Client Management Archives - Tips for Real Estate Photography

5 Effective Tips on Time Management as a Real Estate Photographer

Working as a professional photographer is a dream for many people around the world. It’s a very popular profession in …

Ever wondered how to start a real estate photography business? Or maybe you’ve asked yourself how do I grow my …

You started a real estate photography business and are building your client base, but now you are trying to figure out how to streamline scheduling, photo delivery, payment processing and virtual tour creation. I may have a solution for you! Check out this system that I developed and see if it may be a fit for you in the coming weeks when it goes live to the public.

I’ve mentioned before that it’s always a good idea to set expectations up front. When you bring on a new client, it’s important for you and the client to understand how you operate. What can they expect you to do or not do at the property? What’s the next step after the photos are taken? How do they make the requested payment for your services?

These and other questions can be answered up front to kick off a successful business relationship with new Realtor clients.

I’ve been asked a couple of times through email about the usage of contracts in real estate photography. What do I use for contracts to bind my Realtors to my services? As a real estate photographer, how do I protect myself from an agent that may not pay for the services I provided? What about exclusivity or maybe agreeing to reserve a day of the week for an agent on retainer?

If you are like me and don’t have any staff to help you, the Spring, Summer and early Fall can be very hectic for you. As a small business owner we find ourselves wearing all hats to keep our businesses running. On top of our busy days shooting and processing real estate photos, we have to extend outstanding customer service to our valued clients through communication and scheduling. Here are some of the things I do to stay on top of my schedule and keep clients happy.

Staging-a-Home-for-Sale-Clean-Up-or-Youre-Out

Staging a home for sale should not be taken lightly. In fact, I would argue that a real estate photographer should not have any involvement at all when staging a home for sale. As part of a team effort when marketing a property, every member should focus on their strength. The Realtor should lead the team in organizing the marketing process. The stager should provide a consult at minimum to give the seller the knowledge they need to prepare their home. The photographer should then take photos when the home is photo-ready and shining in its best light.

A photographer is NOT a stager and should not be expected to act as one in the process of photographing the home. For agents who put a photographer in that position on site it is also very unprofessional in the eyes of a client.
Karen Otto, Home Star Staging

In the real estate industry everything seems to happen rather quickly. Sellers change their mind, agents aren’t always prepared, and weather gets in the way of real estate photography shoots. Having a cancellation and reschedule policy is very important, and it’s best to let clients know from day one how you run your business so there aren’t any surprises.