With Laura Esmond

Welcome back to with Laura Esmond. I am excited to be here with you guys today. We are going to be talking about what should go into an inquiry response and all of the different ways that you can respond. I know it can feel a little bit overwhelming and it's important to have a response that fits your business, fits your capacity, and really just is mostly aligned with what you're selling.

First, real quick, I wanted to make just a real quick announcement. I am actually going to be. I think changing the name of the podcast, I jumped into it when I, after months and months and months of thinking about it and realized I was just gonna have to start. Right. Sometimes you just have to start and you learn as you go.

And that's what I decided to do here. And I just gave it the name with Laura Mond thinking, I like it. It sounds cool. It's like we're just sitting and having a cup of coffee together, uh, having a very one way conversation most of the time. But that's okay. And I just wanted to have a very casual feel. As I've gotten deeper into it, I've realized that I have also a different message that I really wanna convey on this podcast.

So, um, might be changing sometime in the next few weeks. I have to figure out what that even means and like, how do you change the name of a podcast in the right way? I feel like, you know, like if you have your website and all your SEO dialed in and then you go recreate a new one, I feel like I'm doing that and like I'm gonna mess something up.

So, gotta get a few pieces together and then I will be officially changing it. I think. I think, I think, I think, okay. So let's dive into today's topic again. What should go into an inquiry response? I actually want to, before we really dive into that, I wanna take just a quick step back to discuss an important piece of this.

So the very first thing that I believe you need to be clear on is what you're selling. What is the main thing that you are selling? What is the, actually, here's the right question, here's the right way to ask this. What's the most important takeaway a client will get from working with you? For me personally, I feel like I am more of.

Sort of like an interior designer helper. I am always so focused on the home and printing things for the home and creating wall galleries, or kind of starting somebody off with a legacy wall if they're a younger family. And, you know, they haven't grown their, uh, they haven't had all of their children yet.

And, and I like to ask those questions like, what do you wanna do with these long term? What do you want in your home long term? Do you want a gallery? Do you want, uh, that you know, is that grows over the years down a hallway or. Do you want albums? Like what is it that you really want? And so I've come to realize that that is really what I'm selling.

We are all photographers and I think one of the best things that you can do for your business and, Start this as early as you can in the customer journey, in that experience that they have with you, really understanding what it is you're selling, what is the thing that makes you stand out.

It could be a big part of your process of getting to know the family more intimately so that you understand their dynamic and how they work. So you can get these really beautiful, intimate portraits of mother with children and the dad and you know, and something, maybe it's something that's playful or.

Whatever, but basically you really get to know them so well that you create portraits that are like no one else's, or maybe you dial in the styling in a way that's so unique and you're creating vision boards and it's, uh, maybe also geared towards the home. And, but that process of, of the design process and the, the creative thinking that goes into.

Before you actually even do the shoot, maybe that's what you are selling. So, you know, for, for some people you might feel right now like, no, I, I, I'm just a photographer. But the way to really stand out in a market is to figure out what's your soapbox, what is a part of this process that is so important to you that you can't imagine?

And you can't imagine doing it any other way. You know, for me, again, that is that end result. Maybe it's because my kids have gotten older and I know I've got so many years that I haven't printed and I didn't never really thought it through, and now I don't want my clients to make that mistake. I want them to be thinking with the end in mind.

And that end is how do they wanna enjoy these images in 10, 15, 20 years? So what are you selling? What is the most important takeaway that your clients will get when working with you? And then everything else should really fall in line. your packages should incorporate that soapbox thought that you have that thing that's so important to you.

Your packages can be designed around that. Your pricing can be designed around that. and then your inquiry response, remember, is actually the third step in their interaction with you, the first two being your website. And your inquiry form. And so each of those things, your website and your inquiry form also need to support what it is that you're selling.

And then this third step, your inquiry response and how you respond should also be aligned. With that big, that like main thing that you're selling, it should, all of those things should be pointed in the same direction. So for instance, if you talk about all kinds of products in your website and the importance of printing, but then your packages don't really align with that, or what you're selling doesn't align with that, and your response doesn't really mention it, it'll fall flat.

Right? Your client will go, eh, w wa wa i, I didn't really get what I thought I was gonna get when she responded. So let's talk real quick about what your clients are actually looking for. Um, beside from beside, I believe creating a relationship with somebody. I do believe that relationship part is very important, but logistically, kind of that like, task oriented part of your client is looking for a few very specific things.

They wanna know, can I afford you? Will this be kinda an easy process or is it a bit more in depth, maybe something that might feel a bit more involved? What is the final result? For instance, for my evergreen session types, I remind inquiries that digitals are not a complete product as far as I'm concerned, but frames, prints, and albums are.

And that's what they can expect from me, right? And then they're looking for that next step. That next step needs to be very, very clear. So let's talk about the few different options that you have when it comes to an inquiry.

Uh, first of all, let's just real quickly talk about the email. You, you've gotta have an email ready to go to respond to people. It's not the first step I recommend. We're gonna get to that in a minute, but you gotta have that email on hand. It should have a little bit of personality, a lot of clarity. I like to use bullet points.

