Lessons

Lesson Info

Prospective Client Online Review

Early in my career, I would have loved to have an honest critique from a prospective client. I know it's difficult to get, and some people say that oh, that's, right. You know where this is going? Good. You know it's. Not that they could take her web. Yeah, yeah, we're getting ahead of us. Okay? Some people say it's impossible, but restart gave the opportunity for your three websites. Teo, get critiqued. We had the cameras roll while keaton and maddie were looking at your web sites. And teo, for those of you who are tuning in just for episode two key tenet matty were our model couple. They did the photo shoot, but what was happening? We got we got hit them to arrive early so they can go the're websites and they didn't know you, so they were getting an unbiased opinion as if somebody had said, hey, check out this girl's website and check out this guy's website and check out those this girl's website getting honest feedback. So am I. The chance to sit and chat about their opinions were g...

oing to get to their opinions in a bit, but I would like to show you a sneak peek video of what went down after seeing the website would you want to meet this photographer in person? It's personal but it's still professional it's kind of how I would traditionally expected to be weighed out she put a lot of emphasis especially on her about paige fact that he's leaving things different is making me want a quick you can tell that she really creates a relationship wait we're changing avoid period toe boy exclamation point we're gonna do in thirty days mark my words you I'm going to start by saying that kitchen and maddie had a very good sense of who you were two minutes looking at your website and I would say that sometimes is waiting in a portrait photographers we don't even get that much sometimes we don't get two minutes we get thirty seconds for somebody that click through our website and if it doesn't resonate in thirty seconds they're gone so that's gonna be the goal thirty seconds thirty seconds to two minutes can you can you can you show your personality showcase your portfolio and sell them on who you are in two minutes that's going to be the girl with the new web site the second thing that I found was really important and this is one thing that I want to being full disclosure I'm planning on launching a new website maybe not in the next thirty days but I'm excited to do and as it was watching how they interacted with the website to meet it was the psychology of it and I learned so much watching what they did, so I'm excited, teo walk through those things that resonated with them, not just as nikki ryan and melissa, but we're going to see how we can apply it to everybody's websites on basic principles, the first page that they went to on every single site guess about every single website, so photographers who say, oh, it's not important, or they don't have a photo or it's just more coming soon. Caution people want to know who you are, but remember, this goes back to that statistic. We spoke about an episode one, ninety four percent of perspective clients getting married care about personality, ninety four percent so let's, get into the verdict what happened as they viewed your websites, but how, then couldn't be applied those principles into our websites at home? If you have questions, put him up as they come. The first thing that I suggest photographers to do is to list prices, and this is on ly based on what I was watching, but I knew inherently that the experiences that I had specifically with grooms was that they want to know bottom dollar brides are a little bit more emotional when it comes to making that decision, so when you have your prices, it's going to be a good thing, so ryan, they loved how you listed what you included in every package and the price so keaton was just like wow that's really good at least I know what I'm getting yeah teo wait like seriously I really talked the way that people impersonate me I would kill myself so kitchen if you're having to be watching I'm sorry you don't talk like that he was really debonair and braced and wonderful nice melissa they liked how you give at least a starting point or like a ballpark figure because to me and to them at least put them on the same page as you nicky they wanted to know your price is on ly because they didn't want to waste your time and keaton and was like I don't want I don't want matty to become emotionally involved the photographer she can't afford so yes session is though if we're not supposed to in our initial email give prices but then we have our prices on our website and we want them to fall in love with us as a person to that book us it's just seems I'm confused I list or not you know that's going to be I think it's a list if you want yes I'm gonna working yeses and noes today yes list your prices and it doesn't have no starting right maybe whatever you can have like detail some photographers are not comfortable listing details and I totally respect that a middle ground would be melissa's approach, and melissa says that she has her starting point and that's what ian said he specifically said, I don't know what I get for her starting point, but at least I know if I'm in the ballpark or not, and that makes people a little bit more comfortable. Okay. Secondly, I heard you two show branded photos, but hello, I'm kicking a dead horse, but this is why ryan, they described your sight and your photos as modern and trendy way to get to the second melissa, they described your sight, your sight and photos as simple and clean. Nicky, they described your sight and photos as personal. Now all of these are positive descriptions, but I want to ask how you felt about their experience, like if somebody's going through and they're saying modern and trendy how does that destroy kneejerk reaction? How you feel is I felt surprised because I feel the exact opposite, okay that's good, so we're at least a better starting point, then you perceive yourself to be a great thing aren't you bad? But what I want to do is I want their experience to align closer to what you want their experience to be and that's what we're going to do before episode three thirdly, I want you to personalize your bio since this is the section that mattered the most to keep ten emadi I realized that it really probably matters a lot to a lot more people than what we're anticipating melissa they said that they could see that kid and matty could see you were passionate about photography and it really showed nicky they liked your bio section they were impressed that you were a bridesmaid twelve times that you