30 Ways to Find Photography Clients

There are so many different ways to find Photography clients instead of relying on facebook or Instagram.

It’s OK to jump outside of your comfort zone to look for them! Here are 30 ways to find photography clients.

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Volunteer at local events

All towns have some sort of events throughout the year. Especially during the summer. Craft fairs, car shows, festivals. Get involved and volunteer your time. You don’t even have to talk about photography. Just get to know people. 

Model Call

Model calls are great to build a list of clients. Make a post of exactly what you are needing (girl/boy, age, clothes size, etc), and tell them exactly what they are getting in return. Most of the time when you have a model call, the session is typically free, with the option to purchase prints. You might only need one or two models, but multiple people will inquire about volunteering. Don’t turn them away! If you get the allotted number of models that you need, let them know, but ask them if you can keep their contact information so you can contact them again in the future about volunteering. That way you already have them down, and you can go straight to that list the next time. 

Network with Businesses

You aren’t going to network with just any business. Jot down a list of local businesses that are in your niche of photography. If you are a family/children photographer, seek out businesses that cater to this niche also. Maybe a local clothes resale shop. Talk to them and see if they would like to co market with you. Maybe you can offer a % off a session for their customers. Have business cards made up, or coupon cards, that have all of your information and how to contact you to book a session. And vise verses. Ask the business if they have coupons that you can hand out to your clients. 

Email Marketing

Email marketing is a great way to build trust with potential clients. It can actually be a better strategy than social media. Check out Mailerlite. It’s 100% free up to 1,000 subscribers!

Strong Social Media Presence

When I say a strong social media presence, what I mean is being consistent. You need to be posting at the very least, 5-6 days per week, and sometimes twice per day. 

Business Cards

No the business card idea is not outdated. However if you wanted to be a little more tech savvy with your business card, you should check out popl. Popl is a digital business card. You register the popl, enter your business information, and stick it to the back of your phone. Instead of giving someone your cardstock business card, you hold your phone up to theirs (you don’t even have to touch phones!) and your links will open on their phone! Since I have gotten mine, they have come out with key chains and even bracelets. There are tons of colors to choose from! Definitely worth checking out!

Talk About Being A Photographer

This might seem like a no brainer, but be honest, how often do you talk about the fact that you are a photographer with others? Maybe you are still with your full time job so that is what everyone thinks of when they think of you. The more you talk about being a photographer, the more people will associate that with you. 

Partner with a Realtor

If you are a family and/or a children photographer, then a realtor is a great person to network with. Ask if you can trade business cards. You can offer a % off to a family that just purchased a home! A new home to display brand new updated family photos!

Shoot for Free

I don’t recommend doing this all the time because people will start to expect this from you and then never pay for your services. You can however make this a special occasion. Put together a small mini session event around Christmas time and offer free Santa sessions! Pass out business cards during the event, and you can even collect email addresses to send them future event invites. 

Build a Website

90% of the time the first thing a potential photography client will check out your social media presence when they first meet you, or hear of you. The second thing they will do is see if you have a website that has more information. This is a great way to put all of the information about your services on one page so that they can read about it and then contact you if they have any questions. There are many platforms out there, but personally I suggest using Squarespace. 

School Functions

Both my daughters have played sports in school. I have taken pictures of them playing, but honestly, I’m not that good at it. Before my father passed away, he was the one that would always take sports photos of the kids. He enjoyed it, he was really good at it, and I got to focus on watching my girls play. I helped him set up a platform where he could share his images with the rest of the parents. And sometimes he would make money from the prints. This is a great way to get your name out there. Not just with school sports, but any type of function schools have. 

Ask to Hang Your Photos in a Business

Every town has small businesses. Doctors, Dentists, diners, resale shops, hair salons, etc. It never hurts to ask around to see if they would let you hang your photography work in their stores. It’s best to stay within the photography niche that you are in. Or, you can get some creative images of the shop owners building, have them printed and give them to the owners for free to hang. Have a little tray near the images with your business card in them. 

Talk to People off the Internet

Anymore I think people tend to forget that businesses ran without the internet at one time. People were more social because they had to be. Today it seems more and more people have social anxiety because they have relied on the internet for so long and have fallen into a non-social slump. Get off your computer and your phone and actually talk to people. Get to know them on a friend level and leave business at home for a bit. You will be surprised at just how amazing that small connection makes people want to find out more about you and what you do. 

