5 Tips on How To Rock Your Client Consultation

Photographer Tips

5 Tips on How To Rock Your Client Consultation

First impressions are everything. What you do and say during your client consultation has a big impact on whether or not couples book you. If you are looking to set off on the right foot, these below tips are for you!

1. Communicate Your Process

Communicate you process. Clients want to know what it looks like to work with you. No one likes extra surprises during the wedding planning process when they already have so much to do and think about. So paint a clear picture for your couple as to what your services are, what the experience with you looks like, and how you are there to help them.

I always walk my couples through a typical wedding day, highlighting the key moments that I’ll photograph for them, and am sure to let them know when to expect their photos, and what extra benefits I bring to their wedding day.  

2. Call Them By Their Names

Call them by their names. Everyone wants to feel special, unique, and heard. Not just another number or another booking. Make sure you are showing that you are focused on the couple by calling them by their first names often throughout your meeting. This adds a warm, personal touch and shows that you care about them enough to know and remember their names.

3. Let Them Talk

Let them talk. I always start my consultations by asking my clients questions to get them talking. These serve as ice breakers but also helps get both the couple and myself warmed up for the meeting and allows me to see their personalities more. Everyone enjoys talking about themselves (whether we are willing to admit it or not), it’s the easiest topic for one to discuss. So let them share a good amount about themselves before you get started. The questions I always ask are 1. Where are you from 2. How did you meet? 3. How did you get engaged? 4. What are you most excited for about your wedding day?

4. Make it Easy

Make it easy for your couples to not only book the consultation with you (I have a button in my inquiry reply emails that lets my couples pick the date & time that works best for them), but to also book your services. Nothing is worse than finishing up a meeting, your clients are excited and ready to book you, but they have no idea what the next steps are or what is expected of them. Make it clear and simple for your clients to book you. I do this by sending a follow up email, thanking them for the meeting, and outlining next steps along with a button they click to book.

5. Don’t Be Too Sales-y

Don’t be too salesy. No one like a pushy salesman. While you should make it easy for your couples to take the next step, you also shouldn’t put them on the spot and ask that they make a decision at the meeting. While the on-the-spot method may work for some people, I find better success if I tell the couples that they can expect to hear from me after the meeting versus asking them same day if they are ready to book. This saves from potential awkward moments of the couples realizing they need a more expensive package and need to check their finances first, or need a bit more time to feel confident in their decision to book you.

A less aggressive method of simply letting them know that you’d love to work with them and that next steps, should they so choose, will be in their inbox soon is more ideal than asking them to pull out their wallets immediately.

I hope you found these tips helpful! Click here to check out more photographer tips & tricks.

Want to learn my exact consultation process? Reach out about my private one-on-one coaching here.

Beautifully DOCUMENTED memories await.