What's the deal with those 16 Hoops?
After thinking hard about what I wanted to bring to my space, what kind of knowledge I wanted to share and how I wanted to share it, I formed 16 Hoops: a strategic design and branding firm for photographers.
What’s the deal with those hoops, and why are there 16 of them?
This is by far our most frequently asked question. It's kinda a long story. But that’s the point. It’s all about orbits—or rather, choosing the orbit that makes sense for you on a cosmic level.
The answer dives into Deep Space territory (psst: “Deep Space” is one of our blog categories—check it out when you want to exercise your brain).
Let's begin by starting up the way-back time machine (thank you Josh and Chuck from Stuff You Should Know).
First Destination: New Mexico
Status: Childhood’s End
I’ve always been fascinated with space, philosophy, and history. The cosmic hum in the Land of Enchantment is for reals. It got into my soul, deeply. This white girl left New Mexico, but New Mexico and its painted high desert culture never left this girl.
Second Destination: Breckenridge, Colorado
Status: The Art of the Chameleon
I’d just graduated film school at Ithaca College and was working for a wedding and portrait master, assisting on very high-end celebrity weddings. This is where I learned the art of the chameleon. I didn't want to be noticed—I wanted to be quietly snapping away behind the magic safety of my camera. It was a defense mechanism for my introverted creative soul.
Third Destination: York, Maine
Status: Success Has Its Downside
I knew I wanted to create things for people (while, ahem, getting paid) from my unique vision of the world, but I always assumed no one would care for or want my Western-desert, geeky, deep-space brand of "being". So I quietly started my wedding photography business with little or no thought to who and why. Just stumbled into it. I called it Geneve Hoffman Photography (GHP).
Side note: Using my name is one of the biggest regrets of my career. But we learn. Read on, intrepid time traveler.
My wedding and portrait business soared to new levels. But ironically, it was when my business and career was at its apex that I hit my lowest point personally. I was deeply unsatisfied.
One big bright spot in this era that is worth mentioning: I hired the very talented Erin Flett to do my new sun- and orbit-inspired logo for GHP. I showed her some artwork of orbiting sun circles from my childhood home in New Mexico, and told her the theory of my photography: I see the light from the ancient Big Bang traveling through the universe, down through orbits and our own sun. That same neverending light reflects on my clients here on Earth and allows them to shine. Then, that same light (or my interpretation of it) travels through my lens and back out into the universe. And it begins again.
I’ve always known the power of great design—whether it is airport architecture, an iPhone, a Picasso, or a logo. Great design feels like love. You can't put it into words. It's just a warm, enveloping feeling. I knew after that logo design, and how Erin was able to translate my thoughts so perfectly into the artwork I was looking for, that something had begun to change in my path.
Fourth Destination: Cocooned...
Status: Chameleon Turns Butterfly
Winter 2013 to spring 2015 was my 2-year long hibernation period. I was sick for about 18 months, and I turned away from everything I knew in order to heal.
My illness became a metaphor for another kind of sickness that I personally knew was infecting my business. I was also seeing and hearing it from all my other photographer friends and in the industry as a whole.
Right around that time, my colleague Anne Schmidt introduced Todd and Jamie Reichman to our 200-member photographers’ group here in Maine. Listening to Todd's podcast series that winter of 2013 changed my career and led me on a path to reevaluate the entire photography industry as I knew it. I could see we were both searching.
I hired some consultants outside the photo industry. I did the excruciatingly hard work of starting a new business "the right way”. And then, I emerged from my deep space hibernation in the fall of 2015 knowing exactly what to do.
Final Destination: Right here, right now
Status: The Business I Always Wanted
After thinking hard about what I wanted to bring to my space, what kind of knowledge I wanted to share and how I wanted to share it, I formed 16 Hoops: a strategic design and branding firm for photographers.
So what does all this have to do with the name 16 Hoops? EVERYTHING.
I knew I wanted to rework Erin Flett’s original logo for me, and hone it for this new business—and I needed a name to end all names, because I know after my deep space sabbatical that this is the last business I ever want to run.
So I went to the place that gave me so much inspiration in my creative life (even in film school). I opened up my American Indian Myths & Legends book. I turned to the story of the creation myth in the ancient pueblo people, hoping something would pop off the page.
Literally the first page I opened up was the story of how the Great Sun used 16 hoops (or orbits) to create the "Earth". The hoop is a very sacred symbol for native cultures.
