...and they will if you chip away, review, go again and never give up.
My wife Andrea & I made a start with our portrait buisness, by approaching local health clubs (Gyms) with a birthday certificate offer.
We created our own to begin with.
We bought some high quality A4 art paper and printed an overview of our offer on the top and bottom panels on the smooth (inside) leaving the middle panel. We printed the target company logo on the top facing section (nicked from their websites)
We folded the sheet to DL size and then printed a panel of small images (3 xDL to each A4 photo sheet)
We cut the DL panels and glued into the empty middle panel.
We also provided an A4 covering letter describing the offer.
The offer was genuine (very important).
We would provide a gift cetificate to the value of AUD$300 in the name of the club for each member having a birthday in each month.
1. The Club would be responsile for including in their monthly member mail outs.
2. They provide us their print-ready logo along with with a list of members (first names only to comply with privacy provisions) in an Excel spreadsheet.
3. We set up a mail merge with our local printer.
4. We print the certificates and deliver to the club during the first week of each month ready for mail out.
5. The offer: The $300 certificate entitles the member to an individual of family portrait session, post production and an archival quality 12x8 print - or $165 towards and package of prints. There is no sale pressure. We do the shoot and present the images.
By the time Andrea had visited 4 local companies, the first called back, wanting to work with us and we continue with this program to tis day.
Risk? A small amount. We spend several hundred dollars each month in producing certificates.
The customer may come, along we do the shot, I (as I have just done for the third time in two days) spend a few hours working the images in photoshop and preparing for presentation in a program called 'Proselect' (see
www.timeexposure.com ).
Andrea shows the images on a large plasma screen.
Sometimes, people came along and just take the free image - but we back ourselves to produce 'must have' images.
Our average sales started at a few hundred dollars but now average, substantially more.
We gain an introduction to a large audience (though subject to the foibles and low response rates of direct mail) and we get quite a few referrals.
We now run the program for several businesses and continue to seek more.
You might select real estate agents (realtors) or a large retail chain, or prestige auto dealers. The theme is the same. It can be done and you can make a living from it.
