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How to Create Template Emails

Oh we're kind of a hot seat question here because she goes gay no uh I'll pick on somebody else because you did fantastic of the check class yesterday so I want you guys to start thinking while I'm talking through this about five seven things that you would give in just inquire response you're going to have a template and e mails for all different parts of the process and we talked about the scheduling we're going to have one for the reminder email of the of the session we're gonna have one for like the delivery or requesting of when we're going to have the ordering session all of this is pre written so it's a copy pace at in the extra personalize stuff through the end as well as was it the exploration of gallery? All of those automated things we talked about last section are going to all be template emails but for this we're only gonna work on the enquirer response that's it because we're talking about managing of information but before we can even do that we need to identify how are ...

we getting this information? Are we doing a simple contact form on our site and or email? Are they just simply giving us their name their email address and there's a note section which is the baseline of what most contact forms on websites have that's it because they're trying to make translated across all industries they couldn't necessarily make it specific to you or do you have a standard questionnaire already out front? I personally know of the mindset I'd rather a regular form regular contact form just the baseline information so that I can respond with these questions that are already pre written we've already talked about, but it sounds a little bit more individualized on a standard stock form, or it could be just as efficient put into the questionnaire form. How we respond to these is going to be a little different, so just keep that in mind on we're going to use all these in the client workflow you need to have a template because it's better and take the ten minutes out front then too do it broken up later, so say every single day and receiving five enquiries and it takes about ten minutes each that's fifteen minutes day about this just around it to an hour by time we get a coffee and check social media. That is an hour a day, five hours a week. We were not even making money at this point because we're simply typing the same thing over and over and over, making sure right in the same things we're not control local is we already burned through our office hours, and then we start creeping in. We don't end up working out that day, we end up telling the kids, oh, no, I need a work another hour, and it all kind of trickles over, we have to stay in our blocks as much as possible. All right? So once you guys start with writing a list of things you want to include in a choir response, when you approach anything, don't start asking and forums don't start googling start with you personally because it's your base is how you're going to manage it. This is if you're going to get a contract, may write a questionnaire, do a template, email your client guide don't look at anybody else's stuff for start with, like five to seven things that you want to make sure you include because what I asked is going to be completely different than the person next door that has a completely different business model because we're both managing information completely different. I'm hoping she's not managing at it all, so I can have everybody, but we're gonna both manage the information a little differently, and our voices are going to be completely different, and we want our voice and the emotional connection that familiarity to transfer across so always start with having which you want, including the choir response before you look anywhere else. Okay, so this is what I was talking about. I'm gonna stand in front of the first sort of talk about having the two different types of methods that they can inquire if you have a simple contact form that I really recommend. Sounds like a little more step, but it's, not any more of a step once we is a template email. This is the simple contact for that we have with the name the email address and justin regular note section, and maybe one or two of the little questions and that's in that gravity form. So it's all in one it's filtered it in the one excel file. For me, I'm good to go it's going to this will be what my response would be. A personalized greeting addressed any questions they may have put in the inquiry. Asked the questions that we want to gain the information's that just anything specific you need to know what kind of collections are you interested in? When are you wanting to shoot? What type session are you wanting to have on? And now we can start paring it down then after they answer is when we can go into this step of then giving the client guide, but if you just started with a questionnaire, the contact form has the questionnaire you can go directly to this process. See the difference we got two different flows we either a simple one over here which sounds a little bit more work but it's not really it's more hands on for me or this is a little bit more automated and then we go to this process of what to ask over there I'm gonna leave that for them for a second but both of them are gonna have a personalized greeting defeats the entire purpose if we're not going to personalize just make sure you send it to the right person because if you're copying and pasting and you leave in jennifer and her name is april I mean you can only use the excuse if you had had enough coffee one too many times it's really people laughing because I do this sometimes I really in sorry, but you need to make sure that the personal is greeting or you just put like, hey hey or something and not even put a name we just put some really like maybe hes not good but really familiar