A Snapshot of Brillance: What's Yours?

If you are a photographer and you want to grow your business, how do you do it?

Most likely you thought of the typical marketing ideas of advertising, tweeting, or maybe even blogging on how to ensure you get great pictures. All of those are good ideas but I saw one the other day that was absolutely brilliant in its simplicity.

My girlfriend had pictures of her son taken. When she picked up her pictures the photographer handed her 100 business cards that had on the front- the photographers website and phone number as well as a picture of my friend's baby, the back was a full picture of my friend's baby crawling.

There are six reasons this is brilliant:

1. Allows parents to pass out pictures of their child without buying extra expensive prints.
2. They are small and easy to carry around
3. Friends are likely to keep the card as it has a picture of the friend's baby on it. Hence better chance they will call down the road.
4. Every person who gets a card feels it is "customized" and relevant to them because the picture on it is someone they know. Thus the card suddenly has "character."
5. The parents are proud to hand them out because it has their child's picture on it
6. It eliminates the "who took these pictures" attempt at referrals and promotes the photographer without a word spoken

Now you have feel good energy around the handing out of the cards as well as the receiving of the card.

Looking at this example, ask what you can do in your business to generate this same goodwill. What can you do that clients will hold on to? What can you do that clients will want to distribute for you?

Now I realize not all our businesses lend toward the cute idea this photographer has done but I would bet if you think on it, you can come up with something equally as brilliant. So what have you done that has made you or your business stand out?

More on creating a positive impression by Anne Warfield