Darlene Hildebrandt was running a very successful Edmonton (Canada) studio with her first husband when we first met in 2000.

She’d come from nowhere to become one of our best clients in spectacular fashion – spectacular because it happened so quickly!

Often we find new clients “convert” their business to Queensberry quite slowly. In many cases they have contracts with their customers to deliver a Brand X album, and feel obligated to do so.

But having made the emotional commitment to move on, Darlene wasn’t prepared to be that passive.

Every single one of her upcoming wedding clients upgraded to Queensberry and paid more money for it.

In this brief interview Darlene explains HOW and WHY she did it, and how you can too.

Darlene eventually became a Queensberry representative, and continued to be so for almost a decade. That has given her enormous experience of the challenges faced by studios, and makes this interview even more worth the listen.

Click here to listen to our interview with Darlene.

Cheers, Nigel.

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Kathryn tweeted Ian about his blog post on selling to men, saying her studio actually did better with guys than girls. He asked her if she’d mind sharing with us – Nigel

Just like Johannes, I read Ian’s comments the other day about selling to men with great interest, because of late, we’ve noticed a real trend in our business: Grooms seem to like us more than brides do!

While that’s actually mildly alarming in one way (we don’t want brides NOT to like us!), it’s also a good thing. It means we don’t need to worry about the grooms seeming bored, terrified, or otherwise un-engaged with us and what we do.

We now frequently find that a couple is meeting with us because when the groom looked at photographers, he liked us.

When we stopped to think about the comments the guys had made to us, we realised there were a couple of key items that stood out…

1. Our web presence. Our wedding website is a ‘blogsite’ – in other words, our blog IS our site and portfolio.

There are pros and cons of approaching it this way, and we know that, but we’ve found that the chronological approach (and the bite-sized nature) of a blog is a great way to present our work to guys.

They can visit our site, and rather than look at something complicated or fancy, they can simply see pictures, and read stories.

As much or as little as they like, but even from reading one post on the front page, they’re confronted with not only a glimpse at what our work looks like, but an idea of who we are, who our clients are, and what the shooting experience is like. I think the idea of ‘getting straight to the action’ kind of appeals to guys.

2. The Checklist Effect. One thing I’m sure everyone in the wedding industry has realised is that brides these days are switched on, well-informed and armed to the hilt with ideas, questions and preconceptions.

That’s a good thing – it means that your clients know what they want, and gives you a better idea of whether you’re the right person to give that to them. However, one thing I find unfortunate about it is that I meet a lot of brides for whom this means that the only thing they DON’T focus on is the images themselves (well, at least not until later when they see them!), because they can get caught up in a whirlwind of prices, packages, and details.

I like to call this The Checklist Effect – that poor bride has read 10 lists in magazines telling her all the boxes her photographer needs to check to make sure her day is perfect. And she wants a perfect day – fair enough too!

We’ve found that because men are (sometimes) perhaps a little more, uh, unencumbered with such details, they’re able to simply say: “I like that picture”.  Similarly, when looking at your albums, men typically will have less to go on. They haven’t read about the options, they probably haven’t seen that many other albums, and they’re not necessarily bringing many expectations.

When you hand them a Queensberry album, they just say: “Wow. That’s cool.” That’s a good place to start from in gaining new clients or selling your products to men.

So, I guess our approach to selling to men is pretty simple. We’re up front, simple, straight to the facts, and we let our work, and the albums, stand on their own.

Sound good, guys?

Kathryn – Kathryn Wilson Photography, NZ

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Yesterday, I had one of the cheesiest sales line I’ve heard in quite a while tried on me…

“Nigel, how will you feel tomorrow if you don’t buy it now.”

I didn’t buy and I feel OK.

But I did buy wedding photography recently. I’m not sure which one of Johannes’ categories I fit best, you’ll have to ask him.

And Ian – who says that, as a man, I’m not interested in the detailed (girlie) stuff? I was. Maybe that makes me a ‘Control Freak’?

Here’s my take on selling to a man… (including a metro-sexual one).

1) Don’t try any cheesy sales lines on me… I’ll think you’re a douche. Have a conversation with me and don’t touch me too much (push, prod or force me into anything). Be a normal person and I’ll probably come to the decision you want on my own.

2) For the past 12 months I’ve been planning this wedding, and I’m a little over it. Connect with me on a different level. Please. It’s not hard to figure out what I’m interested in and have a conversation with me about that.

3) Ian said we have egos. So true. I want to feel an important part of the photos and album too. I might not even know I want to be, until I’m asked. So ask.

4) Don’t trivialize or brush off the cost of this thing.

5) Ask me what I like or love, don’t tell me.

All that stuff helps when it comes to the sale time, but here’s the kicker I reckon… (for me anyway):

6) Make me feel like you care about my bride as much as I do. Make her the most important thing in the world, make her laugh, make her cry (the good kind), make her trust you… And I’ll buy anything from you.

Cheers, Nigel

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Listen to people talk and you’d think only two people are involved in buying an album—the bride and her mother.

But what happens if the person making the decisions is the guy? How do you sell to him?

Well it’s been a while since I got married but I’m a guy … let me think:

If the first time you think about me is when you finally realise that I’m blocking your sale, too late! You needed to start paying attention a lot earlier.

But let’s start at that point anyway, and work backwards…

1. If you ignore me while doing that sales job on my girl I’m probably not going to be happy. There’s been a lot of ignoring me going on recently by everyone from wedding planners and florists to priests and parents. I know it’s her day, and I love her … but I’ve got an ego, and now you want me to spend … how much?

2. If I was as interested in girly stuff as she is, the dress and the flowers, the pretty details and the fairy tale, chances are I’d be going out with a guy. Don’t make the album just a souvenir of all that stuff, like one of those frilly bedrooms that makes a real man feel an intruder.

3. How can the album appeal to me? Emotion’s great if it’s authentic. I don’t like fakery, that’s all. Our friends’ pictures on Facebook and Flickr capture the emotion and connection and fun. Put them all together and I’d get the story of the day … sort of. I don’t want to lose that, I want you to distill it into a real story … beautifully told … to last. Something that shows both of us, both our families, tells both our stories, and captures the significance of the day. Without me feeling like a stage prop in someone else’s dream.

4. Your sample albums need to meet the same test, or you lost me when we first called. If I can get an emotional tug from someone else’s photos there’s a good chance I’ll love my own.

5. And finally, I’m not a “man”, I’m me. She’s not a bride, she’s my bride. I hope you got to know us both before the wedding, because your real magic is to treat us as individuals. Not to mention that it’s easier for us to buy from someone we know.

Cheers, Ian

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