Attracting the right photography clients is more than just showcasing your portfolio—it’s about positioning yourself in a way that speaks directly to the people who value your work and are willing to invest in it. This can be easier said than done. Photographers need to align their brand, marketing, and communication to draw ideal clients. We’ll share 5 tips to attract the right photography clients a little later in this blog, but first, we need to ask some questions.
It’s not unusual for businesses of any kind to get inquiries that go nowhere. However, it can be frustrating to share service, product, and pricing information with the hope of landing a new customer, only to get ghosted. Situations like this should be a signal to evaluate who your ideal client is and how to attract them.
Who is Your Ideal Client?
Our 5 tips to attract the right photography clients will come in handy once you know who your ideal client is. Creating a model of what your ideal client looks like, also known as creating a client avatar, will help you understand their behaviors and motivation to make purchases. It will also tell you where to look for them.
Are you a wedding photographer with a photojournalistic style? A commercial photographer focused on bold, clean product shots? A family photographer specializing in newborns and young children. Your niche has a certain demographic that is going to be attracted to what you do. Understanding the needs, likes, and wants of those individuals can help you tell the story of how you can connect and help these new potential clients.
To attract the right photography clients, first, you need to know who they are. To start with, what is your niche? If you do a variety of photography types, focus on one at a time. Either start with your most profitable specialty, or develop an ideal customer for a niche that you would like to grow.
To start your ideal client sketch, gather some data. Look at your past favorite clients. Who were they? Review your inquiry history, bookings, and social media followers. Notice their characteristics and lifestyle details, and sort out the details.
If you are looking to grow a new service, imagine what that ideal buyer looks like. What does your new ideal client do for fun, where do they live, shop, and eat, and how do these things align with your brand?
Here’s how to get started.
- List out the key features of your best clients: age range, gender, location (local or destination), occupation or industry, and income level or shopping habits.
- Identify lifestyle attributes. Do they spend time drinking coffee with friends, are they into wellness, travel, philanthropy, or family activities? Are the entrepreneurial leaders, social butterflies, educators, or civic-minded? (This will be useful when we go over those 5 tips to attract the right photography clients.)
- Understand their challenges. Do they have a very full schedule, do they have tight deadlines to meet, are there budget factors that impact their purchasing habits, is decision making stressful, or do projects get started and not finish? These are their problems, or pain points, and they will come in handy later.
- Map out what’s very important to them. Do they value personal achievement, time with family, nature, creative outlets, authentic relationships, or status? What do they live by or aspire to?
Give That “Ideal Client” a Story
Before we get into the 5 tips to attract the right photography clients, let’s set the scene for your ideal client. Creating a story about your client avatar can help you find ways to connect with them.
Allison, 30, has a graphic design business and needs high-end personal brand photos. Her schedule is tight. She is a volunteer at a pet rescue, and she teaches dance at the community center. She values authenticity, hates feeling posed, but knows that she needs direction in front of the camera. She wants to invest in a photographer who “just gets her” and her vision.
Go ahead and create multiple avatars if you serve more than one type of client. You find it interesting when those client profiles overlap.
Scott, who is a lawyer and on the village board, just got engaged to Allison, 30, a graphic designer. They both enjoy gourmet dining, traveling, and supporting their local pet rescue. Their busy lives don’t leave them much time to plan their wedding. They are looking for an experienced photographer who can capture traditional and lifestyle images and also help them with their timeline.
How do you begin to connect with these clients? Understanding what they like, what they value, and what problems they need help solving will give you clues as to what might attract them to your business.
So, where might you find these clients? Using the example above and the upcoming 5 tips to attract the right photography clients, by supporting animal charities, exploring local restaurants, attending professional networking events, and participating in community events, may have you face-to-face with that avatar!
Why Do Clients Need You?
Do clients need you? No, or not until they need a solution. The more details about the clients’ needs, the more you can understand and communicate a solution to your ideal clients.
Why should a potential ideal customer hire you? Answering this question can help you attract the right photography clients. Uncovering a problem that your photography services solve is the answer to why people need to hire you. Keep in mind, problems aren’t necessarily a bad thing – just an opportunity that needs to be fulfilled.
Problem: An engaged couple is looking for a photographer who is familiar with a venue called Chateau on the Lake, has at least 10 years of experience, does a true-to-life editing style, knows how to direct large bridal parties, and someone who is comfortable working with alpacas.
Solution: My name is Lauren, and I have been photographing weddings for 12 years. I love working at Chateau on the Lake because of the natural light and the romantic vibe. I have worked with their event planner dozens of times.
I’ve got several examples of large wedding parties in my portfolio. The more the merrier – right? You can also see my editing style, which is similar to what you are describing.
My hobbies are baking bread, sipping tea, and going on long walks with my two alpacas, Brad and Jennifer.
