11 Marketing Ideas for Wedding Photographers

Marketing your wedding photography business is crucial, and while recommendations is a fantastic way to grow your business, you still want to be found, have all other marketing channels covered, and marketing ducks in align.

While being found is important, it is also important that your website and contact points are all in check and reflect you and your brand. With that in mind here are some ways to grow your wedding photography business and be found.

Advertising Methods for Wedding Photographers that Work!

Advertising and marketing your photographer business does not need to require lots of expense, but it does take time, and a plan, so think about what you currently do, don’t do, and could improve.

1. Review your website

The first point is your website, this is your shop front, it is where couples go when they find you from Google, social media, a referral, word of mouth or direct. Is your website modern and up to date? Does it reflect you and your style? Is it easy to navigate? Is it easy to use on your phone?

With all the best marketing in the world, if you website isn’t easy to use, look good or have the right information, couples will not get in touch.

Things to think about:

• Does it look great on desktop and mobiles – Is it easy to use?
• Is your blog and recent work updated or is it a year old?
• Are there clear and obvious calls to action to get in touch?
• Do you display important information? (Travel, pricing, your style and work)
• Do you have a personable about page?

Review your website, and also make sure this is something you do each year, make sure it is up to date, this is your shop front and a crucial part of your marketing.

Looking for website inspiration? Check out these beautiful wedding photographer website designs.

2. SEO – Being Found on Google

Of course SEO has to be mentioned and something that your hear and read so much about. If you are a Birmingham based wedding photographer then you want to be found when searching for a wedding photographer near Birmingham.

You want your website to be found by these couples and so it is important your site is set up to match these keywords. Location searches are a great win and easy to focus on, ensure you are set up as a Google business and place, this helps you rank for local searches such as this.

Think about what you would search in Google if you wanted to find you as a wedding photographer, ‘fine art wedding photographer Birmingham’, ‘relaxed wedding photography style’, ‘editorial wedding photographer’, ‘black and white wedding photography Birmingham’. As keywords and phrases make sure these are on your site, make sure you have a focus on there and are part of your content.

Another key part of SEO is the user experience of the site, so while you want it to look nice and reflect your brand, you also want to ensure it is easy to use. You want couples to be able to easily find information, view your work, recent weddings, social media pages, and of course to be able to easily get in touch.

Give couples options and make it easy for them to do so, phone, Instagram DM, contact form and just a simple email address.

Things to look at:

• Think about your keywords and what your couples would be searching
• Review your website speed when loading
• Build links within your site to relevant pages
• Avoid duplicate content

3. Content and Blogging

Your website is the place to share your knowledge, your work and advice. Be it useful articles on hiring a wedding photographer, to sharing recent weddings you have captured and venues you have shot at.

Adding articles is great for SEO and a great way to show your expertise to your couples with useful content. Having a blog section and recent weddings is great, but it can also have a negative effect if this is not maintained or updated, a recent wedding dated 2019 does not give a great impression, and it can leave you asking what have you been doing for the last 2 years and are you still in business?

Read our article on blog and content ideas for your website here.

4. Social Media

Instagram, Pinterest and even Facebook are great ways to be found. Instagram is a great way for couples to see your work, it could be from a tagged photo on another blog or account that leads them to you and then an enquiry.

A couple liking a photo on Pinterest and seeing the full wedding on your blog and then getting in touch as it was at their venue. Social media does not need to be paid for to be a great marketing tool, you just need to be active and consistent.

Things to do

• Post consistently
• Be active, engage with others and comments left
• Tag suppliers and your clients
• Post behind the scenes shots and stories

Posting can take time, there are plenty of scheduling tools that allow you to set up posts ready to go and will share automatically for you, this is a great time saving method, however make sure you are still active and engage via these platforms too.

5. Social Ads

Adverts on any social media platform can work well as you can be very targeted and be seen by the right people. Recently engaged, 20 miles of Birmingham, wedding planning, you can be very specific.

Getting the advert right can require lots of testing, different images and text to find which works best, this also cost money but when you find the right formula for you and can also be very cost effective.

6. Directories

There are lots of wedding related directories and platforms you can join, Bridebook, Hitched, the Knot to name a few, some are free and others are paid for. Costs can vary and so can the return on investment, so it is important to consider this when looking at which to join, Some can have millions of of views, but if the audience is not looking for a wedding photographer it does not matter to you.

We are focused on couples looking for a wedding photographer with our articles and platform focused on this, we may not have millions of views but we are very focused and targeted on our audience and niche.

Exposure is important and it is good to be seen on different platforms, it is about being selective and ensuring you are seen in the right places that are also reflective of your brand and style of couples you wish to work with.

7. Getting featured

With all the weddings you shoot, get them featured, there are lots of wedding blogs that you can submit weddings too, find and choose blogs that match your style and suit your target couples, a funky wedding blog probably won’t be the best match for a fine art wedding photo style wedding.

Being featured on blogs can help with your SEO and also put your work in front of wedding planning couples.

8. Brochures

Brochures don’t have to just be printed, an online brochure or PDF you can send to couples allows you to show pricing and package information in a formatted way that matches your style and brand.

There are lots of template you can get which you can format, add your images and text and you are good to go, or you can hire a graphic designer for a bespoke brochure.

A brochure is great to send to couples that enquire, or you could have it on your website as a quick download to get more information.

A brochure is part of the marketing journey and a great way to have a professional brochure that you can send that helps build trust with couples while also being useful and showing more of your work.

9. It’s not all Online!

While printed media and adverts in magazines are not so common, business cards still have a place. When at wedding fairs, handing out to other couples at weddings or other suppliers, it is great to have something you can just give them and can certainly have more impact and be remembered than just adding a phone number or website note to a phone.

Printed cards and business cards are great to be included with your packaging for couples photos and albums and something that can be passed to others as a referral.

10. Network

At weddings you meet lots of other suppliers, there will be venues that you have shot at multiple times, build a relationship with these, share your business cards, recommend these suppliers to others and they will also recommend you.

Network with other photographers, if there is a date you cannot do as you are booked, are there others you can recommend that you can pass the details of to your couples, and then they may recommend you if they cannot do a date as well.

This is great for not only networking and creating new business, but also have a small network of photographers you can work with and also use as a back up as well.

11. Take care of your clients

Word of mouth and recommendations is the best form of marketing, so take care of your clients. From the first contact and enquiry, right through to their wedding day, sharing their photos and creation of albums.

While the photos is the product and what couples are paying for, it is also the experience and journey they remember, you want it to be memorable, personable and enjoyable, this isn’t just a business transaction.

While your photos need to wow, you also want to be remembered, ‘Chris our photographer was amazing’. Amazing photos and that lasting impression will ensure your clients mention you when their friends get married.

Going forward

Marketing takes time, there is no quick fix and it is about ensuring all parts are working inline, you want a great website that links to your social media that is updated with recent work and posts. Be hot on your replies to couples that enquire, and don’t forget to check your DM’s!

Marketing is a funnel so ensure your website is in check and all steps and points of contact are up to date.