um and you won't necessarily have to worry about copying, pacing the wrong things address their questions don't ever just blatantly give them information and not address what they asked because again, if I have to play five hundred questions I'm not gonna book you're not going by your service I don't care how much I love you and love your work if I'm just not going to do it, I don't have time for that. You don't have time for that, so always address their questions and then, but sometimes like with you guys, you asked me a question, I ask a question in return, make sure you tell them I'm not ignoring your question. I just need to know a little bit more information that's going to in the temple in an email right there, you need to know a little bit more information to compare down. For example, fay said, hey, do you do lifestyle photography? Lifestyle to me might be completely different than their and idea lifestyle, so I could respond, hey, I know you're interested in lifestyle photography fantastic! Are you really looking for more like in home, relaxed in the nursery feel? Or you want to be just a little bit more structured imposed in the field? Because, too, that it being a field might be lifestyle, even fit post my ideal life style is more an environmental interaction kind like the picture ahead of my family in the beginning. That's what I picture more his lifestyle. So we're wanting to pare down their steady because they may not say anything during the session because they don't want to hurt your feelings, and then in the end, you've damaged the potential for referrals using them again the lack of sales and lack of customer service opportunities simply because you didn't address it in the beginning and used their question to your benefit then you ask other questions to gain more information if you need being on top of the information you have and asked what a good time to call them is and then is when I'm going to help provide in the client guys so they haven't haven't in front of them so that way they can look at the client I know we all have that information overload in their hagel and the lack of confidence when we're talking on the phone like the example I gave you guys where I had the enquirer, the photographer and she's talking for like an hour and at the end I went I had no idea what she just said on any of it I was trying to scribble seriously and I didn't know so that's when you can work that's the client guide where had we're starting to build our meal that we're having with our clients here, the response that is really when you get and this is another temple in an email here you want to put links to related sessions so say that it is a session that isn't it field in its lifestyle I'm wanting to direct her to also pare down to make sure that's what she's looking for in my template. And meanwhile, I'm gonna have a set. So I skipped over. I'll come back. I won't going to have a section. This is links to really are going to say here's a related sessions that kind of give you a feel for what's going to happen. I go over the blogged boom boom boom, link them in, then we're done. But I've put that section in there, save me time a rewriting that header in that little information and it reminded me to send them those just set ups in contact because that's another line of defense in case that's. Not really what's on their mind if they're really wants and completely different also directions on how to book standing them to the checklist. That's pretty standard that's. Probably never going to change on here. It's the whole here's the client checklist. Just go on in. Check out. How do you do it? Blah, blah, blah. But block and it's going to reiterated on the client checklist booking pages well linked to the client guy and provide a limited number of available date. I really try to do this on the phone, but we do it on email, we don't want it like they said about the whole booking calendar, you don't just want to have it wide open because I want to add a little bit more expressivity I want have more control over my schedule. We decide to go out of town to see grandpa that weekend, and someone decides, hey, what you're on the calendar you're available is probably going to feel real good me having to go back and I'm embarrassed say, I'm sorry I screwed up and I didn't check, you know, fix the calendar, same thing for here, I don't just want to say, well, I'm open for the whole month of june, you're not really open a whole month of june that you have local and global to delist items that you need to be doing, and you have a structure a time that you can work and you don't have to keep coming back and saying, no, you want tonight, the nose and bring out the yeses. That's, a good quotable issue made that a slide. You won't eliminate the nose coming from you and increase the yeses from them so they can get a yes from the two or three I try to stick with two days and then if they're like oh, neither of those will work like well, then just let me know what you think is best for you and then I can respond with another two within the time frame that they give me some tailoring it and making it personal any questions on how that float works? Wheels are turning we good? Yes, no go for it. Is this in either work? Well, it depends on how they come in if they come into the simple contact form. This is one template email and then we go into it this template in email, but if they just come into a questionnaire aiken skin to skip all this coverage, ask the questions that I'd be asking here. This is just this is what they see when they come into my website, whether it's simple or was the questioner and I like them or do they have those two choices on will choose don't have what you choose, which had been by either or yeah, yeah, you choose. I prefer this because I'm gonna basically copy and paste this right here anyways, but if they do this, it seems a little