594: Heidi Thompson – Why Your Photography Marketing Might Be Failing & How to Fix It

PhotoBizX The Ultimate Wedding and Portrait Photography Business Podcast

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Heidi Thompson of www.evolveyourweddingbusiness.com is a wedding business coach, marketing strategist and best-selling author.

She was last featured on the podcast for episode 218, where she shared how you can clone your best photography clients.

She believes that too many photographers get into photography for some kind of freedom—freedom from working for a boss, working the 9-5, basically, having the freedom to spend their time the way they want to. In many cases, however, photographers work harder than they would in a regular job as an employee.

Her job is to help you reclaim your time, escape burnout and love your business.

On her website, she says to think of her as your tough-love business bestie who will call you out on your B.S. and give it to you straight because she truly wants the best for you.

Before teaching marketing to wedding professionals, she marketed a lot of things, including poo! Yes, human poo for a company that specialises in fecal transplants. She says if she can market poo, she can certainly help you market your photography!

In this episode, Heidi shares why your photography marketing might be failing and how to fix it.

Here's some more of what we covered in the interview:

• Marketing Anything: Heidi shares her journey marketing unconventional services like faecal transplants, proving she can successfully market any product—even the unexpected.
• From Medical to Matrimony: Heidi brings unique expertise to the table.
• Collaborating with Experts: Heidi works closely with photographers, planners, caterers, and DJs. She highlights that photographers and planners are among the hardest-working professionals but often feel overwhelmed.
• The Freedom Paradox: Many photographers and planners pursue the profession expecting flexibility, yet find themselves overworked and lacking work-life balance.
• Misplaced Priorities: Wedding professionals often spend time on tasks that don’t align with their business goals, undermining their growth.
• Social Media Pitfalls: Over-investing in platforms like Instagram or TikTok can be costly if they don’t yield clients. Heidi urges professionals to assess their ROI on social media efforts.
• Proven Growth Strategies: Instead of chasing trends, focus on effective channels like referrals, SEO, and wedding shows to build a thriving business.
• Test Before You Leap: Heidi advises experimenting with one new social media platform at a time to ensure clarity and measurable results.
• Knowing When to Quit: Assess marketing efforts regularly and cut out strategies that drain time without delivering results.
• Smart Diversification: Stick to a handful of reliable marketing channels while limiting experiments to stay focused and avoid burnout.
• Track Your Time: Use tools like Toggl to monitor your daily activities, identifying and eliminating unproductive tasks.
• Data-Driven Decisions: Let tracked data guide you to double down on channels consistently delivering clients.
• Networking Without Pressure: Spend 15 minutes daily engaging with referral sources on social media for meaningful connections.
• Relationships Drive Success: Building strong, authentic relationships with referral sources is key to long-term growth.
• Client-Focused Strategy: Start by understanding client pain points and tailor your services to solve their problems.
• Stand Out in the Crowd: Develop a unique value proposition to set your business apart from competitors.
• Website First Impressions Matter: Ensure your website features clear messaging and stunning visuals to captivate your ideal clients instantly.
• SEO Beats the Social Hype: Invest in SEO and referrals, which consistently deliver a higher ROI than excessive social media efforts.
• Attractive Content Wins: Publish valuable blog posts to boost SEO, build vendor relationships, and establish authority.
• Vendor Partnerships Pay Off: Partnering with venues and offering creative incentives can secure valuable referrals.
• Win-Win Collaborations: Keep referral relationships thriving by ensuring mutual benefits, regular communication, and genuine appreciation.

What’s on Offer for Premium Members

If you’re on the fence about becoming a premium member, join with the $1 trial today and get access to the FULL interviews each week, a fantastic back catalogue of interviews, and have ALL future interviews delivered automatically to your phone or tablet.

Plus, special member-only interviews.

I'm all for experimenting and trying new things and seeing what you can make work. But what I always tell my clients is you need to limit yourself to one experiment at a time, because if you don't, you really can't give it your all. You're gonna kind of half ass it, and then you never know, are the results you're getting from that, because you didn't really go all out with it, or is it actually not a good fit for your business. – Heidi Thompson

You'll also receive access to the members-only Secret Facebook Group, where you can connect with other Premium Members and interview guests to help, support and motivate you to take ideas you hear in each episode and put them into action. The group also has FB live video tutorials, role-play, and special live interviews. You will not find more friendly, motivated, caring and sharing photographers online.

