In your wedding photography business, booking clients is one of the most important tasks you have. Without couples to work with, how can you improve your skills and continue to grow? Using social media in your marketing plan is key to reaching larger audiences of potential clients. Instagram, in particular, is a great platform to share your stunning photos and reach out to ideal clients who may not know about you yet.
When you share images from your past events on Instagram, it showcases your style, which helps ideal clients decide if they want to work with you. In addition to posting your work, you can encourage followers to access your website and other social platforms to learn more about you. As clients view your website and more of your work, the chances increase of them reaching out to work with you. Here are 4 tips to help you successfully book clients on Instagram to get you started today.
1. Use Custom Hashtags
As you post on Instagram, using hashtags is key to sharing your work with a larger audience. Placing hashtags on your photos allows clients, who are searching, to more easily find your work. Custom hashtags are ones which represent you and your brand. They allow you to be creative and set yourself apart from other photographers on Instagram. Custom hashtags can include your name or business name (#mjphotography), or can be something which describes the wedding you are sharing (#mauiwedding). These types of hashtags help make your brand more recognizable and allow you to share your work with family and friends who may be looking for a photographer.
Wedding photographer, Jessica Claire creates unique hashtags for each of her couples and places them on her Instagram posts.
“I create a wedding hashtag for all of my clients. After the engagement shoot or wedding day, I will post their images immediately and include the hashtag. When the guests from the wedding day click on the hashtag, they see my photos first. Even if there were engaged people at the wedding who didn’t know who I was, they can find out more about me quickly when they click on the hashtag” – Jessica Claire
Related: Do you know which hashtags are best for you? Here are 19 you need to be using
2. Offer Exclusive Resources
Every social platform you connect with clients on can be its own unique experience for your followers. Because Instagram allows you to place your images in front of a large audience in a different way than other platforms, you can share exclusive resources which encourage interaction and interest in your business. When your followers reach out to your other sites, such as your website or blog, they become one step closer to booking you.
Although you should still share your images from past shoots, especially after you receive them back from a photography post production company, including exclusive resources on your account can create excitement for followers. Resources you share can include free guides, behind-the-scenes images and videos, offers, and contests. Make sure you inform them you are only sharing these resources on your Instagram account, so they realize you are speaking directly to them. The benefit of sharing exclusive content is you are sharing more about your business and what you can do for them, should they book you for their wedding day.
Related: Ready to create a unique and interesting business account on Instagram? Jason Grubb can help!
3. Maintain High Interaction
Similar to other social platforms, your followers likely see hundreds of photos every day on Instagram. If you create a strong and exciting Instagram business account geared toward booking clients, it is important to constantly nurture and grow your following. One simple way to do this is to maintain high interaction with your followers. As you follow a consistent posting schedule, followers begin to expect your posts and will be more likely to like and comment on them.
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Interacting with your followers on Instagram means you should reply to comments on your photos in a timely manner. When responding to comments, remember to use the “@“ before their handle (@ShootDotEdit). Also, commenting or liking on some of your followers’ images can encourage them to visit your account and see your images. You should also continue to tag your clients and vendors in images you share and use relevant hashtags for ideal clients to find you. The larger your reach is, the easier it can be to book more clients.
4. Create Exciting Posts
Just as you should post images from past shoots and unique resources, have some fun with your Instagram business account. Creating exciting posts that are a bit different than your usual image-sharing can encourage your followers to take notice of you and your business. You can start by celebrating milestones you achieve in your life, business, and even on your Instagram account.
Perhaps you adopted a puppy, you shot your 50th wedding, or reached 5,000 followers on Instagram. These are exciting moments for you to share with your followers. Part of creating a strong brand and booking more clients on Instagram is showcasing who you are as a person, photographer, and business owner. Although it is important to focus on business, add in posts about you to keep the connection strong with your followers.
Instagram is a useful platform for you to use to attract, connect, and book ideal clients. Since booking more clients is one of the best way for you to grow your business, ensure you constantly make improvements and updates to your Instagram account. Learn more about finding success on your business account with our Guide, Instagram for the Wedding Photographer!
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