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Welcome back to "Tried and True with a Dash of Woo"! In this episode, we dive deep into the world of client experience with the talented Breeanna Farmer, an intimate wedding photographer and videographer. Breeanna shares her journey from the corporate world of accounting to capturing raw, unposed moments that make your heart skip. We discuss the importance of a positive client experience, how to set the right tone from the first contact, and the magic of personalization in every interaction. Breeanna also reveals her top strategies for maintaining consistency across all platforms and the role of CRMs in managing client communications effectively. Whether you're a wedding photographer or any creative business owner, this episode is packed with valuable insights to elevate your client relationships.
Show Notes:
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LEARN MORE about Renee at
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psst: join us in Elevate
Welcome back to "Tried and True with a Dash of Woo"! In this episode, we dive deep into the world of client experience with the talented Breeanna Farmer, an intimate wedding photographer and videographer. Breeanna shares her journey from the corporate world of accounting to capturing raw, unposed moments that make your heart skip. We discuss the importance of a positive client experience, how to set the right tone from the first contact, and the magic of personalization in every interaction. Breeanna also reveals her top strategies for maintaining consistency across all platforms and the role of CRMs in managing client communications effectively. Whether you're a wedding photographer or any creative business owner, this episode is packed with valuable insights to elevate your client relationships.
Show Notes:
CONNECT WITH BREEANNA:
Website: https://breeannakay.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/breeannakayphotography
Podcast: REBEL CEO
BOOK A FREE DISCOVERY CALL WITH RENEE
LEAVE A REVIEW in 5 seconds flat
JOIN the Podcast & Creative Community
LEARN MORE about Renee at
www.reneebowen.com - main site (photography + coaching)
& www.reneebowencoaching.com (coaching + courses)
SOCIALS:
Instagram
Facebook
TikTok
PHOTOGRAPHERS: Join ELEVATE:
https://reneebowen.com/elevate
FREE TRAINING for Photographers
Make sure you TAG me when you post on social and once a month, we choose one person who leaves us a review and we'll send you a FREE audible book of your choice!
My thoughts are that if you have something that clients are continually asking you about over and over again, especially if it's creating that sense of like anxiety I know when I used to get those emails, it would just be like instant. I would feel like I was behind, even if I wasn't. So when you're getting that, it's time to build a step into your process so that you can answer this question before they have to ask it.
Speaker 2:Welcome to Tried and True with a dash of woo, where we blend rock solid tips with a little bit of magic. I'm Renee Bowen, your host, life and business coach and professional photographer at your service. We are all about getting creative, diving into your business and playing with manifestation over here. So are you ready to get inspired and have some fun? Let's dive in. So are you ready to get inspired and have some fun? Let's dive in. Today we're talking with Brianna Farmer, or you can just call her Bri. She's most known for being an intimate wedding photographer and videographer and also the host of her own podcast. You can find all that information in the show notes, by the way, so y'all can connect with her. She's just absolutely a delight to chat with, and we are talking all about client experience today.
Speaker 2:Rihanna wasn't always a full-time photographer and in fact, she used to work in the corporate world crunching numbers as an accountant which is very interesting, I think.
Speaker 2:But deep down, she knew that something was missing and she really wanted to capture moments that really mattered, really raw, you know, unposed moments that just kind of makes your heart skip. And that's when she decided to take that leap of faith and follow her true calling Fast forward to today. She is also really, really passionate about helping other fellow photographers manifest their full potential and turn their hobby into a profitable business, which I absolutely love, because I do that as well, and I think that the more people we have talking about that and walking that walk the better. So we have a really great conversation, like I said, centered around client experience, and she walks us through her processes and why she does what she does and some really good tips that a lot of you guys are going to find super helpful. So let's dive into my conversation with Bree. Hey, Bree, thanks for being here with us today. I am really excited to chat with you about client experience.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I'm really excited to talk with you too. Thank you so much for having me, of course.
Speaker 2:Okay, so, like I said, we're going to be kind of going deep into this client experience conversation today and something that I'm like a really big believer in and that I've leaned heavily into since the beginning of my own photography business, especially in reference to seniors, because that's what I specialize in, you know. So I'm always kind of talking about this, but I really kind of want to start us off asking you how you approach this in your business and, specifically, how do you set the tone for that positive client experience from, like the very first contact with you and like, why is that so important to you? So, like a two part question why is it so important for you to implement that as an intimate wedding photographer and videographer? So I guess, like you know what does that mean for you from the very start? And then, why is it important?
