Free Ways To Book More Wedding Photography Clients
SUPPORT THE OTHER VENDORS
Vendor referrals are the easiest and best way to bring in new clients. So how tf do you make that happen?
It’s as simple as this. When you walk into the getting ready room on a wedding day, make an extra effort to introduce yourself to the hair and makeup team. Think about it, how many times have you just walked in, said hi to the bride, and immediately started shooting without saying hello to any vendors?
Go the extra mile.
Take photos of the florist, planner, DJ etc. while they’re setting up and working. You can easily include these in the final gallery so they now have some free content to post. Trust us, they’ll remember it and you’ll stand out next time one of their brides is searching for a wedding photographer. - This tip was pulled directly from our workflow guide. If you want to see more, check it out here.
You want to be an overall team player. Be flexible and fun to work with while prepping with the planner, working alongside videographers, and on the dance floor with the DJ. If people have fun working with you, they’ll want to do it again.
Always send your vendor team the sneak peaks and final wedding gallery when it’s ready. They’ll want to post your photos of their work, which gives your brand more exposure. Tip: Make sure to send them detailed instructions on how to tag you in the image and caption.
AT THE WEDDING
Another easy way to market yourself at a wedding is to make a lasting impression on the guests.
When you recognize other couples having fun on the dance floor, take photos of them, interact with them, hype them up.
Make an effort to chat it up with them, or even dance with them a bit. Chances are they’ll remember that and either ask their friends for your contact or even better, ask you for a business card.
BE BOLD
Insert yourself into new circles of friends. At Ikea walking behind a super vibey couple picking out furniture for their new apartment?
Go up to them and say you’re a photographer and would love to photograph them for free sometime if they’re down. At the grocery store, the mall, in line at a carwash, wherever you are take time to look around and offer sessions to strangers who you think might have friends who fit your ideal client profile.
One small free session can turn into lifelong clients.
It adds to your portfolio, builds a connection with a new couple who might now hire you down the road, and gives you exposure to a whole new group of people when they post your photos for all of their friends to see.
USE VENUES
Reach out to up and coming local wedding venues or even any you would die to work at and ask if they’d be willing to collaborate on a style shoot.
It could be as simple as grabbing a couple and taking them to a scenic venue for photos, or as elaborate as putting together a whole team of vendors and creating a styled table scape, putting a couple in wedding attire and photographing a “styled wedding” for everyone to add new work to their portfolio.
Either way the point is to have new work that you can tag the venue in. Hopefully couples looking at that venue in the future will find you in their tagged photos. Or even better, the venue shares images from the shoot on their pages themselves.
Whether you’re just starting out as a wedding photographer or have been in the business for years and just looking for some fresh faces, these marketing tactics are what helped us get started and have continued to help keep our books full for years.