What Comes After The Wall Art Sale…

Photo on wall by Whitney Scott Photography

If you’re a Portrait Photographer, chances are your ultimate goal when selling to your clients is to sell Wall Art, and the bigger the better, right? But what comes next?

​In this blog, we’re not going to be looking at the best ways to sell wall art. Instead, we’re going to explore how wall art focussed photographers can get a significant order boost after they’ve nailed the wall art sale by introducing a folio box into their product mix.

​Let’s look at a few real world photographers to see how they’ve adopted the folio box into their sales process and the difference it has made to both them and their clients.

Mary Fisk Taylor and Jamie Hayes – Hayes & Fisk Photography
Hand Finished Oil Painted Portrait Specialists

Mary Fisk-Taylor, current President of PPA (Professional Photographers of America) and her business partner, Jamie Hayes are two of the industry’s top portrait photographers and educators. Their specialty is in creating bespoke, custom designed portraits that are hand finished with oil paint. The unique oil painted artwork gives an intensely personal and unique result. They are renowned for their exquisite attention to detail, unparalleled quality and excellence, and they have won numerous awards at both national and international level for their work.

They approach each project with a bespoke perspective. Before a photo is ever taken, they do an in-depth consultation with their clients to discover exactly what they're looking for and where the portrait will be displayed within their home. Everything is taken into consideration, even down to the colours and textures of the room where it will hang. Nothing is left to chance, and their clients really appreciate their expertise in producing the perfect portrait for them.

With every session they do, they create 20 or 30 images and their clients fall in love with them when they see them. Of course, it’s not feasible for people to hang 20 or 30 images on their walls but they hate feeling like they’re leaving those beautiful images behind. When Mary and Jamie discovered the folio box, everything seemed to fall into place. By adding just one new product to their offering, not only were they satisfying a problem for their clients in allowing them to take home a collection of beautiful images that they could enjoy for generations, they were also increasing their sales. A real win-win! Take a look at the video below to find out more from Mary herself.

Mary Fisk-Taylor, President of PPA
​www.hayesandfisk.com

​Whitney & David Scott
"We always sell for the wall first but we felt like we were leaving money on the table"

Whitney and David are a husband and wife team. They are portrait photographers with a sales average of $5,000 and they cover multiple genres including families and High School Seniors. They always sell for the wall first.

They, like Mary and Jamie were finding that their clients would choose the images they wanted for the wall but they always had lots of other “favourite” images left over. At the time, they offered albums for any remaining images that they liked, but a lot of their clients told them they just weren’t album people. They felt like they were leaving money on the table because they simply didn’t have another solution to offer.

When they discovered the 3XM folio box, they described it as a “complete game changer”. Since introducing the folio box, they now sell an additional product AFTER wall art to almost every single client. They offer the folio box and the album at exactly the same price so the clients are simply choosing what they actually want rather than making a price driven decision. The results? See below...

In the video below, Whitney and David explain why a Folio Box makes such a difference to their photography business and why they chose to partner with 3XM.

David and Whitney Scott
www.whitneyscottphotography.com

​Jessica Robertson
"We've increased our sales and our clients are happier too!"
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Jessica personally photographs over 200 High School Seniors every single year. She also photographs families, children, pets and headshots.

She says that most of her clients want wall portraits but also have favourites that they aren’t going to put on the wall. She found that the folio box was a perfect solution for those additional favourite images.

Solving the Digital Dilemma
Jessica has always considered herself as a print artist and found it difficult to deal with the constant question of "Can I get the digital files?", particularly from her High School Senior clients. When she discovered the Folio Box, she realised that she could maintain her brand value of delivering her work in print whilst also saying YES to that dreaded question!

She uses the folio box to upgrade a "Print Collection" to a "Digital Collection". So if the client chooses to upgrade to a digital collection, they get the folio box complete with 20 printed images and 20 digital files on the USB which sits in the lid of the folio box. So now the client gets their beautiful images printed and matted in a fabulous display box and they also get those all important digital files. It has been a huge success, has increased her average sale and her clients are happier too!

The After After Sale
For clients who order wall art but don't go for the folio box at the initial ordering session, Jessica and her team give them another opportunity when the client returns to collect their wall art order. They place one of the client's fabulous images in the window of the folio box and put it on display for when they arrive. Because it has their photo in it, they are immediately drawn to it and it starts a whole new conversation!

A Big Hit For Repeat Clients
Jessica also found the folio box to be a big hit with her repeat clients. Because the folio box can be filled over time, it's a great option for clients who come back over and over for various shoots.  There's simply no other product that can do that so clients love it . She also says they are great sellers for Holiday sessions, Mommy & Me sessions, and Pet Portrait sessions.
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In the video below, Jessica answers 3 questions she hears all the time from other Photographers about Folio Boxes:
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1. What is a Folio Box?
2. Why would you add a Folio Box to your product range?
3. How do you sell it?

Jessica Robertson
www.jessicarobertson.com

​To Sum it Up…
​If you’re selling wall portraits, first and foremost, you should consider adding a folio box to your product offering so that your clients have an option for taking home the remaining images from their session.

Not everyone wants an album, so it’s well worth having a folio box as an alternative to offer. Your clients will love the fact that it’s a really unique, handcrafted product that’s super versatile and doubles as a beautiful display piece for their home.

Unlike albums, you simply cannot get a product like this on the High Street so the exclusivity alone makes it a real “must have” in your clients eyes.

​TOP TIP: If you’re offering the folio box alongside an album, pitch them at the same price so your clients are choosing the product they really want and not making a decision based simply on how much it costs.

Not only are you making your clients happier, you’re also giving yourself a greater opportunity to boost your sales.
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What photographer doesn’t want that?