I think it should be brief, but friendly. I don't love really long, lengthy emails, right? Because no one reads them, okay? No one, unless they're obsessed with you, which some people will literally love everything you do and say most people skim for highlights. In the email, you want to share the most important things they're looking for.

So bullet pointed, can they afford you what they can expect as an end result? And the next steps such as a, uh, you know, a booking link. And then you also include, maybe it could be a hidden website link that shares other things. Which I'll get to in a minute. Or you, it doesn't have to be a hidden website link.

You can have also a Canva guide, that sort of thing. I sell some of those on my website in the shop. Uh, some of the, some people buy that, uh, those brochures and then actually plug them into their website. They use it as a guide for what they're gonna put on their website. So on the website or in the guide, here's what I really think needs to be in there.

If it's on a website, I think the first thing should just be a very brief introduction, something very easy. And then the next thing, or even the first thing needs to be pricing. Okay. That is the number one thing that they are looking for. And at this point, they have looked through your website, and if they are really looking for price and they can't find it on your website, at this point, they're just like, please just tell me.

Please just tell me what you cost. I don't need to hear more about your process. I already read it about it on your website, so go straight into pricing at that point. You can align that however you want. You can share packages that you offer, have photos of products. You can have a range of prices for a la carte pricing.

Uh, you can have your digital costs, make it visually very easy to consume personally, if you're just straight up a la carte. I would not just. Plug that a la carte menu on there. Something that you would be showing in, say, an ordering meeting that could be a little too overwhelming, but you could break it down into my frames cost this and I, and here's around, you know, what they cost, and here's what prints cost, and here's what albums cost, and here's what people typically spend.

And this is part of my process. If you have packages, you can just line up your packages on there. So make that part very easy to consume. Then share your process. Okay. What makes you, but have it focused on what makes you different. What everybody's doing right now is just listing out you, you make your booking and then you book it, uh, a planning call, and we do your wardrobe and styling, and then we have your session, and then we do the maybe an ordering meeting or I share your images online.

It's kind of been done. So maybe rethink that this year and focus it. Focus your process maybe a bit more on them and what they really need and want as an end result, right? So instead of just listing out step by step by step, which to our clients is. They've probably already seen it before. They probably saw it on somebody else's website.

Instead, focus it on your soapbox and on them in terms of what they're gonna get out of it and why it's meaningful to them. Okay. They don't need to understand your process step by step. Now I do keep that email with that hidden website link ready to go.

but let's actually talk about what I think versus just sending that email. Personally, I think if you're sending that email and that's all you're sending and there's no phone call, no video, no nothing, then you might as well, honestly, you might as well just put your pricing on your website.

And have a really, really great call to action on your website versus having them go through the step of just finding a hidden link if they're not going to, if you are not gonna take a step to establish a relationship with them or take it a little bit further, just you could probably just post it to your website.

That's my take on it. Some people might not agree. Here are the things that I think. You should include in your inquiry response. Personally, I think pick up the phone. If somebody has taken the time to reach out to you and is potentially willing to pay you money, pick up the phone and give them a call. So this is my version of doing a discovery call, but rather than setting a.

A meeting for a formal discovery call. I'd rather just pick up the phone when they inquire, so it's a little less formal. I, I believe that you can even do this with babies on your hip. In fact, I did do this with kids on my hip and making them lunch, and I'm talking to another mom. Right. I can say, oh gosh, hold on.

My daughter's like spilling apple juice all over the place. She doesn't care. She actually loves the fact that I'm a mom too, and I get it. I'm like, hold on, let me find a quiet space. I just, I was able to work around that with my kids around. I just loved picking up the phone and talking to people. I found that way less stressful than trying to find time with all the, you know, my little kids running around me at Underfoot trying to, you know, pen the perfect response.

So. That was just my way to, uh. Make sure that I stood out to other people, so I try to get them on the phone. I like to do this so that I can get a better understanding of what they really want from this session, and I can really start to personalize this for them. If I'm just sending an email, I can try to personalize it in the email, but I don't know potentially as much.

As I'm going to find out when I get on a phone call, so now I can start to share my pricing and my process, which again is my unique differentiator, that thing we first talked about. I can share that with them, but in a very personalized way. I don't place a big emphasis on my process of, you know, booking and then planning and outfits and wardrobe, and then meeting after.

I find that conversation to be too much. I like to take this. Step-by-step with them first. So I kind of save that on that phone call. I save that for when they're ready to book, and then I share the next step or the next couple of steps. I do share always because I'm a big believer in IPS, and I don't wanna surprise anybody at the end that we are gonna view the images.

Afterwards to, again, I focused everything on selling artwork and talking to people about, how they're really gonna use these images. So it's just a natural part of the conversation. it would be so great to sit down with you in your home and we'll create that for you and, and bring it to life.

This, again, this is basically my version of a discovery call. I just don't formalize it quite as much as other people. I just wanna pick up the phone. Again. I'm always trying to eliminate steps, so rather than having them maybe get an automated email from me. Thank you for your inquiry here. You can book a call with me to get information.

