If you want my two ceents advertising can be very exspensive for someone just statrting out. I was always told  to stay away from Tv,and Radio and the Yellow pages at the start ..A web page is pretty inexspensive if you do it yourself, however word of mouth has turned out to be the best for me. If you have the finances and want a jump start  to your business,  then I recommend the web first. Just my two cents.

lisalou

Advertising is a big part of my life, so I have some experience here.  First off, while word of mouth is essential, it is slow in most cases.  I would say you MUST have a webpage nowadays.  I also don't know how you can compete without being in the yellowpages if you are in anything that even resembles a decent size city.  It is the first place that many people will go to when looking for a photographer.

Getting off my "professional soapbox" and just relating an anecdotal story - when my wife and I were planning out wedding, the first thing we did was search the yellow pages.  Next we needed to know if the photographer was any good and how much he/she charged for their services.  What is the easiest way to do that?  Pick up the phone and call, right?  Wrong.  How would we know if they were any good over the phone?  We went to their website.  We didn't even look at anyone who didn't have a website because as soon as we started looking at websites, we found a couple that were in our price range and seemed to be making excellent photos.

THEN we called, and eventually arranged for a meeting with the photographer (at his studio/home) and got a feel for whether we liked him and felt comfortable with him.  He was a very mild-mannered, low-key gentleman and it was clear that he had another full-time job, but also did the photography seriously.  We were able to look at demo wedding BOOKS (not just selected good photos) and we decided that he was going to meet our needs just fine.  And he did, and even exceeded our expectations.

But, hopefully that gives you an idea of the process the buyer is likely going through today.

YES, many people will go with word of mouth, IF they have gotten a recommendation from a friend they trust and remember it.  But, you have a very limited amount of control over word of mouth.  It spreads at a rate you cannot control.  The yellow pages is within your control and the website is within your control.

Beyond that, I'd also consider radio if you have an affordable option once you begin making money.  It is cheaper than TV or Newspaper, and can put your name in people's mind as "the wedding photographer" in their area.  Advertise on the RIGHT stations.  NOT the stations YOU listen to.  Many people assume that what they  listen to is what EVERYONE listens to.  You are wrong.  Each station has a very specific target audience and you should take advantage of that.  For a wedding photographer, I would consider Pop/Top 40 (young women get married - mostly) and I would ask to see the ratings in the Women 18-24 range before buying.  Also, don't get caught in the trap of trying to get the details of your message in a radio commercial.  The only purposes of the radio commercial is to: 

A.  Make sure they know your business NAME.  They can look up your phone number/address in the yellow pages or the internet.

B.  Make it sound like you are THE most successful wedding photographer in your area.  People like to deal with successful people.

C.  Make sure it runs enough to almost, but not quite, be annoying.  Repetition is the key.  If you buy 10 commercials and then don't know why you didn't see results, it isn't because radio doesn't work, it is because you didn't use it correctly.  You have to buy enough to get past the clutter in most people's daily lives and minds and start to establish a foothold.

That's it.  Don't try to tell them about how you can shoot color or black and white.  Don't explain the package prices.  Don't even give your phone number.  NAME, I AM SUCCESSFUL AND EVERYONE WHO KNOWS WHAT THEY ARE DOING USES ME FOR THEIR WEDDINGS, FREQUENCY.

Depending on where you live, and how much you are making, radio may be out of your budget for some time.  But I toss that out there as a way to build you business once you have started to see some success.  

The primary requirements are yellow pages and web page.  I can't even imagine choosing someone who didn't have those two basics to show they were serious about their business and not just playing with expensive cameras and trying to make money at something they weren't really professional at doing. 

Tom,

While your response is sharp I get the point. WhenI started out I took a course with a foundation named SCORE! A retired group of individuals of Lawyers, Accountants, and business executives. The advice we received was don't invest in advertising from the start. Like I stated, I appreciate what you had to say definately food for thought.

lisalou

Lisalou:

While your response is sharp I get the point. WhenI started out I took a course with a foundation named SCORE! A retired group of individuals of Lawyers, Accountants, and business executives. The advice we received was don't invest in advertising from the start. Like I stated, I appreciate what you had to say definately food for thought.