know that you should radio, but they had a hard time reading it because of the font size small I know yeah, and they said that may be too much was on the page, okay, ryan, they wanted to get to know you better, but there wasn't enough information or even a picture of you. So you have your picture but it's a camera, they wanted to see what you look like they said they understood your style, but they wanted personal information, so I want to get in it just to take a step back for people who are watching online. I'm less talking about nikki ryan and melissa I'm talking about these ideas, so as you're looking at their websites, melissa, I'm going to go down the line and they're going to say their websites right now and throughout the day we're going to remind people because I don't want everybody going to their website at once because then we'll have three crashes so we're gonna go down the line starting with nikki if you could please give me your website and then your block it's nick see photography dot com so and I x y photography dot com and then nick see photography blogged dot com perfect mine's right in greenleaf dot com and there's a fancy little flash where you can click on the block or go to the foot's website okay and then I'm melissa kilner not calm or melissa kilner blag dot com perfect killer k I l e r there you go okay so that's where we're at so I don't want to have this too much focus on individual websites but I'm talking about these general overarching views where you at with your prices are you showcasing branded photos and have you personalized your bio internet? I'm talking to you okay fourthly proof read for typos what I want you to do is before before we launch your new websites I want to make sure that you have gone you've had your friends and your families go through with a fine tooth comb and look through every single thing nicky they noticed that there was a typo on your website underneath the portrait session on the left side there's a banner that says information and it's spelled wrong and it's so funny because someone e mailed me on I can't think of her name but someone emailed me to tell me that it was spelled wrong oh good heads no reasoning perfect awesome so reason goto tickle boom she addressed it okay it wasn't they said they wanted to clarify that it wasn't a deal breaker for them but to them they wanted somebody to pay attention to the details at their day. So if photographer wasn't paying details on the website they wonder how well that partly into their under their wedding day totally understand so before we go before we go live next month we're going to have you got twelve bridesmaid you were brightly twelve times over you haven't least full friends were going tio okay we're gonna get into navigation navigation they preferred and this is generally speaking over graphic designers and in general that people prefer clean to a busy website so like the adage states sometimes less is more so any time that you're on the cusp of is this too much? It probably is the general rule of thumb for women as they leave the house, you should look in the mirror and remove one accessory this's your website before it goes live remove a couple accessories that here too imogen ish clients like when they can understand the site when your first viewing it nikki you said that you've left sites when you were shopping because you're like this is too confusing I'm done with it see melissa they found your sight to be professional, clean and intuitive ryan they like tell you show full galleries of your chutes in addition to your faves so on your website you showed your engagement favorites and that if somebody wanted to see a full detailed shoot they felt like they can do more homework that way get to know you in that capacity and they liked that you had a section that showcased your featured work on your page it's listed as as seen on and so you have links to blog's and other stuff because to them that makes them see well he has work published in the industry so if you have been published in the past make sure an ad somewhere on your website with links to where they can go read more about that because it adds credibility to who you are nicky they felt that they liked her website and they felt it was very personal but they also felt that there was a lot going on and they wanted to focus more on the portfolio because they liked it but it was scrolling really quickly okay and okay and here's when you questioning it that's such a good question because there's one section of your website where the clients we're talking about using really nice things and in order for you to advance you have to click a right arrow button and when they got to that section there like oh this is so much nicer to click a right arrow or so they think that in general they preferred unless it's a slower moving scroll they preferred either a click forward or a timing swirl that wasn't so fast so if you like the squirrel I have a scroll on my website I don't have an issue with it but talked to a few people and ask is it too fast okay if you want it for your future website got it great perfect on dh lastly update your block you had all of you had a link to your blogger from your website until katainen matty clicked and they visited all three of your blog's which is great it's important to know that prospective clients are if you have a link from your website they're probably going to go to your block so if you have a block make sure that you keep it professional make sure you keep it updated because it's an extension of your online presence that's what were talking that experience they like to reading that like what you guys have been up to so that's been a great thing and I don't think there was any blaring things that it seems that you guys are updating maybe once a week and I think that was pretty good melissa like once every six months I'm really but leading up to restart have been pretty good pretty which is what was in that your newest feed so when they were looking at your blogged you seemed right so care of okay so we're gonna go on a quick little tanto because careful when you have your blawg linked from your website and you're not updating what do you think people would assume I'm not working I'm not doing anything are exactly and even if you're not that's beside the point the goal is for you to give yourself projects so that people can see the one you're going to get better when you're working on your own portfolio people are going to see that you're busy if you went out with your your photo group here in seattle post one of those pictures and talk about how you're networking because people want to