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Episode 37: Charity Maurer - Building a Luxury Brand
180 Plays6 years ago
Today’s guest is Charity Maurer of Charity Maurer Photography, a luxury level Photography business serving the Phoenix area.
What’s interesting about Charity’s business is that she didn’t start out as a luxury brand. It wasn’t until a few years into business that she decided she wanted to go after the luxury market so that she could create more margin in her life.
We walk through steps that Charity took in rebranding her business and entering that luxury level market focusing on everything from finding new networking groups to changing up the copy and imagery she was sharing on social media to making big pricing increases.
For show notes and other resources, go to https://daveyandkrista.com/btb-charity-maurer-episode-37.
Recommended
Transcript
Building a Resonant Luxury Brand
00:00:05
Speaker
I think that the biggest thing when you're building a luxury brand is to remember this, that you not only need to build a brand that is representative of you, which everyone talks about and is so important, I think very, very valuable, but you need to take it further and you need to build a brand that resonates with the luxury client.
Introduction to Brands at Book Show
00:00:34
Speaker
Welcome to the Brands at Book Show, where we help creative, service-based businesses build their brands and find more clients. I'm your host, Davy Jones.
Introduction of Guest: Charity Maurer
00:00:47
Speaker
Today's guest is Charity of Charity Maurer Photography, a luxury level photography business serving the Phoenix area. What's interesting about Charity's business is that she didn't start out as a luxury brand. It wasn't until a few years into her business that she decided she wanted to go after the luxury market so that she could create some more margin in her
Transitioning to Luxury Market
00:01:06
Speaker
life.
00:01:06
Speaker
We walked through the steps that Charity took in rebranding her business and entering that luxury level market, focusing on everything from finding new networking groups to changing up the copy and imagery she was sharing on social media to making big pricing increases.
Website Template Giveaway Announcement
00:01:21
Speaker
But before we get to the episode, if revisiting your website is on your to-do list this season, we have something for you to check out. We are giving away one of our website templates and you can find the details of that giveaway at giveaway.davianchrista.com.
Encouraging Listener Feedback
00:01:37
Speaker
Be sure to check out the show notes at DavyandChrista.com for the resources we mentioned during the episode, and I'd like to hear from you about what kind of content you'd like to see on the Brands That Book podcast as we move forward. I'd also like to know what episodes have you enjoyed most so far and why. To leave your feedback, head on over to the DavyandChrista Facebook page and send us a message. Now, on to the episode.
Pre-Holiday Podcast Recording
00:02:09
Speaker
Welcome to the show, Charity. I am so glad that we were able to make this work out. We're recording this right before Christmas. So we're trying to get this in towards the end of the year. And you're waking up mountain time, which is a little bit before, you know, Eastern time, which is where I'm recording. So I really appreciate you getting up early in the morning to do this.
00:02:26
Speaker
You are so welcome. Really, I'm just honored to be on your podcast. It was worth waking up at 5.30.
Challenges in Transitioning to Luxury
00:02:32
Speaker
Well, I'm really glad that I'm looking forward to chatting with you about building a luxury brand. This is actually a discussion that we've had relatively recently on the podcast. I interviewed Elle, who is a wedding planner out
00:02:45
Speaker
towards me. She's in Baltimore and she talked a little bit about this subject and there was a lot of interest around it. I'm really excited to get another perspective on that, especially since your story is a little bit different than hers and you didn't start out as a luxury
Charity's Journey from Dance to Photography
00:02:59
Speaker
brand. You pivoted from, I don't know how to put it, still average or above average market to becoming a luxury brand. I'm excited to dig into that with you.
00:03:12
Speaker
To be even more true to that statement, I didn't actually start out as an above average brand. It was definitely like average market, low level into average market, and then I decided to make that jump. It was a pretty big one. I'm even more excited to dig into this and talk about how you jump prices because I think that can be a difficult thing to do because
00:03:37
Speaker
you know, in general, the word of mouth referrals that you get are from friends or family of clients that you're currently shooting, right? So it can be hard to break that sort of cycle of working at whatever level that you're working at and getting into a higher price point. So we have lots to talk about. But I want to skip over sort of your journey. So take us back to the beginning when you first got started, when you're working at sort of a lower price point than you are now.
00:04:03
Speaker
Well, first I always have to start with my dance career because that was like my life and what I was so excited about. So what happened is I had this dance career and I was getting married and I realized this isn't what I want anymore because I'm getting married and I want that and I don't want to travel. So I decided to jump into photography.