The Earth origin story was the perfect metaphor for what we are trying to do here at 16 Hoops. I believe in terraforming for our clients, creating an ecosystem of positioning around their brands that not only sustains them and their own customers, but allows them to soar.
The secret of memorable branding
I took my childhood in New Mexico, my lifelong love of design, my geeky passion for history and cosmology, and mashed it all up in the name 16 Hoops.
Amazing branding is about taking all your experiences, combining them, and spitting it all back into the universe in a way that appeals directly to the people you want to reach. It's either real and meaningful or it's not.
And your branding doesn’t have to be some Level 5 Geek story about universe origins. It can be romantic and pretty, or simple and clean, or anything in between.
But above all, you can't fake it.
Everything you do in your life is what makes you "you". When done well, branding and messaging can only be about you.
Think your branding isn’t working? Do the logo swap test. If your logo could be used for any other business, go back to the drawing board.
My hope is that the 16 Hoops origin story will mean something to you as a creative business owner. I think you deserve branding that makes you pump your fist in the air when you see it or say it. That’s part of why I started 16 Hoops. Don't accept anything less.
And know this: It's a weird and wonderful journey to get there.
Links and Resources
Can Your Brand Pass the Logo Test?
American Indian Myths and Legends
Todd Reichman’s website, A Man To Fish
Josh & Chuck: Stuff You Should Know Podcast
Worlds to Discover: The Stellar Advantages of Deep Expertise
Here's the kicker: once you have become a deep expert in one thing, you can choose at any time to take on a project or client outside your scope--on your own terms. It's the best of both worlds.
There is a dark side to the creative professional.
Creatives thrive when the landscape is constantly changing. This makes them highly attractive to work with. They are adaptable and able to solve any problem thrown their way.
But this quality is both a gift and a curse to creative business owners.
Because creatives crave new challenges, they get stuck in generalist gear. They'll take almost any job that comes along because they're afraid of either getting bored or losing business if they say no.
If you're a wedding photographer who's taking any old wedding that comes your way because it feels like a challenge or you have some bills to pay--whether it's ballroom, B&B, historic, coastal, Western, barn, big city, small town, rural, weekday, outdoor, tented, 50 guests, 300 guests...you're a generalist.
If you're a portrait photographer taking any old gig that comes your way because it feels like a challenge or you have some bills to pay--headshots, kids, newborns, maternity, weddings, seniors, pets, corporate, bands, product shots…you're a generalist.
Lord help you if you are doing BOTH weddings & portraits.
Being a generalist is fun and maybe even profitable, for a bit. But it will backfire one day if it hasn’t already.
A backfire is when you're...
Feeling like you're always competing on price
Wondering what your year will look like
Wishing you had a steady pipeline of highly paid, rewarding work instead of a trickle of erratic work
Sitting by your computer hoping a bride or family will email
Struggling to blog and market because you don’t know your audience
Is your ulcer acting up yet? Can you hear the backfire coming?
Enter THE SPECIALIST
You might think that specialists are bored because they only do one thing. Or that they're losing business by claiming expertise in one narrow avenue.
Nah-ah.
It's just the opposite, in fact.
Here is what the world of deep expertise for your creative business looks and feels like:
Rather than excluding potential clients, you are opening up your access to a more profitable, desirable niche market
With focus comes confidence. No more learning curve. No more competition.
Specialists don’t get bored. They get better. Your confidence gives you power to take on larger and larger challenges. You think Picasso got bored painting? Heck no. He got deeper into his craft--and commanded ever higher prices for his work.
You think generalists do TED Talks? Nope.
With deep expertise comes deep value. You can charge more and more as you sail deeper into those blue-ocean solo waters, where only you can solve your client’s problems.
Here's the kicker: once you have become a deep expert in one thing, you can choose at any time to take on a project or client outside your scope--on your own terms. It's the best of both worlds.
For those select few who choose to do the hard work that it takes to plant their flag on the undiscovered worlds of deep expertise, the sum of their parts creates the most stellar advantages in the business landscape.
P.S. This post is dedicated to some mentors and authors we cherish here at 16 Hoops. Thank you to Blair Enns, Jonathan Stark, Jody Maberry, and Philip Morgan (in no particular order!) for helping 16 Hoops dive deep into our own fascinating worlds of expertise.
Do You Have an Exclusive System Yet?
An exclusive system makes you dig deep into your experience as a pro photographer and find the one thing you do for your clients that no one else does.
