Mac
forgive my ignorance, but what are moo cards? I'm guessing they're like the trading/rep cards.
I have a couple of family friends with teens so I took Junior prom pics this spring. So far most of the juniors I took pics of in the prom party have contacted me for their senior photos. Proms are a great way to get LOTS of kids interested in your photos all at once! You take them for one party, but there are always lots of kids there sharing limos and stuff, so take some of them too and you will be amazed at the result. I also took senior photos of one girl for free with prints at cost in exchange for some advertising by her father, a business owner in town.
Around here (East Texas) it is too humid to be taking pics now, most either wait until fall when the leaves turn or early spring when everything just turns green. With my seniors they will get 20 proofs, if they choose I will split them up 10 in the fall and 10 in the spring so they get a little of each. Most of them have trouble deciding since the foliage here is gorgeous! Of course that means my session times are also split in two.
As for advertising I plan on offering a discount for those who book before September 1st (gives me summer spending money). My second gig is a school teacher. Most high schools have a SENIOR BULLETIN BOARD with announcements. Make a poster size advertisement that shows examples and a basic package price and ask to hang it there. If it's that big of a deal, offer to work a senior function in return. Schools always love volunteers!
I love to support 4-H and FFA kids so I give them a discount and offer Clubs a chance to earn money by hiring me to shoot their events. This may be something you are willing to do for your local school???? For every X number of students or sales you get, give X number of dollars back to the school (maybe in the graduation fund). This would be a big incentive for them to put your poster up! I know in a small town like mine it is hard for me to make a buck off of kids or families I know, but I can't do it for free either. By giving something in return they know I care about them and their school and everyone wins!
The facebook idea is great, but not sure how to get the word out on that one... maybe if there were a school club/organization that had a facebook page?? Like FCCLA or something??
Winnsboro, TX
www.jaesenphotography.com
good ideas
Yes, they're real neat. You get 50 cards and you can pick 50 different pictures..or less. www.moo.com
D300 l 85/1.4 l 35/2 l 50/1.8 l 70-300vr l 28-105 l tokina 17-50/2.8 l 135ais l Sb600 and sb900 l Mac
very cool, that'd be an awesome addition to a package as 411 or mommy cards thanks!
Do you use the business cards, or the mini cards? How bad is the shipping?
They look great. Good idea of bringing the card.
D300 l 85/1.4 l 35/2 l 50/1.8 l 70-300vr l 28-105 l tokina 17-50/2.8 l 135ais l Sb600 and sb900 l Mac
The biz cards, the mini cards are too thin. The shipping is a little slow, but not terribly. I think it took a little over a week to receive the cards. They're thick!
D300 l 85/1.4 l 35/2 l 50/1.8 l 70-300vr l 28-105 l tokina 17-50/2.8 l 135ais l Sb600 and sb900 l Mac
thanks that's how I'm going to keep track of who gave what referral so I can give them their referral prizes as a senior rep.
The only thing I would add to this card are validation dates. Around here, August and September are booked solid. No point discounting dates that are full without discounting. Don't sell at a discount what will sell at full price.
I did 3 mailings per senior year. The 1st one in April of their Junior year. Big discounts for June sessions. Mid June with no session discounts, but a couple of wallet specials and a July card with just a reminder message, no discounts, no coupons.
I also built my packages around what parents typically wanted and kids demanded (lots of wallets of different poses.)
My youngest is a senior this year. The most interesting flyer we recieved was from a photographer that sold his session by time. Did not matter how many outfits or poses, as long as you worked within the time booked.
That's smart thinking.
Tom B
I used them, but a bit different than others.
I used people that were referred from the previous year's seniors or those that approached me while I was doing team pics at the HS. I would do a 2-3 out fit session in early March so that they would have photos finished by Easter.
I gave them a typical 'proof' album and 50-150 wallets. I told them I would shoot their regular senior session in August and that the referrals would generate savings for their photo order (around $10 per referral).
I was very generous awarding referrals. The last thing you want is a senior getting irritated because someone they thought they referred, but did not get credit for, leaving and having their session done elsewhere.
I also had no problem giving referral credit to more than one ambassaduer.
Be cheap with your abassaduers and it will bite you back. That is the risk with using ambassaduers.
The year that my senior business bloomed was the year that I went to seminars conducted by John Hartman from Stevens Point, Wi and Joe Craig from Dexter, Mo. Those 2 knew how to generate senior sales and repeat business. Both also tried very hard not to do weddings (I remember being shocked by that, at the time, weddings were the biggest part of my business.....)
Both of them were guerilla marketing specialists. After listening to them, I found places to display my photos. I also got coupons for $5 off at the local taco place. That was huge!!! Seniors would not let me forget to give them their taco coupon.
If I were shooting seniors, I would do that again. They were free from the taco joint, they just made me promise that I would not abuse it. Joe and John both used Subway coupons.
Malls have wised up to displays. You have to pay for them now.
Not so with banks and grocery stores. Grocery stores are possibly the best place to display. Moms and dads are in grocery stores several times a week....
In the winter, I would host 'travelogues.' Slide shows for those old enough to remember (hey you kids, get off my lawn.) I used slide projectors and a dissolve unit. I made relatively short, interesting shows that always included a 5 or 6 image set at the end, featuring some of our photo offerings.
I just finished mowing the lawn, that is my thinking time, so let me continue....
I also used to practice answering the phone when I mowed the lawn. My goal was to ask enough qualifying questions to know what package they would probably buy, then, I would shoot for the next package up the pricelist (easy to sell down.)
The other thing that I did and it paid off huge, was specializing in large animals. I was THE guy if you wanted a photo with your 4H or FFA project. I have shown dairy and beef cows and am familiar with judging sheep and pigs.
How much did it pay off???
This year, my daughter will be a senior. She is 'leasing' a dairy heifer from some friends and showing it. I told them that I would be doing photos of Brianna with her heifer in August and they asked if I would mind doing their son with his projects. It's now turned into a full day and sounds like I will be doing at least 10 neighbors also.
I find it mind-boggling that in the heart of central Mn dairy country, there is not a senior photographer that offers to do 'project sessions.'
When I had my studio, every single one of the project sessions I shot resulted in a 16x20. I could not sell family portrait 16x20's to save my hide, but include a cow or a pig and it was gold.
I sold my studio 7 years ago and am still remembered for doing 'cow photos.'
I believe that had we not started out being wedding centrist, we would still have a studio today.....
Tom B
wow what a lot of great information!!!! I would love to talk to you further about how you got your biz up and running and all that stuff. You are an amazing resource