know how your networking go to your open house put put the camera and p mode hand the camera to your husband and a baby get one good photo of me here at this open house then you put that out and then you write a little judgy about how you were one of two photographers in gig harbor at this gorgeous venue and even works for ceo linked to that venue and in the title of that block post what's that then you need we're gonna give a little shout out here the money crystal ballroom so she titles money crystal ballroom open money crystal ballroom weddings open house then you talk about what you did you were one of two photographers and boom! You might book a wedding five great so we are going to move into a section for yes we're now in question and questions way are actually butting in on things early well, I just wanted teo say that that section was really incredible you have just done market research for everybody out there and which is fantastic adriana gate rose peyton said in that in the facebook restart group so far this checklist items and the verdict on what to change on my website or wonderful my brain is racing on the to do lists and I will be creating for that I will be creating for the future so I just as you're that was like a light bulb for me like my goodness you've done research well creative live allowed me to do the market research but I could not have done market research without the three willing photographers to put themselves out so big thank you to you guys we have about ten or fifteen minutes for questions people have them on while you guys were pulling him up I want to ask first and foremost you guys were kind of under the fire. You guys have any questions right now? Are we gonna go over blogging more later today or can I ask a block in question right now? Yes ask it now I guess my my question to you is how many times ideally shouldn't be blogging like how often I'm a key in a tip would be regularity so you don't want to don't one week block five times and then you're silent for four weeks if you could commit to blogging once a week that's great that's a division of of your of your brand and putting your ideas out there one two two is a great is a great great great number keeps things fresh that's probably like a nice little sweet spot two is the sweet spot okay but I've long five to six but that's because we're going to get into strengths and weaknesses I believe my strength is writing and appointed differentiation so I've logged five to six times a week but it's part of my work flow and it's part of my brand it doesn't have to be that way for everybody okay jasmine did you really ask if there are questions from the chat thing I'm thinking people aren't home and they're sleeping and I wore them on e oh jack and I told them you guys practice jazz hands because we might be getting into some deep stuff here you know you should know better my friend okay so question came in from hannah bows and the question is I was thinking about doing a video for my about meat section would that be too much never I think that such a brilliant idea and you're asking the wrong person because on my web site I have a video section for multiple videos like I have my bio section and then I have a video section and part of the reason why I do this is one of the questions I got early on when I started shooting was brides were always asking, what do you wear to a wedding? And they wanted teo just talk to me and there's something really compelling about a photo. When we get advertisements from real estate agents, they all include their photo on their card and on the billboards because we want to know if they can trust them, and we as human beings are intuitive creatures that nothing's wrong with that, that real estate agent, but we know simply by looking at him or her, we don't live how we want work together. Weird is the psychology works same way with the mannerisms and voice I know that my mannerisms and my voice and even the way address is going to repel people, but I need to be okay with that. Speaking of videos, we're going to get more into video creating videos and marketing in episode three, I'm really excited to launch. I launched what I call a jazz and starr commercial for my business every year, it's money that we saved every single year to do this. Just a couple weeks ago soup rice and haley bartholomew did how to make your own show reel and I think if it was it was brilliant and it was great it was good now if that's your skill set if that's your strength you should do that that is not my straight so I hire somebody teo may I have the opportunity to work with a cinematographer I'm going to be showcasing it andy viewing it live creative life next month you guys will see that so the longwinded answer couldn't lord have mercy was yes great idea way of getting it all the way that answer doesn't get an answer ok next question is from m bond six when entering my sight I have the option do you want to visit my block my facebook or my website if they click on website I haven't ling to go straight to my about me paige is that too forward or should I direct it somewhere else in my opinion I would go to the home page because I want navigation teo simulate what we are all intuitive intuitive with the way that people have worked with mobile devices if you work with an iphone and android tablet on ipad what we do is we click and were immediately on the home page and we score left to right if I immediately went to about paige I would think that I was on the home page and I wouldn't I wouldn't know it's not a bad thing, but me and my preference would be home page, and then they can click from there. So there's a lot of questions coming in about blog's there's a question from sarah and from erica staten photography erica's specific question is, I have neglected my sight because I want to beam or word of mouth, but I still need something for display. What do you think about showing the prices and only having a blogger, not an interactive site? And then sarah had also asked, is it okay to have the blogger and the website combined? Um, okay, so I feel like there's, like four questions? Uh, I do not. Okay, I'm just going to talk about yeses and noes, so I'm gonna rub people the wrong way. I'm not a fan of blob sites where people are using a blogger and saying it's, a website, because we can look at it and we see that's a block. Now there was a time when blog's were new, and they were kind of avant garde, and you can kind of get away with a little bit more. But the problem, the issue that I see is that a lot of new photographers are using blog's as their websites, so the point of differentiation