Problem: An event planner for large conferences is searching for a headshot photographer who has a portable studio setup, provides a hair and make-up artist, has the ability to show images on site, and can deliver galleries in 24 hours.
Solution: Our studio, the Headshot Spot, has six portable studios and a traveling HMUA. We’ve got extensive conference experience, and our onsite workflow allows subjects to select images on-site. Their favorite images will be reached and delivered the next day.
5 Tips to Attract the Right Photography Clients
With your avatar created and your problem-solving in place, you are positioned to attract the right clients. With your ideal client demographic, you can start placing your solutions in front of people who appreciate the value of what you offer.
Keep these 5 tips in mind.
1. Focus on what you want.
Your portfolio should speak directly to the type of client you want to work with. ONLY showcase your best and most recent work that aligns with your desired niche. Focus on what you do best, what is most profitable, and what attracts your ideal clients. Quality and consistency matter more than quantity.
Pro Tip: A scattered portfolio makes it hard for ideal clients to trust you as a specialist. Shooting weddings, newborns, corporate headshots, and pets all under one brand can confuse potential clients. Generalists often attract budget shoppers who value price over expertise.
2. Help clients find you.
Use your website and social media to highlight the area you work in, locations you frequent, along with vendors and organizations that you partner with to give your brand additional identity.
Think of this as soft networking. You are working in or frequenting the same spaces as your potential client. Creating a connection based on general interest similarities creates familiarity, and people like to hire people they “know.”
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- Does your ideal family portrait customer like to take their kids to the park by the lake? Show that you photograph families at that park.
- If a newly engaged couple sees that you have photographed at the new popular venue, they’ll have confidence that you’ve got the right experience.
Pro Tip: Hashtags, location tags, and collaborations with other local businesses can boost visibility to the right eyes.
3. Use social media effectively.
LinkedIn, Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok attract different demographics. Instead of posting pretty pictures everywhere, choose one or two platforms where your audience spends time.
While it’s nice to be seen on social media, it makes sense to analyze where your ideal client is spending their time before you spend too much of yours. You may even find your ideal client spends less time on social media and more time in in-person interactions
Use social media as a tool to tell your story. Share images and finished work, but also behind-the-scenes content, testimonials, your creative process, and the service that you provide to help your clients. Directly share how you solve problems, fulfill needs, and answer questions, before they are even asked!
Pro Tip: Social media groups can be great places for referral and a way to get your name out there, but they can sometimes feel like a huge garage sale. Bargain hunting is big, and someone looking for a “photographer that doesn’t cost an arm and a leg,” might not be where you want to throw in your hat.
4. Look the part.
Visuals matter. Whether clients are looking at your website, your Instagram account, or you, it’s important to convey an authentic persona that will attract the clients that you are looking for. Be sure you connect visually with your messaging.
First impressions count. As welcoming and open-minded as one might strive to be, all people have biases that influence their decision-making. Make it easy for your potential client to understand that you are on the same page by taking your visual appearance into consideration.
Wearing a suit and full glam make-up while trying to connect with new moms might be off-putting. Similarly, trying to book a high-end wedding in Lululemon and an oversized sweatshirt with a coffee stain isn’t going to impress.
Even when meeting people virtually, like a Zoom consultation, consider appearances and experiences. Having a smooth audio and visual experience helps build client confidence. Be sure visuals are on point, including backgrounds and lighting.
5. Stay on top of your messaging.
Of the 5 tips to attract the right photography clients, this one might be the most important. Being asked, “What do you do?” can be a very open-ended question. “I’m a photographer” can mean a lot of different things, which will result in a lot of different job offers. Creating an elevator speech that is detailed yet concise about what you do is going to let your ideal client and everybody else know what you do.
Keep this mini sales pitch to the point and focused on what you do for your clients rather than on your education, awards, equipment, etc.
For more details about that elevator speech, check out our blog on Networking for Photographers.
Pro Tip: You are not for everybody, and that’s okay.
Stay Consistent
Attracting the right clients isn’t about casting a wide net—it’s about being clear, consistent, and intentional. When your photography brand reflects your focus and your work speaks to your ideal audience, the right clients will find their way to you.
Not every inquiry is a good fit. Develop a process, such as a questionnaire or discovery call, to understand a potential client’s needs, expectations, and budget. This helps ensure mutual alignment and saves time.
Keep in mind that you don’t need to be for everyone, and it’s okay to pass on something that doesn’t suit your brand. Additionally, not every brand is high-end luxury. There’s a place for budget-conscious shoppers as long as the business has a handle on CODB (cost of doing business).
The 5 tips to attract the right photography clients are just a start. Authenticity goes a long way. People hire people. Show who you are, not just what you shoot. Your personality can help clients feel a connection before they even contact you.
