These days, it’s quite normal for people and businesses to hire a professional photographer over the phone or online. There is no face-to-face contact before the workday. This is even more common for photographers working on a small or even alone team; they have so much to do that stopping everything for a meeting with a client seems like a waste of time.
It seems, but it is not. A single meeting with a client before entering into a contract, be it for wedding photos or to film a conference, can avoid a number of future problems. To see how:
Show your portfolio
Even if the customer claims to have seen your portfolio? on your website, for example? It is quite possible that you simply “took a look” without paying attention to details. Well, he hired you anyway, which means he probably liked what he saw.
But did he really understand his work style?To prevent this from happening, a customer meeting is an opportunity to explain how you work and what your best techniques are.
Understand what they want
Many clients don’t know how to explain exactly what they want from a professional photographer. They use subjective words and descriptions because what they know is how they want to feel when they look at the photo. Most, however, don’t know how to get that feeling through landscape, lighting, or lens type. During the meeting with the client, you will be able to better understand what they want and define, with them, the best way to meet their expectations.
Explain your vocabulary
Just as the photographer often has a difficult time understanding the client, the reverse is also true. Photographers often have their own technical vocabulary that others don’t know. Can it affect everything from understanding the employment contract to expectations about the outcome of the photos? and it can lead to disagreements and dissatisfaction for the customer. So take the time to have a meeting with the client and explain some essential terms that you will use in this job.
Know the personality
As a professional photographer, will you work closely with people? With your clients. And you need to know your personality to find the best way to do this job. Some clients have long lists of requirements; some prefer to leave everything in the hands of the professional; some are never satisfied and require various changes.
Maintaining a good relationship with the client and treating him with respect, regardless of his personality, is essential; But if a conflict catches you off guard, you may react inappropriately. Investing time in a meeting with a client, before you actually start working together, can prepare you for what’s to come and help you better handle these conflicts.
Loyalty to your customers
In the photography industry almost no one meets in person or visits their clients, everything is organized by computer, and then professionals and clients are only found on the day of the event, so photographers who take the time to perform a Customer Encounter has an advantage: they offer additional attention that retains the customer. This means more work in the future and excellent recommendations.
Basically, it all comes down to the benefits of having contact and communication with your customers. It is one of the essential factors in the career of a successful professional photographer. Enjoy and leave your comments; What interesting experiences have you had in a meeting with a client? Oh, and if you want to learn a little more about being a photographer, why not take a look at this other article we recently released? Next!