FULL TRANSCRIPT: Please note this transcript was generated by AI and may contain errors.

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You’re listening to the Portrait System podcast.

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You know, I felt like women my age really wanted the same stuff that older women were getting from what I saw on Sue Bryce. You know, when I said that I was going to do the 30 over 30, I actually got a lot of people saying it’s not going to work. 30. You know, millennials don’t really have that kind of money. Like, they don’t really value photography. And that was not true.

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Welcome to the Portrait System podcast. I’m your host, Nikki Closser, and this show is here to help you succeed in the world of photography and business, to help you learn to become financially free doing what you love and so much more. With over 1 million downloads, countless photographers have taken what they’ve learned from both our episodes and from theportraitsystem.com. And they have grown their businesses, quit their day jobs, and are designing a life of their dreams. We keep it real and share stories about the ups and downs that come with running a photography business. You’ll hear real life stories of how other photographers run their business, and you’ll learn actionable steps that you can take to reach your own goals.

00:01:02:24 – 00:01:37:24

Thank you so much for being here. And let’s get started. My guest on The Portrait System today is Martha Felix. She is a portrait photographer in Arizona who has built herself an amazing business. Martha is a powerhouse social media marketer, and most of her clients find her because of her social media. Martha shares how she combines different genres of photography on one social media account and on her website, and she does such a great job keeping her brand cohesive. Martha also chatted about how she does a very effective 30 over 30 campaign, as well as a love campaign, and she shares how she makes it all work.

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I loved chatting with Martha, and I’m so excited for you to hear from her today. Okay, let’s get started with Martha. Felix. Hey, Martha. How are you?

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I’m good. How are you?

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I am doing well. Thank you so much for being a guest with me on The Portrait System.

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Thank you for having me.

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Yeah. Tell everybody where you live and and what you mostly shoot.

00:02:00:25 – 00:02:16:19

So I am in Phoenix, Arizona, and I photograph mainly women roughly 25 to about I would say 55 is my clients age. And yeah, I just basically photograph them and their loved ones.

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Okay. Okay. Very cool. And as far as photography, how long have you been doing this?

00:02:22:13 – 00:02:33:06

So I have been doing this since technically 2010 when I went to school in for photography at the Art Institute of Seattle. Oh wow, Seattle.

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I know exactly where that is.

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Yes, I absolutely loved, you know, getting to go. And it was such an amazing experience. And I graduated in 2012. And then from there, you know, I’ve just been doing it for actually, I did it for a while here and there, but full time, I actually just started after my little one started preschool, so which was about 2018, 2019.

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Okay. How many kids do you have?

00:02:58:24 – 00:03:04:06

I have three kids. I have yes. I have a seven year old. A five year old and a three year old.

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Okay. Wow. So you basically you for the most part, grew your business with three little kids.

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Yes, absolutely. Yes. Yeah.

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That’s not easy.

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No, no, definitely not. Yeah.

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When you got out of the Art Institute, when you graduated, did you feel prepared to run a business? Like were you were you ready at that point, do you think?

00:03:25:24 – 00:03:45:27

Not at all. I had no idea what to charge. I didn’t know anything. And I mean, I knew how to take photos. I knew, you know, what I really wanted in the style that I really wanted to do. I really didn’t know. I didn’t have the tools to go for it and actually create a business out of it.

00:03:46:26 – 00:03:51:28

Okay. So so it sounds like, though, I mean, I would I would think that you knew how to shoot, right?

00:03:52:08 – 00:03:52:24

Yes.

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Yeah. Like you knew what you were doing just from. Okay, let me just cut to the chase. What did you learn in photography school?

00:03:59:21 – 00:04:35:00

So when I went to the Art Institute of Seattle, we were taught for the first about year and a half, you know, everything you can possibly think of lighting, composition, different styles of photography, meaning journalism or photojournalism. I mean, fashion, editorial, you know, everything from, you know, we were taught by photographers and teachers that were they were working at like Nordstrom’s as their head photographer. We were being taught by portrait photographers who were very big with head shots and were photographing, you know, Bill Gates and things like that.

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So as far as, you know, techniques and everything, I definitely learned all that. But they only gave us maybe three months of business and it was just it was so confusing and I really just didn’t get it. Yeah.

00:04:48:10 – 00:05:05:01

I was thinking back about when when I was in college. I, you know, when I first started college, I didn’t know 100% what I wanted to be. I kind of wanted to be a social worker, kind of wanted to be a teacher. I wasn’t really sure. And I. I’m taking a couple of business classes just to see how it went. Mm hmm. And I failed econ.

00:05:05:03 – 00:05:07:22

Me too.

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Yeah. And marketing. I definitely did not do well in a marketing class. And it’s just funny. I don’t know what it is about. I don’t know if it’s just maybe we weren’t ready or. I don’t know. But I feel like a lot of times at universities and this is no offense to professors and teachers or whatever, but it’s almost like it becomes more complicated than it needs to be or something.

00:05:30:07 – 00:05:40:13

I 100% agree because they used terms and words and ways that I just like my brain just could not comprehend. I’m like reverting.

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Back, like anxiety, just thinking about it. I would just stare thinking like, I have no idea what is going on right now. Like it was. Yeah. And I remember thinking like, Oh, well, business isn’t for me, I guess, you know?

00:05:50:05 – 00:05:52:28

That’s exactly what I thought. That’s so funny. Yes.