bit more sterile and not so one on one and they don't need to know that it's a template and email and it's really cook for me to dio because I'm working mobile and I have it all drafted for me and it's good to go but if you do question oh there's nothing wrong with that because you may have front loaded a lot of this on the phone at this point and you're going to send them into the question there and then you and then that's how you follow everything else up and it could be done all of this could be on phone as well I mean I'm telling you I'm sometimes pull out my client died in temple in e mails and I end up doing entire transaction with someone on phone it's my checklist in front of me to make sure I tell him everything on the phone so I'm literally sit there going okay oh and then all right so how to book I just go directly down the line so that I'm focused and I say everything and I'm not stumbling over and going well let me think what else twenty to tell you start shaking confidence need to sound like you're on point and on it and be efficient to get off the phone so you're not hiding in that bathtub that is still wet from your kids which I don't recommend it all I still can't believe I share that story with you guys okay, so here are they remember we're just korea crafting the enquirer response email that's it this is kind of a process that you're going to take for all of them, though for all template and emails that you're going to create s o can be linked, it could be an email or a linked questionnaire like we just talked about. We need to make sure we have the type of session their vision for the session, and we've already seen the different checks that we can make sure that the vision is still going to be the same, because terms that we use are not the same terms to them on dna also that allows them. Could you ask him about the collections if there's any questions? I had a client that is a photographer, and so I assume he knew what a print credit wass I'm not watching, but I assumed he would print kind of west. I didn't go into the explanation of the collections, and he has said he was interested in certain collection than hot it and didn't say anything more on domain was a failure on my part, but then we got to the awarding session he's like I don't understand, and I was like, I screwed up here because I felt like a devalue kind of what I was offering and his confidence was kind of like, I don't know if I want to make this investment and it could be coming out, okay, I was like, oh, I'm sorry, you know, this is how it goes admitted even though it really wasn't that big of a blunder by mitt, it put it on me, not on him, because I want him to feel dumb for not understanding. He did. Typically our clients don't do this every day. There are more stern about the muffin top in the double chin than on getting a picture for grandma. Then they are about knowing what these things are. That's our responsibility. Um, never outfit ideas. We kind of talked about having this in the client. Got a little bit. That could be one of your questions. We've already provided all the outfit ideas and visions. Another thing actually back up to this also goes with the vision in my beauty guide. They have, like, four different choices that they can mix. Format trump's. We have booed war. So it's not women's, is not just good war. I may have the girl next door look, or I have the glamour or the style, so I have four different kinds. And I can ask them, you know, my tablet email. Well, which styles we're looking at is, you know, we can do more than one. They don't know that if you don't tell them that, and, you know, I could say, hey, what are you really into? Maybe we could do that, would war, you know, you went to that for your husband, playing with some cool style one. Is there a movie that you're really into great gatsby or something to that effect on? And then you can really up sell at that point, and you're getting information and getting to know who they are on. That also brings out for the outfit ideas portion as well are one of those outside ideas that I put in the guide our which, which she feel like is your family, because also gives me a barometer for how they're going to be when they come to the session. Turns a customer service opportunity to help them. You also want to know their social media accounts because I want to be able to tag them if possible, cause social media's free. I'm uploading into social media anyways remember all that effort of blogging that we just learned that we need to be doing that we are going to be doing is going on the local and globalist and but if what's the point of putting out there, if no one's going to see it, yeah, we've got all the benefits that we talked about, the ceo, they get value gotta you gotta you gotta but you want his most bang for your buck, you know, much power in the punch, and so we asked whether social media accounts are this also allows me to stock follow my clients to find out what they're interested in because of their instagramming a lot about going to starbucks. What do think my client guy on my client gets going to be probably some related to starbucks or coffee? And then I might be like now barely see high, low copy dio I'm such a feel like we can totally connected session. So social media accounts basically is giving me permission to follow figure out what they're into, and I can also find out if they did failed to tell me any social, any mobility needs or any other stuff by checking out the family structure on their social media don't I mean, I'm not telling you go on, like, look them up on every spy web site possible, but I just kind of like to do a ruling over and see what they look like if we only ever been my phone and computer at this point so that we go to a park, I'm not wanting around going, I'm rachel, and they're like telling me the wrong name like, oh, no, it's, not you, you know? I