You actually already know what your system contains, because you're doing that thing (or things). The elements of your system are all right there in your own history and one-of-a-kind experiences. You just need to know where to look to dig them up.
Your exclusive system makes you smarter.
Your exclusive system makes you think.
Your exclusive system allows you to enjoy the sales the process--even if you HATE sales.
Your exclusive system means you've got a repeatable, profitable, unique process that hooks clients and makes your life easier.
Photographers don’t always think this way, but they should.
So let’s back up.
What is an "exclusive system" when it comes to your photography business?
Unofficially, it means transforming your creative knowledge into a unique selling tool (or tools) for your business.
Officially, it can also be legally protected. In this case, your system is known as "intellectual property," or "IP".
Today, we're talking about unofficial systems. (Note that the IP aspect is a natural Phase 2, especially if you want to sell your business, and/or if you've invested a large sum in researching and designing your proprietary system).
Mine what's yours
An exclusive system makes you dig deep into your experience as a pro photographer and find the one thing you do for your clients that no one else does.
You actually already know what your system contains, because at some point in your business you have done all these things naturally. The elements of your system are all right there in your own history and one-of-a-kind experiences. You just need to know where to look to dig them up.
Once you mine those golden nuggets (they're usually hiding in plain sight, but sometimes it takes some blasting), it is not enough to simply stop there. No, that would be like striking gold and then just leaving it there in the mountain to admire.
You gotta do the work to write those systems down--so you can cash in on them and effect great change in your business.
Why MUST you write down your system? A written system isn't just a record of company policies and procedures for you and your employees or assistants (though that could be start of one).
The process of writing down your system shows you your weak spots--where you need to dig deeper. It also shows your strong spots--where you have been doing things differently and didn't even realize it.
Polish that gold
Once you've got your system in writing, take the time to create a proprietary visual infographic (or even a video!) about your system. Guard this resource like Fort Knox--it’s meant for your staff and clients' eyes only.
Next, bolster your appealing, well-designed visual system with a few case studies from previous clients.
Share that puppy with prospective clients, and you've just bumped your business to the tippy-top of their shortlist. Not too many photographers are doing this in any kind of formal, repeatable way.
Photographers (and most business owners) might *think* they are taking these steps, but they are not. Not at all.
If you can’t create a proprietary visual and/or written statement from your system, then you essentially don’t have one.
If you think that having a website, a contact form, an email response, and a pricing sheet is a system, then you have a lot of (doable! rewarding!) work ahead of you.
What DOES make you stand out? Taking these four steps:
Do the brave work of positioning your business around your unique expertise
Express that expertise in purposeful branding and website design
Have a precise, strategic marketing plan that drives inquiries and nurtures leads
Seal the deal with your exclusive SYSTEM--again, this is the process you've developed that sells clients on working with you
It’s pretty much an unbeatable combination to take your business to the next level, to repeatably and consistently land that premium-paying ideal client, and to stop competing on price. Forever.
So what are you waiting for? Start designing your system today.
The Year of Purposeful Marketing
Time to make 2018 the Year of Purposeful Marketing. The goal?
No more stabbing in the dark at random social media platforms hoping and praying someone will notice you. Instead an airtight marketing plan that will zero in on your ideal client like a heat seeking missile.
As we all wave a fond farewell to 2017, we should also be slamming the door on random marketing for good.
If you forgot how to avoid random marketing in general, read our primer article on When Marketing Goes Very, Very Wrong.
Instead, let’s make 2019 the Year of Purposeful Marketing.
No more stabbing in the dark at random social media platforms hoping and praying someone will notice you.
Instead an airtight marketing plan that will zero in on your ideal client like a heat seeking missile.
But first, we need to wipe the slate clean. New Year’s are built for this kind of delicious creative destruction. Get out a blank sheet of paper.
Step One.
Make sure you have ONE lucrative expertise that talks to ONE client in your market. Shed that old 2018 “generalist” skin, and become a highly sought after 2019 “specialist.” This is called positioning.
Step Two.
Re-examine how and where you engage with your high paying premium clients (logo, website, copy etc). Are you speaking their language? This is called branding.
Step Three.
Set a goal and a budget, then build a campaign. Refine, repeat. Refine, repeat. I highly recommend enlisting the help of an expert marketing team to start. This is called marketing.
Step Four.
Make sure that once your ideal client finds you, you know exactly how to repeatedly land, engage and quietly delight them. This is called systems.