Speaker 1:Yeah. So your client experience, I think, actually starts with the first time your client sees you, whether you know that they are looking at you yet or not. So it could be on your social media, your website, because that's like the first time they're consuming your content and they feel like they're connecting with you, even if you're not quite connecting with them yet. So a lot of people do assume that the client experience starts with your inquiry response, but that's likely just the first time that you are aware of that potential client following along. So, across all of your platforms, you want to have a positive and supportive client experience. You also want your branding and your personality to be cohesive everywhere that you are. So when a potential client goes to reach out to you, when they get to the point where they're inquiring, make sure that you're taking the time to answer any specific questions that that client has and to personalize your message and your response even if you're using an email template to start off, so that you can touch on something that they've shared within their inquiry. So, for example, if a client says I have two dogs, you can say, oh my gosh, I love that you have two dogs, so do I. Are you thinking of having them be a part of your engagement photos too, or you could say will they be there on your wedding day? Just something to let them know, like they're not a number to you. You actually are listening and paying attention to what they said. And then I think it's also important that we're getting back to our clients within a timely manner. This is one of the things that's so easy to do.
Speaker 1:Well, but it can absolutely tank a client experience if you don't prioritize responding to emails or responding in whatever way your client reaches out. If you're away from the office, you can set vacation responders, or if you're doing something and just like won't be able to fully give the attention back that the email requires for a while, shoot them an email back and just say hey, I saw that you sent this message. I just want to let you know. I'll have time to sit down with this. They can't get back to you on this date, so they don't feel like you are ignoring them, because then that creates a sense of fear and they might even be worried like is this person reliable? Are they going to show up for my shoot or for my wedding date, which is not a place that you want your clients in.
Speaker 1:And then to answer the other part of your question, I think that having a positive client experience is extremely important to me as both a photographer and a videographer, because I'm in the service industry and ultimately I'm a service provider and if I make my couples feel icky then that's going to carry over into how they feel about their galleries or their films when they're delivered. So they could have an awful client experience with me. And even if I deliver gorgeous work, in the end they're never going to recommend me or want to work with me again, moving forward, if I make them feel gross or unsupported throughout the process.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's a really big one. People don't really I feel like think about it in those terms, maybe because it really does make a huge difference how you leave people feeling you know, and yeah, you're so right, like you know and and your website is so awesome, like you really get it from the very beginning.
Speaker 2:Just as a little side note, um, that little point about your branding needs to be, like you said, consistent and sort of like exude that vibe something I'm always kind of talking about and you can tell that you really did that deeper work of you know on yourself, like what you know your purpose is and really expressing it through what you do, which is really hard, I think, for a lot of creatives to sort of wrap their head around sometimes. At least, I've seen that a lot in my coaching and I feel like when you see examples of that out in the wild, I always like to call it out so that's a big big thing. I think people really get it. Like you said, we don't know, we might think that, oh, this is our first experience with them, but that person could have been following you and stalking you on social media for months. You know I get stuff like that a lot with, especially with seniors.
Speaker 2:I just recently had that experience and I was like wow, like I had no idea who this person really was, but she just booked a session with me and when she booked her initial reach out was I've been following you since I was in middle school and you shot this person blah, blah, blah, like you know, years and years ago and ever since then I knew that I wanted you to do my senior photos and I was like that is so cool, like I, you know what I mean.
Speaker 2:I didn't know that I wanted you to do my senior photos and I was like that is so cool, like I, you know what I mean. I didn't know that I was having all these touch points with her all these years and so that's such a good point that people really need, like you guys. I hope that you really hear. That is like that's why the consistency is so important as well. Like, even if you pivot and shift and you've got like something going on, you want to maybe do a brand refresh or whatever but your messaging and your voice, that consistency and letting people know that you are who you say, you are basically right. What kind of strategies do you use to understand and meet those unique needs of each of your clients?
Speaker 1:So before I officially book any of my wedding couples, I'll hop on the phone for a discovery call with them. So on that call I'm going to pick their brain on what really matters to them and what they hope to see from their final galleries and their film. So during the call I take notes and I reference back to the notes before their engagement session and before their wedding. Because it's awful when you like spill your heart out to somebody and give them all this information, especially when they have to kind of go out of their way to connect with you and to give you the question or the answers to the questions that you're asking, and then you realize down the road that they forgot everything you said to them. So it's really important that you don't just ask questions and then never reference back or forget what they said.
Speaker 1:So if they're telling you like we want photos that feel like really organic in their discovery call, don't show up to their engagement session and shoot super posed and not give them what they specifically asked for, otherwise they're going to feel unheard and unseen.
Speaker 1:So I send out questionnaires, also before the engagement session and before the wedding, where they can tell me anything from ideas that they have for photo locations or things that are on the more technical side, to who they are as humans, and I ask, like, what is the essence of this season of life that they want to capture? Because that kind of touches more on, like the feeling behind what they're getting versus just how it's going to happen, and then I can take that information and use it to personalize the way that I approach shooting their wedding day, both in the timeline and the structure of the day and also in my posing and my prompting for them. So, because I'm taking the time again to ask these questions and then I'm listening to their answers and reflecting their wishes and their wants and needs in the service that they hired me for, they feel seen and they feel heard by me and ideally then the end result is going to be so in alignment with who they are and what they're hoping for from their photos or their film.
