Want to send a newsletter to your clients?
But, lack the time to put it together?
Here is your solution!!

“Nearly Done For You” Photography Newsletter….

Download a Sample Newsletter
I’m Ready To Start! See Membership Options

Attention Fellow Studio Owners:

Finally! An insanely easy “nearly-done-for-you” marketing system you can use every month to reel in returning clients and ready-to-buy referrals needing to book you. This means more clients, more time with your family, and less time worrying “Why am I not earning enough!”.

The number one complaint amongst photographers is…. “I need more clients coming in the door!”. Does that sound familiar?

Well, if you want more clients then you’ll love what I am about to share with you. Warning: This might be so exciting you might spontaneously make you jump up & start dancing! (Your spouse might think you have finally ‘lost it’!) In fact, this page might be the most important information on photography marketing you have ever read.

Perhaps things are rough right now but know this…. your success if NOT tied to the fact you may not know the latest (and soon to be obsolete) Google, Facebook, MySpace, SEO, or You Tube techniques & tricks! Heck, it’s certainly not because you don’t own the latest & greatest template, overpriced fancy brochure, action set, or flash website. Shoot, it’s not even the MWAC’s dang it! Not even close.

Your success is tied to something much more simple & powerful! Keep reading if you want to learn more….

photographynewsletter.jpg
Send an entertaining, fun-to-read, referral generating newsletter starting today. If you need more clients, this could be the answer you have been looking for.

First of all… You must figure out the “business of photography”. You have learn how to consistently get more clients in the door.  There are only two options.

  1. You will GIVE UP & QUIT. This happens nearly every day – just go read any photography forum! But, what the heck would you do if you QUIT? List all of your equipment for sale on eBay and dust off your resume? Not me Bucko! I won’t let that happen to myself. I will do everything possible to make sure it doesn’t happen. Heck, what would you do if you don’t have enough money to cover next months rent or mortgage payment? It’s scary BUT, there is another choice – see #2!
  2. Or, you will FIGURE IT OUT and prove everyone wrong who doubted you (you know who they are!), finally have the bank account balance you deserve, & the satisfaction of providing for your family on YOUR income! Trust me… this business is FUN when you MAKE THE MONEY YOU DESERVE! Earning the money you deserve might be easier than you think! You are special and you do deserve the money you charge. Let’s figure out how to get knee deep in business so you can stay in business! I use a repeatable proven system that brings in plenty of clients. If you can paint-by-numbers, you can use my system too (that’s how easy it is).

I Own A Studio Too!

My name is George Dean and I own a small, yet highly profitable, photography studio in the suburbs of Dallas, Texas, with a commercial location right off the interstate. I am on the front line trenches with you and have the battle scares to prove it.

I too started with zero clients and now average $2385 a client with MOST of business being repeat business or referrals.

I know the growth of my business iss determined by how much my customers did the marketing for me!

When I started, I didn’t have a ton of money to do traditional advertising and in all honesty, I don’t do traditional advertising at all!

I want my clients to do the talking for me! What they say is at least TEN TIMES more powerful than what I can say about myself! I knew I had to get my clients on my team! I had to get them preaching the word for me. My tactic was simple – Spoil, Delight, & Stay In Touch!

In a few short years, I have developed a strong six figure business (thats ‘net’) as a one man portrait studio. I don’t spend a DIME on traditional marketing! I use my marketing dollars to spoil, delight, and stay in touch with my clients. It works darn good too!

It’s MY job to keep MY name in the forefront of my clients mind! I know it’s MY job to remind them I am alive and kicking! It’s my job to spoil and delight my clients so they brag to their friends and neighbors. It’s also my job to remind them WHAT ELSE I photograph besides what I created for them.

My Daughters

My Daughters! My Motivation! My Life!

You see, I have a family with three little girls (two year old twins and a four year old).

Love is not a big enough word to describe how I love my girls! They are my world! So, having a successful studio is NOT a luxury, it’s mandatory.

For the love of my daughters, I do everything possible to make my studio a FINANCIAL success. However, financial success FOLLOWS marketing success. If you don’t have the marketing down, you can say “bye bye profits”.

Personally, I would not know what to do if I was not a photographer! It would be unbelievably devastating if I lost my business. It would be a nightmare to not provide for my family AND not provide this amazing & sometimes “life changing” service to my clients. It’s my life. It’s my passion.

