You think you the shat! The best that ever did it. The best at something. We are all good at something, some of us excel very well but just because you are good doesn’t mean you will be hired for the job or even looked at. Sorry to disappoint you but sometimes the person who has less talent gets the job. Why? It’s because of who they are, how they position themselves, and what they find in common with you. I remember I got an email from a huge photographer here in Atanta because she was mad I “took her client” (we aren’t naming names so don’t ask). Her client fired her and hired me. I, a lesser-known photographer who didn’t have the portfolio she had. The photographer was good, excellent in my book, but I was still able to come in and get hired. Being good enough is not always good enough. Here is how I position myself, and you can use these tools for yourself in any setting.
Some photographers obsess over gear, while some just shoot with whatever they have. Talent doesn’t always equal demand. Have you ever looked at a photographer and wondered how they get hired, and you didn’t? It’s because they positioned themselves and they were visible. Are you doing the most? If know one knows you exist, how will they know to hire you?
Standing out and doing something different helps a lot. You might not be the best, but your offer may be. A lot of photographers will only do 10 edited photos. I will give you the best out of the bunch, no capping on how many photos you get. That makes me stand out. Editing for me isn’t the hardest, it’s the culling and narrowing down the good photos, and that takes up most of my time. If I see 50 good photos, I’m sending you all of them, edited for the same price. Did you know most photographers don’t even edit anyway? They send it off to Fiverr or someone else. Also, editing has come a long way; you can click a button and edit in minutes.
Who you are stands out more.
Make people remember you by standing out. You might be good enough but are you the same person online as offline?
Does your vibe match theirs?
Does your story resonate with them?
Does your point of view match theirs?
Some tips:
- Go beyond the norm and offer something different. (I offer small videos for my clietns as something different)
- Own your mistakes and correct them. (If I forget to do something or things don’t go as planned I own that)
- Have unique ideas and try new things. ( I don’t do boring headshots, let’s do something that fits your personality)
- Consistently deliver and make sure even the smallest details matter. ( I had a client who told me she liked Beyonce so I had my Beyonce playlist ready for the photoshoot)
- Solve problems that people don’t see. (I shot for a chef ,one of his problems was that he was always shooting the final product, never the journey. We started doing that, and it made his numbers go up)
