Creating a Market from scratch

[candleman]

I’m wanting to make a serious effort at going after the Senior Portrait market.

However, in NZ it isn’t a “done” thing. So I’m literally creating a market from scratch.

My plan of attack is:
Doing two shoots for good looking teenagers I know, and use those as my marketing material.
SOMEHOW get some popular teenagers I know to promote this in school. (pay them like $20 for each person they get to book, or offer a 100% refund if they can provide three referrals)

I know one girl who is a Prefect at a good school, and another Head Prefect at another school on the other side of the city. Both are popular kids.
I'll probably do a free shoot for them after I get them to buy into the idea, then get them posting them on facebook and "wowing" their friends?

So, I have a few brainstorming questions I’d like to get some of your perspectives on.
What should I call these? They aren’t called “Seniors” here, we call them “6th Formers” or “7th Formers”
I was thinking along the lines of “Last year” , “School Leavers” “Schoolies”, or something to that effect.
Essentially I want to make the portraits an extension of each kids personality with location shoots, props etc etc. Not just lame old studio headshots.

The way I figure it is if I can get the kids to buy into it and want it, the parents will naturally follow. I don’t think it will work if the parents are trying to tell their rebellious angry teenagers that they have to do something.

I have already found a wholesale retail supplier (a friend) who is going to get me some modern looking frames at incredible prices... So at least I have more to offer than a CD and a slap on the bum.

So, Hit me.
How can I get the kids to get excited about it and talking?
How would YOU drum up excitement?

How would you create a market from scratch

[BK553]

In my experience, just to throw this out there, it's the parents that drive these kinds of shoots, not the kids. The parents drag their begrudging kid to do the shoots, usually they want photos before they go off to college. Just my thoughts. As far as getting kids interested, make sure you let them use your photos on facebook/twitter, that's where they'll see and admire them.

[LoveDSLR]

Originally Posted by candleman

I’m wanting to make a serious effort at going after the Senior Portrait market.

However, in NZ it isn’t a “done” thing. So I’m literally creating a market from scratch.

Niche marketing or creating a market from scratch?

Originally Posted by candleman

My plan of attack is:
Doing two shoots for good looking teenagers I know, and use those as my marketing material.
SOMEHOW get some popular teenagers I know to promote this in school. (pay them like $20 for each person they get to book, or offer a 100% refund if they can provide three referrals)

I know one girl who is a Prefect at a good school, and another Head Prefect at another school on the other side of the city. Both are popular kids.
I'll probably do a free shoot for them after I get them to buy into the idea, then get them posting them on facebook and "wowing" their friends?

So, I have a few brainstorming questions I’d like to get some of your perspectives on.
What should I call these? They aren’t called “Seniors” here, we call them “6th Formers” or “7th Formers”
I was thinking along the lines of “Last year” , “School Leavers” “Schoolies”, or something to that effect.
Essentially I want to make the portraits an extension of each kids personality with location shoots, props etc etc. Not just lame old studio headshots.
.
.

I have already found a wholesale retail supplier (a friend) who is going to get me some modern looking frames at incredible prices... So at least I have more to offer than a CD and a slap on the bum.

Unfortunately I only read tactics and logistics but not strategies. Try to discover what make that group of people buy? You want to tell them a need that they don't know yet.

Why teens buy certain thing? Because it is the 'in' thing.
Why people here keep asking about superzoom? Because they don't have to change lenses.

BTW, prepare marketing to 2nd or 3rd best prospect group first and keep on fine-tuning your message until you discovered the hot button. Also, try to discover various segments from your clients.

Originally Posted by candleman

The way I figure it is if I can get the kids to buy into it and want it, the parents will naturally follow. I don’t think it will work if the parents are trying to tell their rebellious angry teenagers that they have to do something.

"A better mouse trap"?

Originally Posted by candleman

So, Hit me.
How can I get the kids to get excited about it and talking?

That's the $64,000 question!

Originally Posted by candleman

How would YOU drum up excitement?

Marketing.

For example, you can send out press releases about bringing 'Senior Portraits' to NZ. Listed the advantages and mention your special demo and Q&A event.

[Niresangwa]

I think the starting point is to identify the sentiment behind the success of Senior portraits over here. Of course it's more of a convention, but from what I understand there was a revolution behind the expectations of clients above and beyond the studio portrait for the yearbook - understanding the reason for that will probably be the key place to start...

...you can't single handedly recreate a national convention like the HS yearbook, but if you can tap into what transformed it into a glamour-fest, you can channel your marketing through it.

I think it can be done. An example is the 'Prom'. Obviously a long standing tradition here in the US for decades, as I understand it, it's now a 'new' hot item in the UK. When I was growing up in the UK, it certainly wasn't at all... there were plenty of crappy 'dances', but the only thing I can remember being close to it was a Leavers Ball my last year of undegrad.

...so what was it that appealed so much about the Prom that it crossed the Atlantic and took hold?

[lonni]

Hi
I am in a similar situation, im in australia and have been considdering introducing it here.

I found that most teens understood and know what senior portraist were, but did not have the money for it, the parents had no idea so i have to educate them.
The parents and teens both have very different ideas about what type of images they wanted, so you will never get 2 happy parties, it is either one or teh other, which make it hard for word of mouth.
The teens like a group package more, they each pay a certain ammount get a certain ammount of my time and a few prints with the option to buy more later.
They also liked group and couple shots more than individuals.
I have to push it earlier in the year, as the school formals are at the end and photos can not compete with formals (like prom) even if i packaged it for formal photos, similar to wedding party photos.

I dont know how much i helped but it is something to think about.

[Jim Bryant]

Go for it and find a niche! You'll never know unless you try!

[AnonymousKiwi1]

Originally Posted by candleman

So I’m literally creating a market from scratch.

Go for it!

And by the time I'm ready to go professional, you will have done all the hard work....

[candleman]

Brian,
That’s probably true and it lines up with LoveDSLR with the why they should want it.
It’s something to remember the babies by before they go off and grow up.
I provide low resolution + watermarked for everything I do, it’s a very powerful method of spreading the word.


LoveDSLR,
I think you’re dead right with the identifying the Why rather than taking the “how to” approach.
$64,000 question indeed! (funny you should mention that exact number )
Nice idea RE: the press release.. now that I think about it there are a couple of other businesses I know that could helpl me with this.. and I do already have a working relationship with one of them.
Thank you!

Steve,
I hope that last one wasn’t rhetorical.. because I want the answer.
Maybe the kids feel they have an opportunity to be a glamorous adult and express themselves?
The Parents get to see their babies “all growe’d up”? I don’t know.

Relating that to Senior Portraits, I obviously have some homework to do in understanding what high schools do here. I don’t even know if they do a year book. I think you’re right in that this was probably the origin of the Senior portraits in that the kids wanted to be something better in the book than just a malcom-in-the-middle headshot. (anyone else seen that episode where he doesn’t care and then realises that this one image is how he will be remembered by his school for all of time? Suddenly he becomes obsessive and strives for the perfect shot?
...maybe that’s it.

Jim,
certainly gonna give it a shot!

Lonni,
Thanks for that insight, I have a feeling it will be pretty similar here,
Perhaps I shouldn’t rule out the parents too soon.
I like your idea about the group option, that way the kids get what they want (pictures with friends) and the parents get whatthey want, pictures of their kid.
+1 nice help.. thanks

Lisa,
You can start now by telling all your kids friends and their parents how important it is to have portraits done before they leave for Uni.

[lonni]

I forgot to add that recently there is a Year 12 book going around, its done by big company, photographers sign up to the program.

You take the senior photos and they go into a regional photobook, the fee covers the shoot and the book. You do have photos of every one else in the area, and teh area changes depending on how many people take up the offer. The kids have to wait quite a while to get the book, and it is pretty pricey. They do it very fashion model shoot, a bit edgey very young, lots of differet styles. Think GQ, vanity fair style.

That said lots of kids are doing it, maybe you can set one up similar, and just do your town or smaller region, i know you should get volume discounts on the books.

[BigFuzzy]

I tried to "multi-quote" but not working for me..

Anyway, the point I want to make is one you hinted at and one that I think invalidates BK553's point because it's a new world out there. Back in the day of glamour shots or regular HS portraits, we all hated it because it was something cheesey that ended up in a frame on a wall in your parents home with copies mailed to your grandparents.

Nowadays that's all changing with social media. If you can get kids to want to post your images on FB or other such sites, you don't need parents to drag them to your studio, they'll come running. It's an evolving market in the US because of new younger hipper photographers who are making it cool to have your "senior" portraits done. Granted, now they're a lot more like fashiony portraits like this rather than THIS... one the subject would looove to have on their FB profile, one.. less. I pride myself in knowing that more than 15 have my photos as their FB profiles.. that, says something in todays social media world.

I think there's a market there to be captured... or made. I say go for it. I'm salivating at the thought of virgin markets where you could introduce something new like this. Then, you can get these same youngsters when they want to get married/have kids!