Original subtitles

Right, it's time to talk about the power

of free marketing.

Sam, whoa, did you just say free marketing?

Please do tell.

Don't you worry guys, just stay calm, get

a coffee, sit back and let me explain.

So, at every single wedding you attend, you

have the very best and most effective marketing

opportunity available to you, and it's totally free.

It's more powerful than SEO and more effective

than social media.

To illustrate the value and power of this

free marketing, I'm going to start off by

showing you Abby and Craig, a wedding I

shot at Cripps Barn in 2016.

And for the purpose of this exercise, I'll

share how much they booked me for, which

in this case was £2,000.

Now, Abby and Craig found me and booked

me through a Pinterest post, because I track

how they found me on Inquiry, which happened

to be the wedding of Vanessa and Stefan,

a wedding that was featured on Junebug Weddings

and then Pinterest from 2015.

I charged £17.50 with a free engagement

shoot.

And at Abby and Craig's wedding, during the

downtime that I no longer used as a

rest period, I captured this moment, two guests

sharing a little kiss during dinner.

That turned out to be Emma and Jade,

who off the back of that image alone

booked me for £2,500 to shoot their

wedding 18 months later.

Back to Abby and Craig though, and I

also shared a selection of images with the

venue, Cripps Barn, so they had some images

for social media and they kindly added me

to their recommended supply list and used one

for Instagram, which led to Niswana and Anthony

booking me at £3,500, along with four

other couples and counting.

Abby and Craig then got featured on the

Rock My Wedding site, which was picked up

by Charlotte and Simon for £3,500 in

Cornwall, one of my all-time favourite weddings.

Emma and Jade then got featured on Harper's

Bazaar US and featured on their Instagram account

with four million plus followers.

Their venue, Badminton House, now recommend me.

Anna and Vaughan booked me at £3,500

and I've shot four more couples since.

And then, via being featured on Harper's Bazaar,

Casey and JT spotted my work and invited

me and my family to Antigua and that

was £4,500.

All because of Abby and Craig, one winter

wedding in 2016, or actually because of Vanessa

and Stefan in 2015.

How did they find me?

If it's not already clear at every single

wedding I go to, there is opportunity.

There's word of mouth.

The immediate guests who are there, they will

notice you, your work ethic, your manners.

Then they'll see your work when the couple

share the gallery.

Many of those guests are likely to move

in the same social circles, be of a

similar demographic.

Some may be getting married or know people

getting married.

Give them a reason to talk positively about

you.

You have direct social media.

From every wedding you have potential reach on

Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest.

Get some strong images out quickly.

Don't wait three weeks.

Tag venues, suppliers, the couple.

Blog posts.

We'll explore this more in SEO, but every

venue has keyword potential.

Use it.

Suppliers.

Just share your images.

Don't even think about a fee.

Just ask them to credit you.

Be nice.

Get them images before they even ask.

You'll be amazed how much they can or

will champion you.

And they need content just as much as

we do.

Wedding blogs.

It's about much more than just being featured.

It's a huge collaboration and with it comes

an SEO benefit along with marketing that's done

for you when they share to social media.

So remember, you are a customer facing business.

Even when you're at a wedding, you are

always selling.

Sell yourself by showing up, smiling, working hard

and sharing the love.