401: Damon Pijlman – Survive and thrive with your photography business during the pandemic

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Damon Pijlman of www.studiodamon.com photographs weddings, portraits, families and commercial work. His Instagram bio says he's a Visual Storyteller who Documents inspiring couples worldwide.

His wedding photography was voted best in the Netherlands – 2014, 2015 and 2016.

He has countless awards – take one look at the images that earnt them, and I promise, you will be blown away. His work is fantastic.

It was his artist and painter father who taught him to observe carefully. But it was following the Foundation Workshop in 2013 where Ben Chrisman and David Murray changed everything about wedding photography for him.

I read in an interview where he was asked, what's the stupidest thing you've ever agreed to do? His reply… Setting up a Groupon beach portraits package … After 500 sessions, he says he was ready to kill himself.

In this interview, Damon shares how to survive and thrive with your photography business during the pandemic.

Here's some more of what we cover in the interview:

• How the Groupon beach portrait package worked and almost killed Damon
• What Damon would do differently if given the chance to start over again
• Why Damon was fired from his previous photography job
• Overcoming self-doubt after losing his job as a photographer
• How Damon found his photography niche
• The big advantages of attending photography workshops
• Why Damon takes 10,000 photos on average at most weddings
• Where Damon is right now with his photography business
• Shifting to a new photography niche to cope with the pandemic
• How to be successful as a portrait photographer
• Damon's average sales from clients in different genres
• Must take steps after attending workshops and watching educational videos
• What to say on the phone when calling potential clients
• The best way to market new photography products without sounding too pushy
• How to listen and have clients share their needs to guarantee sales
• Why you should call family members and the full wedding entourage before shooting weddings
• How to become a better storyteller through your lens
• How Damon's gift vouchers work
• Using vouchers as a reason to call clients
• Calling clients 3-4x when they don't pick up the phone – staying persistent
• Scheduling portrait sessions are a must to generate clients
• What to say when clients say they need to consult with their family members before scheduling shoots
• When should you mentioning pricing and how much clients might spend
• The need to refine the language to deliver the right message to clients
• Dealing with booked wedding sessions during the pandemic
• Holding contests to generate more leads
• What people win with Damon's contests
• How Damon's contests work – in detail
• Why Damon likes photographing portraits more than weddings
• What Damon does daily that makes a massive difference in his life

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