If by "sharp" you mean "confrontational" or "in your face" I did not intend it that way and apologize if it came out that way.  I actually agree with you to a great extent:  If you don't have the money right off the bat, and particularly if you are in a small town, then you may have no choice but to go with word of mouth.  But I do think the webpage is almost a no-choice situation, and relatively easy and inexpensive to do.  I also think in any decent sized city, yellow pages is going to be important as well.  I'm sure there are wedding photographers that get by without yellow pages, but I find it hard to believe that - in most cases - it isn't a barrier to their success.

Tom, Thank you, you did give me great advice about the whole yellow pages thing. I like the advice! I am a Metropolitan area, and I guess I am showing that I need to investigate a little more, I'm glad you gave your two cents lol

lisalou

I agree a website is a must. Get promo cards/flyers/business cards made. Take them around everywhere. Grocery  stores, tanning salons, hair salons, bakerys etc. You get the idea. Get your name out everywhere. Work with these stores in cross promotion.

www.vistaprint.com is a good place to get prom stuff made.

Do overlook some obvious places like churches and wedding parlors. I would also recomend you see about getting mentioned or listed with local wedding vendors. (Dress maker rental shop, cake makers, and carterers.)

 Consider writing a press release. Newspaper normally print new bussinesses.

I have to second the yellow pages idea.  I am in a town of about 350,000 for the local but do alot of business in the Los Angeles Area.  Yellow page ads can seem to get lost in the LA area, but I choose my target areas carefully, most of my work comes from the westside and from certain high income areas.  I can't afford to advertise in all the areas,( yellow page ad rates range greatly from area to area...) so then it comes down to competition in the area.  Some areas are so innudated with ads, it makes no sense for me to throw my hat in the ring.  I tend to seek out those areas underserved by business - everyone wants a piece of the Beverly Hills area, but Westwood is very close, and Santa Clarita is getting people with money too.  I even do advertising in Bakersfield because of my location. 

In my local area, I looked into newspaper advertising and even bought a full page magazine ad targeted for just our area, but when I started talking to people, sometimes random people, I found most thought of the yellow pages first.  When I did finally buy and ad, I actually saw results.  Not all the calls will be of benefit, but it was definatly getting our name out there.  Everyone who calls gets asked if they would like more information sent to them even if it is clear we will not suit thier needs (ie, already booked, pricewise or the happen to call because they thought we did something else)  most say OK, and we get thier address.  I have had a couple pass on the info to someone else, how do I know - the someone else called.

My website is dismal, but it does exist, and has been useful in the graphic art side of our studio - so I am working diligently on fixing it.  (I threw it up at the request of a customer and of course it was like midnight when I got the request)  I would offer this tip - buy an already designed one from Templatemonster.com then have it changed for you.  A little less expsensive then a design company to start from the ground up. 

The word of mouth thing is also on our side, but I find the biggest mouth is mine.  I was looking at tablecloth fabric at a trade show, wondering out loud how it would photograph, and when the salesperson asked why, I explained I would like to see if it would work as a backdrop.  She then proceeeded to show me the photography on printed sales items and tell me how an employee claimed he was a hobbist/practically pro photographer and she didn't like how the photos turned out.  A champaygne colored item looked grey, and so on.  After about a half hour of discussing the pros and cons of several photos, she asked if I could take better pictures.  Now I have the company agreeing to send me the product (they were in Wisconsin) I will take the photos and then send it all back. I didn't set out to critique her stuff, but I did let her know what I did, and it turned into a job lead for me.  It is like some customers are just waiting for you to walk up and say 'I can do that for you'.

OK gotta stop now, lunch is ready.

Stella

Hi!

I am in a very small/rural community that actually functions as a district of towns.  I use marketing postcards I created myself.  Instead of the avery dennison type, which are smaller and the gloss isn't as nice, I created two cards on one piece of 8.5 X 11 inch high gloss photo paper.  Then I use my cutter to make two extra long postcards that showcase my work nicely.  I staple a business card to the back of each one and carry them everywhere.  As I hand them out, i try to be as friendly as possible, and overcome peoples objections by letting them know that even if they don't need portraits at the moment I would really appreciate it if they could pass the postcard along or even put it on their fridge. We all know when people come to visit, we check out the fridge for the latest pics and cards, etc.

Being friendly and always carry examples of your work have been my best advertising.  (and its pretty cheap!)