00:05:53:19 – 00:06:31:11

Yeah, it’s crazy. Okay. Well, I was looking through your Instagram today and you do a really nice job at kind of blending the different genres that you shoot into one brand, because there’s a lot of maternity, there’s a lot of boudoir, there’s a lot of couples photography, there’s some family photography in there. But it it meshes and blends so well that you don’t need to separate it. And we get that question a lot, a lot like, do I separate the different brands or whatever? So I’m wondering if you can speak to that a little bit, if it was if this is a conscious decision you made or if it just sort of happened like that.

00:06:31:22 – 00:07:09:04

Yeah. So that’s actually a great question. You know, I, I feel like when I first started, I mean, I feel like I basically everybody else, we just started shooting whatever, you know, whatever came through our door. That’s what we photographed. And, you know, for so long, I just I really didn’t it wasn’t speaking to me. And I’m such like a creative person, meaning like creative mind and everything. And when I’m doing the same thing and I’m doing something that I really don’t want to do, I kind of just get this block. So when I first decided to just go for it and open up a studio, I decided to just stick with one backdrop for like the first.

00:07:09:09 – 00:07:39:19

I mean, I still kind of do, you know, so I just did that and I started with mothers because that’s I mean, I relate to that because I’m a mom. And when I realized that I didn’t have to change my style in order to change the category or, you know, who who I’m shooting, that’s really what I just decided to just stick with it and just go for it. And I always had the mentality where, you know, people are going to want me because of the work that I do. And if they don’t and that’s not my client and that’s okay.

00:07:40:15 – 00:07:49:13

So it was definitely something that was a trial and error at first, but then I just decided to just stick with it and just go for it. And now it’s definitely my thing.

00:07:50:00 – 00:08:02:27

Yeah. Okay. So do you find that any of your clients sort of cross over from being maybe a maternity to a family client or, you know, like, do you do they ever book you for more than one genre, I guess?

00:08:03:08 – 00:08:36:26

Oh, absolutely. I you know, it’s funny because I always get people who, um, let’s just say, you know, boudoir, so I get a phone call about a boudoir, they really want to do a boudoir for their husbands or for some sort of anniversary or something. And the more that I talk to them, the more that I realize it’s really them who want a session. And it’s just they’re using the excuse of, you know, or something, you know, to do this nude. And then once we get talking, you know, I tell them, you know, who they can invite to their session or things like that. And that’s really when it’s almost like just it’s an eye opener for the client.

00:08:36:28 – 00:09:00:29

It’s like, Oh, I can do this, this and this, and I can invite, you know, like I can include my kids or maybe I only include them for the last part of my session or something like that. And I feel like by doing that it just kind of just opened the door to so many possibilities when it comes to, you know, one client becoming a client for boudoir maternity family, just themselves, you know, things like that.

00:09:01:01 – 00:09:09:13

So yeah, it’s such a such a smart thing to do. You’re really planting the seed and technically it’s pre-selling without even trying.

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Absolutely. Oh, yes, for sure.

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Yeah. So so I guess, is it like a consultation or just a phone call or email? Like do you have a process that you go through when someone inquires in order to I know you said you have the discussion with them, but I’m just curious if you have, you know, what your what your procedure is for letting them know the possibilities, I guess.

00:09:30:20 – 00:10:02:13

Yes. So I actually get, you know, first get the inquiry and, you know, let’s just say email or Instagram or however and then they set up a consultation. But for me, they don’t set up a consultation until we’ve actually went over pricing through like the messages like basically, here’s my pricing, go ahead and schedule your phone call and then we’ll go over all the details in during the consultation. That first phone call is when I greet them, I get to know them. I get to know why they really want to do the session. What brought them in and what kind of drew them into my work.

00:10:02:21 – 00:10:14:04

I asked them, you know, what their vision is, what it how they want to be photographed. And then from there, that’s when we kind of start I start realizing what they really want and just go from there really.

00:10:14:12 – 00:10:16:07

Okay. So you’re giving prices first?

00:10:16:15 – 00:10:17:22

Absolutely. Yeah.

00:10:18:08 – 00:10:23:23

Tell us about that. Are you doing any sort of PDF? Are you referring to your website? How do you do that?

00:10:23:28 – 00:10:49:21

So I actually just have one. It’s it’s like an image of just my basic three packages, wall art packages and upgrades. So I do some upgrades. So I have upgrades there and it’s literally just one photo. And then I attach that to, you know, when I say, here’s the link to schedule your phone call and then I just attach that one photo with all the information. And then from there we just get to chatting.

00:10:50:02 – 00:11:07:23

Okay. And I’m just curious because there there are different kind of theories around when you should give your pricing. And I love that you don’t hesitate to just give your pricing. I know personally as a consumer when I reach out to someone. At that point, I pretty much already know I want to book them. I just need to know how much.

00:11:08:26 – 00:11:28:17

And make sure it in my budget. And that’s the type of consumer that I am. But some people, you know, won’t. They don’t want to give you their their pricing right away. They want to convince you, you know, have the consultation and convince you about the experience first. So I’m curious, you know, if you’ve always done it this way or did you switch things up and just tell us a little bit about that?

00:11:29:07 – 00:12:02:25

Yeah. So it’s funny that you say this because I am exactly like you. I need to know before I even talk to you what my price like, what the prices are. So I know if it’s in my budget, I honestly have the mentality at, you know, if a client really wants to work with me, they will pay the pricing that I have no matter, you know, like, it’s, it’s, it’s not really a oh, maybe I will. Maybe I don’t, you know, by the time that they speak to me, it’s I already know how excited they are about their session. And it just makes me so much more excited because it just I mean, we’re, we’re at that point already working together, which is so great.