00:04:22
Speaker
And at first I thought there's no way I'm going to shoot weddings because it's way too stressful. And now I, now I shoot like really stressful weddings. So it's kind of ironic, but that's how I started. And I started with families and all this stuff. And then finally by year three, I'd identified, okay, it's better to pick one thing and do that really well. So that's when I picked weddings and I jumped in at like, you know, like $1,200. I feel like that's kind of a starting price that everyone jumps into.
00:04:50
Speaker
And then from there, I really gradually built my brand and raised my prices slowly. And then in 2014, I had this really pivotal moment in which I was pregnant and I knew I was going to be a mom. But then also I fell in love with film photography. And both of those things I knew I have to charge more for my time and my service because there's no way I'm going to have a sustainable business if I don't.
00:05:18
Speaker
And I also really wanted to protect my time now that it was going to be a mom. So I wanted something really specific.
Defining Luxury Brands
00:05:24
Speaker
And I thought the luxury market is where I should go, because that's going to provide that opportunity. Yeah, for sure. And I don't want to I don't want to skip over this this dance career. What did that look like? And how did this career in dance even lead to photography at all? So like, what, you know, did you always enjoy photography? Or is it something you picked up somewhere along the way?
00:05:45
Speaker
Yeah, good question. I danced for a decade. So from like 10 years old until 20, and it was actually Irish dancing, which is river dance. If you've ever seen river dance, that's what it is. Yeah, so it's kind of a quirky dance. Like people usually think, Oh, so you did ballet or something? No, I did Irish dancing and you wear like fake wigs and it's like crazy. It's this whole like crazy world, but it's really fun.
00:06:09
Speaker
And so during that time, I also picked up a camera and just had fun experimenting with it. And when it was time to leave that behind, I knew I was a creative at heart. So that was something that just seemed to fit and something that I could grab hold of and make my new passion.
00:06:27
Speaker
Yeah, for sure. You decide that you want to start this business. How did you even go about finding your first clients? Was the dance career, was that what was paying the bills up to that point? I shouldn't even call it a dance career because it was just competitive dancing. I was never paid. In fact, we paid a lot of money to be a part of it. I guess I shouldn't really say career because it wasn't a job. I was 20 and I was working at Starbucks at the time.
00:06:57
Speaker
and trying to build my business. And man, I think the first few clients were the hardest I've ever had to win, you know, because you're starting from nowhere. So I remember some of the Starbucks regulars became some of my first clients, which was awesome. They were so sweet. And then just family friends too. Yeah. Yeah. And so it was just a matter of like, kind of getting those first initial, you know, couple of clients and then getting some work out there and going from there.
00:07:25
Speaker
Yeah, I really think so. You just got to start, you know? Yeah, yeah, for sure. And I feel like that's such a huge component of building a business. And there is this grind, I think, for your first, you know, one to 10 clients, you know, before you have any sort of a referral base. And that can be the hardest. I think a lot of people give up in that period. And you just got to you just got to keep going. But anyways,
00:07:49
Speaker
Fast forward, all right. You've decided that you're going to do weddings, which you, at least in the beginning, thought you would never do. And you decide to charge $1,200. How'd you come up with that price? Did you just feel like, this seems all right? I think that maybe other people were charging that price or something. Or my wedding photographer charged us $2,800, which seemed like, oh my gosh, that's a ton of money. And so I think $1,200 felt better than that.
00:08:19
Speaker
I don't know. I guess I just made it up maybe. Yeah. I mean, I think back to the initial prices that we were charging and I just think, you know, the same thing, you know, how did we even get to, I think the first wedding we ever shot, we charged something like $400 for it. Very first one, right? And I think like, how did we even come up with that? You know, and it really was like, well, I don't know. It seems like this might be what they're willing to pay. And then, you know, and then going from there and then getting up to even that $1,000, $1,200 mark and thinking, oh man, if I could just do
00:08:47
Speaker
30, 50 of these a year, I'm going to be rolling. And then, of course, looking back and thinking, that's a lot. Shooting 30 to 50 weddings a year, that's a lot. But anyways, you eventually transition to becoming more of a luxury brand. How do you go about that transition? And really, I
Gradual Shift to Luxury and Networking
00:09:08
Speaker
guess, what's the difference between, or what would you consider the difference between a luxury brand and a non-luxury brand? Great question.
