Being good at photography and making money as a photographer are two different things. Some of the most talented photographers struggle in business, while many less skilled photographers are making six-figures in a tough economy.
It doesn’t matter how good you are. If you’re a beginner photographer, there are plenty of low budget clients that will give you a chance. You can get enough of these clients to keep you busy. As you develop your skills and grow your skills and reputation, you can command greater rates.
In this blog post, I want to talk about the basic foundation you need to make money as a food photographer in 2023.
This can be broken down in two basic overarching steps: you need an offer and then get that offer in front of potential clients.
What Is Your Offer?
To make money as a food photographer, you need to create an offer. What are you selling? What kind of photographer are you? What do you specialize in? This is your offer.
If you’re reading this, I’m assuming you’re a food photographer You may shoot other things, but when you’re presenting your work, you need to focus.
When I was first starting out, I called myself a food and lifestyle photographer because I also shot images of the lifestyle around food. I don’t do a lot of that work, so now I just say I’m food photographer. This is what underlines all of my marketing efforts.
Sometimes I shoot corporate work, headshots, and even sports or event photography because I have contacts that approach me with these kinds of gigs. I don’t put those images on my website. I don’t advertise myself as someone who does those things.
My offer is based on food only. I shoot for restaurants, high end hotels, ad and marketing agencies, agriculture clients and small businesses. These are the clients that make up my contact lists.
It Starts with Your Website
Your website is your portfolio and foundational to your sales process. It shouldn’t be the only tool in your toolbox but it’s your most important one.
Not only does it showcase your photography, but also demonstrates to the client that you’ve presumably developed a client base and are professional and ready to work.
Your portfolio should be composed of your best work and showcase a variety of brands that you’ve worked with.
It should also show you’ve helped and how you’ve helped them.
Commercial photographers usually have a bio on their website that mentions clients that they have worked with, or a client list.
Otherwise, there is little copy. This is a traditional and formal approach.
However, if you work with brands and create photography content, you may want to present your website similarly to other business websites, using a combination of photo and copy on your website to attract prospects.
Start with a headline such as, “I help food and beverage brands increase sales through photos that are good enough to eat.”
This tells visitors to your site exactly what you do and how you can help them.
You Need Social Proof
Every client’s desired outcome is to build brand awareness and increase sales through photography. A client who is searching for a photographer understands at least on some level, the power of professional photography to do this, otherwise they’d be taking their own photos with an iPhone.
In order for them to hire you, prospects need to feel that they can get the results that they are looking for. There are things that you can add to your website that will increase their confidence in you, such as testimonials.
When you work with a new client, follow up after the shoot and ensure that they are happy with the results. Ask for them for a one-line testimonial that you can put on your website or use in your marketing collateral.
Also, see if you can get case studies from clients that show how their sales improved after working with you. You need numbers and percentages for an effective case study.
If you can demonstrate that your client’s sales went up by 65% after implementing your images in a campaign, this can go a long way with prospective clients who are thinking of hiring you.
Add Value to Your Offer
Marketing is all about showing prospects how you can add value. Many photographers think they must compete on price but that couldn’t be further from the truth. You compete on value. Showing your clients how you can add value will install confidence in them that you can get the job done with favourable results.
There are many ways you can add value to your offer. One important way is to ensure a quick turnaround time—how long the clients must wait to get their images.
The faster the client can get their photos the more you’ll be able to charge as a photographer. They will also perceive you in a better light. If you create content for brands, you can post a guaranteed turnaround time on your website to give clients the impetus to work with you.
You can also add value to your offer by including bonuses.
Bonuses don’t cost you anything but provide a lot of value to the client. Examples of bonuses can be mood boards, complimentary prop styling, or retouching.
Getting Your Offer in Front of the Right People
Once you have formulated your offer, you need to put it in front of decision makers. You do this in three primary ways:
– cold outreach – social media – paid ads
In marketing, you need multi-pronged approach, however cold outreach should comprise most of your efforts. Social media is important, of course, but it takes a long time to build so it likely won’t get you your first clients if you’re new to the game.
Cold outreach is nerve wracking for most creatives, which is why most of us don’t do enough of it. However, without doing regular cold outreach, it will be difficult to get any traction in your food photography business or sustain it for very long.
One positive thing about cold outreach is that you get to decide who you want to see your offer. You can focus on winning the clients you most want to work with, whose brands align with your interests and values.
Cold outreach involves sending out emails with a personalized message and a credibility statement about brands you’ve worked with. When you connect with someone, ask for a phone call. This will give you the opportunity to make a personal connection, find out about the client’s needs, and demonstrate how you can help.
When doing cold outreach, make sure that you follow up.
Follow up is just as important as getting started.
At the same time, realize that most of your cold pitches will not get a response. It’s a numbers game. The more cold outreach you do, the more you increase your chances of landing a client.
Once you have spoken with a potential client, be sure to send them a proposal, and be ready to negotiate.
You may be wondering how paid ads can fit into your strategy. These can definitely work but are costly. I don’t recommend them unless you’re an experienced photographer and have a few thousand dollars to spend—and can hire an expert do them. The cost of acquisition through paid ads is very expensive.
To Sum Up
Making money as a food photographer in 2023 comes down to defining your services and going after the clients who will be the best fit for your offer. It’s really that simple—but it’s not necessarily easy. Becoming a successful food photographer can be a challenging journey full of ups-and-downs, but ultimately can be very rewarding if you’re willing to put yourself out there.
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