Ignore 98% of the Photography Market to Win

The video title alone should make you want to come and dispute this claim, but give it a couple of minutes of your time. The majority of people won’t support you or appreciate your work. You’re not alone, and here is an example.

Beyonce’s last studio album, “Lemonade,” sold 1.5 million in America, a nation with 323 million people the same year the album was released (2016). That means only about .46% of America was Beyonce’s customer base, and she’s doing quite alright! She headlined Coachella and then a sellout world tour right after. 

Another example: Madonna holds the record for the number one selling female recording artist of all time! She sold over 300 million records globally. The population of earth is 7.5 billion humans. Madonna is the number one female artist of all time by serving only about 4% of the earth. Someone will dispute that, but I'm trying to make a general point.

Now, can you open up to the idea of ignoring 98% of the market and still finding immense success? Ok fine, maybe ignore 97% or 95%, you decide that part, but try to focus on the niche that will appreciate your work and support your business. Finding your niche means knowing why an ideal client avatar will set your business on a successful path. 

Here are five reasons why I feel having an ideal client avatar will set your business on a different path:

1. Work Smarter, Not Harder: Everything you do for your business should impress your ideal client. It's important to communicate with the people most likely to support your creativity. If other people like your work, great! But the odds of them buying is far less. Instead, focus only on the people who will love your work. Serve them prices that will interest them and products that will make them pick up the phone!
2. Powerful Social Media Posts: Imagine having every post reach your ideal market. Imagine every post bringing those viewers closer to investing with your services. When you know your ideal client, you can plan social media posts that will resonate with them.
3. Setting Your Business for Success: What will your ideal client like? Will they like a particular type of style or pricing package? If you know your ideal client, then you know how to set it up. It makes sense once you think about it.
4. Are you pricing for anyone who will listen or the people most likely to buy? What would interest them and what kind of offers do they normally respond to? What is their disposable income and what do they consider an investment? Price for your ideal client.
5. We're creative souls and we have ideas that come up all the time. As an artist, it's ok to do anything that makes you happy. As a business, it's not the most productive way to grow a service. Having an ideal client avatar means you have a roadmap to success. You may have a great idea, but will it excite your customer base? If not, that's wasted effort and time. 

Now, you see why having an ideal client is essential in your business. Look into making your own and using that as a roadmap to success in 2020 and beyond.