My studio is a business FIRST AND FOREMOST. My studio’s primary job, for my clients, is to change their lives by bringing them closer together, to see themselves in a light they never thought was impossible, and bring many years of sweet memories from their experience with my studio.

However, my studio’s primary job, for my FAMILY, is to keep a roof over our head (two mortgages – my house and studio), kids in clothes, have a nice Christmas, a vacation at least once a year, … blah blah blah… the list is LONG.

Here is what I have learned…

Getting pre-qualified ready-to-buy referrals &
repeat clients using my marketing system is MUCH
CHEAPER and EASIER than getting NEW clients PLUS
they invest TWICE the amount as regular-ole new clients!

Yes, twice as much – I bet you think I’m pulling your leg. My Successware records prove it (I track everything). They are available for inspection at my studio (4210 North I-35 in Denton TX) with appointment.

In fact, last quarter 53% of my sessions were either referrals or repeat clients. This does not happen by accident! It happens because I use a repeatable marketing system that works. Sending a monthly newsletter is one key ingredient in that marketing system. And, I would argue til the end-of-the-day that it could produce powerful results for your business too.

Recently, one referral had my newsletter in her hand when she walked into my studio. A repeat client had one on the front seat in her car! Another client told me she gave my last newsletter to her sister. It’s working!

“How To Use Your Secret Gold Mine To Get More Clients In The Door The Easy Way”

You might be asking, “What is MY “Secret Gold Mine?

Well, let me ask you a question first, “What is the MOST valuable ASSET in your business?”

You should have answered, “My client list of course!”.

Your client list IS your “Secret Gold Mine”. Your client list is probably the greatest hidden asset in your business. It’s “hidden” because you aren’t using it. It’s hidden away in the computer.

Every name on your list is worth CASH to you. It’s money in the bank if you leverage it to your full advantage. Get that list out & nurture it. It can feed your family for many years to come!

Let me bottom line this for you. You already have a list of clients who have done sessions. They loved their portraits & hopefully made a substantial investment. So, they have fallen in love with you, your imagery, and your process. Most photographers believe this will make clients automatically send you referrals or return to your studio. Trust me, it’s not that simple.

Getting repeat business and ready to buy referrals demands more. It requires you to stay in touch with your clients often enough & consistently enough so they continue to “feel the love”. So, it’s your job to remind then who you are and what you do for people. It’s your job to get them back in the door and send you referrals! It’s your job to train them how to do it and encourage them to do so. It doesn’t happen all by itself.

Truly successful and highly profitable businesses are built on relationships. Long term relationships begin AFTER the first sale has been made. The real money, the easy money, in photography is made AFTER the first is made!

Getting clients back in the door and getting them to send you referrals is the easiest money you will ever make!

Get out your client list and send them a newsletter starting today!

“The Whole Idea Of My Marketing System Is To…”

Build a RELATIONSHIP with your clients! They love your work and love you. Stay in touch with them on a consistent basis SO they will return to your studio multiple times AND send you referrals after referrals!

Create a community of people who love you, your work, and how YOU effect their hearts!

If you create that community – that connection – you build loyalty. If the recent recession taught us anything, its the fact we NEED loyal, returning, referring clients in our business and they must be protected and nurtured at all costs!

Another key component of my marketing system centers around this idea: How many purchases would you like each client to make from you over their entire lifetime? Do they need newborn portraits, a family portrait, senior picture, perhaps a wedding or two? THEN, ask the next obvious question – how do you plan on making sure that happens?

And, sending a newsletter keeps YOUR NAME in the forefront of their mind! You want your clients to instinctly shout your name when they need a photographer or a friend or a co-worker needs one. This can ONLY happen through you staying in touch with them over and over and over for a long period of time.

A Classic Marketing Tool Returns (and its more effective than ever!)

The cornerstone of my marketing system is sending a classic newsletter, either by email or mail, that’s specifically designed to get clients BACK in the door and to nearly force them to send me referrals constantly. I DO reward referrals BUT not like MOST people reward them. (Its very important to do this part right!)

Quite simply, sending newsletters is a near forgotten, highly effective, secret weapon you should consider adding to your marketing arsenal. You see… a newsletter continues the conversation with your client. If the conversation dies, so will the relationship! Learn to build long term relationships and you will enjoy the fruits of repeat business!

This isn’t just ANY regular ole boring newsletter either. It is entertaining & fun!