Step Five.
2019 = Best. Year. Ever.
Let’s take a closer look at some possible questions to be asking yourself for the marketing bit, or Step Three from above.
How do you reach clients? Pretty basic right?
Should you use email? twitter? facebook? instagram? print ads? posters? direct mail? video ads? youtube? networking? smoke signals?
It’s impossible to say "yes, yes, yes and yes” unless you know with unwavering certainty 100% who your high paying premium customer **actually** is.
Everyone is trying to find that millennial sweet spot - but it’s more than likely that your customer is actually NOT a millennial. Especially if you are a high end portrait photographer.
Millennials spent a wad on their wedding recently, and are probably broke. The last thing they want to spend a ton of money on is an expensive portrait session.
SO, it begs the question - are you wasting your time on instagram if it’s actually GenXer’s you should be trying to reach? Shouldn’t you rather be spending your entire marketing budget on a robust Facebook ad campaign or a large magazine print ad campaign then? Do you even have a budget?
These are all questions you (or better yet, your marketing team) should be asking and answering before you even open up one social media account.
Start to ask yourself questions like these so you can tear down whatever was holding you back in 2018 and build something new and exciting for 2019.
So here is your first and best checklist re-cap as we dive into 2019 (your most amazing business year ever!):
What is your unique area of expertise? Figure this out, and your marketing will start to magically fall into place. Be tough on your business! Make the very, very, very hard decision to be a sole expert in one lucrative thing. It’s the most game changing business decision you will ever make.
How does your unique expertise walk and talk in the world to engage your ideal client?
Once you have positioning and branding nailed, write down your sales goals (monthly? yearly? quarterly?) and build a targeted sales campaign. Refine, repeat.
Spend the time to build your own signature system (simple is always better) to turn clients into raving fans.
Enjoy your work and have a reliable pipeline of high paying clients year round! Like I said, Best Year Ever!
This all sounds like a lot, huh?
Maybe 2019 should start with a gift to your business.
The gift of our 3 week Private Roadmapping session. At the end of it you will have the an actionable foundation for all the steps above. Whether you choose to move forward with our partner design team, or on your own - you will def be on the way to your best year ever.
Tell us your dreams for 2019! I know we can achieve them together.
When doing a re-brand, don't listen to your friends.
People that love you and know you want you to succeed, but they don’t want you to change. They will give you well meaning, but ultimately bad advice that won’t help you one bit on your journey to level up your game and career.
One of the first things we advise our clients to do at the beginning of a re-brand is to hibernate from your friends, family and colleagues until you emerge essentially fully transformed. Why?
Because people are funny.
People that love you and know you want you to succeed, but they don’t want you to change. They will give you well meaning, but ultimately bad advice that won’t help you one bit on your journey to level up your game and career.
A photography business re-brand requires a change. People don’t like change.
Re-branding requires a stripping down and re-building up. It’s really hard to do that with people that already know and love you. You will hold back. You will fall back on old well worn habits and patterns that got you here in the first place. You will not have a breakthrough that you need and deserve.
A re-brand requires a pivot. In some cases a small pivot measured in inches and nudges…but in other cases a huge, monumental lurch forward into a completely different direction.
Friends and family won’t give you the kick in the pants you will need to break through.
My niece is a competitive swimmer and she is showing some real natural ability in the sport. Her coaches know she has to break from her comfortable division where all her friends are in order to push through the next to the level. But of course her friends don’t want her to move up. They like her where she is. They love her of course, but don’t really want her to change. So they should not be consulted. Only her expert coaches have the objectivity to give her the best advice. Whether she takes it or not is up to her.
It’s the same for your photography business.
Your clients opinions, and the advice from objective experts are the ONLY opinions that matter.
Two examples of past clients seeking advice in the wrong places:
- I had a client that kept asking her husband and mother to choose the best photos to go on her website. They were not experts in her field, so they gave her bad advice. There is some trust involved when you a hire an expert - and ultimately, you are paying us to be in the room with you, so take our advice.
- I had another client who kept asking her photography owner friends to critique her website. This might not be the best idea because she was just entering the echo chamber where the same old advice and industry mistakes we’ve seen 1000 times goes round and round and nothing changes.
This is a mistake I see over and over again. But the answer is easy.
Set the bar ever higher.
Leave your friends, family, and colleagues out of the mix.
Seek out the best advice from experts who will not just tell you what you want to hear.
