If you are a wedding videographer and located in the Hampton Roads area, do you think you need paid advertising?

I used to struggle with that. I have paid for quite a few in my 6 years in business. I have advertised on the Little Black Book/Style Me Pretty, The Knot, and WeddingWire. I have found the ROI may not be what you expect.

 

Think about it; you are a new business and you’re trying to get your name out, but you don’t really know anybody and may not get the responses you’d hoped for when you email vendors. I know, I have been there. So you think, if you pay for advertising than you’ll get something. Bigger markets such as New York and LA may not need paid advertisement because of the huge amount of weddings that take place weekly. Being an Hampton Roads wedding videographer is a little tougher. You are in a smaller market, with a lot of vendors. On top of that, you are a wedding videographer. Wedding videographers are already considered a luxury with couples, so it is already an uphill battle to even get booked.

I have found paid advertisement doesn’t really work unless you have an established brand. Clients already are on the fence about wedding videography as it is, so they want as close to a sure thing as possible. Unfortunately this does not leave a new business with a lot of ROI. I have cancelled my paid advertisements in the past because I felt I was just giving my money away.

Now after 6 years of being an Hampton Roads wedding videographer, I have an established brand with great reviews. I have decided to now give it another try and see how much I get on my ROI. Stay tuned! I will update you on this next year!