00:09:16
Speaker
Number one, I would say exclusivity is a huge element that differentiates a luxury brand. So the element of it being exclusive, it's not for everyone. It's something that is more unique of a focus probably and it also comes with a large price point. So that's a huge difference.
00:09:35
Speaker
And then second, I would say there's this element of attention to detail that differentiates a luxury brand. So I think if you compare a luxury set of bedsheets versus just your average bedsheets, you're going to see a higher level of thread count, right? So it's that same idea of maybe the same thing, but there's a higher level of detail and a higher level of quality that comes with it. So I think that's another element that's different.
00:10:05
Speaker
And then I think the hugest factor that differentiates a luxury brand is the emphasis on customer service. I think that to be a luxury brand, you have to really have a tailored service. And, you know, I think about the, the metaphor I always think about is comparing Target and Nordstrom and Target is an amazing brand, right? And it's, it's really for everyone. It's the doors are open and.
00:10:30
Speaker
The price points are really fantastic and you go in there and you probably find a really great product and you have a great time and it's good. But when you go to Nordstrom and you're in there for 30 seconds.
00:10:42
Speaker
there's a sales associate that comes up to you and says, is there anything that you're looking for today? How can I help you? And they ask you about your day and they get your name. They come back a minute later and take the items that you're carrying in your hand and go put them in a dressing room and write your name on the door. And then when you're in the dressing room, they come in and they ask if you need more sizes. So it's a totally different experience. And I think that's hugely what separates a luxury brand.
00:11:09
Speaker
Yeah, and I think that's a good distinction too between Target and Nordstrom because both of them are good brands. People love Target and people love Nordstrom. And really, one of the things that sets them apart, like you mentioned, is this exclusivity factor. Nordstrom isn't for everyone, they're for a very specific kind of customer.
00:11:29
Speaker
And so what kind of customer is that for you in your market? And you serve primarily the Phoenix Scottsdale area, right? So what kind of bride or groom are you marketing your business to? Sure. I am marketing my business to a client who lives out of state or out of country. I get a lot of Canadians. Oh, wow. And they're coming to the desert to plan a destination wedding. And it's not just a wedding day, but it's a whole weekend experience. So they're going to have
00:11:58
Speaker
a welcome dinner for all their guests the night before. They're going to have an amazing wedding day that probably includes a live band, probably includes, you know, guest welcome bags and maybe a fireworks show, you know, something that is an experience for everyone involved. And then maybe they're even going to have a brunch on the third day. So that's my client who's planning, you know, not just a wedding, but a whole weekend celebration with people from all over the world.
00:12:28
Speaker
Yeah, that's incredible. I would never have guessed that a lot of your client base is actually out of state or even out of the country coming down from Canada. I'm guessing for, you know, I mean, I always joke with friends of mine, Amy and Jordan, who are out in that same area that you guys have like the best light in the desert, you know?
00:12:45
Speaker
which is awesome. I can totally see if you're living up in Canada, maybe it's a little colder, you're looking to get some warm weather. I have questions about how that became your client base or how you realized that there was a market there for planning destination weddings in Scottsdale. But first, walk us through the steps you took to go from that $1,200 price point
00:13:09
Speaker
to the current price point that you're working at. If you don't mind me asking, what is that? What does the average couple spend with you now? My average client is spending between $7500 and $10,000 usually and above that as well, but that's usually my average is right about there, which in Arizona, that is a really high price point. It's going to be different wherever you are, but here that is definitely in that top market for sure.
00:13:39
Speaker
Well, first, I should say that I didn't go from $1,200 into that market because in those three years, I was building myself up. So I remember, I think I was at like a $2,500 price point. And then a year later, I was able to start charging at $4,500, which I would consider is that, at least in my market, like that entry-level high-end market, entry-level luxury markets, right about that price point. But I would say it was very, very difficult to get there.
00:14:09
Speaker
And I would also say that any time you're going to make large pricing increases, it's going to be really difficult to get there, but it's always going to be worth it. And that was definitely true for me. So I was at 2,500, started shooting film, and I thought there's no way that it was just going to work out.