mean, I can walk confidently out for the most part, ok? And then they feel that familiarity in that connection, so don't stock do your market research that's what I call it you want the names of the models in the relationship, like the example I already gave, like the thing with the not knowing that the dad had passed away and maybe so far removed that they didn't seem too I think to bring it up on day if you if you provide a shot list or you ask the relationship, especially in weddings who are the core people you need to have pictures off if they're omitting the dad's name, you could start going oh where's this fit in there have been a good opportunity for them to put it to avoid that embarrassment. The winning is what do you do when you're standing in front of the whole family and they're like, well, he's done you're like, oh sorry like I mean, what would you say at that point and then referral? Where did they come from? Who can I think and whom? So what are my marketing efforts that are working? Are you did you come out of one of the networks that have cultivated well? I wouldn't know that the network is working if I don't know that you're coming from them and then if they tell me that jane referred sally, then when they're in the session, I could talk about jane if I have nothing else to talk, not talk about her, but like, if I had nothing else to talk about with them, I mean to say they're one of those that was like, but I know they came from jane, I could say, you know, jane and timmy, they're so cute I mean are they on or your kids on soccer team together? You know, what is it? And then we get the flow of conversation going it's a good individualization market market research and knowing where they're coming from and also a filler for being able to talk because I never really run out of things to talk about. You can't tell but it's, good to have something to talk about and not just talk that years off. And why did they choose you? Is there something about you? Was it just your work? This is a little open ended everything else. I wanted to be really pointed in questions, but why they chose you, I allow that to be a little bit more of it open response kind of cause I don't want to fit them into a feel like they have to fit into a box. I want more of an honest response from them in order to be able to gain, to know what if I'm doing something right or what I'm doing right? Because they're obviously in my inbox, then we're going to get all this information and any other extra information that I need to know when we talked about that, so these were all the ideas to include, like we talked about in the last life in the emails. So always tell the client with the next step in the process is so once you've set up your pretty much your inquiry email and you outlined the process, it is a simple copy paste to create all of the forward e mails from there because then you just start eliminating the step you're already done sam's and so you have a dizzy from the beginning and then you really have be dizzy when you get the next step, then see dizzy that kind of say, the thing you're going to able to pare it down, you're going to be able to quickly right thes e mails, once you start with that big book information overload one in the beginning and by creating it the whole entire process, I think you'll start identifying inefficiencies things that you may not like things that are taking too much time that you want to outsource, you need to get better educated on as well multiple benefits everywhere. All right, so what are other things you guys could include on the template inquiry list? I think we kind of already won over this, but what other template emails and a sense could you create? I've kind of ready mentioned the inquiry, the session ordering session day, the expiration of gallery any other template emails you just can't think you could have on that you need to have on hand I have one for my senior wrap applications on dh it's actually connected teo, the questioner form that I have them fill out so it's an automated response that gives them all the email all the information on what the process is, how I'd choose people where we go from there good, so and see, the thing is, I think with that she does have an auto response. I didn't jump on you about it, but the reason for that is the early in your door. At that point, they already filled out the application. You've sent them the questionnaire, then they get that auto response that's ok to me if they were just enquiring to be a senior up and he sent out a response that's not ok, because that's not one on one, so I'm saying you're kind of already in the process. At that point in the other temple, it'd emails it would be, you know, after a shoot a few hours, just like, thank you we had so much fun today, um, and then like include like, oh, it's, so funny when this happened. Yeah, so just a thank you a few hours after this so good when I get in the car from shooting, I sit for a second because I have a sitter and it's quiet and I'm not rushing home my husband like that's why you're always late but I sit for a second and I'm able to email him right then with that template email and say thank you write down any notes and I may have take my mileage to put on my taxes on dime able to have all of that store and if I take a picture of my mileage and I know the amount I could send it to my email and it's filtered to my mileage folder look at that but all of that is done at the end of the session but yeah, the template thanking emails a big important that don't even have to be something template sounds so like oh my god should be simply thank you so much I had a good time you know, about I'm sorry I haven't had my coffee yet, but people in town and like just about all the time to me yeah no yeah, I honestly it's like I'm sorry I screwed up I haven't had coffee, which really is my reality, but yeah, now you