between, you know, a busy amateur and a working professional are getting smaller and smaller. I have come to believe that my website is my handshake and my block is my voice, and we're gonna get into a little bit more about that. I want a professional representation of my brand for the website, the blogger will be personal components part. Another reason is we're not busy. Twelve months out of the year, there are slow times for us, right? My slowest time is going to be december since I blogged five to six times a week, I don't know a prospective client coming and saying for the first five posts wearing went christmas shopping, I dress my dog as santa, I got into an argument about a parking spot somewhere, you know, it's like fashion attire for christmas elves, whatever I decide to block about that week, I don't want that to be the first impression that somebody is getting from me. That's why I'm not a big fan of black sites susan, we're talking about we're talking about block sites, we're talking about whether or not somebody should not have a website and just put pricing in a blogger. I don't think so, I don't think that's the professional representation of her brand, so I think that that's where the three the three main questions, it was whatever and also erica had said she wants to be more word of mouth, so maybe you could talk about it's good to be word of mouth, but you have to have that absolutely so I have heard that trust is online currency, so somebody trusts you and that's how they're going to buy you, but they can't trust something that they don't mean it's harder to trust something that you don't see. So yes, you want to be word of mouth, but how then you want to be word of mouth, and he also want to be word of mouth. She needs to be able to send websites. The bride needs to be able to send websites to people who are participating in her weddings. Come up with that word of mouth. No, but I took it. Tio. Yes, but no telly, not teo. So yes, yes. Word of mouth and sort of mouse. So definitely, you're gonna need a website for that. All right, great. Next question is from the photo how we talked about the importance of the about me. Paige? Yes. Oh, how personal do you get on your about me? Paige, should you list your favorite foods, or what are the topics to think about when you think about writing that this is good, this is a great to me, this is a design question as well as it is like a logical question, so we're going to get more into this specific thing with melissa awesome later because I see that this is where we're going with this one, so I'm going to pause a little bit, and then we're gonna revisit that question. But for me, as regards to help personal, I can get, I used what I call the man on the airplane role I on ly put out online what I would tell sitting next to a gentleman on an airplane that special is different for different people, but I probably wouldn't tell a gentleman sitting next to me that my mother battled brain cancer and thank god has survived, and my life is different. As a byproduct of that change, I would be comfortable saying that I'm comfortable telling him that I'd be comfortable telling that in a bio section, I'm comfortable telling people that I'm obsessed with my dog, chocolate running and my husband, but not in that order. I'm okay telling people that so whatever you're okay telling somebody you happen to meet on the street, that should be your barometer and everybody's barometer is different, I love that you think this is from lisa scott photography. How do you promote? Distribute the block post I post on facebook, but it doesn't seem to reach many people should I e mail block post? Or are there any other ideas to get people reading it? Or do we just do it? So when someone comes to my site there's info there it's going to be a mix it's going to be a mix in it's? A great idea to post your block post on facebook and twitter as a way to get attention back to where you want it. You also want to encourage people to subscribe to your blogged so you have to make sure that that is showcased somewhere on the bog so people can see it so that when people subscribe to it to get an email that goes to their inbox from that post or a reminder comes to them that you have blogged on dh, then the main thing is to make it interesting. So a lot of times when I see photographers do is they simply used their blawg as a division to update door their portfolio and that's fine, I am chief spreader of my portfolio with my block, I love it that's what I d'oh, however, in order to create balance, I just don't want to go to as a photographer as if you were I just want to go to a photographer's blob and see how you shot a great wedding at, you know, testing ranch with john and jane and then pictures had a great wedding with jenny and lee at the st regis and then pictures had a great wedding. It was just like what so mean? And then here's the thing. So you post those pictures in your blood and then you post the identical pictures on it. Look what's the incentive for people to go over to the bog. The idea is to showcase a few things about what you are doing in your personal life. So nikki's husband can I say? Yeah, ok, I didn't want to I don't want to spread your business so nikki's has been just left to new zealand so he will be gone for three weeks. So nicki's, I think I see a couple of posts you being in charge of your dog being sold, provided here take care of your dog that's a story right there hard, right? Exactly. Your husband is in new zealand and talk about why he's there and I know that has a mix of bmx things and you can also talk about a humorous story about how your husband decided to shave his head fifteen minutes before he left to the airport so those things are, and I'm just spreading your business right through the airplane would totally so that that right there are nikki's really life moments that could be condensed into short little stories that really give a glimpse into who she is as a person, not just as a photographer. Ryan, did you say, were going to say something I wouldn't say I was. I could relate to her if she talked about that, because I always save things for the last minute and, you know, maybe sometimes don't. Thank you for coming ryan missed his flight for episode one. Wait, I guess these two were worried, but I was in the bathroom like dry heaving e o better, so you made it that's fine. Do anything you're turning red, you know you're turning me on right now. That's fine, you're here, but either way, you would have attracted ryan with that story because you would've found commonalities, that's, a long posters supposed to do that's it got it.