00:14:29
Speaker
And so I thought, okay, I'm going to start charging
Enhancing Client Experience
00:14:32
Speaker
$3,500, $1,000 more. And at the time when I was doing this, that seemed like maybe a little more money than it is now. I feel like that's maybe a little bit more of the average market now. I might be, might be wrong depending on where you're at, but at the time it really felt like a lot. So it was crickets and I had, you know, barely any clients and it was really difficult. And the really interesting thing that I learned,
00:14:58
Speaker
is that I believe that there is this dead zone in pricing that happens between that average market level and that high level of pricing because it's either too high for the client who is in that average market and they're not able to stretch themselves to pay that or it's too low for a true higher end client who's looking to pay at minimum $4,000
00:15:26
Speaker
is just too low and there's not going to be that value, perception of value there for them. So I walked through that and I probably booked like one or two clients at that level and then thankfully had a wedding planner that I met with and she told me, Charity, you're worth way more than this and you need to up your price. And I did, I think I upped it then straight to $4,000. So from $2,500 to $4,000. And then I started booking again, which was fascinating to me.
00:15:55
Speaker
Yeah, that really is fascinating and I've heard people talk about this dead zone. I think we've experienced it before in our photography business as well. I think one of the hard things about really articulating it well, I think you did a good job of that though, is that in different markets that dead zone is going to be a little bit different.
00:16:12
Speaker
Were you worried at all, though, raising your prices? Because I mean, oftentimes, if there are crickets, right, if you're not getting inquiries, or you're getting inquiries, but you're not getting bookings, and you think it's because you just raised your prices, the natural inclination, right, is to lower your prices. So what made you trust this planner and raise your prices instead? Oh, man. I mean, it was hard. I was scared. Yeah, yeah, for sure. I'm scared every single time for sure. But I think it's like, you just
00:16:40
Speaker
I think with anything in business, you just have to decide that that's who you are, that's what you're worth, that's what you're doing and you just have to do it and you have to back it. And then you test it for a time and then you can make changes if it doesn't work. But I feel like when I test it, maybe I find that I need to tweak something like I needed to raise my price by just $500 and then it got a whole lot better. And I think that's how a lot of things go.
00:17:08
Speaker
I think there's so much power in just saying, I think that my service is worth this amount. And there's so much power in just simply asking.
00:17:17
Speaker
Yeah. So in changing your prices, so you increase your prices to around $4,000 at this point, what followed in terms of the service that you were providing? So we had talked about that. The example that we had used earlier was between Target and Nordstrom. How did you sort of ramp up your client experience? What was among the first changes that you made there so that your experience matched your pricing? Or had it always matched and you were just undercharging?
00:17:44
Speaker
No, because so a huge thing is actually not even the service, which is what you're asking about. So I will come back to that. But I think hugely is I implemented the film. And I feel like a lot of people say, oh, well, you're a film photographer, so you can be luxury. I don't think that's true. What I do think is true is that right now, as the market stands, film naturally has a more luxurious brand position.
00:18:11
Speaker
I don't think that's necessarily always going to be the case. I think it's true right now. So I think that just naturally starting to do that kind of up to my brand position in itself, if that makes sense. So that definitely gave a more qualifying factor to my price just naturally. And then from there is because I was shooting film, I decided to do something really interesting.
00:18:35
Speaker
I needed a film loader, so a third person, to be on my weddings with me at this point because I was shooting the film. So I decided, I have to pay this third person anyway? What if I started to sell this third person who's a part of my team as not only a film loader, actually I never tell my clients that they're a film loader.
00:18:54
Speaker
I say that this third person is here to get you water when you get thirsty and they're here to fix your dress and your train when you need it. So I can stand back and I can be posing you and giving you direction, but they're going to step in and really make sure you're looking awesome, you know? So I think that was one of the hugest things that I did and still remains like one of the most valuable elements of my service, I believe. Yeah, that's awesome. How did you even come up with that idea?
00:19:23
Speaker
I don't know. I think, I think I just like, it kind of started happening. So I had her there. She's loading my film and then it just was happening. That's exactly what she was doing. Cause I have always had like a high value on customer service. And so I would train her to think those ways. So she started doing it. And then I think I just started telling my clients that, and then working with wedding planners and the planners telling me, charity, that's so amazing that you do that.
00:19:49
Speaker
I started to realize, oh, that's actually a really unique factor about my
Networking with WIPA
00:19:54
Speaker
service. And I didn't even really know that until someone from the outside could articulate that to me. Yeah, I think that's just a fascinating observation too. And I think there's so many things in business where we can build stuff into our pricing that we're going to end up doing anyways, and just articulating that we can do it just adds more value, but really doesn't change what we'd be doing anyways.