Seriously, that's not all.

Most people don't have time, and that's a huge, huge problem, because if you don't have time to market your business, you're probably not going to get a whole lot of business, so we have to make the time for that. And the first thing I have people do is actually audit where they're spending their time. – Heidi Thompson

In addition to everything above, you'll get access to instructions on forming or joining a MasterMind Group with other premium members. These groups are super motivating, make you accountable, and build friendships with other pro photographers with motives similar to yours – to build a more successful photography business.

What is your big takeaway?

Following this interview, I’d love to know if you're taking anything from what Heidi shared. Is there something you heard that excited or motivated you to the point where you thought, yeah, I'm going to do that! If so, leave your thoughts in the comments below; let me know your takeaways and what you plan to implement in your business based on what you heard in today's episode.

I love giving people permission to quit stuff. We all spend time on things we feel maybe a good idea in the moment. Or we read or hear something, and we were like, ‘Oh, I'm going to try that.' And I am all for trying new things, but you have to make sure it makes sense, and make sure there's room. – Heidi Thompson

If you have any questions I missed, a specific question you’d like to ask Heidi or want to say thank you for coming on the show, feel free to add them in the comments area below.

iTunes Reviews and Shout-outs

I check for any new iTunes or Google reviews each week, and it's always a buzz to receive these… for several reasons.

Firstly, it's confirmation that I'm on the right track with the interviews and that they are helping you improve your photography business. That's awesome!

Secondly, iTunes and Google are the most significant podcast search engines, and your reviews and ratings help other photographers find PhotoBizX. More listeners mean more interviews and, ultimately, a better show.

The only solution to you making more money is not raising prices. I'm not saying don't do it, but it's not the only lever you can pull. – Heidi Thompson

If you have left a review in the past, thank you! If you haven't and you'd like to, head to https://photobizx.com/itunes or https://photobizx.com/google. You can leave some honest feedback and a rating, which will help both me and the show. I'll be sure to thank you on the show and add a link to your website or blog if you let me know the URL of your website and your name.

Alternatively, if you've left a review for PhotoBizX and are looking for more backlinks to help your SEO, leave a review for the new Photography Xperiment Podcast. Email me your keywords or phrases and where you'd like me to link them.

If you don't have time for the people you care about though, you don't have time for the things you enjoy doing, you tell yourself you don't have time for yourself, especially any hobbies, activities you like doing working out, like actually using your body so you can take care of yourself. And the worst one is, I don't have time to sleep, because that is such an unacceptable statement to me. Like, no, no, no, no, no, no. Sleep comes first, always. Everything else has to fit in around that if you are sacrificing your sleep and everything else that you started this business for, you are probably headed right into burnout. – Heidi Thompson

Another great way to get a backlink to your site is to send a video testimonial. It doesn't need to be fancy, and your phone will be perfect. Click record and tell me how PhotoBizX has impacted you and your photography business.​

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Links to people, places and things mentioned in this episode:

Evolve Your Wedding Business

The Machete Method to Slashing Your Way Through Overwhelm

Evolve Your Wedding Business Podcast

Evolve Your Wedding Business on Facebook

Evolve Your Wedding Business on Instagram

I think, especially with SEO and anything marketing, I don't advise you to hire anybody until you have enough of an understanding to know if you're getting scammed. – Heidi Thompson

Toggl

Episode 218: Heidi Thompson – How To Clone Your Best Photography Clients

Episode 335: Devin Robinson – Utilising Instagram to grow your photography business in a way I never considered

Episode 053: Fer Juaristi – Success and Happiness as a Wedding Photographer

Thank you!

Thanks for tuning in, and a huge thank you to Heidi for sharing her insights on reclaiming your time, escaping burnout, and building a photography business you truly love. Her no-nonsense approach to marketing, tips on forging strong referral relationships, and advice on staying focused on strategies that truly grow your business were all first-class. Heidi’s tough-love approach to her clients will hopefully push you to think smarter, work more effectively, and build a brand that aligns with the freedom you wanted when starting out.

People pay more to have something that's different and unique. – Heidi Thompson

That’s it for me this week; I hope everything is going well for you in life and business!

Thanks, and speak soon
Andrew

The post 594: Heidi Thompson – Why Your Photography Marketing Might Be Failing & How to Fix It appeared first on Photography Business Xposed - Photography Podcast - how to build and market your portrait and wedding photography business.