00:12:03:26 – 00:12:23:17

All right. So I feel like this works well. You know, the way that you’re doing things would work well for someone who in their marketing is already. Sharing what their services you’re sharing, what the client’s going to get. You’re showing them what the session is going to be like. Do you feel like that’s the case with you?

00:12:24:05 – 00:12:58:29

Yes. You know, I use social media a lot to show every step of my process. You know, I do a lots and lots of reveals on you know, in my stories. I even sometimes make reels out of the reveals. I even post a lot of a lot of things about the consultations and what we talk about during the consultations. And then I post a lot of behind the scenes while I’m actually shooting. I post a lot of them getting their hair and makeup done, like literally everything. My entire process is being put out there for everyone to see.

00:12:59:01 – 00:13:09:23

And I think that really helps to, you know, to kind of just get them to already want to work with me. So I don’t have to do that part, you know, in the initial inquiry.

00:13:10:12 – 00:13:40:25

Yeah. One thing I really love about your website is that you have everything, you know, some of your strongest work is just it’s front and center. I can look at your website and I know exactly what I’m going to get. I can see the starting out prices. I see some of your best work right up front. It’s very simple and easy to navigate. And it’s just a really strong website that doesn’t leave me wondering what does she do or what’s going on? You know, because unfortunately, a lot of websites are like.

00:13:40:27 – 00:13:41:22

That as.

00:13:41:27 – 00:13:59:04

They’re they’re difficult it’s difficult to find anything. Maybe it’s their old work that. Okay. And I’m not saying that old work can’t be front and center if it’s really great work, but maybe they haven’t updated it, and it’s just it’s not on brand anymore. But I feel like your your website really encompasses what you do very well.

00:13:59:13 – 00:14:02:04

Oh, well, thank you. I really appreciate it because I made it myself.

00:14:04:03 – 00:14:20:13

Yeah. And again, it goes, too, well with your social media because it’s the same brand. It’s like, I feel like anyone could go to your social media or your website and they know exactly what they’re going to get. And that’s really, really important when you’re especially when you’re, you know, one of God knows how many other photographers in the area.

00:14:21:00 – 00:14:22:20

Yes, a gazillion. Yes.

00:14:23:05 – 00:14:32:21

Yeah, yeah. Okay. Let’s talk a little bit about pricing and how you structure your pricing and if it’s the same or different amongst the different genres.

00:14:33:09 – 00:15:03:13

You know, actually, all my pricing is the same no matter what I you know, the packages are the same, the single image is the same, the session fees are the same. I think the only one is the headshots, just because that one is literally like, you know, I have a mini headshot which is basically they come in 15 minutes and then that’s it and they just want one image kind of thing. But even at that, it’s at the single image pricing. So really nothing changes in between genre. It’s just they get to just decide what, how they want to be photographed.

00:15:03:21 – 00:15:07:18

Okay. Gotcha. And tell us a little bit about that. Your session fee, what does it include?

00:15:08:00 – 00:15:38:00

Yeah. So my session fee is $650 and it includes the hair and makeup and includes access to my full wardrobe. And I have so many different sizes and different styles of gowns anywhere between extra small all the way to 2XL and then simple all the way to full ball gowns. And then they also get $200 towards the purchase of their product. So basically, you know, the page that I give them, the photo of all of my pricing, they can go ahead and just subtract $200 off of all of that.

00:15:38:26 – 00:15:54:27

And because that’s basically prepaid in the session fee and it also includes the reveal, which is about two weeks after their session, they actually get to come back in and then they get to see all of their edited images. Normally I show about 30 images and which is my highest price package and yeah.

00:15:55:22 – 00:15:58:24

Okay, so what’s your average sale or what’s your middle package?

00:15:59:07 – 00:16:04:28

Well, so my middle package is 2700. Okay. And that one’s definitely my most purchased for sure.

00:16:05:12 – 00:16:09:01

Okay. So you’re averaging about 2700. Is that including the session fee?

00:16:09:14 – 00:16:11:21

No, that is not included in the session fee. Okay.

00:16:11:23 – 00:16:17:19

So minus the 200, so what, 20. So you’re at like over 3000, 3100 average?

00:16:18:00 – 00:16:18:15

Yes.

00:16:18:21 – 00:16:20:13

Yeah. Including such a fee. That’s amazing.

00:16:20:18 – 00:16:21:09

Thank you.

00:16:21:22 – 00:16:35:08

Yeah, very cool. All right, Martha, on your Instagram, well, you said you have a wardrobe with different sizes and gowns. The dresses that I’m seeing on your clients, on your Instagram, are those all part of your wardrobe?

00:16:35:16 – 00:16:36:24

Yes. Wow.

00:16:37:18 – 00:16:39:24

That’s a moment. There’s some amazing gone down here.

00:16:40:06 – 00:16:41:13

Thank you. Thank you.

00:16:41:26 – 00:16:44:19

Do you have a studio? I mean, where do you keep all of this stuff?

00:16:45:03 – 00:17:07:29

Yes, I have a studio in North Phoenix. And I actually created a closet almost like one of those like here closets. And I just made it a little bit wider. And it actually works as a separator for my waiting area and then my shooting area. And on the other, yes, I’m on one side. It’s just an entire row of gowns. It is a huge, huge selection, for sure.

00:17:08:13 – 00:17:13:27

And tell us about your your studio overall. How big is it? And I know you said it’s in North Phoenix, but.