00:20:19
Speaker
So, I think that's a great observation and people should, I think, consistently look at their businesses in that way and figure out, okay, what are some of the highlights that I can provide in terms of client experience to people? Maybe things that you're already doing like you had noticed. So, you've raised your prices to $4,000. You've enhanced your client experience to a certain extent. What else went into building this lecture experience? Mm-hmm. The other factor
00:20:45
Speaker
that is a huge key player is that I started building a new network of referrals because every referral source that I had before just dropped off the map because their clients could no longer afford me. All of those leads were falling short, which I think was a huge part of the discouragement and raising the prices was seeing that happen because you have to go through a ton of no's to get to you.
00:21:13
Speaker
Yeah, so that was really hard. And so thankfully, I recognized, well, none of these referral sources are working for me anymore. So I need to get out there and find new ones. So I joined a local networking group called WIPA. I don't know if you guys have that where you're at, but we have that here. It's really thriving. I joined that, which was also risky at the time because I didn't have a lot of cash flow. So to put money towards that felt really risky and difficult, but it was so worth it because
00:21:41
Speaker
that allowed me to get into that circle of the top tier people and start getting referrals from those wedding planners, start getting referrals not only from planners, but actually from photographers. I think that was the hugest thing that helped me get up there because I think it's hard for planners to just refer you if they've never worked with you. But if you have photographer relationships who are at that level and those people are booked and they can't service those weddings and they send them to you,
00:22:10
Speaker
That's a really easy way to get into that market. Yeah. And it's a high trust referral too, you know, because if someone's already reached out to that photographer, it means they like them and like their style. And so inherently they're going to trust that person a little bit more. So definitely provides a more qualified inquiry than, you know, somebody who just, you know, sort of randomly came across your website. So you joined, you joined WIPA and what, and what is that? Is it WIPPA? WIPA.
00:22:37
Speaker
WIPA. All right. Awesome. Just want to make sure I get that in the show notes and link to that. And I haven't heard that. I'm not sure if that's in our area, but is that something that it sounds like you had to pay to be a part of or did you have to apply? You have to have at least three years of business experience. And then you also have to have business insurance as well. And then no, you don't have to apply. You just become a member. You submit that proof that you've been in business that long and that you have insurance and they let you in.
00:23:07
Speaker
Okay, awesome. I like the steps that you've gone through here. One, not reacting out of fear when you've raised your prices and nobody was booking you or fewer people were booking you. Instead, you raise your prices a little bit more, trusted this wedding planner who was in the area, ended up getting more bookings from raising your prices and getting out of that pricing dead zone, then matching your experience with that pricing. And word of mouth referrals are awesome.
00:23:33
Speaker
I mean they're probably the most qualified referrals, right? So recognizing that, recognizing that you probably weren't going to get referrals, at least you weren't going to get inquiries from the people you've worked with in the past, their friends and family, because they're going to be expecting to pay a different price point and so you sought out
00:23:50
Speaker
a
Aligning Visual Branding with Luxury
00:23:51
Speaker
network referral group like WIPA and join them. I know there's stuff beyond that though that goes into creating a luxury brand and I know stuff that you've talked about before such as the visual branding elements and writing a strategic copy. How does that play into all of these other things? Yes, this is one of my favorite elements to talk about.
00:24:13
Speaker
So I think that the biggest thing when you're building a luxury brand is to remember this, that you not only need to build a brand that is representative of you, which everyone talks about and is so important, I think very, very valuable, but you need to take it further and you need to build a brand that resonates with a luxury client. So one that is representative of you, but is also going to be what they expect to see or want to see.
00:24:44
Speaker
And I think that's so, so crucial. And so really the first step that I think you can take in trying to figure out how should I visually brand myself is that you need to develop an eye for luxury. So you need to be looking at websites that are luxury brands, whether that be in the wedding industry or out. I think there's a lot to learn from other industries.