Just think how much fun you will be having when the phone rings with yet another referral! This business is WAY MORE FUN when you are MAKING the MONEY you DESERVE!

So, why do 55% of all marriages end in divorce? The number one reason given… “He doesn’t pay attention to me anymore”.  If your spouse will leave you because you don’t pay attention to them, doesn’t it seem logical that your client will leave you too?

Let me be straight with you…

If you have high quality beautiful work
that puts sweet tears in your client’s eyes,
a pleasing easy-to-work-with creative personality,
and your clients absolutely adore you – there is absolutely
NO REASON this classic marketing tool won’t help your business
burst-at-the-seams with high paying repeat & referral clients.

This will work for you!

(NOTE: On the flip side of the coin, if your work lacks, you have no personality, and your clients only “sorta” likes you, this certainly is not the answer to your ailing business!)

A Real Life Example:

Today I will photograph a high school senior. I want her mom to know I also shoot families, weddings, maternity, head shots, …. BUT I can’t possibly tell her ALL of that TODAY. She is already overwhelmed by the fact her daughter is finally a senior. Sure, I DO mention it today. But, I KNOW that it takes time for my client to absorb ALL of that information.

That’s where a newsletter comes into play. It’s my own personal “drip marketing tool”. Slowly over time, she will see my images from weddings, maternity, head shots, … So, when a friend of hers needs a new head shot for her business, my client WILL KNOW I do head shots. When someone announces they are getting married, she will know I shoot weddings. It’s much easier for her to refer me when she remembers my name and what I photograph!

Also, the great thing about a physical newsletter is the fact mom can “pass it along” to people saying, “This is the photographer I was telling you about” (it happens ALL the time in my business). I have ONE client refer me over $15K in business in the past four months alone! She is the master of “passing along my newsletter”.

TIP #1: How do you get clients to “pass it along”? Simple – TELL THEM ITS OK TO DO THAT and then REWARD that behavior. Watch this video – If I didn’t do what I reveal in this video, it would be career suicide!!

TIP #2: I mention at least TWICE during their visits to my studio “WHAT ELSE” I photograph. They visit my studio for the shoot, the sales session, and the pick up. I have THREE chances to show them WHAT ELSE I photograph! For example: I make sure each high school senior know I want to do their family session in the Spring (I give a 10% print credit for their family session if they do). I also tell them at least twice, “when you get married in ten years, I want to shoot your wedding!”. Then I joke how two of last years seniors are getting married this year just for the reaction. I KNOW for a FACT that sending the newsletter will MOST LIKELY yield that future wedding, her eventual maternity, her newborn, her future family portraits, and eventually her OWN seniors. Then…. cycle starts over.


Why Send Your Clients A Newsletter?

THE PRIMARY REASON for sending a newsletter is…. you probably won’t go out of business!

You get to CONTINUE to be a photographer! Imagine what you would do if you were no longer a photographer. Not a pretty picture. I know it isn’t for me! Failure is not an option! Quite simply, without clients, your business is dead.

Are you banking your future on getting NEW clients from web searches, wall displays, or ads? I hope not. It’s the hard way to build a business. Do it the EASY way! Send a newsletter.

  • THE FIRST BENEFIT to sending a well-crafted newsletter is….. your clients will remember your name so they can return to your studio to get additional portraits created.

    The number one reason clients don’t return to a business is because they simply forgot you even existed. Although we love to think we are so darn important to our clients but the truth is – we aren’t! Clients eventually feel like you DON’T care about them because you have not kept up the relationship. Having a client for life is a lot like dating – you have to keep courting them to stay in the relationship or else the relationship dies – SORTA like your business will die if you don’t maintain that relationship with your clients. 

  • THE SECOND BENEFIT to sending a well-crafted newsletter is….. your clients will remember your name at the exact moment they need to remember it to send you referrals!

    Maybe someone at work is getting married or having a baby. What happens if your client forgot your name? They can’t refer you more business! (Many of my clients report passing my newsletter along to a friend. “Here is that photographer I told you about”. Think about the power of that!) Its not their job to remember to send you referrals – you have to consistently remind them!

  • THE THIRD BENEFIT is “Cross Selling”!

    Ask yourself this question…. “After the initial sale is complete, what’s next?”. “After the wedding, what’s next?” (well, eventually there should be a maternity, newborn, family , …) . “After the senior session, what’s next?” (perhaps this is a great time to do a family session before the senior goes off to college) … “whats next??” Amateurs focus on the FIRST sale – professionals focus on “whats next”.