It’s hard work to do a transformative re-brand. If it was easy, everyone would be doing it. You are not everyone.
Finally - talk to your customers. They will “listen.” You will know the sound of them talking back to you too - it’s either Cha-Ching or crickets.
5 Reasons Your Template Website Is Hurting Your Business
We all dread that moment when a well-meaning client shows us a Pinterest board of "inspiration" for their photo shoot or wedding. We all know that, if it's on a board, it's been done ad nauseum already. Do you want your website to evoke something that's been "done" already?
Here is the truth about photography template websites: whether you're a startup, or a seasoned pro who wants to level up your online presence, you might want to consider avoiding them altogether.
Why are photography templates potentially hurting your biz? Well, five reasons, for starters.
1. Templates make you look like a beginner.
Every photographer out there remembers the very exciting moment when they launched their first website. It was probably a very adequate template site, in hindsight. You probably spent hundreds of hours DIYing the heck out of it, but it worked reasonably well back when you were:
- On a budget
- Underpricing and undervaluing your work
- Competing with all the other similar photographers in your area
- Still trying to figure out what your business stood for
But then, one day, you realized:
- You care about your business and want your website and brand to reflect that care
- You want your website and brand to stand out
- You can't transform your business while sticking to your old ways
- Your needs have grown--you are no longer a beginner
2. Templates are basically Pinterest boards.
We all dread that moment when a well-meaning client shows us a Pinterest board of "inspiration" for their photo shoot or wedding. We all know that, if it's on a board, it's been done ad nauseum already. Do you want your website to evoke something that's been "done" already?
I once saw a lovely little template that was used for 1,085 photographers' sites. One Thousand Eighty-Five. That company is out of business now for better or for worse.
Just like it's not possible to create authentic, original images based on a Pinterest board, it's not possible for that pretty little template to convert your niche, ideal, high-paying client.
3. Templates are "one size fits all".
Whereas a custom site is designed and built with YOU and your business in mind, templates come with built-in issues and limitations.
This is especially true with home pages and blog pages.
Templates are literally "one size fits all". They are like those insanely popular jeans that somehow never seem to fit you just right. As pretty and tempting as they might be, templates are never going to take your business where you want it to go (especially you reading this - I know you want something more).
4. Templates are unintelligent.
Templates don't know your customer.
They know "a customer". Who is this mystery customer? Who knows?!
That's why, even if it gives your business a boost at first--eventually, a template website won't work.
Our ENTIRE point here at 16 Hoops is to get you, talented photographer, thinking about your very unique area of expertise. A template undoes all this work entirely.
These days, clients quite literally cannot tell photographers apart--and part of the problem is that everyone is using the same templates. So the race to the bottom continues.
5. Templates emphasize bells and whistles over important functions.
Bells and whistles like 13 pages of "info," slideshows, client logins, and endless contact form fields are, by design, meant to distract.
They distract your client from the single job of hiring you. You do not need to pour the entire contents of your business into your website. Your ideal high-paying client doesn't care at this point (or ever, frankly) about all this stuff. Your website is meant to convert that visitor into a client. PERIOD.
Bells and whistles can also create a catch-22 of sorts--because not only do you not need the stuff on those site templates, but those very bells and whistles are taking up space where actual useful, delightful things, such as compelling, action-oriented copy, could live.
OK, now you know why you shouldn't use a template website.
But what does a custom site or brand really *REALLY* do for you and your bottom line?
It helps your visitors transform from a casual, "stumbling upon you" audience to your dedicated fans, to premium-paying clients willing to throw wads of cash at your business. A custom site and brand is not an expense--it's an investment. (DOH! There's that verboten word, "investment". In a business-to-business context (B2B), the word is perfectly justified. In a business-to-customer (B2C) context--like portrait and wedding photography--it's misused and has lost all meaning.)
Whether you are a super-duper savvy beginner (yay for you!!!!) or a seasoned pro ready to transform your existing business (exciting!), now is the time to stand out.
Actually, 12 months ago was the time. Don't wait. We have a 16-week business transformation program, designed specifically for togs in your position, starting in January of every year.
Take the first step toward transforming your business. Stop tinkering and reserve your spot now.
"I Need a New Website." Really? Why?
When you say, "I need a new website," what you are really saying is, “I have a problem that needs solving.” And sure, a new website might be part of solving that problem.
But when you just go and hire a designer because you have declared that you need a new website, you are not even one step closer to solving the underlying problem.