Speaker 2:I love that attention to detail and you're right, like I see, you know, a lot of people do use questionnaires and forms and things like that. But you know that's a very good point about making sure that you are actually using that information to let the clients know that you have using that information to let the clients know that you have read it, you've integrated it, you understand it. Bringing that up in conversation during the consult and things like that is super important and I know a lot of. Have you always done consults with your clients prior? Is that something you've always done?
Speaker 1:No, I haven't. So I actually am a millennial and I think it's a millennial thing. We hate getting on the phone, yeah. So yeah, I would avoid phone calls at all costs. Like if a couple ever asked me to hop on the phone, of course I would, but no, I did not start incorporating discovery calls. I would say, gosh, I'm not sure, maybe like four years ago. So I've been doing photography professionally for nine years, so it would have been a while before I started making sure that I connected with couples in that sense, before I actually locked them in.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and you feel like it made a big difference in the quality of everything.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I definitely do. I think that you can get a really good feel for people on the phone, and also I've had couples that I've connected with on calls and realized I might not be the best photographer for them and then that saves them and me from kind of an awkward situation down the road where we're not really able to work together in the best way possible and there are other photographers who might be an amazing fit for them, so I'm able to actually serve them better by referring them to somebody else.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's a really good point, and sometimes you just can't really vibe that in an email. You know, yeah, yeah, okay. So what? I know? There's probably a lot of things you could say, but what's one main piece of advice that you would give to new photographers about building strong client relationships in particular?
Speaker 1:Um, my favorite thing to tell people is to always let your clients know what to expect next. So have you ever seen in Facebook groups where people post saying, oh, my client emailed me to see if their galleries do, but the comment section it says, well, why don't they look at the contract? And people are siding with the photographer. But I'm going to go ahead and say that we all know how well most people read their contracts and a lot of clients are going to find sending a quick email to you to be easier than tracking down and reading through your contract, and some probably don't even realize that you might have this information in there. And my thoughts are that if you have something that clients are continually asking you about over and over again, especially if it's creating that sense of like anxiety I know when I used to get those emails it would just be like instant. I would feel like I was behind, even if I wasn't. So when you're getting that, it's time to build a step into your process so that you can answer this question before they have to ask it.
Speaker 1:So my turnaround times are in my client engagement session preparation info and for weddings they're also sent out in an email titled what to expect after your wedding. That goes out the day following their wedding, and then I always, always tell my clients at the end of their session or their wedding just really quick, you can expect to see previews on this date and the full gallery by this date. So not only am I putting it in writing multiple places, but I'm also letting them know because, like, the first thing on their mind is when am I going to see photos? So I'm letting them know right then and there, as soon as the wedding is finished. The next steps are previews, and here's when you can expect them. And then the step after that's your full gallery and this is when you can expect that.
Speaker 2:Yeah, managing those expectations is huge. That's one of the things that I see all the time in my Facebook groups all the time, and even though I only do like a handful of weddings these days, it's still the same. With, like any any niche of photography, like seniors portraits, you know everything. Like. If your clients don't know what's coming, they're going to ask you those questions and yes, you might have that wording in your contract, but we know that people don't read all of that, so I've always really kind of harped on that as well.
Speaker 2:We need to be kind of telling them in many different places, but also in many different ways, and mainly because we know that not everybody learns the same right, nobody has the exact same brain and not everybody processes their world and information in the same way. Some people are more auditory, some people are visual, some people have a mix of all of that, and so we need to make sure that we're meeting our clients where they are, I believe, and really like providing that information in various forms over and over again. So it's going to make our job a lot easier in the long run, but it's also really there to help them feel calm and to know what's coming, because if your client is calm and always knows from the get-go what's coming next and what those next steps are, they're going to be more relaxed because we're exuding that confidence in telling them all those steps. And I do feel like this is one of those learning curves that I see a lot of new photographers in particular, you know, get thrown at them right.
Speaker 2:Like they learn the hard way, like, oh, I did not realize I had to like provide information in so many different ways and so many times, even those logistics of client management, like scheduling and communications, you know, without sacrificing your personal touch, like you know, using a CRM and things like that, what your process is, because I'm a really big believer that when we utilize the power of those systems, we can actually, you know, accomplish that goal of helping our clients feel really handheld without actually having to physically handhold them.