    So, does your wedding clients know you create stunning newborn portraits? Do your newborn clients know you photography families on location? Do your families know you create amazing senior pictures? Do they know you do headshots? And finally, do your seniors know you shoot weddings? Getting clients back in the door is easiest way to boost your profits! Have you EVER lost a session and heard a client say “I didn’t know you did that!”

  • THE FOURTH BENEFIT is “Pass Along Value”!

    My clients DO give my newsletter to their friends, neighbors, and co-workers because its fun to read AND “here is that photographer I was telling you about.”

  • THE FIFTH BENEFIT is “Stealth Marketing”.

    Your competition won’t even realize you are doing it. Sending newsletters is a way to fly under the radar. Anything you post online CAN and WILL BE copied by your competition pretty quickly. BUT, they can’t copy this because they don’t know you are doing it! In fact, if you want, you can LOCK OUT your competition from subscribing to PhotographyNewsletter.com!

  • THE SIXTH BENEFIT is “Personality Marketing”.

    Let’s face it, most marketing is BORING that yields less than pleasing results. With a newsletter, your personality can SHINE because you have the space to make it happen. You can’t buy a large enough ad space to do that. Show a little about you, your family, your children, your hobbies. People WANT to connect with YOU. Let them.

  • THE SEVENTH FIFTH BENEFIT is “Wall Building”.

    You are slowly putting a protective wall around your clients thus making it much more difficult for your competition to lure your clients away from you.

  • THE EIGHTH BENEFIT is the “Silent Salesperson”!

    A newsletter is your silent salesperson. Its much cheaper than hiring an employee too! Its never late, its always on time, and does a highly effective job. You can make announcements for upcoming special events, maybe a shot where proceeds go to a charity, use it to congratulate a client for some accomplishment, …

  • THE EIGHTH BENEFIT is the “Brand Re-Enforcement”!

    The only way to build an identifiable brand is to keep it memorable and in front of your clients face. If you have “studio colors”, make sure it re-enforced in your newsletter. Use your logo or mark. If you have different “divisions”, maybe use one set of colors for families and another for your wedding clients. This is a great way to really build your brand identity.

  • THE TENTH BENEFIT is “Profit”!

    How amazing would it feel to take your spouse on a well deserved vacation for supporting your dreams! Hire a babysitter once a month and go out! Hire a house cleaner to help with the house chores. It will make home life MUCH better!

  • WARNING: This newsletter might shock your business and force it to grow faster than you might be ready for! Make sure your duckies are lined up before implementing it!

Why Wouldn’t You Send a Newsletter?

CONCERN: “It doesn’t work.”

ANSWER: I would ask, “What doesn’t work?”.

  1. Surely, you aren’t suggesting staying in touch with clients is a BAD idea. Surely, you don’t think its unprofitable. Right? The first thing we have to agree on is this…. “Staying in contact with previous clients on a consistent basis WILL increase repeat and referral based business”. If you do NOT agree on that, I wish you the best of luck trying to run a business purely off getting NEW clients in the door. If you have any marketing savvy, I am sure you will agree this is a profitable activity. Thinking otherwise will send you straight to bankruptcy.
  2. Perhaps you think “a newsletter” itself will not stimulate referrals or repeat business. Let me completely up front with you. Its true there is NO guarantee it will. There are OTHER variables in play here. Maybe your work really isn’t THAT good, maybe you constantly mess up on orders and anger clients, maybe you don’t have the right personality to be successful, or maybe something entirely different. Its true – you need to be the complete package. Great work + Great Personality + Great Follow Up = Successful Business

CONCERN: “Its too expensive”

ANSWER: Once again, this could be two things.

  1. “The newsletter service is too expensive”. My response would be “Oh Really!”. How much per hour is YOUR time worth? You’ve got the find the articles (without violating copyright law) or create them EVERY MONTH. Or, you can hire an employee who will certainly hate you after the second month for making them create the content. Newsletter content is a PERFECT thing to out source. I have hired THREE writers and a PROFESSIONAL PROOFREADER to edit EVERY newsletter. It takes my members LESS THAN 30 MINUTES to get the newsletter to the printer! One member tells me it takes her 15 minutes! That sounds pretty darn quick to me – doesn’t?
  2. “Mailing newsletters is too expensive”. Well, who says you HAVE to “mail” it. Hek, start out emailing it! Get something out the door! Doing something is FAR better than doing nothing! So, is it too expensive to mail? I don’t think so. In MY case, I need FOUR referrals or repeat clients PER YEAR to pay to MAIL it to ALL my clients every month. Heck, I get referrals that that every month. I know this works. I tell everyone, do it for ONE YEAR and I will make a believer out of you! BUT, if finances is an issue – email the darn thing BUT DO IT!

