Turn Holiday Mini Sessions into Longterm Clients in 5 Steps
Plus a Free Mini Session Checklist from The Joy of Marketing
Mini sessions provide a low-risk way for more people to sample your business. They also create an opportunity to make a lot of money over a short period of time, with quick back-to-back sessions.
Everything about a mini session is a ‘mini’ version of your full sessions: a lower investment for your clients, only a few minutes per session, and limited package offerings.
A successful mini session event exposes new people to your brand, many of whom have the potential to become loyal longterm clients.
1. Follow a Promotional Plan
Carefully map out your event from start to finish so you can give yourself enough time to promote and book the sessions. This ensures you don’t forget any important details before your mini session event.
How and where you promote your event determines the amount of qualified leads you’ll book. Keep in mind local media outlets and marketing partners, as well as social media.
Distribute marketing materials like postcards to promote your event. Make sure to include:
- your branding and a sample of your images
- dates, times, and length of mini sessions
- special mini session packages & pricing
- a convenient way to book a mini session
2. Curate Your Mini Session Event
Make your mini session event exclusive and irresistible; schedule a small window of time, like a day or a weekend. Limit the availability to only a certain number of clients. Choose a theme you don’t offer for your regular sessions. For the holidays, this could be Santa, Milk & Cookies, Jammies — anything family-friendly and festive!
Create a price list just for your mini session event, featuring its own small mix of products. This time of year, holiday cards are a must! Save tons of time by using the same card template for all your mini session clients. Keep it simple with the same premium envelopes and address labels for everyone too.
Consider adding products to these mini packages that you don’t normally offer with your collections; a few options are Small Framed Prints, Wood Boxes, Image Cubes and Ornaments. Select only a few products for these packages. You don’t want to overwhelm clients with too many options. You can, however, add incentives for them to order more.
3. Stay On Schedule
A mini session is meant to be shorter than your full-price sessions. It’s crucial to stick to the amount of time you’ve allotted. Keep it to 15–20 minutes tops; no outfit or prop changes. You don’t want to get behind on your sessions and keep everyone waiting.
It’s okay to leave them wanting more. It can be tempting to go long, but remember, you want these clients to come back and invest in your regular sessions in the future.
These quick sessions can actually help you decide which mini session clients to focus on building relationships with. 15–20 minute time slots should give you enough time to create great photos for those who are only interested in your promotion, so you can invest more time with the right clients.
4. Book In-Person Ordering Appointments
Your client may have committed to a specific mini package before the session. However, if you see potential in them becoming a high value client, you might choose to give them the full image reveal. Schedule an in-person sales appointment within the next two weeks.
This appointment will probably be shorter than usual because you’ll have fewer images to show. It’s a great opportunity to form a connection and increase the profitability of your mini sessions.
You can offer add-ons like Framed Prints, Gallery Wraps, gift prints for friends and family, and future sessions. You can even show them samples of the products you offer for your full session collections.
5. Plan the Next Steps
Delivering an incredible mini session is the goal, but it’s just the first step. If you want your mini sessions to really pay off for your photography business, figure out what’s next for your mini session clients. Add them to your database and plan to follow up.
Do they have a baby? Touch base in 3–6 months when they’ll want more portraits of their growing baby. Are they expecting? Note the baby’s due date so you can contact them about newborn portraits. Do they have teenagers? Find out when they will be seniors so you can follow up when it’s time for senior portraits.
Free Mini Session Checklist from The Joy of Marketing
Don’t miss a step when planning your mini session event. Follow this list and check off the boxes as you go!
