Tip #4: Target Marketing

You might shoot fashion, beauty, sports, nudes, architecture, pets, or whatever else, but you should know your position within the industry. Don’t waste your time in mass-marketing your brand - it will be tossed in the garbage next to the other thousand or so photographers that are doing the same thing.

Take the time to uniquely identify your niche market and it’s potential clients. If you are in Los Angeles, start figuring out your market there and build your database full of Art Directors, Photo Editors, Creative Directors, Art Buyers, Designers, et al. Once you think you have tapped your potential market research in a given city, do it again - the market has changed since you last entered the information. You know what to do next? Update it again - or get one of your assistants/interns to update it for you. You should at least do this quarterly. At the very least, you just made another contact with your network and re-introduced yourself and your work. If you have the budget, check out www.agencyaccess.com and they take care of most of this for you.

Seek out the right people. Don’t just look at the fashion companies out there (if you’re a fashion photographer), but look at the fashion companies out there that fit with your style/brand. Art Director’s do not want to be approached by with what you might be able to offer them, they want to be approached by those who are perfect for that particular job. It will be much easier for you to get those meetings if you take the time to create (or buy) these detailed databases.

If you don’t take the time to market your company to your dream clients, how will you get those dream clients? Recognize your niche, research your potential clients in that niche, introduce yourself, and do your best to get that meeting.

Cheers and happy shooting,

Kyle Goldie - www.KyleGoldie.com