CONCERN: “I don’t have time”

ANSWER: Could be two things again!

  1. Are you SO booked you don’t need the additional business? If so, why are you even reading this? My gut tells me, if you read THIS far, you want the additional business. In fact, you probably NEED the additional business. If this doesn’t look like the obvious solution, maybe you are looking for a “magic pill”.
  2. OR, maybe you think its its too much time to get the newsletter “completed”. Well, I’ve already told you it takes most people less than 30 minutes to do it! I can not think of ONE marketing activity you can do in 30 minutes and produce the results of a well crafted entertaining newsletter! It happens much faster than you ever thought possible.

Why Not Just Send Cheap Postcards or Email?

  1. Its pretty hard to make a postcard so entertaining its WORTH reading, remembering, or passing along to their friends, neighbors, and co-workers. Yes, MY clients DO give out my newsletter. Its a great benefit to newsletters. Heck, my clients even give their newsletter to their friends when one of their friends picture is featured in the newsletter. How cool is that!
  2. Postcards are OFTEN tossed the moment they glance at it because it is seen as an advertisement. Newsletters are NOT seen as advertisements (even though they ARE a marketing piece)! This is very important.
  3. No one prints out an email and posts it on their refrigerator. Only 3% of emails get read. Either its not delivered or they are automatically deleted. If you are like me, I don’t want to be automatically deleted when people see my name. Email has ZERO value to most people. Sure its free but you get what you pay for. An email newsletter is fine IF you also mail one periodically (every other month or every quarter).

TIP: Also send to your local vendors like florist and wedding venues!

To build a strong business, you need a strong relationship with your clients. The very BEST client retention/referral tool (without breaking the bank) is to send an entertaining newsletter to your clients. (Yes I know, creating a newsletter can be frustrating but WHAT IF it was NEARLY done for you! Keep reading…)

Sending a newsletter consistently is the ONLY fool-proof way to stay in the forefront of the mind of your clients. When they need new portraits or someone they know needs a photographer, they will call you. This is a proven, drip-marketing technique for creating future sales.

You know all this BUT the problem is, producing a newsletter is time consuming & frustrating. That’s why it never gets done! My “nearly done for you” newsletter is already filled with entertaining stories, fun tidbits, & relationship building strategies. This will make the process quick, easy, and relatively painless.

“I Send ‘Thank You’ Cards, Isn’t That Enough?”

“Thank You” are the two most powerful words in your marketing playbook! Sending a Thank You CARD (not email) is mandatory. It is course number “101″ in customer appreciation. Also, sending a “Thank You” card reinforces the fact clients ARE important, they made the right decision to do business with YOU, and they MATTER to YOU!

Sending a ‘Thank You’ card just scratches the surface of excellent customer service. It is JUST the beginning. Do you really think making ONE SALE with ONE FOLLOW UP CORRESPONDENCE turns someone into a client for life? Give me a break. That’s “One Night Stand Marketing” at it’s best.

The REAL PROFITS, the REAL CASH GENERATING MACHINE, in ANY business is the “back end”. It’s the profits from he 2nd, 3rd, and 4th sale PLUS the profit from their referrals that adds to your cash rich business. Its NOT the first sale! Stop being happy with making ONE sale from a client. Build your bank account balance by building a repeat & referral based business.

Nothing, and I mean nothing, comes close to the effectiveness of a newsletter! Not an ad in the hippest magazine, not an amazing display at a doctors office, and certainly not sending ONE “Thank You” Card.

Have you ever thought about the “LIFETIME VALUE” of a client? What is it worth to your studio if the average client came to your studio 10 times over the next 15 years AND referred you just ONE client WHO also came to your studio 10 times over the next 15 years?

Sending a newsletters is INSANE CHEAP when you start to think of the LIFETIME VALUE OF A CLIENT!


"Lifetime Value of a Client"

The cumulative net worth of a repeat client will dazzle your mind and tickle your fancy if you really sit down to think about it. Getting clients back in the door is SIMPLE if they love your work, love you, and IF YOU STAY IN TOUCH WITH THEM. This ain’t brain surgery!

