You’ve recently started your photography business, and you’re super pumped to finally be chasing this dream. The only problem? (Well, one of them anyway.) Client communication… It makes ya sweat. Big time.

No worries, we’re gonna fix that friend. ?But first? We’ve gotta chat about some “not to-do’s” before we chat about all the to-dos and how to’s. K?

How To Communicate With Inquiries Via Social Media:

1. Take note that it’s not super professional to communicate with potential clients through social media, and especially not all the way up until booking.

I know, I know. The title of this blog seemingly contradicts this statement, but what I’m talking about today is how to move your conversations with potential clients OFF of social media, and INTO your workflow.

Chances are, your client communication is lacking structure. You’re responding to inquiries however you get ’em. Whether it’s through Instagram DM’s or Facebook messages, you name it – you’re takin’ it. Not only does that complicate your workflow and exhaust you, but it also devalues the experience of your brand.

Now, I’m not saying you can’t chat with people through social media, because you totally can! But when it comes down to business, (i.e. discussing pricing and contracts) you better get your butt off social media and get them into your workflow.

Curious how I handle all of my client communication? Straight through Honeybook, 100% of the time. Honeybook has allowed me to increase the number of clients I book, speed up my workflow, and triple my bookings because of its professionalism and ease-of-use. I recommend it to 110% of the photographer’s I meet because it’s truly changed my work/life balance and made me actually LOVE doing all the parts of my job. Time-saver, world-changer. ??

If you want 50% off of your first year, you can totally click right HERE! Using that link will getcha a free 7-day trial, so there’s nothing to lose. Try it, and you’ll see why I rave about it. Here’s to landing your next dream client! ??

2. The entire goal of chatting with potential clients on social media is to get them to BOOK, and if you don’t make the process seamless, easy, and professional… they’ll get distracted.

… Which means you’ll end up losing the lead to the endless scrolling that we’re all tempted to do while we’re on our phones.

Even worse, if your client communication is strictly through social media, nothing is set in stone. They say they want to shoot with you on a certain date, and then you guys chat and plan the shoot all day long (or even worse – for weeks,) and then come the day of, they don’t have any skin in the game. There isn’t a contract, so they’re technically not even required to show up or follow through with it.

So here’s how I do it. I’m gonna give you a little rundown of exactly what I do when someone reaches out on social media.

Potential client reaches out and says something along the lines of:

Client: “Hey Jessica! I’ve been following you for months (yes, I stalk your work. LOL.) I just wanted to reach out and see what your availability looked like for August. I’d absolutely LOVE to book a couples shoot with you, and just wanted to get an idea of what your pricing looks like so I can plan ahead! 🙂 “

Me: (Here, I’d immediately freak out with excitement and use 7 too many emoji’s, cause that’s just who I am.) Then, I’d check out their profile and see if I recognized them, and if not – I’d take a good 10 minutes or so just to learn more about who they are: what their partner’s name is, what they love to do together – just to see if we share any commonalities.

We’d chat for a while back and forth about things COMPLETELY unrelated to photography, until I finally swapped the convo over to a taaaad bit more professional vibe, and directed them to my contact form.

I’d explain I literally just have them fill that form out so it’ll pop them into my workflow! So they fill it out, (and usually love the process because I make it fun by getting to learn more about them and their story,) and then BOOM – I’m able to switch workflow mode on and progress them along all the way up until the conversion – where they’re viewing the proposal, signing a contract and paying the retainer – usually within minutes of contacting me! 😉

Wanna learn how to do that too? I gotchu!

Here are 3 musts to successfully convert a client from “social media scouting” to officially booked:

1. Establish connection ASAP.

You need to feel like bff’s. This does two things; it builds trust in the eyes of your client and gets them pumped for their shoot they’re about to book 😉 , and it also differentiates you from other photographers, (that they may, or may not be reaching out to at the same time as you.) Let your personality shine, build those connection points, and seal the deal!

2. Answer their questions before they can ask them.

They need to be catered to and hand-held every step of the way. This helps them feel seen, heard and understood; all of which someone expects when dishin’ out dolla bills for a service. Ya hear?

3. DON’T back down or get nervous when it comes to asking for money.

If you act weird about it or present your pricing haphazardly… it’s gonna raise red flags. People won’t believe you’re confident in what you do or the results you can get them. You’re providing a service for them that is absolutely invaluable, and nobody can do it like YOU can. Be confident when sending your information over, YOU GOT THIS!

Having a hard time converting your followers into paying clients? Struggling with client communication in general? Hop on a free strategy call with me so we can pinpoint where you’re losing customers, and figure out what you can do to fix it! 

Wanna stick around and stay learnin’? I knew I liked ya. ?

Feel free to binge on these blog posts, or pin ’em on Pinterest for later! ??

If you’re short on time, follow me on Pinterest – and you’ll get these kinda tips delivered straight to your feed! You know… when you’re scrollin’ through Pinterest with coffee in hand, ready to take on the day… or, procrastinate.

Whatevs. Pinterest biz sesh, anybody!? ??