00:17:14:09 – 00:17:46:09

Yes, yeah. So my studio is about a thousand square feet, a little bit smaller than that, and it is just one long rectangle. And that let’s see. So yeah, so it’s one long rectangle. And, you know, I have that divider that divides the, you know, reveal area towards or from the actual shooting area. I have backdrops, seamless, just kind of hanging down. And then I have a black and then a white near the natural light and then black just in the middle of the room.

00:17:46:20 – 00:17:50:04

And then I have like a makeup area for them and. Yeah.

00:17:50:16 – 00:17:54:24

Very cool. Is this something that you you have by yourself or do you share it with someone?

00:17:55:05 – 00:17:56:13

I have it by myself, yes.

00:17:56:15 – 00:18:00:25

Nice. Nice. Do you mind if I ask what you pay for rent for your studio?

00:18:01:07 – 00:18:06:15

Oh, yeah. So I actually pay $1180.

00:18:06:25 – 00:18:09:27

Okay. Yeah, that’s a pretty good for 1000 square feet.

00:18:09:29 – 00:18:21:29

Yeah, that’s. Yes, I got a deal because I actually opened it up in the middle of the pandemic. So I had a really good deal and I signed a three year contract. So nice. Nice.

00:18:22:09 – 00:18:28:29

I’m sure the people were very grateful to have someone in there for three years because no one really knew what was going to happen with commercial spaces.

00:18:29:08 – 00:18:33:09

And, you know, I didn’t even know. Yeah, it was. Yes.

00:18:33:24 – 00:18:37:01

Prior to to having the studio, where were you shooting?

00:18:37:18 – 00:18:57:02

So I actually was sharing a space with another photographer in Anthem, Arizona, which is gosh, like 30 minutes north of Phoenix. And that’s what I was doing. But that studio was just the scheduling was just getting so rough just because there was actually three of us sharing this thing, right. Mhm. Yeah.

00:18:57:10 – 00:18:58:12

Yeah. It can get tricky.

00:18:58:23 – 00:18:59:08

Yeah.

00:18:59:10 – 00:19:06:24

Especially during busy times. I’m in a studio share right now and I love everything about it except when I go to look at the calendar and I’m like.

00:19:07:17 – 00:19:08:05

It’s already booked.

00:19:10:10 – 00:19:11:27

It happens. Yes.

00:19:12:06 – 00:19:28:04

All right. So okay, let’s talk a little bit about your marketing, because I notice that you have a couple different campaigns and I’m curious how those work for you. I saw the Love the love campaign in the 30 over 30. So let’s start let’s start with the 30 over 31st. Tell us about that.

00:19:28:21 – 00:20:00:21

So I actually ran the 30 over 30 in 2000 while I started it in 2019, meaning I try to launch it. But then of course, COVID happened. So it actually got pushed back a little bit until about mid 2020 and that was honestly my biggest source of income in 2020. I am so glad that I actually kept pushing through and just going for it and I finished it early 2021 and I did the the gallery reveal and everything and that went really, really well.

00:20:01:16 – 00:20:16:13

People often talk about the 40 over 40 campaign and, you know, 50 over 50. So Sue has all the education on, you know, 50 over 50 and 40 over 40. Not that it has to be any age right now that it all applies. But I’m curious why you why you chose the 30 over 30. I love it.

00:20:16:20 – 00:20:47:17

So that’s a great question because I actually turned 30 in 2020. Ah, I know. And, you know, I felt like women my age really wanted the same stuff that, you know, older women were getting from what I saw on Sue Bryce, you know, because I know a lot of people were doing either the 40 over 40 or the 50 over 50, which is really funny because I actually when I when I said that I was going to do the 30 over 30, I actually got a lot of people saying it’s not going to work. 30. You know, millennials don’t really have that kind of money.

00:20:47:19 – 00:20:51:09

Like they don’t really value photography. And that was not true.

00:20:51:25 – 00:20:57:01

Yeah. Tell us about that. How did you how did you market it? And and, you know, what was the offer?

00:20:57:20 – 00:21:27:29

Social media. Oh, my goodness. Social media. I just basically pushed it every way possible that I could. My personal Facebook, my business, Facebook, my Instagram, I put it on TikTok. Actually, there was no TikTok then, so I think I did it on Snapchat. When I was using it, there was literally everything I can possibly think of and you know, I was telling everybody about it. So I really just tried to push it as much as I can. Even during the pandemic, I feel like I just had to do it. I had just finally.

00:21:28:01 – 00:21:29:21

So I had to do it. Yeah.

00:21:30:12 – 00:21:38:14

So I was going to ask, were you targeting in your area, you know, when you were doing these ads like specifically? Phoenix.

00:21:39:01 – 00:21:56:26

Yeah, so I was I was really trying to target Phoenix, Arizona and women near here, you know, and I got people from Gilmer, I got people from Mesa, you know, kind of like the outskirts of Phoenix. So it was actually really nice because I kind of got a little bit more of, you know, all of the entire area.

00:21:57:16 – 00:22:05:11

Yeah. And then okay, so the question that I had asked before too, was about the offering that you gave. Oh, yes. What did people get when they came in?

00:22:05:20 – 00:22:28:21

So the session fee was $350 and that included hair and makeup. And it also included one portrait, one five by seven, Manitou, an eight by ten print, plus it’s digital match. And they also got access to my full wardrobe. And then the session itself, which I always tell them, it’s about 3 to 4 hours long. Including the hair and makeup time. And then there were reveal time as well.

00:22:29:01 – 00:22:31:12

And then did they see your pricing ahead of time?