00:25:11
Speaker
and just start looking at them and understanding what it is that they're achieving because you'll see similar things. I think that hugely right now, luxury looks more minimalistic. And I think people tend to think luxury is over the top, but I actually think it's that concept of less but better that I kind of talked about before. And another really awesome resource that I always recommend is
00:25:35
Speaker
There's a website called carrots and cake and they specialize in just showcasing luxury weddings. And so you can go on their website and just immerse yourself in seeing what these look like. And you'll see, you'll start to recognize brand names of shoes, you know, and dress designers and all those things. And I, I think that's really important to try to understand because you need to get into the head of your client too, you know,
00:26:01
Speaker
Yeah, so going back to this concept of less but better, how does that play out in the imagery that you're sharing? And then also, how do you build up this kind of imagery? I know for a photographer, it's going to be a little bit easier because you can shoot it yourself, even though I'd love to hear about how you sort of built up some of this imagery so that you can jump from that, you know, $2,500 market up to 4,000 plus. Was it a matter of, you know, style shoots? Like, what did that look like for you? Yeah, a mixture of both. I think one of the coolest things that I did
00:26:31
Speaker
was I just started to curate the work that I already had really, really intentionally. So people talk about this all the time, but you can shoot a wedding, you know, and then very strategically pull out elements of it and only showcase that. And naturally you can come away with something that looks way more luxurious than it actually was. So like little things like maybe you shoot a wedding in which the chairs at the ceremony are just like,
00:27:01
Speaker
I don't know, like plastic, cheap chairs or whatever. Don't show that. Maybe for that wedding, you only show really stunning bride and groom portraits. And in the bouquet, because maybe the bouquet is stunning, and you style it really beautifully, and you style it away from those other details that maybe don't fit that more luxurious picture. And I think you can make something look way more high end than it actually is.
00:27:30
Speaker
Yeah, I think that's great advice. I think there's so many reasons to do, you know, a content audit on what you currently have. I think some of the best advice that we got when we were shooting from, you know, other veteran photographers was, you know, that the best photographer shared the least amount of work, you know, and just the concept kind of what you were sharing is or what you were just saying was, you know, going back and curating that work
00:27:52
Speaker
that you are sharing, instead of sharing 100 images in a blog post, go back and pick your best 30. What you walk away with is a blog post where every image is this outstanding throat puncher, so to speak, instead of just having some of those images in there that aren't meh, or just don't show off your very, very best work.
00:28:16
Speaker
So I think that's great. But then also from like even a website and content strategy and the search visibility standpoint, you know, a couple of years is a long time, especially when you go back and look at the content on your website, right? And regardless of where you're at right now, I mean, you've probably grown so much in the last six months, you know, let alone a year, let alone three years. So going back and cleaning that up and just cleaning up your website, I think is a good thing and probably going to have, you know, SEO benefits too. So all sorts of reasons to do
Vendor Referrals and Instagram Verification
00:28:46
Speaker
a content audit.
00:28:46
Speaker
What's next? What's the next step in building a luxury brand? Well, we haven't talked about the copy yet. Yeah, I think is vital too. So I don't know if you've ever heard of story brand. Yeah, Donald Miller. Yeah, that's like been one of my favorite books this year. So I think it's genius because
00:29:07
Speaker
In our world, we talk so much about sharing our stories and building, again, this brand that's around us. So powerful, so important. And I don't think Donald Miller in his book really gives credit to that side of things. But his perspective is so refreshing and so powerful, I think, because he talks about building a brand around your customer's story. So I think what I really took away from that is
00:29:36
Speaker
figuring out what your clients really aspire to be and communicating in their language according to their values. And I think also in line with your values, I think that the beauty happens when you find ways that those two overlap each other. So for me, I recognized legacy is a huge value of mine and family. And I started to see that my favorite luxury clients also had that value as well.
00:30:06
Speaker
And so I took that, but then I also had to take this element of, okay, but my client also isn't me. Like I drive a Kia and I live in a 1200 square foot home, you know? So that's definitely not my client. My client lives very differently than me. So I needed to figure out language that fit their world. So for on my website,
00:30:30
Speaker
when you open my homepage, the only text that I have says, wedding photography for sophisticated and luxurious couples. And I wrote that because I feel like those are two words that my clients aspire to be or they aspire for their weddings to be that way. And I think there's elements of that that I value as well. I value sophistication. And I think that luxury is a really, really cool thing
00:30:59
Speaker
And so it's genuine at the same time if that makes sense. So that's kind of how I paired my story with my client's story. Yeah, for sure. And I think that makes total sense. I would recommend for anybody listening to this who hasn't read Donald Miller's story brand to go and do that. He also has a great podcast where he talks about a lot of this stuff that you're talking about as well. But I think one of the things, one of the big mistakes that we see people make on their websites is making it about them.
00:31:27
Speaker
and putting random, especially when it comes to the about page, the random list of things that you enjoy, but what is that doing to build your brand in the eyes of the people who are actually going to be booking your work? I think that is an important distinction and important to mention.
