The Danger Of Relying On Referrals | 71

My first client wasn’t a referral. My second client wasn’t a referral. And neither was my 10th.

Before I got my first photography referrals, I already had 30+ clients under my belt.

Relying on referrals will actually hold many photographers back.

When photographers rely on referrals, then they place the blame on outside circumstances when they can’t get a client.

“The market must be saturated.”

“Clients don't need photos right now.”

“Client’s' budgets are too low.”

If I blamed outside circumstances for not being able to get clients, guess where I’d be?

Still stuck in my 9-5.

The first step in getting clients is to acknowledge that you are not owed clients. This world doesn’t owe you anything. It’s on you to go out there and make something happen. You are not entitled to clients.

The truth is, you can have the best portfolio in the world, but if no one’s looking at that portfolio, no one’s going to work with you.

The problem of referrals amplifies if you get your first couple of clients this way. Lets say you’ve got some connections and they heard you’ve got this fancy new camera. Fast forward a month and now you’ve got 3 clients you’re consistently working with. You’re charging $1k a month for each of them and already that’s a decent living.

But now you’re stuck. You’re not making enough to quit your 9-5. But you want to. So you wait around for clients to come to you. You ask around for more referrals, but no one comes.

And you feel stuck. You get frustrated, you burn out, and you’re stuck in that job forever.

Or you learn sales. You accept responsibility for not having clients. It’s your fault. No one else’s. You start learning online about the creative business sales process, you buy a few courses, and next thing you know, you have more clients than you know what to do with.

The secret to getting clients is a simple sales process.

Lead gen -> cold outreach -> sales call -> proposal -> deal.

This is exactly how I’ve been able to work with 50+ brands. Simple but not easy.

This process puts all the pressure and responsibility on you, not on outside circumstances. This is the first step to running a successful company. Once you learn the basics of the sales process, you never have to worry about clients again.

Lastly, if you want to use referrals do it this way:

1. Create a predictable sales process
2. Get 10 clients
3. Create a referral system that pays clients $$$ every time they refer a deal to you.