:)

Barbara

I understand being on a tight budget.  To get a website up that looks very nice and is FREE, go to www.freewebs.com.  All I did was registered my name for a domain name (approx $20 a year) and they let you use it, and there are no pop up's or their name on your site or anything like that! (if you have a domain name...and you can registere one through them!) My website is:  www.llsphotography.com to give you an idea as to what you can do.   Also, go to www.marketingtool.com and register with them for free.  If someone googles your state, with the word photographers after it (example Montana Photographers) marketingtool always comes up first!  So your name will be on there and you will get exposure!  I am in the same boat, I do not have a studio, but am a wedding photographer (and I also have a full time job as a receptionist...saving money to open a studio) so putting my name in the phonebook is not possible right now.  But that will be next!  I agree, start with a website, and build your way up!  Also, bridal shows are well worth the investment!

Hope that helps!

Offering my 2 cents as well.     When I started and could not afford any advertising I just made my own card in photoshop and had 4x6's printed at the cheapest place I could find.  (costco, winkflash)     Went around town and hung them at shops, restaurants etc.      The next thing I did was find out what festival's I could get a booth at for little or no money.       Turns out the childrens festival was free so I set up a booth and enlarged some pictures and tons of people grabbed my flyers.       Word of mouth has been great so far.   Offer incentives to people who refer you to someone and you get a booking out of it.       After a shoot I would put together a little wallet sized print with a picture or two from the shoot and my contact info. and had them give them out to friends/family.                 If you want to get into shooting high school seniors all it takes it one person that you shoot and they get all their friends to come to you.   Then they pass you on to their JR. friends that will be seniors the next year.       I have not done any advertising for seniors.. they just come to me b/c they liked what i did for their friends pictures.                  I just signed up for a yahoo web search engine $9 a month and when they type in Bend, Or. Photographers my name comes up at the top.   Pretty cool.              Here is a sample of my cheap 4x6 card that I pass out..          GOOD LUCK.

Love your card Kristi.  The blue background is delightful.

There is definitely a use for those inexpenisve 4x6 prints for marketing!

Tom_Steele:

Advertising is a big part of my life, so I have some experience here.  First off, while word of mouth is essential, it is slow in most cases.  I would say you MUST have a webpage nowadays.  I also don't know how you can compete without being in the yellowpages if you are in anything that even resembles a decent size city.  It is the first place that many people will go to when looking for a photographer.

Getting off my "professional soapbox" and just relating an anecdotal story - when my wife and I were planning out wedding, the first thing we did was search the yellow pages.  Next we needed to know if the photographer was any good and how much he/she charged for their services.  What is the easiest way to do that?  Pick up the phone and call, right?  Wrong.  How would we know if they were any good over the phone?  We went to their website.  We didn't even look at anyone who didn't have a website because as soon as we started looking at websites, we found a couple that were in our price range and seemed to be making excellent photos.

THEN we called, and eventually arranged for a meeting with the photographer (at his studio/home) and got a feel for whether we liked him and felt comfortable with him.  He was a very mild-mannered, low-key gentleman and it was clear that he had another full-time job, but also did the photography seriously.  We were able to look at demo wedding BOOKS (not just selected good photos) and we decided that he was going to meet our needs just fine.  And he did, and even exceeded our expectations.

But, hopefully that gives you an idea of the process the buyer is likely going through today.

YES, many people will go with word of mouth, IF they have gotten a recommendation from a friend they trust and remember it.  But, you have a very limited amount of control over word of mouth.  It spreads at a rate you cannot control.  The yellow pages is within your control and the website is within your control.

Beyond that, I'd also consider radio if you have an affordable option once you begin making money.  It is cheaper than TV or Newspaper, and can put your name in people's mind as "the wedding photographer" in their area.  Advertise on the RIGHT stations.  NOT the stations YOU listen to.  Many people assume that what they  listen to is what EVERYONE listens to.  You are wrong.  Each station has a very specific target audience and you should take advantage of that.  For a wedding photographer, I would consider Pop/Top 40 (young women get married - mostly) and I would ask to see the ratings in the Women 18-24 range before buying.  Also, don't get caught in the trap of trying to get the details of your message in a radio commercial.  The only purposes of the radio commercial is to: 

A.  Make sure they know your business NAME.  They can look up your phone number/address in the yellow pages or the internet.

