The Wedding's Over...Let the Communication Begin OR How to follow up with your couple after the wedding

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You are almost home!

You've booked the wedding, shot the engagement session, shot the rehearsal, shot the wedding, processed all the photos, and now you get the opportunity to proudly display your incredible work to your incredible couple and the world.

This is a big moment, and you may want to hurry up and get this part over with asap, but there's still come talkin' to be done, and IF you do it right, you'll solidify your reputation as a photographer, AND as a great business person.

The key to great communication between photographer and couple starts long before the wedding.

Your goal is to answer as many questions in advance of the wedding, but here's the secret sauce:

Answer every question they have AND every question they have not asked yet.

"But Chris, I'm not a mind reader!" Oh, but you are because you're a wedding professional, and you should already know the questions they’ll ask because they're the same questions that all couples ask.

But, yes, I get it. You're just starting out, so allow me to help with some of the major questions you’ll get right before or after the wedding.

• "How long before we see the photos?"

• "Will we get to see them before anyone else?"

• "Can we get a sneak peek?"

• "How will we receive the images?"

• "How many photos should we expect in total?"

• "Will the photos be edited?"

• "Can family order prints from you or do they have to go through us?"

• "Can we share these on social media?"

Of course, there will be other questions later, but these will get them through their honeymoon up to when they return. It’s your job to have an answer to these.

Let's start with the biggest one.

How long before we see the photos?"

Of course, my preference is one week, but you might have to work up to that or use some outsourcing (Try Imagen. It's pretty awesome, btw)

But no matter how long it takes, let them know.

If they know when to expect their photos, they won't ask you before then, "Are they ready yet?"

If you're a couple of days later than you said, you can expect a phone call, text or email. For most couples, the anticipation is huge.

Pro Tip: If something comes up and you will be late with your delivery, contact them asap.

The ultimate goal is to give them a timeline that you can beat by two days.

If you tell them they can expect the photos in a week, get then to them in five days. If you tell them ten days, get the photos to them in eight. Why? To give you two days of wiggle room in case something does go astray.

But that's not the real reason. The REAL reason is to EXCEED expectations.

If this didn't occur to you, I'm glad I can be the one to shine this light on one of the greatest things you can do as a professional and one the best things you can do to build a successful business as a wedding photographer.

Exceeding expectations should be your goal at every stage of the process and it starts with your communication.

Now, let's switch gears here and take a less favorable path.

For you, the week started with the wedding. You shot everything perfectly (as far as anyone else knows), and you've spent the next six days selecting the best photos and processing them to perfection.

You've hit your deadline and are ready to show these beautiful babies off and start getting print orders from the guests.

What?!!! Your couple is not ready to look at them?

Didn't you just spend a semi-sleepless week making these perfect? What do you mean they're not ready to "release" them to the public just yet?

This can be a tough one, but it's real.

Yes, for the last week, your entire world revolved around them, but their world is not necessarily about you.

They just got married and are in martial bliss or shock...or a bit of both. For some, their photos aren't a priority (I know, I’m in shock too!)

I'll be honest, it doesn't happen all the time, but it happens more often than I'd ever expect, and it's just something you have to deal with.

Your job is to play Luke Skywalker and "Stay on target!"

Right after the wedding, begin your post-production schedule. When the photos are ready, shoot 'em a text and/or drop an email and wait.

Do Not Call.

Give them the link to the photos, a quick congrats, and that's it. They should not have to reply back, and you can make that clear with a line like, "Give me a shout when you're back and settled, and we can chat about where we go from here." 

That's all. They'll get back to you when THEY are ready.

Admittedly, if after a full week, I don't hear back, I will shoot a quick, somewhat apologetic email and/or text just to make sure they got the first notification.

I don't think of that as being too much of a pest, but you never know with email delivery in those tropical or exotic locales.

When you do get that glorious reply (and these emails are worth saving as testimonials), you can NOW start engaging with regular emails about sharing the links with family, making photos private or any necessary post-wedding details.

If you're going to offer a wedding album (and I highly recommend it), this is a good time to start that process as well. The same goes for digital negatives (the files).

Communication is your best friend in wedding photography.

The more YOU know about your couple and the family, the more opportunities you have to exceed their expectations.

The more THEY know, the fewer questions they will ask, the happier they will feel, and the happier you will be.

As I mentioned in my initial caveat, all couples are different, so be a good judge of character and connect with them at their level with the right amount of communication...or perhaps a tiny bit more.

You can't be hurt by giving a little more than they'd like, but you CAN and WILL be hurt by not giving enough information.

Don't forget you wear the customer service hat as well.

Some photographers (that look a lot like me) prefer to line up things the week of the wedding in a detailed email to the bride and then follow up with a phone call going over everything so on the big day, neither of you have any surprises.

There's a good chance she'll forget about the email before the wedding, but there's also a good chance she'll keep that email and refer back to it after the wedding.

All of this communication is, of course, optional. Shooting great photos is also optional, as is running a successful business.

I say that sarcastically, but I've also met some "artist-type" photographers whose customer service hat is covered in dust.

I know you're better than that.

One of the cornerstones of peace of mind is either knowing everything is under control or knowing someone else has things under control. You can make both of those happen with good communication, which incidentally IS good customer service.

Learning good "post game" communication is one of the little parts of the "inner game of wedding photography." THIS is what I write about each week in this newsletter.

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Questions? Shoot me an email at [email protected]