00:22:31:26 – 00:22:42:24

Yes, they did. So we actually we exchanged emails back and forth. And then that’s when, you know, before our actual consultation is when they saw my pricing.

00:22:43:23 – 00:23:18:14

I’m glad you said that. I wanted to bring this up because I worry sometimes that people try to get new clients into a campaign and it’s like, okay, you know, come in and it’s this much and then you get your one free photo and then they expect people to. Purchase more additional photos, but then they don’t necessarily show them the pricing. And I just want to make sure people are super transparent. Even if you’re doing a campaign, if you expect people to upgrade and to, you know, add on photos to buy more, make sure they know ahead of time so they’re not just, like, baffled when you show them your the pricing.

00:23:18:23 – 00:23:44:18

Yes, absolutely. So I actually that was something that was so important to me. And I actually at during their consultations, I did let them know that, you know, it included that one portrait and they’re more than welcome to just have the experience itself and take the one portrait. It was not, you know, I did not make anybody purchase any additional. It was only if they loved their images. And that’s really how I said it. If you love them, these are the prices. And yeah.

00:23:45:00 – 00:23:59:28

Yeah, that’s good. And was there any specific language that you used on, you know, how it is recommended that you have like a landing page? You know, first there’s the ad, they click on the ad and then there’s a landing page and then, you know, like, how did you word that to make it so successful?

00:24:00:18 – 00:24:33:16

Yes. So I did have a landing page for the 30 over 30. And I put so much information in that basically everything that you can possibly think of as far as details I actually put on the website. But to kind of get them there, you know, I really talked about confidence. I talked about celebrating themselves. I talked about, you know, doing something for them. What else did I talk about? Basically, just, you know, every woman needs some sort of, you know, confidence, boost and empowerment. And this is such the best experience for that, for sure.

00:24:33:29 – 00:24:41:06

How many people do you think? I don’t know if you know this off the top of your head, but how many people do you think purchase more images than just the 100?

00:24:41:08 – 00:24:59:03

Almost every single one, actually. I think I only had one person. No. Yes, one person only took one. Another person took three. But then everyone else either did my silver or my gold package. And I actually even had some that purchased all of them. Nice.

00:24:59:15 – 00:25:02:03

That’s awesome. What do you include in each of those packages?

00:25:02:15 – 00:25:32:21

So, you know, my silver, my gold, and my platinum all basically have the same product wise, so they can choose either an eight by ten folio box and with matted prints either depending on if they do the silver, which is ten images, their gold, which is 20, and then the platinum which is 30, and they can also choose the folio box or an album. And this album basically is the exact same. So silver, gold, and platinum, depending on how many images they would like. And the photos are just in the album displayed in one place.

00:25:33:00 – 00:25:33:15

Okay.

00:25:33:27 – 00:25:38:21

Very cool. Very cool. And then you have another campaign. I saw a love campaign. Tell us a little bit about that.

00:25:39:02 – 00:26:10:27

Yeah. So I actually just started the Love campaign and the reason why I actually really started it is because people absolutely loved my 30 over 30 and I had so many people wanting to bring their husbands in or their spouses. And, you know, it’s funny because I actually didn’t have a lot of people bring in anybody for the 30 over 30 because they really wanted to celebrate just themselves and basically just have something for just them. And when, you know, but I always got, oh, I really want to come back, but with my husband, I really want to come back and do this.

00:26:11:03 – 00:26:20:08

And this year, actually, my husband and I are celebrating ten years. So I thought, what the perfect way to celebrate all of that and just do the love campaign.

00:26:20:17 – 00:26:24:17

So have you done anything different or is it literally the same process?

00:26:24:27 – 00:26:44:07

It’s basically the same process. You know, everything as far as like the landing page is basically the same. I changed some of the wording. I changed obviously the images, but really everything else is is the same because I just you know what works? It worked so well. And I don’t really have a reason for it to change it at all. That’s what I was thinking.

00:26:44:09 – 00:27:19:11

I was hoping you were going to say that because it’s like I mean, obviously, you could continue, I’m sure, to do the 30 over 30 or just, you know, do it age related or whatever. But I mean, how cool is that to mix it up and do the same thing? It’s like, you know, we put in all the work initially you to get clients in the door, whether it’s, you know, going to a million networking meetings like I always went to or figuring out what works best for the campaign and making sure, you know, that becomes a well-oiled machine. But once you get the things nailed down that work well for you for marketing, it becomes so much easier, don’t you think?

00:27:19:17 – 00:27:21:16

Absolutely. Absolutely.

00:27:21:23 – 00:27:28:12

Okay. We haven’t talked about actually a love campaign yet. So what type of language are you using around that in your marketing?

00:27:29:01 – 00:28:07:03

Yes. So I actually I’m using right now celebrate your love story because that, you know, people loved I totally forgot to tell. So people loved the story part of the campaign. So people loved reading the stories they loved. Whenever, you know, I had the gallery, I actually put the portrait and then their story right next to it. So it was really cool because when people walked through, they saw the portraits and then they were reading the stories and just I mean, literally, everybody loved it. And so really with the Love campaign, I kind of kept that story going. And I’m doing Celebrate Your Love Story and then I’m still using it is a luxury portrait photoshoot experience celebrating their love.

00:28:07:15 – 00:28:09:03

You know, it’s definitely just work.

00:28:09:21 – 00:28:31:18

That’s really smart. It’s really smart. If there’s anything, you know, we learn about providing service and marketing and all that with our clients is we need to be focused on them and and keep it about them and allowing them to tell their story. I feel like it makes it relatable because then other people are thinking, Oh, I want to tell my story. I want people to hear about my story.

