Does You Website Answer these Questions?

For us photographers, our website is our storefront.

Oftentimes it’s the first way a potential client interacts with us.  And you know how the old saying goes, you never get a second chance to make a first impression.  For a long time, I designed my website with only the visual aesthetic in mind.  I built a site I would looooove.  A lot of pictures and very few words, because that’s what made my creative, photo loving mind happy.

But I was totally missing the point of my website – my website wasn’t suppose to be designed for ME it was suppose to be designed for my CLIENT.  I realized that my site was definitely not designed for my clients.  Once I started looking at it from a client’s perspective, I realized that I was missing key pieces of information that potential clients were were looking for.

When I took on redesigning my website I asked myself the questions I knew were at the forefront of my prospective client’s mind when they first hit my website.

Who is this girl I’m going to be entrusting my newborn with?  —   Clients want to know who you are.  They need to feel a connection with you.  My clients are going to be handing over their newborn to me, they need to see who I am and have confidence that they and their baby are in good hands.  On my landing page, I have a video that showcases one of my sessions.  Potential clients get to see me in action, here my voice and connect with me right from the very first minute they are on my site.

What is a session with her like?  Clients want to know what it’s like to work with you.  Hiring a photographer is an investment – both financially, and more importantly, emotionally.  Many of my clients are worried because they only get one chance for those squishy newborn images and moms of older kids are worried that their kids won’t cooperate in their family sessions and that they will look unnatural and stiff in their pictures.  Your clients need to know how you will solve their problems during your session.  I have a page on my site that talks about a typical session with me and addresses some of the most common concerns.

What’s this going to cost me? There are definitely differing opinions on how to deal with pricing on your website.  Many in the industry will advise that you don’t touch on pricing and instead wait until you have your client on the phone to start walking them through the pricing conversation.  As a consumer, this drives me crazy.  I’m busy and I want to know what I’m getting into.  I need to know if I’m looking at buying a breadbox or a bread truck.  And most of my clients are in the same position.  On my pricing page, I tell my clients what most people spend with me.  By providing that range they can see what they can expect.  If they are comfortable with that, then we dive into the specifics through my on-boarding process.

WHY do I do what I do? This one is a little bit different.  Most clients don’t come looking for your WHY, but it’s probably the most important thing you can do to set yourself apart and connect with potential clients.  Because clients don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it.  Simon Sinek articulates this concept so well in his Ted Talk.   Sprinkling your WHY through you website will ensure that clients can connect with you on a deeper emotional level – they will be inspired to work with you.  My about me page and my intro video are examples of how I have woven my why through my site.

Now it’s your turn, take a spin through your site.  Does your site clearly answer theses four questions?  Let’s make this super actionable, set aside 30 minutes today, pick one of the four questions and supercharge your answer, making sure you clients can quickly and easily find it when they hit your site.

Join the conversation, comment below and let me know what question you’ve taken on and link to the page on your site where you answer it. 

Thank you so much for reading, commenting and sharing.

XOXO,

Amanda

P.S. I pulled together the tools I use to run my business into a little tool kit for you.  Grab your copy here and join my email list to get additional (exclusive) glimpses behind the scenes of my business.

 

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  • Astin FowlerMay 4, 2016 - 2:09 pm

    I’ve been doing rebranding consideration this week and this post was good for me. Definitely things I need to look at on my own website. Thanks!ReplyCancel

  • Anne ThieleMay 4, 2016 - 4:24 pm

    I have been reconstructing my website to meet the needs of my clients as well! I asked a few of my clients if they wouldn’t mind looking over my website and give me feedback on what I could do to make it meet their needs as an online shopper. It’s always good to make it aesthetically pleasing, but also beneficial to our clients! Good work!ReplyCancel