So, Why Doesn’t Everyone Do This?

You might be asking, “If this was SO great, why doesn’t everyone do it?”.

Great questions…

  1. Why doesn’t everybody do it? My gut tells me laziness (getting a newsletter out the door has historically been a pain in the you know what – until now of course). There is a reason 95% of people are broke! My gut also tells me that many photographers are CHEAP. They will drop $1,200 on a lens in a heartbeat but to suggest a three step mailer to clients & they will run for the hills in fear. All in all, I think its fear of rejection – “What if I don’t get a single referral or repeat client from the mailing?”. Well, my answer is two parts. Part One: Maybe your work and customer service is lacking MORE than you think. Part Two: You are afraid of #1 being true! Stop being afraid. Be bold! Have confidence in yourself. It starts with your own mindset! Don’t limit yourself. Go for it.
  2. The very reason most photographers DON’T do it IS an amazing reason to do it! Most businesses are HORRIBLE at following up with clients. Does your car salesman sends you letters or postcards? If he does, I bet you do back to him every time you need a car. The odds are, he doesn’t send you anything but ONE Thank You card after the sale. What about plumbers, your nail technician, your lawn guy, your tax guy, your attorney, … THEY DON’T! Doing so WILL make you special. It will make you different. It will make you stand out. Once again, its NOT your clients job to remember your name – its your job to remind them! TIP: When everyone is doing the SAME thing, it MIGHT be time to do the exact opposite. Some people will tell you MAIL IS DEAD – I call BULL CRAP & PURE BALONEY rolled into a sandwich! It’s alive and well my friend. It works. I am living proof.

How Easy & Cheap Is It?

Your newsletter will take shape right before your eyes and be ready in less than 27 minutes (for most folks). You could have a ready to mail (or email), two-page, full color, entertaining, relationship building newsletter to send to your clients in no time flat!

As a member you can download my monthly “nearly done for you” newsletter template. There is no special software to buy. Its a photoshop PSD file. It’s a fully customizable, two-page, 300 DPI, layered PSD photoshop file.

“So, what exactly am I required to contribute?” (Surely you didn’t think you were getting off “Scott free” did you? :) )

There are pre-designed places to… (This should take less than 30 minutes to do your part!)

  • Add your own photos.
    • Showcase your latest work. Show your clients “what else” you photograph! Believe it or not but not all your clients know what else you photograph! They might have came for you for a senior session but do they know you ALSO do professional headshots or newborn portraits? This is a great way to showcase your work in PRINT. Sure, you have a blob BUT a newsletter gets looked at every time you send you!
  • Add “Upcoming Events”.
    • Are you having a headshot special or Facebook Party or a White on White Event? Tell people about it. Give them a reason to post YOUR newsletter on their refrigerator!
  • Add “Thank You’s” to specific clients for their referrals.
    • Thank clients for their referrals in front of everyone has GREAT impact! People LOVE to see their name in print. Shout it from the roof tops. This will encourage them to DO IT AGAIN and it will encourage OTHERS to do it as well! At minimum, mom will get excited & show daddy AND her friends who have been to my studio will see her name too! Think about that. Powerful. Plus, if you follow my plan, you will have already sent mom a Thank You card (or two!) for the referrals plus a little gift. It works wonders! It truly does. People STARVE for appreciation. Feed it to them and watch your business grow. This section is SO important, I wish I could put it at 20 point font with BOLD and UNDERLINE!
  • “Testimonial of the Month”.
    • Let OTHERS brag about your work! What people say about you is ten times more effective as ANYTHING as you can say about yourself!

See a Member Sample.

If you CREATED the newsletter YOURSELF, studies show it takes 2 – 5 hours MINIMUM to create a newsletter each month. And, in all honesty, that’s why most studios NEVER do it. It is NOT the easiest thing to do – until now!

No Set Up Fees. No Contracts.

Heck, if you paid an employee $15 an hour for 4 Hours, that is $60 (PLUS she will hate EVERY SECOND OF IT). In most cases, she will have to join a newsletter filler service to help with article ideas which is a MINIMUM of $100 a month. So, that is $160 a month to have an employee do it, OR you can join PhotographyNewsletter at $47 a month. Doesn’t get any cheaper than that! Heck, $47 is probably less than price of ONE 8X10 in your studio! Its $11.75 Week – That is two Starbucks! Give me a break. This is insane cheap, highly effective marketing!