Story time!
I was recently talking to a struggling (and VERY talented) photographer, and I suggested that she consider our program.
One step of many in that program: She would work with us at 16 Hoops to redesign her website, along with constructing a system to handle clients, and planning a robust fall marketing campaign.
She said, “Oh, I don’t have time for that right now. I’ll just have my boyfriend [a web designer, apparently] fix my website this fall."
Right.
I’m gonna let you in on a little secret.
Not everyone knows what a website's “true” function really is. Even some website designers don't really know the function of every website they put together.
Yikes--did I just say that out loud?
Oh yes, I did.
I’m not trying to knock designers. Stay with me here.
When you say, "I need a new website," what you are really saying is, “I have a problem that needs solving.” And sure, a new website might be part of solving that problem.
But when you just go and hire a designer (a friend, a neighbor, a referral, a Craigslister, or even a generalist firm) because you have declared that you need a new website (or a new logo), you are not even one step closer to solving the underlying problem.
And on top of it, just because you know someone who calls themselves a “website designer” does not in the least guarantee that that person will solve your problem.
Your website is more than a business card
How do we know that some brand-new websites don’t work?
It's not because they're ugly or weird. They are probably pleasant looking.
They include navigation, and header photos, and important-sounding statements like “We take you where you want to go.”
They may even have cool little videos and little “Subscribe!” buttons.
They LOOK a whole lot like functional, helpful websites.
But despite the pretty packaging, clients are no better equipped to hire you than before they landed on your site. Your business is in no better shape, even after you've spent thousands of dollars on a new website.
What a missed opportunity!
How do I know it's a missed opportunity?
Because your designer probably never asked you the right question in the first place.
The right question is: "What (expensive) problem are you trying to solve in your business?"
Your website (or whatever else in your brand ecosystem) should be built around that problem (or goal). Usually, if you're a pro photographer, your goal is to get more quality clients to contact and hire you.
It all boils down to what we keep talking about here at 16 Hoops: Expertise.
Your website needs to showcase your expertise, then tell your potential clients exactly what to do next.
I’ve seen many talented designers build websites that are just pretty online business cards. They look nice, but they don't bring you anywhere closer to improving your business or acquiring new clients.
In fact, having that cute business-card site may actually HARM your business. You'll think you've “solved” the problem because you took some action (and probably spent a lot of time and money).
But the problem is still there, bubbling under the surface, just waiting to explode...and now you're ignoring it.
Don't hire a carpenter when you need an architect
In the world of 16 Hoops, where expertise is the DNA of any strong business (ours included), hiring a web designer to redo your website without a clear goal in mind is akin to hiring a carpenter when what you really need is an architect.
Experts (architects) solve problems. Order-takers (carpenters) perform requested tasks.
So before you declare that your website is old and that "you need a new website," dig a little deeper.
Examine what makes you think you need a new site. Ask: "What problem would be solved by having a new website?"
Knowing the answer to this question will bring you closer to identifying the real issue and fixes.
And once you have that established, you can hire that web designer...and give them a crystal-clear blueprint.
Problem solved.
When Marketing Goes Very, Very Wrong
Many photographers' marketing has already gone very wrong. And they may not even be aware of it.
Let me illustrate by telling you about a very stylish business card that I recently picked up from a photographer.
Many photographers' marketing has already gone very wrong. And they may not even be aware of it.
Let me illustrate by telling you about a very stylish business card that I recently picked up from a photographer.
It was cool and well-designed, with Pinterest’s latest trendy icons. It had black with purple letters. It said:
{Name of Person’s} Photography.
Lifestyle, Weddings, Destination Locations, Fashion, Pets, Boudoir.
Huh?
Pets AND Boudoir? Oh, AND Weddings? AND Lifestyle?! (What is that, by the way?)
What’s the goal here? To snag a client who wants a lifestyle shoot of their wedding, featuring a fashionable pet in the Caribbean?
That's either HYPER specific (read: impossible), or this photographer doesn’t have a clue who her client really is.
Any client that lands anywhere near this tog's attractive branding won’t have a clue what she does either. So they lump her in with everyone else who they can’t figure out, and hire the cheapest option.
It’s impossible NOT to have your marketing go very, very wrong with this kind of generalist foundation.
Where do you even start with marketing when you are a “lifestyle-weddings-destination-fashion-pets-boudoir” photographer? This type of "one size fits all" positioning is why so many good photographers are still fumbling in the dark with their marketing and competing on price, despite their skill and their handsome branding.
Now, what if you saw this instead? This is a client of ours.
Lumina Little Stars: A Portrait & Album Journey of Baby's First Year
What did you picture in your head when you read that?
Did you think of someone who might want to hire this person (perhaps a sister or friend who is pregnant)?
Do you think the wrong client (let’s say a bride, or someone wanting pet portraits) could possibly wander onto this photographer's website by accident?
Not a chance.
Her target client is crystal-clear. And with clarity, everything else falls into place.
Stellar marketing--meaning marketing that ends with the ideal high-paying client banging on your door 24/7--starts with positioning.
Unless (and until) you START with airtight positioning, you are doing it very, very wrong.
Think Outside the Universe: 3 Strategies for Finding Your Ideal Market Niche
Invent something new (and lucrative, natch) by zooming out and enlarging. Break free of the old limiting framework that might be holding you back. The best way to do this is to look at your market and see what opportunities might be hiding in plain sight.
One of our bibles here at 16 Hoops is Benjamin and Rosamund Zander's book The Art of Possibility. The framework for the book is the concept of “It’s All Invented”.
These are words to live by if you want to break new ground with your creative business.
An illustration of It’s All Invented
The Zanders use the following story to illustrate their theory:
A shoe factory sends two marketing scouts to a region of Africa to study the prospects for expanding business.
One sends back a telegram saying:
SITUATION HOPELESS. NO ONE WEARS SHOES.
The other scout sends back this telegram:
GLORIOUS BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY. THEY HAVE NO SHOES.
This story is not just about the old, simple "half-full or half-empty” view of the world. It goes deeper than that.
It’s about inventing something new (and lucrative, natch) by zooming out and enlarging--breaking free of the old limiting framework that might be holding you back.
The best way to do this is to look at your market and see what opportunities might be hiding in plain sight. There are three ways to do this.
1. REDEFINE: Plant that flag and dominate
Take an existing niche and claim a leadership position by nailing down your specific, targeted positioning. This is the least risky strategy for finding a niche--and if you're creative, the possibilities are endless.
For example:
Existing niche: Weddings.
Redefined niche: Hey! No one is doing "Same Sex Weddings in Small Coastal Inns".
Who is this strategy for? Someone who wants a chill lifestyle in a smaller market or saturated field. If done well, this can be the road to a very financially satisfying business, with a laid-back lifestyle to boot.
2. INVENT: Pays the bills (and how!)
Search your market for new opportunities. This is the strategy taken by our shoe scouts above. There's potentially less “cool” factor here, but this path is the most lucrative by far.
For example:
"Hey! No one is doing executive dating service portraits. I’ll do that.”
OR
“Hey! Children’s book authors (or chefs, or realtors--pick your passion) don’t have great headshots. I want to travel around the world doing this one thing."
Who is this strategy for? Someone in a larger market or someone with the willingness to move/travel who is ready to take the bull by the horns and build a highly profitable, lucrative business. The payoff for this kind of bold (if less emotionally exciting) approach can be ginormous.
3. CULTIVATE: Do what you love
Take a passion and turn it into a business. This is a bit riskier, but warm fuzzies are their own payoff.
For example:
“Hey! I want to only photograph rescued horses and their new owners.”
OR
Preemies. Or vintage teacups. Or whatever makes your heart go pitter-patter.
Who is this for? Someone who values soul satisfaction over profit as a business model. Market and payoff may not be as huge as in #1 and #2, but you can turn your passion into a business.
These are all examples of essentially inventing or reinventing your business.
What happens if you don't pick a niche?
You become the dime-a-dozen, dreaded, sales-driven photographer (ACK!), rather than the unique-snowflake, delightfully rich, market-driven photographer (YAY!).
Anyone can just answer the phone and let whoever is on the other end define the work. This is what's known as being "sales-driven".
Define and own your market. Defining what you do takes bravery and lots of discipline. Photographers are far too often sales-driven rather than market-driven.
Here at 16 Hoops, we love it when we see a business owner get to this lightbulb moment. It's very exciting to help our clients uncover those hidden market opportunities and then build a formidable business around their expertise with powerful branding, messaging, and marketing.
Don’t just politely remove yourself and "think outside the box”. SMASH that old, boring box to smithereens and think instead outside the GIANT, BOUNDLESS, INFINITE UNIVERSE.