00:28:32:15 – 00:28:45:29

And, you know, it’s funny because I actually want to hear their story. I want to know how they met. I want to know, you know, how long they’ve been together and where you know, where love has taken them. And I want to hear it all and I’m excited. Well, and I wonder.

00:28:46:01 – 00:28:57:21

Too, if you could talk about, you know, for couples, for the couples who are married, I mean, obviously, some won’t be. But I wonder if you could say, like, have you had a photo done since your wedding? You know, something like that.

00:28:57:23 – 00:29:14:08

Like, literally, you know, it’s funny you say that because I actually I’m getting all the inquiries. A lot of them are saying the last time we took photos is  our wedding or, you know, it’s been ten years or things like that. That is definitely something that has been said by plenty of clients for sure.

00:29:14:10 – 00:29:24:23

Yeah, I used to have clients who it’s been a while since someone had said this, but you know, in their thirties, forties, and fifties who are saying the last time I had photos on were my high school senior photos.

00:29:24:25 – 00:29:26:00

Right. Yes.

00:29:26:02 – 00:29:27:18

Like, wow, that’s a long time.

00:29:27:23 – 00:29:29:15

I mean, it is a long time.

00:29:29:24 – 00:29:36:28

Man. And especially as a couple like oh, I used to love when I when I photographed weddings, I always wanted to hear about how they met.

00:29:37:09 – 00:29:37:24

Yes.

00:29:37:26 – 00:29:48:21

Oh, interesting. Like I love telling the story about how Dan and I met. And, you know, it’s just it’s really cool to hear hear the stories of people. So I love that you’re highlighting that. And it makes it interesting and it makes it relatable.

00:29:48:27 – 00:29:49:27

Yes. Yes.

00:29:50:13 – 00:29:56:17

Were there any stories from either of the campaign that you’ve had so far that really just affected you or resonated with you?

00:29:57:00 – 00:30:28:09

Oh, my gosh. Yes. So the 30 over 30 there was I actually got a lot of immigrants. So I like immigrant stories. And my goodness, so I you know, I was born in Mexico and I moved here when I was five years old. So when I started to get a lot of, you know, Hispanics kind of coming to me and wanting to do the 30 over 30, their stories were just. I mean, we cried. Right. Like we were. I can imagine it. Yes. Like one of my clients.

00:30:28:17 – 00:31:01:19

She actually brought her daughter, and her daughter was actually the one telling me kind of like her mom’s story while she you know, while her mom was getting ready. I mean, we were literally bawling the entire hour that she was getting ready because of just the story that was just so touching and everything that she had gone through. You know, because we’re talking she came to the United States when she was, I think, like sixteen years old. And she, you know, this was back in the eighties. So it was like, you know, she walked through the desert. It was just so. And she went into so much detail, oh, my heart just wait.

00:31:01:28 – 00:31:11:28

And then where she is now, you know, and then doing this photoshoot and her reasoning why she was doing the photoshoot, oh my God, like chills. It was just so good and so good.

00:31:12:01 – 00:31:29:16

Yeah. And and that’s so cool that you attracted, you know, like you said, you were an immigrant when you were young and to attract other clients who can share their story, it’s just so beautiful. It’s so beautiful. And then you got to photograph them and show them, like, the most beautiful portraits of themselves. Like, what a cool experience.

00:31:29:18 – 00:31:31:04

I love it. I love what I do.

00:31:31:14 – 00:31:39:12

Yeah, definitely. Now, as far as marketing in general, I know you said you do a lot of social media, but what other types of marketing do you do?

00:31:39:25 – 00:32:16:13

That is literally it. I do social media, social media and of course word of mouth. So, ah, you know, I’ve always, you know, before my client leaves my studio, I’m giving them a few business cards. I’m always telling them, you know, that I absolutely would love for them to send anybody who they know that who would like to, you know, to a consultation or something like that. But basically every client that leaves my studio is leaving with at least three business cards so they can share with, you know, their friends or things like that. And then social media right now is just it’s such a big, you know, I mean, that’s honestly my biggest for sure, marketing.

00:32:16:19 – 00:32:26:28

Do you use any sort of like hashtags or anything or like are you tagging people in addition to like are you running Facebook ads? I guess I shouldn’t assume that you’re doing that. I know you did for the campaigns.

00:32:27:00 – 00:32:58:11

But so actually, right now I am not doing any Facebook ads because I just so I posted the Love campaign and I did a reel and then I, I just put that real on TikTok and it went viral. And I am getting so many inquiries. Honestly, it’s kind of overwhelming. I’m trying to kind of keep up and making sure that I’m following up. And now I’m getting people, you know, flying in from all over the United States for the campaign. Yes. Oh, we’re just one TikTok.

00:32:58:13 – 00:33:22:22

So it’s definitely, you know, just I did use a lot of hashtags. Certain hashtags were, you know, making sure that I put, you know, my where I’m at. So like the state, you know, A-Z photography. And then I also added, you know, love or celebrates. I think I do like celebrate love or something like that, you know, just kind of to tie in everything. But yeah, the hashtags are so important.

00:33:23:23 – 00:33:26:13

Oh, sorry. I was just trying to pull it up and here it is.

00:33:26:26 – 00:33:28:22

I was just going to look at it on your Instagram.

