PROFESSIONAL PHOTOGRAPHER | DECEMBER 2019 33
worked about half as much and generated
about double the income. They were less
stressed and the business ran smoother.
However, the unique thing about the Blumes’
sales transformation was they didn’t ditch the
online sales entirely. Instead, they kept a guid-
ed online sales element that allowed them to
work with distant clients who couldn’t make
it to their studio for an in-person sales ses-
sion. You might be surprised at how well the
process works.MOBILE PREMIER
“The reason online sales don’t work for most
people is that they’re just putting a gallery
out there and then hoping the client will
buy something on their own timeframe,”
explains Phillip Blume. “That almost never
happens. So we decided to take the princi-
ples of in-person sales and apply them to an
online environment.”
Using basic technology that’s available to
anyone, the Blumes offer a fully guided or-
dering experience. They schedule it like any
other sales appointment and come prepared
to demonstrate sizing, explain options, and
walk clients through the process as if they
were sitting next to them on a couch. To
make the system work effectively, Blume of-
fers these suggestions:
NEVER EMAIL A GALLERY. Never, ever just
email a gallery of someone’s pictures to them.
“Many photographers want to send galler-
ies to clients to share something with them
as quickly as possible,” says Blume. “But it’s
more important to give them a good experi-
ence than to give them something quickly.”
BUT DON’T ABANDON THE ONLINE GAL-
LERY ENTIRELY. Instead, use an online gal-
lery as a proofing tool so you can review im-
ages during your presentation session and
mark client favorites.
SCHEDULE IT. Schedule an appointment,
even if they’re on the other side of the world.
Don’t make it an on-demand thing whenever
the client feels like logging on. “The fact that
you’re scheduling the time with the client al-
lows it to be an experience that puts distrac-
tions aside,” says Blume.
MAKE A HUMAN CONNECTION. The Blumes
use Skype to video chat and make as much
of a human connection as possible. They
feel the video element is important because