could create one and actually you should have one in case there is a delay in something or kids get sick because you don't want to be in the process of a puke in kid and trying to respond because you're probably not going to completing very well thought out and your answer as well when you're trying to hold trash can and right at the same time sorry, little girls. All right, so we did the list of things you want to close that this is how we're going to create one. This is even if you're nuer starting out doing now, I wish I had done this in the beginning. If you're more experienced, you're going to get that re evaluation mode, you're gonna have to dig through all the other e mails that you have an automated on done put all information one area like we talked about using the gravity forms, but I want all my inquiry questionnaires to also come to one place they're stored in gravity forms for me, but they're also tagged by the client email and that there also are the filtered I'm sorry they're filtered by client email because I get that notification, they fill out the questionnaire form and find to go that route, or they could just respond and email. So I had that formal questionnaire reform when I have a filter set up that if it comes from a certain email address because they're already a client at this point, um then I have they have they have a client folder. Boom it's done for me, but it also was going to put a copy into an acquiring questionnaire response folder so that I could do a re evaluation later to see what are the team things that my clients are asking for a lot. I'm asking for specific lifestyle stuff. Well, maybe I want to look at specializing, maybe that's something I want to do for the next year and add to my globalist for re evaluation, and then if you do all your ten hours of creation front and the double check your past e mails, you do that ten hours of creation, outfront you're able to get it all taken care of if you haven't been compiling, you're going to have to dig through old emails and see what a lot of the same questions that you've been asking clients over and over and which ones had provoked a really good response of things that you specifically could do in your business to provide good customer service. Because some people may be really good and capitalizing on what they want to order, other people really want to emphasize on helping them style. I am not stylish at all, so like for me, I'm like, I can help you create a pin board, and I'm like testing my friend who's like has stylist on that? Can you help me? So like, I'm not going to emphasize that as much as I'm really going to emphasize the sale of product because I really am all I'm passionate about designing albums and selling them so that's, why it's different across the board of what you're going to create? S o that five to seven things do we touch everything so far that you guys were going to include in the creation that I had you guys write down a little bit ago? You want to keep going? You could keep thinking we had a good amount of things to include just like you sure to check us out here because there's no commonly people will go toe upside, click on contact, fill it out like let's remind you of, like get to know us like you put a lot of time into our website and like introducing ourselves to you. So you know, to make sure you know who you're hiring a swell so just added that into one of our response is good. Yeah, you want to keep pulling them into that shuttle enveloped area and the other thing too is sixes have shown if you ask someone to share something like that blogged future we're going to send out, make sure that's in that block delivery email that block future email hey feel free to share you simply saying, feel free to share, so make sure that people are more likely to share it, although to me it's common sense that you could share it by encouraging someone to do something more likely to act on and it's free, it takes that tell me three seconds to say it's really about that long to type it and add into the template as well, and one thing, too, is you re evaluated to find clients questions repeating one, but you also want to keep in mind when you're doing your evaluation, though people don't read sometimes, so keep out of the back of your mind that sometimes they just don't read the guide or what you've written, so they may be asking questions, but if it is a repeat question over and over, and you thought you've addressed it, maybe you haven't addressed it appropriately or adequately, or you haven't addressed it at all. That's, where that re evaluation comes in on just to make sure that I am evoking the information that I actually want to get on, and I'll give examples, just like I am with you guys on this stuff. What is your vision for the session? And I'm not just gonna leave it at that, I want to say, what do you want to see, like hanging on your wall to get me more of like a field feel or like a urban and assigns it kind of pull out what they're wanting and guide them because if you cold, ask them something when they don't do this all the time they're going to go. I don't know. Well, I don't get you anywhere you just have ah filled spot on the questionnaire simply because she made it required. You can require the fields, by the way, and I require most of mine because it doesn't let him to submit without it. So at least one an answer, even if they tell me that screw off in one of the least I know that they're not happy that portion of my questionnaire and or you can use pre drafted temple it'd emails that air available. But remember, I said, start first with a list of things that you want include because it's all different, so there are people available after that have free template in e mails, my friend jamie over the modern talk. If she has a free download today of temple, it'd e mails that you guys can also take after you've created your