Speaker 1:Yeah, for sure. So I love my CRM. I use Dubsado. I know a lot of photographers use HoneyBook. I just I started on Dubsado so that's that's where I am and it works super well for automated workflows.
Speaker 1:So within each so like if I have a wedding with an engagement session or a wedding without an engagement session, or a photo wedding or a photo video wedding, like I have different workflows set up for each type of job that I typically book and then those workflows have the sequence of emails that will go out to my couples and it will trigger each different touch point in our process together. So like, when I'm ready to onboard them as a client, they'll get the email that is all about making things official, and then when I'm ready to do the engagement session stuff with them, they'll get information on that, and when it's time to start planning for the wedding, they'll get information on that. And when it's time to start planning for the wedding, they'll get a questionnaire sent for that. So some of the things in my workflows have to be approved by me because it might not always happen or I might have like a separate conversation going in email with my couple and I don't want to send them like a random, obviously automated email when I'm actively sending them emails on a different topic. And then I use email templates for a lot of touch points, as I've mentioned session reminder email, that like recaps where we're meeting and kind of final steps to help them prep for their engagement session, along with my wedding questionnaire and that what to expect after your wedding emails.
Speaker 1:All start off as templates and then I do go in and I personalize things that are more specific to the couple or to the wedding and some of the emails and others are ready to go as is. But ultimately having the starting point helps me to serve my clients that much better than writing those all from scratch would. When I have those set up to start with. Then I'm able to pump that much more value into what I'm sending, versus if I tried to write out everything from scratch, I didn't inevitably miss stuff along the way and wouldn't be able to kind of prep them and like walk them down that process of what to expect next again with me as well.
Speaker 1:So when couples respond to those initial trigger emails, it's all me responding with the more personalized suggestions for how we can approach their shoot or their wedding day timeline based on their answers and then just making sure that your emails, even if they are automated, sound like yourself speaking and that you're infusing your brand voice into it, versus something that sounds organic and impersonal, can be huge. And I even send out like an email a couple of weeks before the wedding automatically that reminds the couple to remember the meaning of their wedding day and to stay fully present and engaged with their people on their wedding day, and I reassure them that if they do that, I've got photos and video covered and we'll take care of the rest. So that's an automated email, but it can be so sweet and feel so personal, even if it's a part of my process.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and well, and that's the importance importance of really clearly and deeply identifying your brand voice and your website, your socials, all the things with your voice and your unique touch points. Then it'll be a little bit easier to be able to infuse it into those client communications and templates, like you said. But yeah, the whole client management. It's really shocking to me when I see photographers who've been in business for a while and they don't use anything like a CRM. It just blows my mind. I don't know if it's like the Virgo in me, like I am, you know, and look, I am not. I don't use my CRM to the best of its abilities. I know that, like I know it can do so much more, but I still like I don't know what I would do without it.
Speaker 1:I'm also a Virgo. I don't know if you saw my reaction, but that's why I had the reaction. That's awesome.
Speaker 2:That's one of the questions I like to ask people, like at the end. So I'm glad that we already covered it, that's so fun, yeah. So, like that Virgo, like I've always been, like I've got to get organized, I got to. I want to know what's coming, I want to know you know all that stuff.
Speaker 2:And I have, like, high anxiety, like I'm one of those people who've been, you know, dealt with anxiety my whole life, which is probably why I was led to help other people in that way. But you know that's also part of it is that I feel like that, will you know, it calms my anxiety to know where I am in that process and if I'm calm, I'm going to be so much more present for my clients as well, and it's going to help them if they have it as well.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I always imagine the people who don't use CRMs and I'm sure not all of them are like this. But I can think back to myself before I used workflows in my CRM and I feel like a lot of them might just be reacting to when they get an email from their clients, instead of leading them to the next step. So when their client wants something from them, like, oh, let's start planning the wedding timeline, then their client reaches out and they're just reacting. But reacting doesn't free you up schedule-wise as well as taking the steps to start the process does sometimes, because you can do that and kind of make it fit better into your workflow. Then you can when you all of a sudden get your wedding emails. I know that you're not in the wedding space, but we have like a very distinct wedding season here because I'm in the Midwest, so it's really cold in the winter, so then everything kind of would start coming in at once if I wasn't taking the steps to work through things ahead of time with them.
Speaker 2:That's a really, really good point because, yeah, the seasonal thing and not only am I not deep into the wedding space, like I said, I still do some, but they're mainly previous clients. I'm in California so I don't really have a season, like you know, we shoot year round. But a lot of my coaching clients, a lot of people in my communities, even if they're not doing weddings and they're senior photographers or, you know, family portrait photographers it's still similar in that way where you know you are limited in the Midwest and on the East Coast by your weather. So that seasonal aspect of what we do, you know, really has to be you got to know that so that you can project, like you said. And so using systems and CRMs and things like that templates to help you not be so reactive is a really really big, important piece of that.
