“90% of selling is conviction, and 10% is persuasion.”
What do you want more than anything when you walk into a meeting with a potential client? You want to book them, right? Of course we want the right clients, fun clients and clients that “click” with us, but at the end of the meeting, you want ONE thing more than anything else – the retainer.
The retainer fee paid at the end of the meeting signifies something. It says that your client believes in you. It says that they trust you and that they want you more than any other photographer to capture their event. That is a good feeling and we need to have those feelings often so that we can pay our bills and keep our kids fed.
How do we have those feelings more often, or should I say, how do we get clients to pay us more often? How do we close deals and get booked and make it happen on a regular basis?
In the coming weeks we will talk about persuasion techniques like engaging in the story, controlling the conversation, building rapport, creating trust and others, but the most powerful persuasion tool of all is that of conviction.
If you are convinced about how good your products and services are, then your prospects (those who you want to become clients) will be convinced. If you are unsure of yourself, then your client will be unsure of you. You MUST have complete conviction about what you can do when you walk into a client meeting (with a bride, a vendor or another photographer), and believe that you are capable.
There is something inspiring and engaging about someone who has complete confidence in their ability to do something and it should never smell of arrogance.
Confidence is not just about being a good photographer, it is really about how you feel about yourself. (Tweet this out)
Confidence comes from deep within you and is built by speaking truth into yourself through repetition. Napoleon Hill, in his book Think and Grow Rich, says this:
“Any idea, plan, or purpose may be placed in the mind through repetition of thought.”
If you need more confidence, then this is your action plan to becoming more confident and more convinced of your worth as a photographer.
1. Write down your goals on paper (I want to book more weddings, be more confident in my selling etc.)
2. Read those goals OUT LOUD each morning when you wake up, and each night before you go to bed.
3. Believe that you will become that person that is able to achieve those goals.
4. Each time you doubt, replace that thought with one that is uplifting and positive and refuse to accept those negative thoughts.
This may sound too simple to work, but the truth is that once you are convinced in your own MIND, you will convince others. You have to win the battle over your mind first, and then it will follow in your actions.