No Set Up Fee. No Contracts.

Stay as long as you like… leave when you like. There is no commitment period BUT if you don’t plan on doing this for 12 months, my advice would be to not send one at all. Doing something halfway doesn’t work.

You can also use the content anywhere – even your website.

If you chose to email it, you won’t even have to pay for a stamp or envelope! If you want to mail it, I can set you up with a printer who will print ‘em, fold ‘em, put ‘em in an envelope, & mail ‘em for you. It doesn’t get any easier than that.

Want to get started???

Join Today

MY HEART AND SOUL GUARANTEE

Given all of the above, I feel as though you’ve come to know my business philosophy and why I’m so excited to be able to support YOU.

In fact I’m so confident that my Photography Newsletter will help you to complete the vision of your dream photography business that I want to erase any concern in your heart with my personal heart and soul guarantee.

If for some reason my newsletter service doesn’t meet your expectations, or the strategies don’t produce the results you were looking for, just let me know. I will personally attend to your refund request and completely refund the LAST THREE MONTHS OF MEMBERSHIP, with my very best wishes.

MY $4.5 MILLION GOAL

I want to teach 300 photography studios (about six per state) to make a combined $4.5 Million from their newsletters. This is a doable number.  Will you join me?? Will you let me help you?

HOW DO I JOIN?

1. Download a Sample Newsletter and Special Marketing Report titled, ““Newsletter Marketing Tips & Seven Surefire Ways to Increase Your Photography Business Profits”.

2. Join Today.

QUESTIONS?

Feel free to call or email me. I get giddy when I hear from you. My contact information is at the top of this page.

MARKETING EXPERTS AGREE:

Ben Hart, “21st Century Marketing Coach” wrote,

“For every $1 spent on monthly newsletter, expect to get $20-$50 in profit. Your own newsletter is like printing money in your basement.”

Dan Kennedy, “The Millionaire Maker” wrote,

“The newsletter is, I think, the most useful tool in maintaining relationships with customers and keeping them interested in your business, products, and services.”

Jay Levinson, “Guerilla Marketing” wrote

“Newsletters will prove your expertise, establish y our authority, gain you some visibility, and increase awareness of your talents”

Close your eyes for a minute and take a slow, deep breath. Just imagine the thrill of going to bed at the end of the week, knowing you are truly investing into the growth of your business. Imagine yourself one year from now. Put a bottle of champagne on ice and order in some Maine Lobster because you will be celebrating the added profitability of your business! In one year, will you STILL be struggling to get high paying clients in the door OR is your phone ringing with pre-sold, ready to buy, repeat & referral clients? This newsletter is your way to do just that! AND, you can lock in today’s price (future price increases are already planned). Or, a year from now, will you wish you’d started this today? The choice is yours. Don’t let clients continue to slip through your fingers; reserve your newsletter spot before your area is SOLD OUT (yes, you CAN lock out local competition from joining)!

You’ve heard the saying, “the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, and expecting different results.” If you’re ready, take the first step to success and join us.


Article in the Southeast PPA Magazine..

It’s the 1st of the month…do you know where your clients are?Perhaps more importantly, do your clients know where you are? Does your name come to their minds when the subject of photography arises? If you’re answering anything other than “yes” it might be time to revisit a couple of marketing basics. You’re probably familiar with the 80-20 rule…you know, the one that says that 80% of your revenue comes from 20% of your clients. But what are you doing to keep that 20%?

While you’re out searching for new blue ocean strategies, take care not to overlook the clients you’ve already invested the marketing dollars to find. They’re “in the boat”, so to speak, and are less expensive to maintain than the new client you don’t have yet.

Let’s take a new look at an old standard…the newsletter. I know what you may be thinking…that between blogging, tweeting and facebooking there just isn’t enough time in your day to even consider doing a newsletter. What if someone wrote it for you? What if all you had to do was put in YOUR pictures and studio information, write a couple of sentences about what’s going on in your studio and you’d be done? Would you be interested if someone printed it, stuffed it, put the postage on it and mailed it?

Such a horse of a different color does exist…and I’m going to tell you about it. Photographynewsletter.com is the brainchild of George Dean, a marketing savvy photographer in Denton, Texas. The premise is simple…he writes a newsletter that’s 90% complete, you download it, customize it with your information and mail or email it to your clients. And, yes, he even offers a service that will print it, stuff it and mail it for you.