00:33:29:09 – 00:33:51:28

Yeah, this is very cool and I love that you show your face in it too. You’re showing yourself like, I think people want to see you, your photographer, they want to see who you are. And yes, this is really, really great. I love it. And you have a whole like highlight. Not only do you just have one reel, but there’s a whole like highlight section with. Yes.

00:33:52:08 – 00:34:22:16

Yes. I felt like it was very important to make sure that I am, you know, that I’m basically just putting it out there. That’s like the right now, that’s my main, you know, a kind of attraction to people. And it’s funny because even some people say like, Oh yeah, I saw the Love Campaign, but really they’re wanting headshots. So it’s just a way for, you know, for people to see what I’m doing and then, you know, still needing something else. And that’s totally okay. It’s just, you know, that’s it’s just so important to put everything out there.

00:34:22:27 – 00:34:30:23

Yeah. I’m really, really impressed with your social media and the level at which you’re doing it. You know, I always preach to people like you can’t just rely on social media.

00:34:32:15 – 00:34:33:00

I don’t know.

00:34:33:11 – 00:34:35:04

you might be proving me wrong over here, you know? But.

00:34:35:14 – 00:35:00:24

You know, I know and I and I have heard that so much. And honestly, if it wasn’t for the time that it is now like the way that it is. And I think also my clientele’s age, because I am targeting 25 to 55, those people are really into social media, which is, I think, why it’s really working. But if we’re talking about somebody maybe over 50, I don’t really know how that would work. Yeah. Yeah.

00:35:01:10 – 00:35:08:12

Well, okay, though I do have to say, though, I mean, I know if you have to guess this, that’s fine. But what do you think? The percentage of referrals?

00:35:09:12 – 00:35:17:15

Of people. That’s great. That’s a good question. I think right now, referrals, I would say 30% are referrals and then the rest are social media.

00:35:17:25 – 00:35:39:02

Okay. Wow. All right. But I want people out there listening to this. You can’t just do half ass social media and hope it works. Like, clearly, Martha, you’re putting in a lot of time, a lot of thought. It’s very curated and it’s very compelling. You’re really drawing people in with what you’re doing it and you’re doing it in a very smart way.

00:35:39:17 – 00:35:40:15

Thank you. Thank you.

00:35:40:17 – 00:35:46:04

And I think that’s super important. Now, another thing, though, with your referrals, 30%, that’s a that’s a pretty nice chunk.

00:35:46:13 – 00:35:46:28

It is.

00:35:47:00 – 00:36:03:04

Of clients coming in. And it sounded like, once again, you’re planting the seed by telling people, you know, I love referrals and handing out business cards and that sort of thing. We can’t expect clients to. It’ll happen, of course, but we can’t expect clients to just automatically refer us. Correct. You know.

00:36:03:19 – 00:36:30:03

Oh, no. Yeah. It’s funny, actually, because I’m I believe I actually heard Sue either she wrote a post or I don’t really know. But I remember this was back in like 2019, I think when I heard it, you know, you have to ask for the referral. People don’t normally just go and refer you unless it comes up in conversation. But you really have to ask. You have to ask. And by giving those business cards and multiple business cards, you’re opening so many doors.

00:36:30:12 – 00:37:22:28

Yeah. Sue. Sue made a video on the portrait system website and for the website. And one of them is it’s the five steps to selling basically five, five steps and sales and asking for the referral is one of them. And she does a whole video on literally how to ask how to ask for the fraud, because I think sometimes people think that they’re like bothering their clients or asking for that sort of thing. But truly, I mean, my business runs on referrals. Totally. So yeah. Yeah. And Tabatha Coffey, when I interviewed her on the portraits of some podcast here, she said one thing that really helped her when she was getting her hair salon business going when she was first starting, was asking for people to refer a specific number of people to her, like, can you tell three people about me? And it kind of, instead of leaving it open ended, it gave people something to do, like a goal to reach, like, okay, I have to choose these three people.

00:37:23:00 – 00:37:55:29

And I thought that was really smart. It is. And here’s yeah the referral game you know some and I know some people will like give like $100 towards your next shoot or whatever. I personally when someone does refer me, I didn’t really want it to be connected back to spending money with me. Not that I think it’s not a good idea to do that, but I don’t know. I just always wanted to give them something a little bit different. Like I’ve given Nordstrom cards or Amazon gift cards, or I recently gave out Postmates because I know this client really loves to have food delivered, and I think secretly I wish I could have.

00:37:56:03 – 00:38:12:19

It’s not secret. I wish I could have food delivered, but I live in the country and no one delivers food out here anyways, like I gave out of Postmates Postmates gift card. Like it could be anything and it doesn’t even have to be a lot. It could be ten bucks, 20 bucks know whatever. Which is something to think that client really goes a long way. Do you do anything like that for your clients?

00:38:12:27 – 00:38:36:23

So not right now because funny enough, even so, some of the referrals. So some of the referrals I do. And actually it’s funny because there sometimes the referral will but before I have the reveal for my client and if I know who it is, then what I will do is I will just surprise them all to I’ll ask someone their favorite images and then I’ll just get that one printed a little bit bigger.

00:38:37:00 – 00:38:38:03

So it’s like.

00:38:38:05 – 00:38:48:14

An eight by ten it to an 11 by 14 and then I just surprise them whenever they pick up their product with, you know, thank you for the referral here, you know, I just upgraded you. Oh. Or something like that

00:38:50:01 – 00:38:56:04

with a thank you card. I love that. Yes. So it’s almost like they don’t really know that I’m going to give them something, but I do, you know, in the end

00:38:56:21 – 00:39:19:02

Yeah. Yeah, that makes me think that yeah, I do that as well. But it’s more like for returning clients, I’ll be like, Oh my God, because I’m not, I don’t have like a system in place to get my gift card anything. I’m just not that organized, but I do keep it in mind. So if a client, you know, might come back and I could be like, Remember how you sent me, you know? Maria Well, here, I want to give you three bonus orders for that. And I’m like, Oh, thank you. Yeah. So that’s a great way to do it, too. For sure.

