3 Tips for Consistent Bookings

BUSINESS MINDSET MONDAY

THREE TIPS FOR CONSISTENT BOOKINGS

One thing I hear so often by peers is: “I need more bookings”. I myself have even said it multiple times. Here are three tips for consistent bookings. Please know, I won’t sugar coat this shit for ya. If you want consistent bookings, you’re going to have to get your hands dirty. You’re going to have to grind. You’re going to have to hustle. My friend, YOU ARE GOING TO HAVE TO WORK. Getting consistent bookings does not happen over night. If you want consistent bookings, you may have to sacrifice. This isn’t for the faint of heart. You are going to have to work.

I am a firm believer there is no magic recipe on getting consistent bookings. What may work for my business may not work for your business. Why? A number of reasons. Different demographics for clients. Different personalities. There could be a difference in business goals. We may also be in completely different stages in our business. If you take ANYTHING away from this let it be this: do not judge your chapter to someone else’s chapter. Please, do not judge someone’s success based on their social media presence, follower count, or engagement. Everyone struggles with bookings at one point in time. The industry ebbs and flows. If someone tells you otherwise — they’re lying to ya.

Now, no more lecturing. Here are three tips for consistent bookings that have worked in my business model.

Tip #1 Be Authentic + Serve Your Followers.

Wait. What?! Kyrsten, how do I serve people if they don’t hire me?! Easy. I believe Jenna Kutcher once said clients often need to see your work SEVEN times before deciding on hiring you. Let that sink in. SEVEN TIMES. True story. I just did a college graduation session for a beautiful girl whose been following me for TWO years on Instagram.  I didn’t even know she had been following me for that long until she inquired. Okay, what’s the point? She would not have hired me (or even followed me for that long) unless I was authentic and she clicked with my personality. Be yourself. Show your face. People connect with people. Give them free content. Add value to their life. Also, serve your current clients well by having a high client experience that they become loyal fans and spread your name to anyone and everyone looking for a photographer.

Tip #2 Find YOUR Niche.

I said it. I can almost promise you that there will be some push back on this one. Trust me, I get it. I was there too. Come on a road trip with me. When I first started I offered: family, seniors, branding, weddings, couples, lifestyle newborns, kids, cake smashes. Guess what? My bookings were not where they are today. My work wasn’t half as good. I was not working with my target clients. My pricing was lower. Why? Simply because I was not the expert at anything. At a loss I reached out to a photographer duo I admired, Bree + Stephen. I will even show you EXACTLY what Stephen told me: