Maintaining consistency in a photography business is so important, but it’s not just about posting on social media every day. So today on the podcast, let’s talk about WHY it matters so much! To put it simply – consistency in client experience, brand materials, response times, tone of voice, and photo delivery is crucial for building trust and ensuring long-term success.

Keep reading for show notes and a full episode transcript!

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Show Notes

Template Shop: https://simplysandrayvonne.ca/shop

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My favourite photography business resources: https://simplysandrayvonne.ca/resources

Takeaways

• Consistency in client experience, brand materials, response time, tone of voice, and photo delivery is crucial for long-term business impact.
• The use of CRM systems, such as HoneyBook, can streamline business operations and enhance client experience during busy wedding seasons.

Chapters

00:00 Recognizing Juneteenth and Supporting the Black Community
03:39 The Importance of Consistency in Wedding Photography Business
08:05 Streamlining Business Operations with CRM Systems

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Check out my free, on-demand Masterclass! Inquiry To Onboarding – Creating An Effortless Client Journey | CLICK HERE!

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TRANSCRIPT

[00:00:00] Sandra Henderson: Diving into today’s episode, which is airing on June 19th, I wanted to take a moment to recognize the Black community and say happy Juneteenth to anybody who might be listening that celebrates

[00:00:14] Juneteenth is a date recognized in the United States as a commemoration of the end of slavery.

[00:00:22] Even though the Emancipation Proclamation was announced in September of 1862 to go into effect January 1st, 1863, it wasn’t until June 19th, 1865, that the Emancipation Proclamation was enforced in the southern state of Texas.

[00:00:37] Because of this, June 19th, or Juneteenth, is officially recognized as the end of slavery and celebrated by Black communities across the U. S. and worldwide.

[00:00:49] If you’re interested in learning more about the historical legacy of Juneteenth, I want you to head over to the show notes for today’s episode where you will find a link for the National Museum of African American History and Culture.

[00:01:00] I have also included a second link for the National Museum of African American History and Culture where you can make a donation if that is something that you are able to do. The Smithsonian has agreed at the time of recording this from what I can see on their website to match any donations up to 25, 000 in order of Juneteenth.

[00:01:19] So, if you are able, definitely go and check that out, read a little bit more into this, and then do a little bit more instead of only reading about the hard times and the horrible things that have happened to the Black community in history, look to find ways that you can support Black entrepreneurs and the Black community in your area.

[00:01:38] Okay. I have a little bit of a scenario I want to start today’s episode with. So press pause on all the things that you have going on around you for a second if you can. Close your eyes if you want to, and just walk with me through this:

[00:01:51] You get a wedding inquiry that you could not be more excited about.

[00:01:55] It’s at a dream venue. And this couple has the budget for your highest package. No questions asked. And at the consultation, you got along so well.

[00:02:04] You tell the couple that you’re gonna send over a proposal the next day and your anxiety starts building as soon as the consultation is over because you want to book this wedding so badly. Now, the next day you have a session in the morning and it takes every last bit of energy you have, so you unexpectedly have to take the rest of the day off. While you’re out of the office two more wedding inquiries come in.

[00:02:28] You’re feeling better on day three, and that’s when you remember that you have to get a gallery sent out. So you hop into Lightroom because you don’t want to deliver the photos late and you get those done. That evening, you have an engagement session out of town. So you pack up, you get in the car, you go to your session and by the time you get home, it’s time to call it a day.

[00:02:47] The next day is day four, and you’ve got a wedding. And on day five is wedding hangover day, when nothing is happening except for binge-watching some Netflix.

[00:02:56] On day six, you finally have a few minutes to go and check your inbox. And that’s when you realize that you forgot to send that proposal to the couple that you had a consultation with last week because they emailed you asking where it is and when they can expect it.

[00:03:10]

[00:03:10] And then those two wedding inquiries that came in, well, it’s been four days since then. Both couples have already booked consultations elsewhere and have told you they’ll get in touch if it doesn’t work out in the thick of wedding season. This scenario is all too familiar for photographers and wedding pros as a whole.

[00:03:28] So today I want to talk about what consistency means beyond posting on Instagram every day and what kind of impact it can have on your business long term.

[00:03:37] Welcome to keeping it candid. I’m your host, Sandra Henderson, an international wedding and family photographer and business coach. I help wedding photographers use systems to build out the back end of their businesses to gain control and continue to thrive no matter what life throws their way. And on a more personal note, I’m a strong enneagram three wing two who is obsessed with tacos and my love for travelling combined with navigating chronic illness life are just two of the many things that drive my passion for all things systems, workflows, and beating burnout as a business owner.

[00:04:07] Join me every week for a candid behind-the-scenes look at what it’s really like working as a wedding photographer, where I’ll give you actionable steps to take your business to the next level. Absolutely no fluff here, friends, so go grab your favourite notebook and pen and let’s dive into this week’s episode.

[00:04:23] More often than not, when I hear people talking about being consistent in their business, they’re talking about showing up on Instagram and social media. We hear it from quote-unquote social media experts and Instagram experts all the time that we need to be consistent, and consistent means showing up every day and doing all the things.

[00:04:40] But one, Consistency can look a lot of different ways, and two, there is a lot more to consistency than just showing up on Instagram every single day.

[00:04:50] When it comes to client experience, consistency can look like getting emails and other important documents sent out when you say you’re going to send them, delivering on brand materials like pricing guides and proposals that match everything else you’re putting out into the world, responding in the same window of time for every single person that contacts you, Using the same tone of voice and writing style in all of your email templates and delivering photos within the same time frame for all clients when you say you’re going to deliver them.

[00:05:21] I’ll be honest, especially that last one. I struggle with it. I would have a date in mind that I want to have these photos sent out, but if anything gets in the way of that happening, it completely throws off my game and I end up getting those photos out by the due date. And that is not what I want. It gives no consistency for when people can expect their photos and things like that.

[00:05:42] So, If you’re listening to this and you can relate to anything that I just said, don’t get down on yourself. It happens to everybody. And we are going to not focus on the things that we are doing wrong, that are not consistent, but we are going to be focusing on what we can do to make these things more consistent and easier in our businesses.

[00:06:02] So let’s talk a little bit more about why each of these is important and what kinds of tweaks you can make to make them more consistent. When it comes to having everything on brand, it’s like a cherry on top. It keeps everything visually appealing and easily recognizable.

[00:06:16] So when someone receives your pricing guide, everything looks exactly like they remember it from your website. It’s how they remember it from your social media. And there’s no sort of brain confusion on who they are talking about. Really makes it easier for people to remember who you are.

[00:06:31] When you’re consistently responding in the same amount of time, people know what to expect from you and it will stop people from following up incessantly because they, quote-unquote, aren’t sure if you received their email yet. We all know how annoying emails like that can be.

[00:06:48] Having a consistent tone of voice, again, lends to brand recognition the same way that having your visual brand colours and everything like that comes together. It gives your clients the feeling of having a personal experience, even though you’re working with so many other clients just like them. They know that it’s you speaking, but they don’t feel like they’re getting emails from four different people who sound nothing alike.

[00:07:10] And then consistency in delivering your photos within the same time frame, no matter what that looks like. Whether it be two weeks or six weeks, I don’t think that one is better than the other. you have to do what is right for you. So no matter what that looks like, it sets your clients up to know exactly what to expect from you every time they work with you.

[00:07:30] That every time they work with you might not apply if you are exclusively in the wedding industry. Hopefully, for the sake of your client’s marriages, they don’t have to come back to you a second time for wedding photos. But for my family photographers that are listening or newborn photographers, branding photographers, if you guys are working with your clients more than once, a lot of the time.

[00:07:50] And so, Making sure that they know what to expect and that they’re going to get that same experience every time they work with you is what keeps people coming back year after year. Beyond having them come back, we also want them to tell all their friends about us, right?

[00:08:04] Word of mouth is so powerful. And that consistent experience is what’s going to have people singing your praises from the rooftops, and then when someone that they know is looking for a photographer, you are going to be the first person that comes to mind.

[00:08:17] During busy season, it is so easy for things to start falling through the cracks when you have a million other things on the go. I have been there more times than I can count. And the best advice that I can give you is to set yourself up with a CRM system. I use HoneyBook, but whatever CRM that is going to be for you, create some workflows in there, get some on-brand templates set up and start delivering that consistent experience right from the very beginning.

[00:08:43] HoneyBook, in my humble opinion, is by far the best CRM out there for photographers, hands down, because of all the branding capabilities that it has. You can customize everything from colours to logos to fonts to the photos that you include, and they have so many templates that are pre-made for the photography industry.

[00:09:03] So all you really have to do is go in and drop your information and everything else is designed and ready to go.

[00:09:10] Now that you are in the thick of wedding season, I know you are probably thinking, okay, Sandra sounds good, but there’s absolutely no frigging way in hell I have the time to set up a new CRM system right now, let alone get any workflows ready. And I totally understand that. Don’t worry about it. My honey book moving day service is exactly what you need to get everything up and running while you focus on your clients and busy season. Honeybook moving day is when I get your Honeybook account set up and ready for you. Just like hiring professional movers on a moving day, I go in and I do all the heavy lifting and all you have to do is pick up your keys at the end of the day when it is all ready.

[00:09:48] If you are already living inside another CRM platform and you want to move over to Honeybook, I will be moving everything over there for you. If you are a new Honeybook user, then I will make sure that your account is running efficiently and has all of the settings set up that you will need to start building your templates and navigating your clients through the HoneyBook platform.

[00:10:08] And then I also have VIP days available where I will pop into your HoneyBook account and I will create templates for you and build out workflows so you can start enjoying all of the freedom that streamlined systems and automations can bring you again without having to do any of that heavy lifting yourself.

[00:10:25] I can’t believe that next week is already the end of June and we’ve got one more podcast episode coming out this month. Next week I am joined by the one and only Angie McPherson, an absolutely incredible brand photographer and educator.

[00:10:38] She is truly a gem. And I loved every second of our conversation. So make sure you come back next week to give that a listen, have a great rest of your week, and I will connect with y’all soon.

[00:10:50] The waitlist for my brand new template shop is now open. This template shop is going to be filled with everything you need to simplify and streamline your business behind the scenes.

[00:11:00] So head over to simplysandrayvonne.ca/shopto get on the waitlist. You’ll also have a chance to enter to win a free bundle, as well as get a little special something to say, thank you for being here. that’s simplysandrayvonne.ca/shop.

[00:11:17] Thank you so much for listening. You can find full show notes from today’s episode at simplysandrayvonne.ca/keepingitcandid. In the meantime, let’s connect. You can find me on Instagram and TikTok. Just search simply Sandra Yvonne. And if you’re loving this podcast, I’d be so honoured if you go ahead and hit that subscribe button and leave a review until next time.