00:39:19:04 – 00:39:20:24

Yes, for sure. Yeah, yeah.

00:39:20:26 – 00:39:29:23

Very cool. It sounds like you have such a great business built for yourself and it’s really, really exciting. Do you… How often do you shoot? That was one question I meant to ask.

00:39:30:03 – 00:39:52:18

So I shoot anywhere between 1 to 2 times a week. And what’s actually I take an entire month off in the year. So last year was July and this year it will be June because I travel with my family in our RV that we purchased. Nice. Yes. So I’ll still take a few consultations and, you know, while I’m traveling. But I will be shooting in all June.

00:39:53:10 – 00:40:04:13

Yeah. I mean, if you’re doing 4 to 8 shoots a month, I mean, that’s $12,000 to $24000 a month. I mean, granted, that’s gross, but that’s a really, really nice photography income.

00:40:04:24 – 00:40:07:28

Yes. Yeah, it really is, for sure.

00:40:08:08 – 00:40:10:18

Yeah, that’s. So exciting. I’m so excited for you.

00:40:10:22 – 00:40:11:22

Thank you. Thank you.

00:40:11:24 – 00:40:20:23

Very cool. All right. Well, I do still have a couple other questions that I always ask at the end of each episode. And I’m wondering if you will answer those for me.

00:40:21:03 – 00:40:21:24

Of course.

00:40:22:16 – 00:40:26:05

Okay. Number one is what is something you can’t live without when you’re doing a photo shoot?

00:40:26:28 – 00:40:30:00

Oh, um my reflector.

00:40:31:22 – 00:40:33:04

Oh my goodness. I could not. Now.

00:40:34:20 – 00:40:38:14

Are there do you shoot with just natural light or are studio light?

00:40:39:08 – 00:40:45:06

I do mostly studio light, but I do sometimes go to the natural light for like the end of the session.

00:40:45:13 – 00:40:47:06

Okay, cool. But always a reflector.

00:40:47:17 – 00:40:49:29

Always a reflector. Same. Awesome.

00:40:50:10 – 00:40:53:22

Okay. Number two is how do you spend your time when you aren’t working.

00:40:54:05 – 00:41:10:17

With my kids at home with my kids. I have three. So it’s I definitely, you know, as much time as I possibly can get at home with them, you know, doing things with them, taking them places, and just giving them as much experience as possible of life with me is my goal for sure.

00:41:10:21 – 00:41:12:17

Oh, what a beautiful response.

00:41:13:16 – 00:41:14:03

I love that.

00:41:14:23 – 00:41:19:07

Okay. Number three is, what is your favorite inspirational quote?

00:41:20:00 – 00:41:31:28

So my favorite is your success will be determined by your own confidence and fortitude. And Michelle Obama said that. And my goodness. I love it. Mm hmm.

00:41:32:12 – 00:41:41:10

Yeah, she is amazing. And that quote is amazing as well. Okay. Number four is, what would you tell people who are just getting started?

00:41:41:21 – 00:42:12:02

Oh, gosh. Just go for it. I mean, you literally have only yourself to stop you. Just continue practicing, continue doing, and continue trying. And one day and all all the trials and errors will just be exactly where they need to be, and it’ll just all work out. But you have to continue pushing and pushing yourself, you know, no matter what it is business, you know, lighting, no matter what it is, you just have to continue, continue, continue, continue. Yeah.

00:42:12:04 – 00:42:12:21

Awesome.

00:42:13:19 – 00:42:16:17

Well, thank you again. Where can people find you online if they’re looking for you?

00:42:17:00 – 00:42:26:06

They can look me up on MarthaFelixPhotography.com. Or they can go on my Instagram, Facebook or TikTok, which is MarthaFelixPhotography.

00:42:27:00 – 00:42:35:21

Great. Thank you, Martha. I really appreciate it. And I will see you. I know this will come out after WPPI, but I will see you next week. WPPI, I can’t wait.

00:42:35:24 – 00:42:37:13

For you next. We cannot wait.

00:42:37:28 – 00:42:40:15

Yeah, very cool. Well, you’ll be at the meet up.

00:42:40:21 – 00:42:43:14

The meet up? Yes.

00:42:43:16 – 00:42:46:04

Fantastic. And you going to come see me speak?

00:42:46:13 – 00:42:54:13

Oh, absolutely. Like, I’m hoping I can get a couple of people the room. So excited. I  have the schedule like, hearted. Yes.

00:42:55:26 – 00:43:26:13

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Awesome. Very cool. Thank you so much for listening to the Portrait System Podcast. Your five-star reviews really help us to continue what we do. So, if you like listening, would you mind giving us a review wherever you listen? I also encourage you to head over to SueBryceEducation.com, where you can find all of the education you need to be a successful photographer. There are over 1,000 on-demand educational videos on things like posing, lighting, styling, retouching, shooting, marketing, sales, business, and self-value. 

There’s also the 90 Day Startup Challenge, plus so many downloads showing hundreds of different poses. We have to-do checklists for your business, lighting PDFs, I mean truly everything to help make you a better photographer and to make you more money. Once again, that’s SueBryceEducation.com.