00:31:43
Speaker
you know, the words and the imagery that you've used on your website was created based around, you know, the kind of client that you want to work with. So finding that overlap between, you know, what you know, not only, you know, your personality and kind of the things you like, but then also focusing on, you know, who is it that I'm actually serving? Is there anything else? Is there another step in building a luxury brand? Hmm. I think that I shared everything that I thought was really significant in summary, but
00:32:12
Speaker
I just, I love the copy part because I feel like as photographers, or sorry, not everyone is a photographer listening, but especially photographers, I feel like we can struggle with language and words sometimes. So definitely recommend the story brand thing and look at my website because I feel like I really was strategic in all of that and you'll see it play out. And I shared about the legacy thing. So if you go to my information page, it talks about how important photographs are
00:32:41
Speaker
in telling the story of your legacy for your grandkids. So it's an example if you want it.
00:32:48
Speaker
Yeah, and probably a great example of building into that experience as well. So, as far as marketing goes and finding luxury clients, what channels have been most effective for you and your business?
Building Vendor Relationships
00:33:02
Speaker
Were they the same channels as when you were first getting started and maybe it just came down to sharing the different images and better copy and so on and so forth? Or have you found different channels producing a little bit better for a luxury market?
00:33:16
Speaker
Yeah, so I feel like true luxury, all of those clients come from vendor referrals and mainly wedding planners. And I just think that is a natural part of being at that level is that's just kind of the water that you're swimming in is that that's how it works because all of those clients are booking wedding planners. And so I think that if you want to build a luxury brand, you have to have those
00:33:43
Speaker
relationships, I really think is most important. And I think what's interesting is like Instagram is still important, but it's important in a very different way. It's not a lead generator for me. It's a portfolio. And it's also a place to like talk to my tribe and my network. It's a place for me to talk to vendors. They're important for me to network with. It's important for my clients and that when a wedding planner is with a client,
00:34:12
Speaker
They will literally, they've told me this, open up Instagram and say, oh, do you like this? And the client's like, oh yeah. So Instagram is vital and really important, but it's no longer my lead generator, if that makes sense.
00:34:26
Speaker
Yeah, no, I think that it's just verification that you are as good as these wedding planners are saying that you are. And I think such an interesting perspective. And again, it's something that I think I've talked about before, it's just the importance of relationships. And I sometimes talk about, you know, with friends, you know, I like to ask, you know, if you could go back to the beginning of your business, what's the one thing that you would focus on? And a lot of my friends who, you know, maybe they had a
00:34:50
Speaker
We use photography as an example a lot because that's what we used to shoot, but we'd say, oh, we'd focus on those vendor referrals because they are so powerful. I think like you said, especially as you get into a higher end market. Do you have any tips for building these relationships? How did you build these relationships with wedding vendors? Everyone always asks this because starting, again, just like pricing is the hardest part. It really is.
00:35:19
Speaker
So I think you can't be afraid to hear no and you just have to try and you have to take it one step at a time and you have to give it time, I think. But I think the most crucial step that I made was joining WIPA because that's where all of those people hung out. So my first step was just figuring out where are they at? Where do they hang out? And how do I go there?
00:35:47
Speaker
because then naturally I would start meeting these people and then I could follow up with an email and say, Hey, I really enjoyed our conversation about that. Can I, you know, take you out to coffee or take you out to lunch? And then that was kind of my end because at least then they had a face, you know? And then I, I think there's a lot to be said about just researching people to prior and figure it like learning them and figuring out what they like. Like an example I really like is I wanted to,
00:36:15
Speaker
build a relationship with a wedding venue. And so I found the venue coordinator on Instagram and in her profile it said she really likes iced coffee and cupcakes. So I emailed her and I said, hey, can I bring you a cupcake and iced coffee next week at this time? Would that work for you?
00:36:36
Speaker
And if you like cupcakes and iced coffee, duh, you're gonna say yes, you know? Yeah, no, and I appreciate the extra effort that you put into getting to know these people and researching them a little bit, which is so much better than just sending out what is obviously a canned email to a bunch of people asking if you can pick their brain over coffee or whatever.
00:36:58
Speaker
So and it's just so easy like you like you just mentioned to do a little research on people and figure out you know what what's important to them you know what are the things that they like and you know from taking those extra steps it sounds like you've built a lot of good relationships in the area that you're working.
00:37:15
Speaker
Definitely. Yeah. So that's awesome. I really do like that distinction between Instagram as a lead generation tool and more of a verification tool and just understanding that at the price point that you're at or within the market
Pricing Strategy Adjustments
00:37:29
Speaker
that you're in, still important. Just because it's not providing leads doesn't mean that you should not focus on it. So I really do appreciate that perspective.