Speaker 2:And so if anybody's listening and you haven't done that yet, I'm not telling you what system to use. There's lots of really great ones. Just find one that works for you and do the work of just getting it done. And if you can't do it yourself, find someone who's a specialist in it and work with that person. Like I'm all about, you know, just finding somebody else if you need to do that, to walk you through it, if you have to, because just setting it up is going to help you feel way more, you know, secure and just confident going forward, and I know it feels like a very daunting thing, but it's really a really big, big piece of the puzzle, so I'm glad that you brought that up too. Okay, so you used to be. You were an accountant, which actually totally vibes with the Virgo, by the way.
Speaker 1:Yeah. Yeah, I didn't hate the accounting work, I just I needed more freedom in my life because I'm a Sagittarius moon.
Speaker 2:Yeah, okay, so yeah, what's your big three? So you'm a Sagittarius moon. Yeah, okay, so yeah, what's your big three? So you got a Sag moon. What's your rising? It is a Cancer rising. Oh, okay, yes, yes, yes, yes, I totally get that All right.
Speaker 1:I'm a Libra rising and an Aries moon.
Speaker 2:Oh, I love Aries. Yeah, I'm married to an Aries sun and he's a lot, but it's really interesting having the moon with his son. So, yeah, but it is okay. So, as a former accountant and you know how, do you think that career has influenced your approach to client service in photography and something super creative?
Speaker 1:So I definitely want to make sure that I'm taking care of the behind the scenes, the office work side of things for my clients. Because of my experience working in a corporate office, I feel like I'm just on top of things like planning ahead, responding to emails and staying organized. Because of that, I also didn't love the like passive, aggressive office emails that you get sometimes. Do you know what I'm talking about? Okay, yeah, I don't. They just rubbed me the wrong way. Even if they were technically polite, it just was weird to me. So I try to not sound so automated and robotic all the time. I mean, sometimes I probably do better than others, but yeah, I try to infuse a little bit of my personality into my emails instead of saying things like man, what do they say? Even it's been so long Like yeah, I totally respond yeah, yeah, something weird.
Speaker 2:Yeah, they go around the back door to let you know like it's. This is not. This is your fault. So, you need to. You know what I mean. Like it's really, yeah, I totally get it. Passive aggressiveness in general is I just can't.
Speaker 1:I can't yeah same. And then I guess, guess in general, just like reliability and handling certain situations professionally are something that I learned from my time in accounting professionally, but not passive, aggressively yeah, exactly.
Speaker 2:No, that makes a lot of sense, and I mean, I feel like you probably have that upper hand too, though, because a lot of I work with a lot of creatives and a lot of photographers in a lot of different ways, within groups and one-on-one, and one of the very common things is that that lack of financial understanding I want to say, like it's not that they don't understand, it's that they don't. They were probably taught somewhere along the way as a creative with, with a creative brain, that that's just not for them. You know, like that's that's, I'm not good at that. I'm not good at math, or I'm not good at that. It's really interesting how that all just sinks in Right, because, like, I vividly remember having that experience in like sixth grade, and I remember the teacher like it was yesterday, you know, and I just couldn't, like I had such a hard time with, with learning like pre-algebra, and from that point on, it like colored my entire existence with like numbers and thinking that I was bad at math, but I wasn't, like I really, really wasn't.
Speaker 2:It was just that I didn't understand it and I needed to have it explained in a little bit different way, and you know my generation. It was just like well, you don't learn it that way, you're out of luck, right? So I feel like so many creatives have that connotation, you know. And so, as somebody who probably doesn't have that, right, I mean, if you went into accounting, you probably like numbers, or at least understand it, and you know what I mean like feel a different way about it, right?
Speaker 1:yeah, I'm like the opposite of most creatives in this sense, because I actually didn't consider myself creative until, I would say, like a couple years ago. So I liked photography and I would do this like little dream journal where I cut things out and like maybe make a little mural on my wall with post-it notes or something. But I just I never saw myself as creative. I never felt like I excelled in art classes and that's kind of what I associated creativity with.
Speaker 1:But then in other ways, looking back, I definitely did have that creative side to me because I went through like the MySpace girl scene phase and like I could say that I went through it and how I dressed, or just like different ways, and some of those were taking self-portraits of myself because I had a camera and would play with it a lot longer than I was professionally pursuing photography for. But I just, yeah, I thought of myself as like somebody who wanted to go to college and then get the quote unquote big girl office job. But I think somewhere along the way something told me I wasn't creative and I just thought of, like putting yourself out there in that way as vulnerable and scary, and I never tapped into that side of myself until more recently.
