Photography Marketing Plan for the Recession

Hard times ahead? It's likely and while no one knows for sure, it's inevitable that the current quarantines will affect everyone's business in the coming months. How will you change your marketing methods? Here's something that worked for me and I want to share it with you.

Change is Coming

Yes, things will change, budgets will shrink and people will lose jobs. I'm more interested in how I can help you do better. As someone who built his career during the last recession, I am familiar with how you can spin an economic downturn into a positive (or as positive as you can get).

Change is Better With a Marketing Plan

While the video goes into more detail about the steps, here they are outlined which will help you figure out the game plan. 

• STEP 1: Make a list of companies you have worked with (and would like to continue that relationship) and a secondary list which has a list of companies you'd like to finally have the chance to work with.
   
• STEP 2: Find their marketing directors or hiring managers through a variety of ways on social media or personal contacts.
   
• STEP 3: Ask yourself what their problem is and then how you can solve that problem for them. Everyone wants to sell more products, that's not the problem you need to solve. It should be niched down further. 
   
• STEP 4: Get in touch with those people who hire at each company and ask if they're okay with an email from you.
   
• STEP 5: If they agree, send the email to them within the hour 
   
• STEP 6: Your email should have 3 main components that help it stand out, and all of them should talk about how much of an asset you can be for their problems. Make them the main focus. This email should be short, a maximum of about 4 lines that should encourage a phone call and reel them in.
   
• STEP 7: Present a gallery for them that would fit their brand and clientele list. You do not want to showcase a gallery that is suitable for everyone, that's a mistake. Create a gallery with their name on it, stroke the ego and show them what you have in mind.
   
• STEP 8: Yes, we're encouraged to socially distance but use technology to your advantage. A casual video can be a game-changer because, in a time of distance and isolation, human interaction is valued higher than ever before.