480: Leah Hoffman - Clients, sales and incredible images for a successful fine art dance photography business

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Leah Hoffman of www.hoffastudios.com is a Melbourne-based fine art dance photographer with an incredibly successful business who LOVES what she creates for her clients.

If you're anything like me… when you see Leah's work, your first thought will be, oh my god, this is amazing!

When I heard Leah was a dance photographer after being recommended as a guest — my initial thought was production line photography for dance schools. 

However, this photography is next level! It's easy to see why she is one of Australia's leading Dance Photographers.

Her images stand solidly in the creative fine art genre. Every dancer is artistically lit, beautifully retouched, and caught in flight, action or wrapped and surrounded by flying fabric clouds.

With a lifelong love of dance — which has included dancing, instruction and choreography, it made sense for this photographer to combine her passion for dancers and photography at her specialist dance photography studio, which opened in 2014.

In this interview, Leah shares her marketing and sales strategies that have been the backbone of her fine art dance photography business success. With these strategies, she can easily attract clients and make terrific sales with her incredible images.

• Copyrighting slogans or phrases in Australia
• How to deal with the pressure to deliver high-quality dance images for clients
• Leah's dance photography style
• Dance movements that create interest
• Editing dance photos in Photoshop
• Is dance photography a profitable business
• Leah's thoughts on having a successful dance photography business
• Leah's annual revenue and average spend
• Leah's business structure
• The importance of hiring a business coach
• A brief background on how Leah started her photography business
• How long does a dance photo session last with Leah
• Shooting for more than one hero shot in a session
• Leah's most popular wall art package
• When is the appropriate time to discuss pricing with clients
• How Leah's voucher system works
• Using a DL-sized card to showcase pricing
• How Leah's business sponsorships work
• Using vouchers as prizes for dance competitions
• Using QR codes for leads
• How to approach dance shops to market your photography business
• Using Linktree as a landing page for Leah's lead generation using QR codes
• Why is it important to send out physical vouchers to clients
• Having a booking time limit for vouchers
• How Leah's booking system works
• Why every photographer needs to secure a booking deposit from clients
• Why Leah prefers using an automated system to book clients
• The downside of talking to clients over the phone during phone consultations
• How automation can help run a successful photography business
• Getting automated reminders after session bookings
• Leah's client workflow before the actual photo sessions
• Why transparent pricing leads to a better photography business
• How to deal with pricing concerns when discussing prices with mums and dads
• How to overcome pricing setbacks in dance photography
• Leah's after-sales session process
• Leah's post-processing and viewing workflow
• How relevant is TikTok for photography business owners
• Keeping up with the younger generation using TikTok and Instagram
• Leah's social media marketing strategies
• How to target parents and dancers at the same time

If you’re a premium member, you should have received an email with links to your version of this interview – the full-length and more revealing version where you hear the absolute best tips and advice from every guest.

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I photograph dancers to suit their ability and what they're capable of. – Leah Hoffman

You'll also receive access to the members-only Secret Facebook Group where you can connect with other Premium Members and interview guests to help, support and motivate you to take ideas you hear in each episode and put them into action. There are also FB live video tutorials, role-play interviews and special live interviews happening in the group. You will not find more friendly, more motivated, caring and sharing photographers online.

Seriously, that's not all.

In addition to everything above, you'll get access and instructions on forming or joining a MasterMind Group with other premium members. These groups are super motivating, make you accountable and build friendships with other pro photographers with similar motives to you – to build a more successful photography business.

Following this interview, I’d love to know if you're taking anything away from what Leah shared. Is there something you heard that excited or motivated you to the point where you thought, yeah, I'm going to do that! If so, let me know by leaving your thoughts in the comments below; let me know what your takeaways were and what you plan to implement in your business as a result of what you heard in today's episode.

When I'm posting on Facebook, I'm targeting the mums. When I'm posting on Instagram/TikTok, that's when I'm focusing on the dancers. – Leah Hoffman

If you have any questions that I missed, a specific question you’d like to ask Leah or if you just want to say thanks for coming on the show, feel free to add them in the comments area below.

Each week I check for any new iTunes or Google reviews, and it's always a buzz to receive these… for several reasons.

Firstly, it's confirmation that I'm on the right track with the interviews and that they really are helping you improve your photography business. That's awesome!

Secondly, iTunes and Google are the biggest search engine when it comes to podcasts, and it's your reviews and ratings that help other photographers find PhotoBizX. More listeners mean more interviews and, ultimately a better show.

If you have left a review in the past, thank you! If you haven't and you'd like to, head to https://photobizx.com/itunes or https://photobizx.com/google, and you can leave some honest feedback and a rating which will help both me and the show, and I'll be sure to thank you on the show and add a link to your website or blog if you let me know the URL of your website and your name.

Not only have I got to sell my work, I've got to sell the work with correct techniques shown, even if the dancer has those skills or not. – Leah Hoffman

Alternatively, if you've left a review for PhotoBizX and are looking for more backlinks to help your SEO, leave a review for the new Photography Xperiment Podcast and email me your keywords or keyword phrase and where you'd like me to link to.

Another great way to get a backlink to your site is to send a video testimonial. It doesn't need to be fancy, and your phone will be perfect. Click record and tell me how PhotoBizX has impacted you and your photography business.​

Here are some recent reviews…

Via email from Adelaide Family Photographer, Deb Smith.

OMG that blew my mind