Learning to sell. Hold this book.

Q: HOW DO YOU GET POTENTIAL CLIENTS TO BE ACTUAL PAYING CLIENTS? WE HAVE A LOT OF PEOPLE INTERESTED IN PHOTOS AND SAY THEY WANT TO DO A SHOOT, BUT WE CAN’T GET COMMITMENTS. THREE WEEKS AGO WE HAD 12 PEOPLE SAY THEY WANTED PICTURES DONE—WE HAVEN’T DONE ANY FOR THOSE PEOPLE.

A: This is where you have to put on your shiny white shoes and your colorful plaid suit and wide brown tie and become a salesman! Step right up, ladies and gentlemen! Look at the deal we have for you today! Big smiles!

Twelve people interested and not one booking tells me that you’re not selling yourself or something. You have your name out there enough to get them in the door, and then they walk in said door, and you look up from your book or something and mumble, “Hi,” and go back to reading. That isn’t what you are doing (I hope), but something is falling apart here.

Are they not booking on price? Are they not booking because of your availability? Are they not booking because you’re sort of quiet and shy and lacking in confidence and you can’t turn on the bright eyes and smiles to keep them interested?

When I was in high school I thought about going into sales as a profession. A friend of mine worked at the piano store at the mall across from the drug store I was working in. His name was John. John couldn’t play three notes that sounded good on a piano. He couldn’t show you the “A” key. That mofo could sell pianos, though. He could sell ice to the Eskimos, so to speak.

Okay. Funny story. I have to tell you this story about John. I was on my break hanging out in the piano store and I saw this whole thing happen. True effing story. A couple was in his store looking at a piano. The guy really wanted the piano; he had his heart set on it. It was a lot of money, and the wife was complaining it was too much. They got to the point of sitting at John’s desk, and he was writing up the bill of sale. The wife would not stop talking about how they should not buy this piano. John finished the paperwork; all the man needed to do was sign it.

So, the wife would not stop talking. The husband began to rethink his decision and was hesitating on buying the piano. John opened a desk drawer and pulled a phone book out. He turned to the wife and said, “Ma’am, can you hold this for me, please?” and then handed her the phone book.

Stunned, she took the phone book, and stopped talking; I suppose she was silently wondering WTF just happened. John turned to the man and handed him a pen and said, “I just need you to sign here and we’ll have your new piano delivered in two days!”

The man signed. John took the phone book back from the wife, shook both of their hands, and then walked them to the door.

It was one of the greatest things I’ve ever seen! :)

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What can we learn from John? Other than handing a phone book to your wife when she’s telling you to not buy that next camera?

John had to make that sale. He got a small draw every week that he couldn’t live on. He could only live if he sold pianos. He needed to sell a quota of pianos each week or he’d be broke. If you showed interest in a piano then John was going to part you from your money and you’d get a piano; he had to.

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There are two main things you need in order to be a good salesman/saleswoman. One is hunger and the second is confidence in what you are selling. When you are a freelance photographer, you are a hungry individual. You have to make this work. You have no choice but to make this work. You have to get out there and get paying clients in the door. You have to. Your life, and the life of your family, depends on it. You can’t take “no” for an answer.

The other thing is confidence in what you are selling. I see photographers fail on this part the most. This is where I have failed the most in my “sales” life. You have to be confident in what you do and what you deliver. I know I can deliver for my clients. I know I can make them happy. I know that I can hate my own work and beat myself up and pick out every mistake I make, but at the end of the day—I come through for my clients. If I don’t, then I work at it some more until I do. I fight my inner demons on every job and deliver the work I need to deliver that day. I know I can do it.

You also have to be confident in the rates you are asking for the job. You can’t apologize for your work or for your rates. You have to show your work to people and with unflinching confidence look them in the eye and say, “This job will cost $5,000.” Or $500, or whatever. $50,000. Whatever your number is.

Unflinching confidence. In your work. In your rates. You can’t take no for an answer. You’re hungry and you have to make this sale. You dance around a very thin line separating laid-back coolness and over-the-top desperation. Twelve people interested in you and then not booking? Someone needs a phone book handed to them. You need to look them in the eye and hand them a pen. Even on your darkest days, when you think your work is shit, when you are being eaten by the cancer of comparing yourself to others, when it’s all heading south on you—you have to be able to brighten your eyes. Widen your smile. Put out your hand. Close the deal.

I can’t give you a pre-written sales pitch. I don’t know what you do. I don’t know your clients. I don’t know a lot about what you do to be able to tell you to say this line and then that line. I don’t know your personality. There isn’t a template. I’m sorry I can’t give that to you. Lawwwwd above knows there are places out there offering template services for marketing and sales. Some may work for you. Some will be utter failures.

Instead of looking for a template, I want you to think about how hungry you are and how confident you are. I’d bet you are more hungry than confident. You need both in equal measure. Your clients don’t deal with your inner demons. You need to silence those demons.