00:37:37
Speaker
I do want to wrap up here by talking a little bit about pricing specifically and any tips that you have around pricing, especially for a luxury market. One thing you already mentioned earlier in the episode was that there was this dead zone. If you're trying to price for a luxury market,
00:37:53
Speaker
and your price too low, people won't book you simply because they're expecting to pay more. I think we all do this sometimes if we see something and the price seems a little bit too good to be true, we assume there's something like it wasn't made well or it's not going to last or the service isn't going to be as good because it's price lower. You've made quite the jump from $4,000 even to now serving clients who are paying between it sounds like $7,000 to $10,000 and beyond.
00:38:23
Speaker
you know, what went into creating that pricing structure? Yeah, great question. So I think anytime that I started to see my middle package become like just the no brainer one that people were picking. And then especially if I started to see my highest end package being chosen, because I've only ever done three packages. And I think that's a really perfect system. But anytime I saw that those two things happening,
00:38:51
Speaker
I would take my middle package and make it my starting price, and I would just bump all the prices up so that my middle now became my first, my middle became my highest package price-wise, and then the highest package now became something more and something else. I think that's such a good gauge for figuring that out because if you're seeing that people are already willing to spend it,
00:39:19
Speaker
chances are they'll probably spend even a little bit more, especially if you're tapping out at that top package. So anytime that started to happen for me, I've just gone to the next and gone to the next. And I think that I honestly feel like, at least for me, the hardest jump was going from the average market to that low end to higher market. That was the hardest. And now that I have done that, it has been easier and easier every year, every six months, every three months.
00:39:48
Speaker
to go higher. Because for whatever reason, I just think you get to a point where money is just kind of money, and people are willing to spend it, you know? Yeah. No, and I think that kind of makes sense too, you know, that it was hardest to make that initial jump because you're jumping like you mentioned, you're jumping out of your network that you currently were getting referrals from to a brand new network. You're serving a kind of client who's looking for something maybe different than what you were providing, or different than what you were sharing beforehand.
00:40:18
Speaker
So it makes sense to me that that initial jump would be the hardest. I do appreciate and I think it should be encouragement to anybody listening that, you know, that initial jump is going to be hard. It's not going to happen overnight. And like you said, it's gotten easier year after year, but you got to, you know, you got to sit there for a while. You got to be willing to test things like you did going from, you know, 3,500 up to 4,000 just to get into that lower level luxury market. And as far as pricing goes, it's so interesting even, you know, to hear your perspective on that, I feel like
00:40:47
Speaker
There's one of two things I hear when it comes to raising prices, one similar to what you were talking about where anytime you book your highest package three times, let's say you raise your prices a little bit more. And that's not, you know, I'm not saying that's necessarily what you do, but I feel like that's a tip that I often hear people mention. And I think it's a good one.
00:41:06
Speaker
Because if people are willing to pay for that highest collection, which really should be the collection with all the bells and whistles, I think it's verification that you've kind of moved into that market that's willing to pay for it. And then there's another pricing strategy that I've heard as well where you have a certain amount of services or dates that you're going to work over the course of a year.
00:41:26
Speaker
the more you book. So let's say you're going to work 20 weddings. Well, when you've booked 15 already, you know, those last five, that time is more valuable than those first 15, right? So it makes sense along the way, incrementally went as you hit goals to maybe raise your prices, you know, between one and 3% proportionally to what they were.
00:41:44
Speaker
So, but again, really appreciate your insight into these things. And I think it's just such encouragement for people who want to move into a luxury market that you don't necessarily have to start there, you know, but there's certain things that there's certain steps that you're going to have to take to get there. So Charity, I really appreciate you coming on today, sharing your perspective about these things. Where can people go to learn more about you, follow along, see examples of some of these things that we talked about today?
00:42:11
Speaker
I'm always on Instagram. I'm always hanging out on Instagram. At Charity Maurer photo is my handle. And then also on my website and on my blog, I do blog about tips like this once a month or so. So you can definitely find me there as well. Okay, awesome. Well, thanks again for joining us today. Thank you so much, Davey.
00:42:35
Speaker
Thanks for tuning into the Brands That Book Show. If you enjoyed this episode, please consider subscribing and leaving a review in iTunes. For show notes and other resources, head on over to davianchrista.com.
00:42:57
Speaker
you