12 Mistakes To Avoid When Building Your Senior Model Team
/There’s not much worse in business than feeling like you aren’t appreciated or like you’re being taken advantage of - except knowing that you sort of did it to yourself. That’s what can happen when you pour your heart into a senior model team that does not financially produce or bring in more clients. It hurts. I’ve been there. I’ve said more than once “I’m never doing this again”. And you know what? I fixed it! And I couldn’t be happier with the results from our team each year.
I hope you’ll read through these mistakes I see photographers making all the time and avoid them at all costs. Senior model teams can be so much fun and very profitable when done right.
12 Mistakes To Avoid When Building Your Senior Model Team:
Not charging for it - Free is not valued. I probably don’t need to go much further than that, but I will. Haha! These model teams take up a large amount of time and energy. To not charge for that much work is just silly. Please be sure you are at least covering hard costs like editing, props and an extra assistants and hair and makeup artists you may be hiring for shoots.
Giving too many shoots - While I truly believe that the senior model team experience needs to be special and fun, there is just no reason to go overboard. For a few reasons . . . 1) too many sessions will damage your senior session sales because they are already getting images from these model team shoots. 2) Kids are busy and stressed as it is. Their schedules are FULL! Even if shoots are optional, they will have some guilt associated with not being able to make some of them. 3) With too many shoots their own senior session isn’t so special anymore because they’ve “been there, done that”. 4) And lastly, you will burnout! Believe me, I’ve been there. Now we do one styled shoot, a headshot session, a winter shoot and the cap & gown / college t-shirt shoot before they go to college. There’s no need to do much more than that.
Giving a discount - Here’s where I step on some toes. Ready? Let’s just rip the band-aide off. Ok? Discounts devalue your work!!! So stop. Please. There is no need to discount something that you work so much harder on than a regularly booked senior session. I’ve never understood the reason behind offering discounts to clients who get way more of you than others. Charge your regular prices and charge for the model team experience. See point 1 above ;)
Expecting lists of referrals - Gone are the days when we can expect long lists of referral from our senior models. Generation Z is not too keen on that. So before you say “model teams don’t work” think about what you actually expect from them. It is not their job to bring us business. It is our job to create such a great experience that they talk it up to their friends and post about it to social media.
Having a “build it and they will come” mentality - Building a senior model team is no small feat. It takes a lot of time to create a big enough audience of the right teens to be interested in what you have to offer. Putting a few posts up on instagram and facebook aren’t going to cut it. Teens aren’t just out there wondering about your model team and looking for it. In our studio we start building and warming up our instagram audience months before we ever talk about our model team online. And that hard work always pays off each year.
Not showing excitement about your model team program on social media - Teens can see right through inauthenticity. Timidly talking about your senior model team is a huge turn off. They want to see you excited and full of energy. They want to know why you are doing it. They want to be part of something fun and cool. So when you show up, show up BIG! Bring the energy and get them engaged!
Having a desperation mentality - In all of my mentoring sessions with other senior photographers about model teams I’ve noticed something they all have in common - their mindset. One of the toughest things is realizing that you are worth what you are asking for and that you offer something that people want to be a part of. So I’m gonna tell you the same thing that I’ve told all of them when it comes to senior model teams. It’s time to flip the switch. It’s not that you need them. It’s that they want you. Let that sink in.
Just “winging it” - Plan and plan some more. The last thing you want to do is try to coordinate a group of busy teenagers - unless you just like going crazy. Haha! Before you launch your program be sure that you have all of your dates set. There is no need to try to coordinate everyone. The fact is that you will never be able to make everyone happy. And there will always be someone who can’t make a shoot. It’s tough, but that’s just the way it goes. Structuring your business around your family and your life will make you a much happier business owner :)
Not knowing how much your program will cost to run - Whether you want to believe it or not, running a model team is expensive. Yes, sometimes we have more time than money and we need to spend that time to build our business. In fact, that’s exactly how I built mine. I did a good amount of free, discounted and bartered work that first year to get it going. But there comes a point when you have to decide if this “thing” is a hobby or a business. If you’ve decided this is a business then it’s time to get serious about knowing the costs of running a senior model team program. Write down the hours you’ll spend shooting, editing, planning, communicating, etc. Are you buying props? Renting space? Driving long distances? Providing hair & makeup? Snacks? Swag bags & marketing materials? These “little things” here and there add up to BIG dollars. And those big dollars take away from your profit and paycheck. Be sure you are covering your hard costs with your model team experience fee. If you aren’t charging one, it’s time to step back and re-evaluate. Is the payoff (sales) worth the time and money you are putting into your program?
Over promising, under delivering - This is a big mistake in business all together, not just with model teams. The worst thing you can do is disappoint your clients. We like to under promise and then over deliver at our studio! I’ve heard it been called the “surprise and delight” strategy. So, let’s go with that. When we surprise and delight our clients they talk - especially the mamas! And you know what that does? Brings in those referrals we all want!! Woohoo!
Not requiring models to have a senior session - This is a HUGE no-no. Why do work for free or next to nothing without getting a sale? Not a good business strategy. The easiest way to do this is to include your session fee in the model team experience fee and say that the senior session is included. Notice I said included, as in added to - not free. Be sure the parents understand where your collections start and what an average client spends before signing on to be on your team though. Setting those expectations in the beginning will save you a lot of headaches. Another way is to require a booked session before they can participate in any model team activities. I’ve done it both ways. Having it combined is my favorite.
Not getting parents involved - It should go without saying that parents need to be involved throughout the entire process. When working with teens this is absolutely vital. Outside of the liability issues that could arise, there can also be problems with communications, expectations and the ordering appointment if parents aren’t involved. By including the parents in the process, getting them excited and being part of the experience from the very beginning you are adding value along the way. This will payoff as they are emotionally attached and see the hard work you’ve put into making her son or daughter feel special throughout the year :)
I hope this helps you guys! Just know, that I’ve made most of these mistakes in my own business. And now we have an amazing team of kids and parents each year who value what we do. So here’s to you and to helping you avoid them all! Best of luck building the best and most profitable senior model team ever!!
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