The newsletter for the next month is posted on the website by the 5th of the preceding month. He’s made it pretty simple to customize…the newsletter comes as a layered PSD file and he’s even made the layers that you need to change a really bright red color.

Any of the articles that you don’t need in any given newsletter can be stockpiled and used at a later date. The first newsletter I downloaded after signing up for the service took me a whopping 30 minutes to get ready to mail. I actually took a little extra time and made a template using my studio information and header and saved it in my marketing folder.

My next newsletter was ready to be printed in about 15 minutes. If you’re going to work a newsletter into your studio routine, think about how often you want to distribute it. Many studies show that a person needs to see your name at least 4 times before it sticks…so a publish rate of 4 times a year should be your minimum.

For optimal visualization, though, consider sending your newsletter monthly. If that just isn’t in your marketing budget, try a hybrid solution: email your newsletter 8-10 months of the year and supplement with the printed copy the other months. I do a spring and fall portrait event in my studio in April and October so my newsletters for March and September will be more robust than what I send out the other months.

Why Send a Newsletter?

There is no doubt in my mind that building a long term photography business is directly related to your ability to get clients to come back AND send you referrals. There is no better way to do that then sending a newsletter consistently to your client base. A monthly newsletter helps clients remember you! Every month, you are tapping them on the shoulder, reminding them who you are & what you do! There’s a wonderful thing that happens when you mail to your clients on a consistent basis. You get more value from them because they return more often and they refer their friends and family to your studio! It is a wonderful thing. You want your newsletter to help you get new customers too. Informative articles & pictures of your client’s children give your newsletter “pass-along value.” Your newsletter makes it easy to share with others. This is one reason I recommend mailing multiple copies of a newsletter to a family when you feature an image from their session. Include a sticky note encouraging them them to take a copy to work or to church. (Tip: You should also mail it to your local vendors such as florist, cake decorators, interior designers, …) Your customers may not be ready or need your service today, but when they are, they want to do business with someone they know, like, and trust. So when they are ready for what you offer, they’ll turn to you. You want to keep your studio at the TOP of their MIND! Eventually, they will NEED a photographer and eventually they will know someone who needs a photographer too! Use some of your marketing dollars to foster long term relationships with your clients. Building a repeat and referral based business is the best money you will ever spend! You simply can’t afford to NOT do it. A customer newsletter is the strongest marketing and business building tool available—bar none.


How To Get Referrals From Your Newsletter Marketing?

Several Ways:

  • If your newsletter is entertaining, your clients will pass it along to their friends. “Here is that photographer I was telling you about”. This happens A LOT with my newsletter.
  • Include a couple extra copies of the newsletter IF a client is featured in it with a sticky note to pass along to their friends. Some of my clients will notice a friend in my newsletters and will give them their copy just so they can have an extra copy! That is very very cool!
  • Mail it to prospects in addition to your clients.
  • Post a PDF of it on your website.
  • Thank the people PUBLICLY in your newsletter who sent you referrals.
  • Ask for referrals in your newsletter.
  • On your customer information sheet everyone fills out at your studio, ask WHO referred them with a tag line “We love to send “Thank You” gifts.
  • Place copies at Chamber of Commerce meetings.
  • Place a stack a businesses your clients frequent.
  • Be bold & mail them to clients you WANT to work with.
  • Mail them to all your local vendors (great tip for wedding photographers!)


Newsletters Help Build Your Brand Identity

All the research I’ve found, suggests you need to contact your client at least SEVEN times a year. Monthly is ideal. A lot of photographers spend all kinds of money working on brand identity but do not know how to really build a brand. A brand must be consistently re-enforced and burned into your clients mind. Additionally, newsletters mailed every month will be viewed a publication instead of junk mail. Consistently mailed newsletters are seen as welcome information and good entertainment. Think about how powerful that is.


Email or Mail??

A few things to thing about. Most people get 6 pieces of mail a day but get 60 emails a day. Only 10% of all email is opened and once its opened, its usually deleted in less than 20 seconds. Printed newsletters have a much longer shelf life & much higher readership (80%+). Email is free and printed newsletters are not. Email addresses change much more frequently than mailing addresses. Too many emails end up in the spam folder. Email does not have the “pass along” value of printed newsletters. Personally, I think email is a good supplement to your mail. Use email and print together for maximum results. You can use my newsletter for both!