They want to book you as their photographer! Woohoo! This is the moment you have been waiting for! But how exactly should you be onboarding new photography clients properly? I’m so glad you asked 😉
This is going to be a walk through of exactly how I bring clients into my favorite CRM, HoneyBook and make sure they’re fully booked and well taken care of.
This topic is directly from Hobby To Pro Toolkit – the step-by-step guide for taking your photography hobby and going confidently pro. There is a whole section on workflows and this breaks down the on-boarding of a new client. If you’d like to read more about HTP toolkit you can see more HERE.
If you’re new to Honeybook – grab a free trial account HERE. Honeybook is a Client Relationship Management tool for creatives – which means it was built specifically for photographers like us!
Let’s dive into the steps to bringing a new photography client into a HoneyBook workflow and making sure you’ve crossed all your t’s and dotted all your i’s, as they say!
Steps to Booking a Photography Client | HoneyBook Onboarding Workflow
Step 1: Add Client to Your CRM
If someone wants to book with you and they are not a previous client of yours, the first step is simple: add them to your CRM software. Add their name, contact information, and any other information that you may know about them! Private notes are extremely helpful for follow-up as well.
Steps 2 & 3: Send a Proposal of Services & Get Client Signature on Contract
Once they are added to your CRM, you need to send them a smart file or brochure covering what services you offer. This is simply to give them options to choose from. If they have already selected the services that they want, HoneyBook makes it very easy for you to send them a proposal with the contract ready to sign.
Step 4: Counter-Sign with Your Signature
Now that the client has signed, it’s your turn! This is an important item to complete because it ensures that your contract is now legal and legitimate.
Steps 5 & 6: Client Makes Payment & You Do a Happy Dance!
Once your client makes a payment, they have a few options. They can do a wire transfer, bank transfer, send you a check (which then you can mark as “paid” on HoneyBook), or they can pay with credit card. No matter which way they choose, at this point, you can do your happy dance because you have officially booked a client and are paid! Woot woot!!
Step 7: Add Booked Date to Your Calendar
The next step that I like to take in my business is to add my client to my booking calendar. It’s important to make sure that this date is added to physical calendars that you use as well as any digital calendar. This is so you never double-book or forget a session. Add this date to any personal calendar that you regularly use!
Step 8: Send Booking Gift
Whether you send a welcome guide or something digital to welcome someone into your business, this is an important gesture to let your client know what it is going to be like to work with you and be involved in your business. If you want to look a little closer at client gifting, I created a whole video with my tips on creating an unforgettable client experience. You can watch that video HERE.
Step 9: Send Them a “Here’s What’s Next” Email
I always like to make sure that my clients are never left wondering what the next step is. Let them know if there are any choices that they are needing to make. Location? Outfit Choices? etc. As the professional, you need to be guiding them through the process and answering any questions that they may have (preferably before they even have a chance to ask them!)
Step 10: Begin the Booked Client Workflow
Start the automation for the workflow that pertains to whatever client they are (wedding, portrait, coaching, etc). Turn on the workflow template in HoneyBook and what this does it ties together every task that you want to do and it will do it for you automatically.
I hope this step-by-step guide helped you to see how simple onboarding new photography clients can be and how crucial CRMs are for cultivating a professional client experience. As always, I would love to hear what your favorite takeaway was from this video! Leave a comment below and let me know!
If you decide to use any of the links above and buy through them, I’ll receive a small commission back. All of those affiliate income commissions really add up over time and help generate revenue to help support this channel
If you are curious to read a full breakdown of everything Honeybook can do be sure to check out The Pros and Cons of Honeybook For Photographers HERE.
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