I'm just gonna, the ball was in my court. I don't wanna throw it back in theirs. I'm just gonna go ahead and call them. Okay. Then other thing that you can do. Would be a, a prerecorded video. So if you're like, Ugh, I, I just often don't have time to call people. I completely understand that. I definitely have times in the year when that's a little bit more difficult, uh, or maybe stages in my life where it's a bit more difficult.

Totally have compassion for anyone out there who does have kids at home and is like, no, not with my kids. So I think doing a prerecorded video is fantastic. So that hidden link that we were talking about above. You create an embedded video to include at the top of that link. you send them a beautiful email, you answer any of their questions, you have your bullet points of things that they need to know right away, and then you send them that link for more information.

And at the top of it is a video from you. You can show off your behind the scenes. You can share products, you can kind of share your vibe. This should be a short video, maybe 90 seconds to two minutes. I, I guess maybe three minutes. I haven't actually tested this personally. I just think it's a great idea, and you can walk them quickly through packages at your price memo, and you can highlight your process and why it's special.

Again, you're standing on your soapbox in this moment and really emphasizing. What makes you different? What makes you different from another person they inquired with? You're not just a photographer, you're also A, B, C or X, Y, z. For me, I am, I'm a bit more of an interior designer. I wanna know what's going on in your home and I wanna make sure that we get these on your walls or create, um, you know, albums for you.

So in a video I can emphasize that. So if you can't get on calls easily, completely understand this is a really great way to go that can help you stand out and, and I think also. Anybody, everybody could be doing videos like this and inside that video, just you being you and you talking about what makes you unique, that is going to make it special, right?

That is going to help you stand out even if everybody starts doing these videos, that's okay. But I do recommend being very clear. Get to the point right away. Think about how people, um, recommend doing reels that you're not supposed to get on a reel and say. Hi everybody. I just wanted to kind of share a couple of things with you today.

Like you've lost people. They are not listening anymore. They're not listening to their story. They're click, click, click next. Uh, if you do a video like this, it needs to get straight to the point. I wanted to share with you a bit about my process and walk you through my pricing guide, and you just jump.

Into it. So practice that, script yourself a little bit. Make sure that your message is on point. Get yourself dressed up, look nice. You can share it. You can hold a product or you can be standing in a studio or uh, or just a against a blank wall. Keep it simple if you need to, and make sure you have your bullet points of what you're gonna talk about and try to get that down to probably 90 seconds.

If possible. Okay. Now couple of points. If you're selling, uh, products, or especially if you're selling a la carte so you don't have a set price and you don't have packages, that doesn't mean that you get to dodge pricing. Okay? You definitely still need to provide a range or what you're starting at, so you're gonna have to take your session fee and add that to the minimum that people are going to spend with you and share that cost and what their.

What they can get for that price. You know, whether it be a set of digitals and with a framed piece of artwork, or the beginning of an album or whatever that may be. Okay, so you explained that everything is tailored, but that most clients spend between X and Y. You could say, most of my clients invest between 1000 and $2,000, depending on how they want to enjoy their images, whether that's wall art albums or a simple set of digitals.

And then you ask. Questions specific to them, what they are looking to do with their images. Now, that would obviously be on a phone call if they are. If that is in an email, then you could come up with just a couple of questions to ask about how they plan to use their images, because if you're a la carte, that sales piece needs to be a part of your process so that you can help them understand your pricing.

So let's sum this up. Your inquiry response should do the following, no matter which me method of response you use. One, you're obviously gonna thank them personally, make sure that they feel seen, uh, by answering any questions that they had. First, you want to answer those first, okay? You want to paint the result rather than focusing on your process.

Instead, focus on them and what they get. How they'll feel about what they get. Keep the focus on them. If you're on a phone call, ask questions and get to know them so that you know what they want and you can paint that result for them, that you are their girl that can make that happen. Number three, two things they don't need in full detail, your step-by-step process.

Or the price of everything that you sell. So each step of your process communicated at this point could feel overwhelming. So you could give them enough information about it to, to get the idea, but keep the focus on your unique differentiator as we talked about, versus just listing out step by step.

Okay. That just feels a little mundane. It feels a little boring. for some people, their process is very unique. that though leans in what I'm saying. You keep the focus on your unique differentiator.

So you don't need to share step by step. But you can say, a very important part of my process is. A, B, C. Right? And that could be styling or a vision board, or coming to their home and seeing where they're gonna hang things so you can create the perfect images for them, right?

Whatever that means to you. And you focus it on that. And with pricing, give them enough information to make a very educated decision, but they probably don't need to know every detail of everything you offer. So even on your website and on or on a phone call, on a phone call, you can guide them towards what they say they're wanting and needing, and then give them the rest of your pricing in an email.

If you're just sending via email and you're sending them that, that link, you don't need to include every single price, but give them enough information that they can make a very educated decision

And then always share the next step clearly so they know how to book you. If you're willing, include a booking link in your email, uh, and if you're on the phone, offer to book it while you're talking. So you wanna make sure that that is a step that you take versus just sort of leaving it hanging.

Okay. Thank you so much for being with me today. I hoped you picked up a tip or two, and I will see you next week.