B.  Make it sound like you are THE most successful wedding photographer in your area.  People like to deal with successful people.

C.  Make sure it runs enough to almost, but not quite, be annoying.  Repetition is the key.  If you buy 10 commercials and then don't know why you didn't see results, it isn't because radio doesn't work, it is because you didn't use it correctly.  You have to buy enough to get past the clutter in most people's daily lives and minds and start to establish a foothold.

That's it.  Don't try to tell them about how you can shoot color or black and white.  Don't explain the package prices.  Don't even give your phone number.  NAME, I AM SUCCESSFUL AND EVERYONE WHO KNOWS WHAT THEY ARE DOING USES ME FOR THEIR WEDDINGS, FREQUENCY.

Depending on where you live, and how much you are making, radio may be out of your budget for some time.  But I toss that out there as a way to build you business once you have started to see some success.  

The primary requirements are yellow pages and web page.  I can't even imagine choosing someone who didn't have those two basics to show they were serious about their business and not just playing with expensive cameras and trying to make money at something they weren't really professional at doing. 

Thank you for taking the time to type this out Tom.  You have helped me a lot!

Good advice from the rest of you as well.  I am still a good ways from being at this point, but I am soaking up all the info I can get!

Bing

1. Website

2. Donate to any and every charity doing fundraisers, Offer to take some photos of said fundraiser for the groups (this has two fold effect, Usually the people organizing the fundraisers are well to do, and this is a way to get your name in there heads and free advertising when they are listing the gifts and who gave them.)

3. Call the local schools and ask the secretaries to "nominate" a few seniors to recieve "free" sessions and then give them a TON of wallets with your name and phone number on them... (Ask them to recommend a lower income student, that may not have gotten senior pictures otherwise... they are going to be the most appreciative and talk up your studio to everyone who sees their pictures)

4. Donate to all the After Prom parties.... also offer to photograph the proms.... maybe they don't have a photographer lined up...

5. Contact Local businesses (flower shops, dress shops, bakeries, tuxedo rental stores etc..) and offer to do "custom" artwork for their store of their products at cost, if they will allow you to put up a framed advertisement for your studio in their store front.)

Just a few that have worked so far...

Lets see here...   This will be my 4th month in business...   or shall I say, "For Hire".

Yes, yes...  I know the question of "why are you chiming in" may come up...  but let me finish.. :D

I'd say less than 4 months is a very new business.  And I would not think that this business would be over run with customers as of yet... being home based etc.

What I have found so far is:  

My cards in shops and on ad boards... 0 calls.   But word of mouth from friends etc has brought me several people. Word of mouth is great stuff... but I have something better...cheesy but better... I'm gonna make you wait for it too...

With my website... I have shown an average of 275 people my work per month... (granted, I don't know how manyof these hits were real customers robots or some unlucky guy trying to look up his stock market.... *no yield photography*  hehehe 

 but.. the site allows me to show off my stuff really quick and easy...  plus friends can come and go as they please which when they see the work... they can generate more word of mouth... "I was looking at my friends webpage, the photographer, and wow..."

So a webpage is very important... but you have to use it right... 

But the number 1 shaker and mover has been me...    My secret weapon...??   My camera around my neck.  My ammo... comes in 2 sizes, business cards and 4x6 ad copies....

HOW IT WORKS:

 Camera = Instant attention getting device.... like anyone that has pumping blood in their veins can ignore the grace and beauty of a D200!

The camera causes all kinds of people to stop and ask you... "Are you a photographer"  Instead of giving them a sign,I talk.

The camera causes the ICE to break real fast, Kinda like a snow ball in hell  and Focuses the conversation on photography :D   :D  
Right where you want it....

When the prey smells right,  I smack them with a 4x6 and follow up with a business card.... 
(because 1 fits in your wallet and both can be re-passed)

Are you kidding me? Nope.. the camera is the secret weapon and the hand outs are the death blows. :)  

When asked about why I have it... hehehe  well 1st im stupid to carry it around... but i'm even more so if I left in the car ya know... So try to not get robbed... :)  That would suck.

So...   WORD of Mouth/ Website/ Ice breaking hand outs.    

Instant attention getting device "Who can ignore a huge D200?"