list, look at hers because it kind might inspire some other creative ideas of what you want to include, you know, this one is we're all in this together, you know? We're all here to help so you don't want to want to stick with just what you have or just what someone else does he want to combine the two on by always is the same thing is pinging ideas especially have a partner ping ideas off your partner for another photographer they may have something else that they see that is a sum you excel at that you could offer that you want to make sure you're really emphasizing to clients and then you can fill in the holes that are in the template e mails that you may not realize that air there right and always address the specific questions by the client so that again just because I think that if we keep moving and keep copying and pasting templin emails is easy to get caught up in it but you really need make sure you address what they're asking girls you may as well have used an auto automated response the entire time and then I'm gonna feel really shaky and I don't again don't ask you five hundred questions all right? So I'm harping on the use of these template and emails. Well, like I said a little bit ago, we want to make sure that we're being his personal is possible, so sometimes you do need to call on guy really prefer calling cause it's really a lot more twitter and I can get through a quicker list and send them the email I still use it as a guide, but if it's urgent if I'm waiting on a response by email, it is a time waster for me. I don't have time for time wasters, so say I need I am my block a time it's all my love well to do list for that day that that afternoon nap time I need to get album designs done, but I noticed that sally ordered a ten by ten and she wasn't sure about ten my turner twelve by twelve or adding an extra spread. I can't simply pick up the phone and say, hey, I'm in the middle of designing and about order did you want to add this on it's a little impulse buy also upsell for them as well, but then it gives me a little opportunity and I did it urgently by phone, and it kind of has this customer service asked you remembered what she did and you're also able to its display on that you are really into what her needs and wants are and make a little bit more money, and I could quickly do it if anything is like, ok, also, well, I'm gonna go get this done right now quick, unless this somebody who likes to talk for three hours on the phone every one of those clients, they just want talk about everything, and they're the ones that you like you screen and then called back when you know you have a big block of time unless it's them, I wouldn't I go hang, give him a call? I mean includes more than three people conference call the reply all e mails, things get lost. You know, the pre show we talked about arranging of style, shoot s and different things. If you're doing a networking referral list grew and talk about in the networking segment, it's maybe easier and quicker to do a google plus hangout or a conference call you don't think is lost in translation, especially if you're tryingto refer around or arrange something together. All right, so that's, that is all the email stuff. We're going to move into the heavy database stuff. What even to do with all of this information that you just gained out of templates. So, do we have any questions before we move forward? Yeah, we'll do. A couple ok. Sounds good. So you going? Crystal p do you make all of the parts of the questioner required to answer? So this is more in the temple, let questionaire, but or do you make them optional for the client? Pretty much I want what I put in there, I want to know I may put like it, anything else I need to know section and I'm not gonna make that requires there may not be anything else, but I wanted available in case they need to tell me something. And from denton, texas, how do you handle responding to all those emails where a client wants to book, but they don't follow through with deposits, forms and then contacts you and says, what time works for you kind of kind of thing I'm honest only for the convenience and for the for you, all the clients and for you and for me, nobody is booked until that checklist is complete and that this this in this in this because you know what it is. And then I said, well, once that's donald saying the confirmation and we'll get to go in on exactly what location in date that we're going to shoot at that point, cool. I don't get dig deep really deep into location and research of licenses and permits and all that until I have the money because I'm not making any money at that point, if I don't have a contract. And retainer, right? I didn't want to chime in before took one more person I forgot to say something when I was talking about with the template of emails to tools that you can use I said you could put it in your draft box and so you have it on email by mobile at but there also are some functions on your computer, such called text text expander that it basically you copying pace and put it in there, so when you type a certain key word and drops down, you can click it, it will populate it for you, so you don't have it going copy movement over and paste it it will expand the text for you and that's linked on the resource page that's linked at the bottom of the screen right there for you guys as well. Sorry glossed over that one for you, you the questions to do? That was my question, was it? Yeah, just where do you host your template? Yeah, I am pretty much we're document on the computer so that I can pull it up or in the email just pull it up quickly so if a client does catch me off guard and I answer the phone or when it's time to have that console pull it right up, go through the checklist doesn't talk to them you any idea the eta when then? It's. Also in the draft folder. When I'm in the car, loan to copy and paste across.