Speaker 2:That's super interesting because it's like the opposite right Of what we were just talking about, and it's so interesting because it's kind of the same coin, different side, you know, being sort of told or believe that you aren't. You know, because of some sort of belief that was installed early on that yeah, okay, I'm not good at drawing or I'm not good at art or whatever, and so that's what it means to be creative. So obviously I'm not creative. That's just a really interesting. But so what do you think really was the thing that made you realize that you were like, was you know? You said photography, which is something you really enjoy doing, but was there like a moment or a set of moments or something like that was a catalyst for you that made you sort of like get like oh no, I can be this definition of creative. This is my way of expressing that.
Speaker 1:Honestly, I don't know, that I have like a set moment. I think maybe my definition of creative just changed or maybe I started to see like a lot of the time I've felt a little different than my friends in a lot of ways, so like they might be into certain things and I'm into way different things, and just maybe started to notice that like creativity is not just being good in art class and that maybe my differences in some ways make me creative.
Speaker 1:But yeah, I don't think I have like a certain moment where I was like, oh no, this is part of who I am. I think I just finally learned to embrace my differences a little bit more and be okay with like thinking a little bit more out of the box instead of just trying to fit into the norm.
Speaker 2:Well, and I can also imagine that your previous career and also being a Virgo like that attention to detail is well. It can be construed in a lot of different ways, but I mean, I really feel like it can be a superpower, like I've seen it in my own business as well, because I do have that attention to detail and I've had clients tell me many times like oh my gosh, like thank you for reminding me of that, or like you know, I can't believe you remembered that, or whatever it is. That I think goes a long way. So I imagine it was probably similar for you, right, yeah?
Speaker 1:for sure.
Speaker 2:So let's talk about social media for a second, because that's definitely like a point of contention for a lot of creatives. You know, like as a whole, there is this you know a lot of different things, a lot of different things come up for people, but mainly it's putting yourself out there, you know, showing up the vulnerability and also the actual logistics of getting it all done Right. So, like we know that it is important, but how do you leverage that kind of technology or social media to, like, enhance the client experience that you are portraying? You know before, during and after the photos.
Speaker 1:Full disclosure. I struggle with social media a little bit. I took a break from social media for a while and then I've been trying to pick back up in a way that feels good to me and authentic to me. So instead of like posting because I am meant to post now, I only post when I truly want to post and feel like I have something to say and I think that's done a lot of good for me. But I'm still struggling with like the back end of getting everything that I want to done on it.
Speaker 1:But I think that with enhancing the client experience on social media you can do behind the scenes when you're at photo sessions and make your couples feel really loved that way. And then I try to really keep up with my couples who post on social media and maintain that relationship a little bit longer than just the amount of time that I'm actively working with them for their wedding. So if I see couples that I photographed weddings for, or even just a session four years ago on social media and they're doing something cool, or I see it's their birthday, you better believe that I'm in their inbox like happy birthday or connecting with them if I have something to say or even just giving them likes or support on their content.
Speaker 2:I love that. That's a really, really good point, because even if you're not well, there's a couple of really good points in there. So, first of all, yeah, you're not alone Like that. That is definitely, definitely a point of contention for so many photographers and creatives. Just in general, Social media is just like this beast that you know. It's a love hate relationship, right, and I totally get it Like. I absolutely love social media. I'm one of those rare people that actually really likes it, so it's not that hard for me to do it and I still even get in those you know cycles of I don't, I don't want to be out there, Right, Like so, um, so I totally get it. But I feel like honoring what feels good, like you said, is really, really important, and so, yeah, we, we're kind of told like what you quote unquote should be doing, but at the end of the day, if it's going to burn you out and make you feel like crap, then it's probably not a good idea for you to be doing that and so I love that.
Speaker 2:You are just like listening to that and you know, honoring that, because that's hard to do a lot of times. Honoring that because that's hard to do a lot of times, but I really believe it's really important. So first of all I wanted to, like you know, acknowledge that part of it, but then also that other side of it is that you can absolutely do these other things even if you're not out there, posting and scheduling and you know keeping up with trends and blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. But you are connecting with clients past, you know clients especially and continuing relationships with them. That goes a long way and that could take 10 minutes.
Speaker 2:You know just kind of going through your feed and just responding and commenting and you know cheering somebody on and making them feel good. That's a really good point and that's also just for anybody listening. It's a really good way to combat your inner head trash is to go out and make somebody else feel good. That's one of the things I always tell people is, if you are in your own head and you're overthinking and you're just not feeling it, if you are in your own head and you're overthinking and you're just like not feeling it, just go on and like make some nice comments on some people's feeds, just make somebody feel good, like it really does do a lot for you as well. So that can be like a little, you know, a little trick for when you're feeling bad.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it really does help to just like spread positivity and to be genuine with it too. So if you see somebody who's doing something cool, let them know that whatever they're doing is cool, and it will make them feel so happy.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's, it's. Yeah. We need to be doing more of that, just as a side note, I think, as a society. So what does feedback I want to talk about this real quick feedback right, Testimonials and like things like that. This is always also something that's really hard, I think, for a lot of photographers to ask for and to sort of like get into a system of implementing in their business. So how do you incorporate feedback right into you know? Do you incorporate feedback right into you know, your client experience, how it?
