JT Spunk | Photography

Photography Marketing Tip: 8 Steps To Getting Free Exhibits Of Your Photography

How’s your photography business doing? Is the telephone ringing as much as you want it to?

Most Photographers Don’t Understand That The Backbone To The Photography Business, The “Engine” If You Will, That Drives The Photo Business, Is Getting Lots And Lots Of Qualified People To Know You Exist, And To Call You Now.

And the single, most effective way to market your photography business is through EXHIBITS of your photography throughout the community where your target market lives, shops, eats, has her hair done, etc.

You see, the “job” of your photo marketing is not to get the phone to ring a lot. It’s to get the phone to ring with QUALIFIED, EDUCATED prospects who like your work and honestly feel they just might want to work with you. It makes your sales work on the telephone much easier! And it saves you a lot of time on the telephone, talking with people who end up not being qualified at all.

Here’s 8 steps to getting FREE exhibits of your photography all over town:

Step #1. Order the least expensive 16×20′s of your best work. I recommend you order two or three of each image, as the duplicates are less costly. Many times I use the same portrait in several of my exhibits around town. No problem. (Start with 16×20′s. You can go up in size later as cash flow allows.)

Step #2. Travel around town and make a list of at least 20-25 places where you would LIKE to have an exhibit. I recommend you not waste your time, at least not to start, with franchises. Look for locally owned and operated businesses.

Here’s the most effective places I have found work the best:

Malls, Movie Theaters, Restaurants, Hair Salons, Office Buildings with high traffic, Children’s clothing stores, Bridal Stores, Banks, Performance Halls, Book stores,

Step #3. Next, begin by picking the top 5 places on your list where you really want an exhibit, and put on your calendar what day you are going out to talk with them within the next week. It must be in your schedule, or you won’t do it.

Step #4. Suggestion: Don’t call ahead. Just walk in, unannounced, carrying two 16×20 framed portraits under your arms. One of a child, and one of a bride. I never call ahead of time. Just walk in and ask for the owner.

Step #5. Talk in terms of how they can benefit. You are NOT asking for a favor. Not at all. What you are doing is presenting a “Joint Venture” marketing plan for both of you. And be ENTHUSIASTIC about this! (More on exactly how to do this in an upcoming article!)

Step #6. When they say yes, let them know you will be back in a few days to put the exhibit up. You are going to custom make it for them, to go with their decor, etc.

Step #7. Put the exhibit up either on the walls, or on easels. If you use easels, use different heights, some high, and some low, and be sure to use several rather large baskets of silk flowers mixed in with the easels, to add to the beautify of it, and to help hide some of the legs of the taller easels.

Step #8. On the day you put the exhibit up, be sure to take some high quality ambient light photos of the exhibit, so you can add them to your portfolio of displays, and show them to everyone else you talk to about getting exhibits. (More on this in my next article, too.)

Your key to success lies within the actions you take. You need to do the right things – those things that are PROVEN to work – but you DO HAVE TO TAKE ACTION!

All the best,

Charles J. Lewis

About the Author

Why are some photographers getting rich and having all the customers and clients they could ever want, while others are struggling? Charles Lewis has created the ultimate guide – “The TOP 33 Photography Marketing Secrets” free E-Book reveals the secrets for getting hundreds of new customers – FAST – regardless of the economy, your town, or whether you work on main street or out of your home studio. Click Here:
Photo Marketing Secrets

Antique Trader Bottles Identification & Price Guide (Paperback) $16.07 With more than six hundred stunning color photographs and thousands of listings, this definitive reference offers identification and assessment guidelines for more than fifty categories of bottles, including perfume, political, and patriotic bottles, a…

A World History of Photography (Hardcover) $37.73 Traces photographic history both topically and chronologically, profiles key masters, explains terms and processes, and features the landmarks in the development of photography.

Panoramic Photography by Frich, Arnaud Edition , 0 $27.49 It has never been easier to make panoramas–both in terms of the new lightweight equipment and the spectacular quality of the final image output. New vistas concerning this unique way to see the world and express oneself abound in Panoramic Photography: From Composition and Exposure to Final Exhibition. Written by one of the world’s pre-eminent panoramic photographers, the author, Arnaud Frich, provides diagrams to explain the technical details involved in various shots. Long on inspiration, you will find beautiful images by the author, as well as by Beno?t Ancelot, Fran?ois-Xavier Bouchart, Franck Charel, Macduff Everton, David J. Osborn, and many others. Camera equipment examples and a list of suppliers make this book a valuable resource for all panoramic photographers. Inside you will find all the information you need to create your perfect panorama!Only with Panoramic Photography can you: *Explore flatback and rotating panoramic cameras and learn how swing-lens and rotational cameras work*Observe how camera choice affects the image and final composition *Learn the joining (or stitching) method for assembling photographs with the Realvis Stitcher and Panavue ImageAssembler*Archive and store original negatives and digital files, as well as distribute panoramic images over the Internet

The Glossary of Digital Photography (Paperback) $25.95 In a dictionary spanning entries from "16.7 million colors" to "zip file format," the author of several other books on digital photography (most recently, Alterative Digital Photography) defines terms related to this relatively new, popular form of photography. Some terms such as "camera" even predate film- based photography; others like "chimping" (for the initial excited response to viewing images on a digital camera`s LCD screen) are brand new. Aptly enough, color and b&w photos are featured. Distributed by O`Reilly Media. Annotation )2008 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Epilepsy on Our Terms $22.76 This enlightening book presents the firsthand personal accounts of children with seizure disorders and their parents. In their own words, these children and parents vividly describe the experiences of handling the crisis of the initial seizure, adjusting to the diagnosis of epilepsy, coping with seizures, managing medications and side effects, and dealing with health care providers, teachers, schoolmates, siblings, and friends. Reveals the terror, uncertainty, and frustration felt by children and parents after an initial seizure or a diagnosis of epilepsy. Documents the ongoing trials, tribulations and triumphs of coping with seizures, medication schedules and side effects, health care providers and hospitals, schoolmates, siblings, relatives and friends. These accounts provide realistic insights into the myriad issues encountered in living with childhood epilepsy. The book also includes a straightforward medical discussion of childhood seizures, written in layperson`s terms by Dr. Pellock; a glossary of medical terms; and a guide for schoolteachers and parents written by William Murphy, the Executive Director of the Epilepsy Association of Massachusetts. Appendices provide a directory of Epilepsy Foundation of America affiliates; a list of recommended books, publications, and videotapes; and information about the Epilepsy Foundation of America`s Winning Kids program.