In recent times, the popularity of photo books has risen manifold. A joint initiative of the photographer, graphic designer and photo printing company, its focus is on building a visual narrative for the clients, a cherished memory!
From celebrating the arrival of a newborn baby or a family’s favorite furry animal to creating a classic wedding photo album or a professional portfolio, a photo book can be of any nature and purpose.
But most importantly, it is an essential item for those who genuinely appreciate photography. If you are in the business of photo printing, you will agree how important it is to work with passionate, hard working photographers.
After all – the goal of your printing company is not just to generate revenue but also to add value to your clients’ lives. And who better than photographers to do that for you? That brings us to our next question:
Have you thought about leveraging photographers and web-to-print technology to boost sales of your printing company? If your answer is yes but you are unclear as to how to go about it, don’t worry! We have listed four steps for you to get started:
Set up a web-to-print store first.
Build your own online website with a Web to print solution which is specialized for photo print industry to transform your business into an on-demand print store. The technology allows consumers to log in, place an order for personalized printed materials taken by a photographer and checkout, online.
Having a Web to Print platform means the photographers can take print orders via a branded storefront, and work on a back office system from where they can upload their photographs. They can also see how much sales they have brought to the company and the status of orders.
More importantly, it helps a business to maximize its efficiencies and workflows. The teams work in tandem with each other, the communication is clearer, and hence the output is faster. When the back-end is taken care of, you can focus on creating valuable client relations.
Many web-to-print tech providers help implement the solution, train your teams and take care of all the nitty-gritty related to starting work on a new platform. Do your research and select a reputable company for the job.
The best part is the solution can be tailored to meet your business requirements – nothing less, nothing more. Therefore, share your portfolio with the developer so that they can set up a platform perfect for your printing company.
Attract photographers through online marketing.
If you are looking to scale your photo printing business, then you have to think beyond only offering print support. You should have a handful of talented photographers who can not just take good photographs but also curate a visual narrative for your clients.
There are a couple of ways to engage photographers online:
a. Run social media ads
Given the nature of photography, Instagram and Facebook are the best platforms for photographers to showcase their talent. They are also perfect for running job ads.
Create a copy which says something like “hiring contributing photographers” or “looking for freelance photographers”. If you have an in-house marketing team that can do that for you, good. But if you don’t, outsource the task to an agency till you find quality leads.
Set aside a quarterly budget to do such ads, and keep searching for fresh talent!
b. Check out social media groups
As a member of the print community, you must be fairly active on platforms like Facebook and Instagram. Take advantage of the fact. For instance, there are many photography groups on Facebook where you can find exciting photographers to work with.
Browse through their portfolio, and initiate a conversation if you are keen to have them on board. LinkedIn may be an unconventional platform for photographers. But since connecting via LinkedIn groups is free, it is worth a shot and even get you good results.
c. Post job ads on freelance portals
Freelance photographers are found in abundance on job portals like Upwork, Fiverr and Freelancer. You can find a large pool of talent in a budget that suits your requirements.
Of course, sifting through the profiles could be tedious and take up a lot of time. Therefore, make sure you have the right resources in place for help.
Enable photographers to take orders and work with the clients.
Most photographers you work with may have their own websites and clients, but they can always refer your printing services in case they want to go for a photo book. Moreover, they can help clients in submitting content for print.
On a W2P platform, photographers can directly coordinate with clients to turn around things faster. For example, in case of a photo shoot, they can discuss ideas and requirements beforehand and upload that on the system for reference.
Photographers can handle each project from a client perspective, and make arrangements accordingly.
Entice photographers by giving them a branded storefront.
A well-designed storefront that instantly attracts customers to place an order is a dream of majority of printing companies. Once you have the storefront in place, you can enable photographers to showcase their portfolio individually.
A storefront covers dedicated blocks for testimonials, photo book ideas, and printing elements like paper finish, available sizes, shapes.
Thanks to the platform, photographers can get to keep important information of your printing business and their page on the same page, thereby enabling clients to make a decision quickly.
Wapping up
The goal of every photo book printer is to create something unique, something its clients won’t be able to put down. Since you share a similar vision, why not start with basics – by leveraging photographer networks and setting up a W2P store!
And if you are currently trying to W2P solution provider to get started, look no further. Just leave us a comment here or write to us at [email protected] a member of our staff will reach out to you to discuss in detail.