Speaker 1:reflects your unique style and values. Yeah, so after I send out galleries, I actually ask my couples to let me know what they think of their gallery and then I ask them what I call a magic question, which is like partially feedback. So my magic question is is there anything you'd like to see adjusted? So I feel like this opens up the door for your couples to request small changes in their photos If there's anything that they don't love right off the bat and I don't get requests often, but I have had responses before like oh, my hair in this photo it's just going a little bit wonky, or I have a zit on my chin that I'm self-conscious of. Can you remove it? So then I'm able to go in and I'm able to fix this photo that they otherwise love.
Speaker 1:Even though I try to keep an eye out for things like that, when I'm editing I occasionally miss things, and that photo could then turn into the client's very favorite image that they want to post everywhere, and they're just so happy that they get to do that versus having the version of it.
Speaker 1:That made them feel self-conscious, and if you hadn't asked the magic question, they probably wouldn't have said anything and then they would have just been like a little bit bummed that they didn't have that perfect shot in their gallery that they wanted. So a lot of people, I think, might be thinking like, okay, that opens up the door for people to send you a whole list or ask for the whole gallery to be re-edited. But I haven't had that problem since I've started asking this question. Like I said, very few people even request anything, but when they do, it's always been really respectful and like a few small edits that I can just do in five, 10 minutes and send back to them. And I think that's partially because I do vet my couples and get on the phone with them and make sure that we are so aligned before booking them in and then also at the end of your journey with them, you should be asking for feedback and then auditing your business occasionally and updating your process based off of the feedback that they give you.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's really cool. I love that little magic question. I think a lot of people are probably really afraid to do it, like you said, because they feel like they open up the door. You know they'll open the floodgates.
Speaker 2:But if you've done that work of alignment, like you said, and you really take the time with not just you know getting on the phone with them and like making sure you're aligned in that way, but even before that, making sure that your branding, like your voice, is speaking to the right people, that you know the kind of people you want to work with and your website is doing its job and you know kind of vetting some of that for you before they even reach out, that's, that's a really big part of it as well, so I love that. Okay, Before we wrap up, I want to just ask you cause, you know, tried and true, with the dash of blue, we got to talk about a little bit of each, so I know we touched a little bit about astrology but what are some specific spiritual techniques or rituals or things that you do for your mindset regularly to enhance your creativity and productivity?
Speaker 1:Um, so I'm a big fan of morning routines. Um, I like to journal, and journaling could look different for me every day. Sometimes it might be literally like journaling and writing whatever I'm thinking. Sometimes it's writing down affirmations. Um, I really like to write down limiting beliefs and then cross those off and rewrite them in a way that's actually true. Um, I'd say that's like one of my favorite things that I do in a journal occasionally.
Speaker 1:And then, have you ever tried EFT tapping? Yeah, okay, I love EFT tapping and I always say that when I do my tapping, and for me that just looks like Google or YouTube searching a Gala darling video and following along with her. Um, and whenever I tap, I feel like I make so much more money. And whenever I'm like in a divot, I'm like, oh, I should start tapping again. I don't know like why I'm not, cause I know this and I just, I don't know, I feel like something with it aligns and makes me like level up a little bit energetically and just brings me kind of into a more abundant mindset. Um, so I like to journal EFT top and then sometimes I do affirmations. Um, again, that might just be look like, or that might just look like a YouTube video, um, and then I even like to incorporate it into my sessions by maybe asking my couple to set an intention for their session and then check in with each other to make sure that they're following through with that and getting the most out of their session.
Speaker 2:I have an EFT expert scheduled for a podcast soon, so I'm really excited to talk about that even deeper with him. Yeah, exactly, thank you so much for being here. This has been awesome. Tell people where they can connect with you. Where do you prefer to connect with people? How can they find you and get into your world?
Speaker 1:Yeah, absolutely so. My social media is at Brianna K photography and I do spell my name funny, so it's two E's and two N's in Brianna, and then K is my middle name, so that's K-A-Y. And then on TikTok I think I'm just at Brianna K and my website is briannakcom, if anybody's wanting to connect with me that way. And you have a podcast too, right? Oh yeah, actually, I just did another interview too and I forgot to mention my podcast on that. I'm the worst. I always do that. Yeah, I definitely do so.
