Can you feel it?
The warmth of the sun, the green in the grass… it’s almost here. Summer!
That glorious time of the year when the days are longer, the weather is warmer and the ice cream is colder. It’s also the perfect time to start building a client base and marketing to the new class of high school seniors.
They have just watched the graduating class ahead of them celebrate the end of high school and head off to start new adventures. Now it’s their turn, and they are excited! You can capitalize on that excitement by running a summer senior model program.
There are a million different ways to run a senior model program so I am just going to share a few ideas with you here to get you started. Nothing is perfect, so find what works for you and run with it.
1. Get them interested
If you have time before school is out, start gathering names of potential senior models. Contact local high school program directors and coaches and ask them to share your name with current high school juniors.
If school is already out, promote your program on social media or ask previous senior clients to pass along your information. If there are local summer jobs that you know are popular among high school students you could try advertising there as well.
2. Get them excited
Once you have a group of models selected, preferably from various schools, then it’s time to get them excited about their session and your business. You want to make sure they WANT to talk about your business. That’s the whole point of a model program, to get your name out there!
Offer referral incentives or special events just for your model team. Partner with a local boutique to offer senior model discounts or a private shopping event. Get creative and create an experience that they will rave about.
3. Get them in front of the camera
Shooting your senior models can be done in various ways. Since they are out of school for the summer, they will have more flexibility in their schedule to shoot on your time. You can go all out and set up a fun-filled day with hair, make-up and a styled photo shoot or you can keep it simple and shoot them individually on separate days. Both ways are beneficial, so choose what is best for you and works with your schedule.
4. Get them products
While you don’t want your senior models to get everything for FREE, you do want them to feel special. Offer them a few digital images for free or a discounted rate, but also give them referral cards, information packets or wallet size images to hand out to friends. Something tangible they can share.
One of the challenges to running a summer senior model program is that your models aren’t in school to share with all their friends. This is where social media comes in handy.
Give them something to rave about online. Ask for reviews. Post constantly and tag your models. Make sure you are staying fresh on their mind. And when school starts up again, offer them a few new referral cards and an incentive for sharing your name.
Have you run a summer senior model program? I would love to know what has worked for you and what you might do differently the next time around!
