Getting Better Qualified Clients For Your Boudoir Photography Business
As business owners, most of us have made the mistake of working with the wrong client. You know … that client who you had your doubts about during the initial consultation call. That client who you knew might not be a great fit for your brand or style but you took on anyway. THAT client.
Typically working with the wrong type of client serves as one big mega learning experience. An experience that teaches you the warning signs to look out for and stay far away from. In this blog post, we’re going to share our secret weapon for weeding out the bad seeds right from the get-go. Removing the bad apples before wasting one minute of your precious time on them.
Ready to score the most qualified leads for your boudoir photography business? Keep reading!
Earlier this week, we published a blog post about an epic fail we made shortly after launching our marketing agency. We took on a client who didn’t fit our ideal buyer persona.
There were red flags in the beginning of the relationship that later turned into big bombs going off toward the end of the relationship. While it wasn’t the best experience, it served as complete and utter proof that deviating from our ideal buyer persona was a very bad idea.
If you’re interested in the specifics on what actually happened, you can read the full post here:
We took on a client who didn’t fit our buyer persona. Here’s what happened.
Interestingly, as we were approaching the end of our contract with this very difficult client, we had attended a HubSpot Inbound conference. At the conference, we participated in a breakout session hosted by Karl Sakas.
The session was called Speed-Dating Your Agency's Sales Prospects (a name that couldn’t be more fitting, quite honestly). In it, Karl explained how to quickly sift through leads and find the best suited ones for your business.
The key to doing this: using a client intake form.
You can think of a client intake form as a screening tool. It’s a form on your website that potential clients must complete before you ever even engage in a telephone conversation with them.
We started using an intake form immediately upon returning home from the Inbound conference and it completely transformed the way we handle prospective clients. Now let’s take a look at how you can build something similar to better vet your boudoir photography clients.
According to Karl, the intake form works because,
“you’re asking them [the potential client] to lean in before you lean in. If someone takes a week to complete the form, they’re showing you this isn’t a priority. … If they never complete the form, you just saved yourself from doing a call with an unqualified prospect!”
Makes sense, right? You want clients who respect your process and find value in the way you operate right off the bat.
So what kind of questions should you be asking on the intake form? Our advice would be to think of the worst case scenario client. The client who gave you lots of headaches and sleepless nights. What are the questions you could have asked them in order to determine what your experience might be like working with them? While you want to keep the form as short and concise as possible, you need to make sure you’re getting value out of the information you’re asking for.
Here’s a list of 5 questions you might want to consider adding to your boudoir photography client intake form:
1. What’s your ideal outcome from investing in this experience?
This will clue you in on exactly what the person is looking to achieve in their session with you. The most important thing here is determining whether or not you’ll be able to deliver on their expectation(s).
2. What about my boudoir photography style or brand made you reach out to me?
We love this kind of question! It will reveal the things you’re doing right (or possibly wrong) when it comes to attracting your ideal clients.
3. Have you ever participated in a boudoir photography session before? If so, what was your experience like? If not, what has piqued your interest in doing one now?
A question like this can help determine the level of attention a client may need prior to their shoot. It will also shine light on the client’s potential comfort level in front of the camera.
4. What do you need included in your boudoir photography package?
We’d suggest giving them options here. For example: digital images, prints, retouching, etc. This will help you determine what package offering might be best for them. It will also help you weed out potential clients who are looking for services that you simply don’t offer.
5. What’s your budget range?
The budget question is a very good one! Provide some ranges here and get an immediate answer on whether or not the potential client has a reasonable expectation on what they should be spending on a session or package.
How To Incorporate The Intake Form Into Your Process
You have a few options in terms of how you incorporate the client intake form into your booking inquiry process. You can mandate a prospect fills it out in order to schedule a consultation call with you or you can book the call and simply say they have to complete and return it a day or two in advance.
Also, the intake form should have its own page on your website. That way, you can link to it from other areas on your site or easily send potential leads the link to it in an email if necessary.
Trust us when we say, the client intake form will revolutionize the way you respond to new booking inquiries in your boudoir photography business. Give it a whirl and let us know the results!