Make Merch with Your Logo on it

Chances are, you know someone with a Cricut Maker. Talk to them and find out how much it would cost to have your logo placed on a tumbler, t-shirt, or even a tote bag. When someone sees you out and about with your merch, if they don’t know you, they will more than likely ask what it is! If you don’t know anyone, you can do this yourself with Printful. You can even make t-shirts for your clients to wear! 

Pass out coupons at free events

Does your town have carnivals during the summer? Maybe car shows, or fall festivals? Talk to the local event coordinator to get permission to pass out coupons at your next local event. 

Identify your ideal client

A huge part of being a fully booked photographer, is knowing exactly who your ideal client is. Grab my free ideal client worksheet in the freebie section of my website!

Start a blog

Start blogging your photography work! No you do not have to have a writing degree to have a blog. You already have photos, and that is half the content! Describing your sessions with just a little bit of detail, as well as talking about the location, will help you get found on Google by potential photography clients.

Run a contest for a free session

Having a contest for a free session can be so successful! If you run this contest on social media, make sure one of the requirements to be entered is that they have to share the post. Even after you have picked the winner, give everyone else that entered, 10-20% off a booked session! Win win!

Referral program

Word of mouth is the golden ticket for any business. You more than likely will try something a friend or family member has told you about before right? Reward the clients that sing your praises! You can offer free prints, % off sessions, or even credits towards their sessions.

Social Media Ads

You do not have to spend hundreds of dollars on social media ads. Take $10 that you normally would have spent on Starbucks, and put it towards a small Facebook ad. This is where knowing your ideal client helps as well. 

Host an open house

Even if you don’t have a studio, you can rent a small event venue and hold an open house. Have a couple unique set ups for people to get their photos taken. Plan it out so that you can print the images right there for them before they leave. Make sure to have your logo, and contact information on the print! Door prizes, drinks and horderves! Who doesn't love a party! Especially now when everyone is beyond ready to get out and do things!

Give incentives

Free prints, products, and yes, even real money are great incentives. This would be similar to a referral program. I can remember being a teenager and taking part in a few street team programs for smaller local bands. I got the word for them, and I was given free tickets for myself and a couple of friends in return. 

Join Facebook groups

Now when I say join Facebook groups, I don’t mean for you to join them and immediately start promoting your business in them. This more than likely will go against their rules. Groups are really cracking down on that. Instead, join groups that are related to your hobbies outside of photography. Maybe you like camping. Or mom groups. Take part in discussions and be as helpful as you can be. People will take notice of that help and start to click on your profile to see who you are. So make sure you have your about section updated with your business info! 

Teach Photography

This is an amazing way to show your expertise. I used to teach a photography class to a 4H group. Kids ages 8-18. I met a lot of amazing people and gained quite a few clients! 

Check out BP4U’s already done for you lesson plans for teaching kids, parents, and beginner photographers!

Learn SEO

Learning SEO would go along with building a website and blogging. Knowing what the right keywords are for your photography business will get you found 10 times faster than any social media ever could. 

Create a Freebie to Give Away

This could be something like a free what to wear guide, or a client guide that answers everything a potential client would want to know about you and your services. You also get to show off your photography work! 

Start a Youtube Channel

Start a Youtbe channel and make short videos that have content to help clients with tips and advice on how to get the best out of your sessions! 

Talk about yourself more

If you are anything like me, you are pretty modest when it come to talking about yourself. You may not like to share too much information. And that is ok. You don’t have to give out all of your personal info and secrets. But sharing more of YOU is what clients and potential clients want to see. It helps give them a mental note of how to relate to you. 

Share your 5 star reviews

Most people forget that there is a review section on Facebook. Or if you have a Google Business account where people can leave reviews about you. Go get a screenshot of them and post them for everyone to see! It’s OK to brag about yourself! You can even use the reviews to make graphics for your social media platforms. I love Canva and use it for this purpose often! 

Attend networking events

This might be something you would find in your town's Chamber of Commerce . Or ask around to other small business owners if there are networking events to attend. If not, start your own! Networking with other business owners is a great way to bounce ideas off of eachother, and even work together by co-marketing your businesses! 

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