Speaker 1:My podcast is Manifesting Photographer Podcast, and I actually am going to pick your brain on this for a second, because I've been in inner turmoil about it. So I feel like, while you're asking about the name, I'm just going to ask you. So I am debating on changing the name of the podcast, but I feel like there's pros and cons to both, so I want to know what you think. The podcast name is obviously Manifesting Photographer Podcast, and I like that because I feel like it talks on or speaks to what I show on the podcast or what I speak on on the podcast, so like the manifesting Lulu side and photography. But it's not just for photographers, it's also for other entrepreneurs and service providers, small business owners. So I am debating changing the name of the show to Rebel CEO, but then I'm worried that people won't be as drawn to it because they won't know if it's for them, so like if people who are in a manifesting or photography see my podcast.
Speaker 1:Then they might click on it because they are into one or the other or both, and I don't know. Might click on it because they are into one or the other or both and I don't know. I like the name rebel CEO better, but I don't know if it would like attract people as much, because they won't know if it's for them. Do you have thoughts on?
Speaker 2:that. Yeah, well, I think that. Well, a couple of things. I think that, first, I think what really really matters is that it really has to align with you and where you want to go with everything. You know what I mean. Like that's a really important part of it.
Speaker 2:Mine took forever to kind of come to fruition because I couldn't I the naming was really hard because I also, like I have a lot of photographers in my community but I I speak to a lot of other creative entrepreneurs and I wanted to be able to continue that and also expand it and not just be in photography. So I personally didn't want photography to be in the name of my podcast. However, it is going to speak to a lot of photographers because I am one and I'll always be a photographer, no matter what. You know what I mean. So, like that's kind of like where my heart is.
Speaker 2:So I feel like that's the first part of it is that it has to align with you and if you feel called to this other name and rebranding it is that I feel like you can absolutely do that. Your photographers will continue to find you. You can. You know the description matters the SEO of that, the SEO of the page of the site. Like those things will you know. Like those things will you know, do its job, ideally and hopefully, of speaking to the people and you also can have that in the messaging of you know the show intro of social media, like whatever it is like you can embed that who it's for. Like this this podcast is for, and include photographers in that, if that makes sense.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, that's all really good advice. So you can either find me on the Manifesting Photographer podcast or Rebel CEO podcast.
Speaker 2:Awesome, yeah, no, and you know they'll. They'll find all that from your website because you know you've got all of that dialed in and you know you know what you're doing as far as all that goes. So I will put all of that in the show notes for people so they can connect with you wherever and however, and yeah, I'm just really excited that we had a chance to finally connect. So, thanks again for being here.
Speaker 1:Yeah, thank you so much for having me.
Speaker 2:All right, let's talk about some of the takeaways from today's episode. I love Brie. I think she. Yeah, thank you so much for having me that I speak on a lot. I feel like a lot of new photographers learn the hard way, like I said in this podcast, right? So that's one of the takeaways is like don't wait until things go wrong. Okay, we have resources for you, right? Whether it's myself or Bree or anyone that you find on the internet, you can figure out how you want that client experience to look. Be thinking about that now, so that you don't run into issues of clients coming back and asking a million questions and all of that Also.
Speaker 2:Another takeaway is that you really need to be aligned. This is another big thing I see, especially with newer photographers or photographers who might be a little fearful about turning work down. This is another big thing I see, especially with newer photographers or photographers who might be a little fearful about turning work down. Not every client is for you. You need to be speaking to the people that you want to work with and you need to feel aligned with them and vice versa for this sort of whole thing. To you know, go down and work really well. Obviously, you got to be aligned, and so getting your branding and your brand voice and your, you know, go down and work really well. Obviously, you, you gotta be aligned, and so getting your branding and your brand voice and your, you know all of that language on your website, your copy, everything really needs to speak to that. From that first thing, that client's first experience with you, whether it's on social, whether it's on your website, all of that has to be really consistent because you know they, they really want to know, like and trust you, and the faster you can do that, the better and the more efficient I believe you can do that the better, and so that's why I'm really big on making sure that all of that stuff is dialed in so that you don't have to continuously be repeating it or, you know, having to extend, overextend yourself to figure out if you're aligned with clients.
Speaker 2:So you know all of that. All your branding should do some of that work for you. And, of course, the big takeaway is your client experience is paramount. It's really important and it is an extension of you and how you feel. So, once again, if you are feeling stressed and overwhelmed and anxious and unsure, that is going to bleed into everything that you do. It's going to bleed into your experience with your clients, and so making sure you are regulated and you are in a good headspace you're taking care of yourself, however. That looks is important, so make sure you are paying attention to that. Thanks again for joining me here and I hope to see you next time on tried and true with a dash of woo. Have a great week, you guys. Love you Bye.