Today is part deux of giving you straight-shooting answers to
your most burning questions.

This one's a doozy I bet many of you can relate to...

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I have created two wonderful campaigns in my business. Both
were released this week, but I haven't booked a single
session from either campaign. What gives??!!!!

Thank you!!!!

Jennifer

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Welcome to the sometimes frustrating, but #1 beautiful truth of
marketing: No one is sitting around waiting for your glorious
offers, no matter how wonderful you think they are.

Yay, right?

It get's even worse...

The only way to get people's attention is to make repeated
attempts, then wait some more.

I know this might sound depressing, but hang with
me -- there's a fabulous silver lining here.

See, it doesn't matter if you're giving away your most premium
package for only $1 dollar, with no strings attached - you'll
still need several different forms of marketing reaching them in
different ways to get results.

That's because of beautiful marketing truth #2: People BUY
before they PAY.

That sounds crazy, huh?

What that means is your marketing is not about what you're
selling, it's about why people want what you're selling.

And even if you know their "want factor", you still have one
more hurdle to leap: people are hardwired to only buy from
people and companies they trust (just like you do)...

That means you have to keep sending TRUST building messages
to your ideal peeps, over and over and over, until it finally
starts to register that what you're selling is something
they'd be thrilled to buy because you've demonstrated they
can trust you to solve their problems.

Once you've done that... you patiently woo them with care,
guidance and protection until they pay.

Struggling photographers always try to skip this part.

They try to jump right to the paying part without building
a proper relationship, and end up looking like the psycho
chick who wears a wedding dress on a coffee date...

So even though you two might be a good match for each other,
you're going to come across as needy or desperate -- and
neither bodes well for your long term bliss.

How about a Served Up Fresh "buy before you pay" example?

I know when I have something that I am promoting, I have to hint
at it 3 months in advance, I have to talk about the NON-OFFER
part for several weeks in different ways, preselling the ideas
and problems the product solves through blogs, newsletters, facebook,
networking, etc.

All this happens before the promotion actually begins!

Why?

Because I have to start planting seeds of trust first (even if
they've been on my list for years).

You my weary photographer friend, are no different.

Depending on what your call to action is - you may need
several weeks in advance or maybe even several months to
start showing people why your glorious widget or service
will make their life so wonderful.

Even if you're just going after "impulsive" buyers with
your offers dripping in scarcity and urgency - there still
needs to be careful groundwork laid to prepare clients
to make a decision when it finally becomes available.

Think about how you shop...

I know that when my favorite store has random 50% off sales-
I can impulsively buy because I already know they are my
favorite and what I want from them.

But if I drive by a store that I haven’t had experience with
and I see them promote something new and for 50% off….I’m less
likely or not likely at all to rush in and purchase because I
haven’t built a connection with this company and their reputation.

What's funny is, I may be their ideal client too and their exact
target market. But without those seeds of trust, there's no way
I can be impulsive in hiring them.

This is also why the gimmicky sales and discounts struggling
photographers resort to offering seldom work...

You are trying to sell ink on paper that is going to cost several
hundreds, if not thousands of hard earned dollars. Getting someone
comfortable enough with you to hand over that kind of money takes
time, so when they DO have a need for what you are providing
your brand is already well entrenched in their mind as the only
person to turn to.

Broke photographers forget - that most people don’t sit around all
day wishing they had more pictures. Those kind of people are the ones
that go out and buy a camera and try to do it all themselves.

The high paying clients that hire professional boutique photographers
are the kind that are looking for someone they can trust, until the
time is perfect for them to pay.

xo,

Alicia