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This past spring I had the opportunity to work with food, drink, and product photographer Trevor Baca, who is based in New York City. Formerly a staff photographer at a cookware brand, Trevor came to us to help him launch his freelance business, with our Client Introductions service. I was excited to dive into the project and get great results for such a talented photographer.
My combined experience in corporate advertising and photography (I am both a photographer and past photo assistant) has helped me guide other photographers through the process of marketing themselves. I have a knack for writing direct yet approachable outreach emails, creating strategies for reaching target audiences, and finding contacts at all the right places. I’ve been coaching, writing strategies, and executing marketing plans for photographers since 2020, helping many build confidence in their marketing abilities.
Typically, the photographer will come to us with a general sense of who they need to reach and a handful of specific clients in mind. We discuss their experience and their goals, and we try to separate the kind of work they want to do in the future versus what they’ve done in the past. Once I have a good idea of what clients and industries we should consider, I pull together a list of companies that align with that.
Trevor and I kicked off his project with a video chat to dive deeper into what he wanted to get out of a campaign – and we bonded over each of our fur babies making appearances. We discussed the pros and cons of being on staff at a brand and the excitement of returning to the freelance lifestyle.
We also talked about what kinds of clients he’d like to work with now that he was freelancing. Being based in NYC gave him many options to network with nearby agencies and companies, but we felt it was best to target national food and cooking brands. Trevor has a strong portfolio of food and drink photography that ranges from still life/product images to lifestyle. His work is both bold and playful and reflects the bright and colorful style we often see in today’s imagery.
Most photographers find the idea of client outreach overwhelming or intimidating. Either they don’t know how to squeeze the effort into their busy schedule or they’re hesitant to put themselves out there. Because of this, marketing often gets pushed down to the bottom of their to-do list. So while it can be hard to overcome that inertia, I love being their cheerleader to help make it happen.
Trevor wanted to rebuild his client base after working in-house with a cooking brand for several years. He had lost touch with many of his previous clients and some had moved on to new companies, so he wanted our help to reconnect with them and build from there.
With his deep experience as a food, drink, and product photographer, we decided to stick to the same categories and industries as his previous work. We targeted packaged goods, food services, drink brands, cookware – anything related to food. Photographically, he wanted to lean toward still life more than lifestyle.
The majority of the list was based in New York since that is where Trevor lives. Industry-wise, we explored CBD beverages, coffee, retailers, delivery services, and packaged goods, as well as related publications and agencies. He was excited about it and looked forward to the opportunity to connect with the kinds of clients I suggested.
I wrote an email on Trevor’s behalf to introduce him to the clients on the list. To maintain his voice throughout, I reviewed his Instagram posts, his website, and the notes from our kickoff meeting. I also customized it as much as possible to reflect his intent and his target audience. I never want emails to feel canned or as though I simply copied/pasted them from a previous campaign. We also send automated follow-up emails to anyone who doesn’t respond to the initial email. I keep follow-up emails simple to focus on getting the recipient to click on the link to the photographer’s website.
Considering that this was my first list coming back from maternity leave, I was a little worried about shaking off the cobwebs. Those worries quickly evaporated once Trevor and I got to work! I was really happy with the list we built. While I was able to present him with clients he had in mind or had heard of, I also provided him with many that he wouldn’t have thought to include.
Further Reading
Specialty: Food/Drink Photography