Is your general contracting business in growth mode? Is your goal to move from smaller projects to 1M projects? Or from 1M to 3M plus projects?
When you are in this stage, one key investment is professional photos. Obviously having outstanding photos will make your sales process easier and help you attract your next projects and bigger projects.
Sometimes contractors don’t know how to market themselves. Other times, they just resist!
They don’t like it. They say they don’t want to spend the money. They cut corners by doing it themselves. This makes it harder to attract future projects and causes downtime which leads to less annual income.
What’s the difference?
The pro photographer is going to spend several hours photographing your project and knows many techniques to show it in the best light (pun intended.) Like you, they have tools and they know how to use them! I think you know this already.
High end equipment, lighting and knowledge.
They will select angles with care and they will choose the best time of day for your new home. They will take nighttime photos of the home, if relevant, which are enticing.
Start thinking about the project photos as an integral part of running your business!
The photo session can be on your project calendar from the start. It can be mentioned to your photographer. Let her or him know to call you in 3-6 months as you’ll have a project that’ll need to be photographed. Hire an architectural photographer who knows how to shoot a building as its quite different then other types of photography.
Commit fully to this step.
Also, some photographers have connections to newspapers, architectural magazines and architects. If there is a well-connected photographer like this in your circle, it’ll give you an added reason to have them take your photos.
Schedule the photo shoot before the homeowners move in!
Take photos before the homeowner moves in so you have the most control. Do stage the house! You don’t want to photograph an empty house, because you are selling the picture of luxury living and that includes couches. Sometimes you know that the owner has stellar furnishings, so it might be fine to schedule the shoot just after they move in.
Make taking the very best photos part of your home building process. Then post the images to Houzz, your website, Google +, and your website.
Hi. I’m Karen. I help high end residential contractors with modern websites and marketing. The secrets to success as a general contractor are in the short articles in this blog. If you need help carrying them out, please give me a call to discuss your business. Call 510-527-9920 or email me at Karen@fullorbitweb.com.