Follow ups for demo dvds and info?

[Brandon Wood]

Hey everyone...just looking for some general advice, and you know I always find it here...

Just wondering when someone through email requests a demo dvd and you mail it out to them, how do you follow up with that person if you haven't heard anything back in a few days?

For that matter, how do you package the dvd along with information for your business when you've simply had an emailed request. I'm sure some of you (Peter J. I'm thinking of you - lol) require the bride fill out a bunch of info or speak to you first before you spend your time and money mailing anything.

It's always a fine line between to me between scaring the future bride off through too much communication, and not keeping in contact with them enough. But I need to know since it's not exactly cheap to send this info out unless I'm getting results.

Thoughts??

[Mike F Smith]

If you send out promo you should follow up with a phone call. Part of getting the promo is to fill in a phone number line.

Mike

[Peter Jefferson]

I dont send demos, ive had too much work and many ideas stolen from me in the past, and this from people ive actually trained coming up to me ans saying "how do i do this" then theyve whipped out my DVD to show me what they mean... no.. not anymore...

i send price info via email with PDF brochures.
Procedural info is online and is a part of the marketing strategy
If they want to ask questions they can, but most are already answered on the website

If they want demos, i advise them that due to our licensing laws here in Aus, we cant send out demos, but we do recommend obligation free consultations, where we do the reasearch and find what THEYRE wanting, THEN show them the closest thing to it. Takes more effort, but i get 99% sales by doing it this way. They can see what theyre envisioning as opposed to seing a mish mash of a variety of previous work.
Like i said takes much more time, fuel and of course, time, but in the end, i see it as a way to get out of the studio and meet new people.if theyre interstate, i send them previous work Ive done from that state. I have a niche market in some cities, so i get more work from word of mouth than anything else

[Brandon Wood]

Mike,

With the most recent case I do have the womans business number. But to go a step further, what questions do you ask of the potential client when you call them beyond, "Hello, I am just following up to make sure you received your information and demo dvd?"

Do you ask about budget? the size of the wedding? what they have in mind for the wedding? etc...since I don't really know that much about the potential client vs. one who calls you, what's the best way to go about it?

I guess I just want to hear the voice of experience on this.

[Brandon Wood]

...and Peter, your post is interesting and something I NEVER mind doing. I love to get out and meet potential clients vs. an email relationship (which is not much of a relationship).

However, for these clients several hundred miles away, what would you do?

...and can you quickly explain the 'licensing laws in Aus.' - or should I say, what you tell a client if they ask you to explain futher when you tell them that?

[Peter Jefferson]

here in aus, we're restricted to only 20 copies of a produciton which uses commercial music.
If we exceed 20 copies, we need to pay further fees, which im not willing to do

[Aaron Winters]

As far as calling back a few days later, easy stuff. Just "Hi, this is Bob from Wedding Videos and we were calling on your recent interest in our service. Did you have time to watch the demo we sent you? Awesome, how did you like it?" And go from there. Ask open ended questions. If they're at all serious, people will be happy to talk to you. Just make sure you have plenty of information in front of you to talk about. Show a personal interest in them (which can tell you a lot about what kind of video might be best for them). Ask what type of music their DJ will play, what kind of decorations they have thought of for the church, any unique things they're doing for the day? Once they've told you that kind of stuff say "Wow you're gonna sing your vows?! (fake excitement...) My lapel mics would be able to pic that up beautifully and it would be such a memory to preserve for the video."

If nothing else, be confident, be polite, and make sure to focus everything on closing the deal.

[Brandon Wood]

Thanks Aaron - good stuff!

[Steven Davis]

Originally Posted by Peter Jefferson

I dont send demos...

LoL the minute I read this the posters question, I immeditately scrolled down to find that statement. Man, I know your brain too well. :}

And no, I don't send demo's or give out information to just anyone other than what is on the net. I'm always asking people to come in for a consultation, if they don't want to consider that then they are either price shopping and not ready to commit to looking seriously for a company or they are not who they say they are.

[Steven Davis]

Originally Posted by Brandon Wood

...and Peter, your post is interesting and something I NEVER mind doing. I love to get out and meet potential clients vs. an email relationship (which is not much of a relationship).

However, for these clients several hundred miles away, what would you do?

...and can you quickly explain the 'licensing laws in Aus.' - or should I say, what you tell a client if they ask you to explain futher when you tell them that?

Brandon, try putting a demo which shows general stuff on the web. Since what is it, 80% of America has a computer and 50% have highspeed internet, this is a decent alternative.

[Peter Jefferson]

Originally Posted by Steven Davis

LoL the minute I read this the posters question, I immeditately scrolled down to find that statement. Man, I know your brain too well. :}

And no, I don't send demo's or give out information to just anyone other than what is on the net. I'm always asking people to come in for a consultation, if they don't want to consider that then they are either price shopping and not ready to commit to looking seriously for a company or they are not who they say they are.

hahahaha LOL
But your right you know.
To be honest, i dont have the funds or time to satisfy the tyre kicker's needs. Usually the website and my presence on several bridal forums intrigues them enough to want to meet with me. The others who arent happy about me popping round for a chat or others who dotn want to come to the theatre here arent worth the time.
I spend at least 2 hours with a potential, and before i show them any work, i explain what i do and how i do it SPECIFICALLY before i show them work, this way they know what went into the project before they even see the work. If my regime is too hardcore or too structured, or too intense, then theyre not worth worrying about.
Sounds tough? U have to be... no seriously, if they cannot fathom the idea that your work is as intense than any other supplier, if not moreso than anyone on the day, then theyre not worth spending time with.
if tehyre like.. oh show us teh work and we'll decide from there..
well yes u could do that, but youre leaving out other variables, and that is to get to know the people youre working for.
Ive shot weddings for other comapnies and these people know NOTHING about the company im shooting for.. they jsut see a receipt, Not much of a contract and pretty much nothing there to protect their investment and your liveliehood.
Doing it this way is the quick and dirty way of doing business. As a contracted business, you SHOULD not only offer the client a sample of what your capable of, but that sample shoudl reflect what they may be looking for.
Note that when u put clips online for a client to view, you are restricting your viewability to those clips.
Consider that as a shopper your looking around. and you see some clips which interest you.. but theyre jsut NOT you.. theres either one thing or another which doesnt fit right.
Now most poeple WONT download every clip u have to offer. Another consideration is that most brides are chekcing out your website when theyre at work, so bandwidth and time really are not on the brides side...
so what do u do?

As a salesman/woman you can now influence what the client sees AFTER you research what they WANT to see.
From there, any variables can be responded to immediately, such as .. "oh i dont liek "that" effect " or "i really liek that one, how do u do that"
this dialogue with the client allows one to get around those 'differences"
Obviously this doesnt always work, but 99% of the time it does, and the fact that your LISTENING makes a huge difference.
Youd be surprised how many guys out there have their own vision which goes totaly against the clients own grain..This is not a black and white industry. its not a McDonalds conveyer of generic work. When it starts to become that, u know its time to find another job.

[Steven Davis]

Which reminds me, I need to order a DVD of your work Peter, I need a nother web demo. :} hehe.

[Peter Jefferson]

LOL

it just amazes me that people are so blatant.. i mean yeah sure plagiurism is through the industry, happens with photographers too.. but if anyones gonna take something, at least put a personal spin on it.. LOL