Want to be a SUCCESSFUL boudoir photographer?

If you want to be a successful boudoir photographer, you need to give up other types of photography and SPECIALIZE. I’m not saying you can’t photograph the other things you love, but most boudoir clients want someone who’s focus is making women look and feel beautiful.
Think about it. Do you go to a Mexican restaurant and order a ribeye steak? No. You order what they’re known for…tacos, fajitas, burritos, etc. Leave the ribeyes for the steak house, right?
P.S. I’m writing this in the middle of the Covid-19 Stay at Home order and all I want is to go to a really great restaurant. We love cooking at home, but ya know, we also like to go out to eat occasionally.
It’s the same thing with boudoir photography.
How do you niche down to just boudoir photographer?
It’s a process to specialize. But it’s worth the trouble. You’ll end up making higher sales averages and booking clients who appreciate you and love your work. Plus you’ll be able to narrow down your marketing efforts SOOO much because you’re speaking to ONE specific client.
You need to be the BEST in your area at posing and lighting.
You need to MASTER your posing and lighting for three reasons. One is to create beautiful photos that will attract your ideal client. The second is to inspire confidence in your client while you’re photographing them and the third is to generate higher sales.
You must be able to create beautiful photos to attract the type of client you want to photograph. We all know this don’t we? In any type of photography, this is a thing.
But with boudoir, you have to have the ability to direct the client and not just “let her move.”
That’s where a lot of boudoir photographers get this wrong. They want boudoir to be “natural”. But the thing is the client can LOOK natural, even with specific posing direction, if you do it right.
And when you have mastered posing and lighting, it inspires confidence in your client since you obviously know what you’re doing, which leads to higher sales averages.
Boudoir photographers should focus their marketing to one specific client.
The same idea applies for branding for a boudoir photography business as any other business. You want a brand and messaging that speaks to your one client and draws them in.
But you need to make it obvious you’re a boudoir photographer, as well.
I’ve said this next sentence a few times already in this article, and I bet some of you hate hearing it. You really need to, at minimum, stop advertising other forms of photography if you want to be a successful boudoir photographer.
You can still photograph it… but you can’t advertise for it.
When your client finds you, whether that’s through your website or social media platforms, they need to know as soon as they see your work exactly what you do. That means you need to remove everything that isn’t boudoir photography from your socials and your website.
You can be a successful boudoir photographer IF you niche down.
People have super short attention spans. You have just a few seconds to actually catch their attention online or in person, so make it absolutely clear you’re a boudoir photographer. Don’t let anything else distract them.
If you’ve been shooting all the things AND advertising it, it’s time for a brand overhaul.
And if you need help, email me at tracylynncoaching@gmail.com.

Tracy Lynn is a boudoir photogapher for brides-to-be in the St. Louis area, and a mentor + coach for photographers looking to level up their businesses with better systems and processes.
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