When David Jay announced that he had put together a national tour of speakers and that it was visiting Boston, I was SO excited. The Northeast, I feel, is often overshadowed by other places around the country when it comes to the wedding industry, so the fact that some of the best in our field were coming here to Boston was pretty amazing. But, having been disappointed in the past, I was hesitant to jump in and purchase a ticket. I also had no idea what to expect. What is Pass, (an elusive product that the tour was based on)? Would the Tour be just a big commercial? Would the speakers add anything of value? Would they be friendly to this shy Northerner?
I thought about it, a lot, and finally decided to give this Tour a chance. At a low entry fee, and the proximity to my home, I decided that it would be worth it to give it a shot. To take a chance and see what happens. And I can tell you, it far exceeded anything that I could have imagined.
Before the program even started, I met Jody of Zach and Jody. We had met briefly a few years before at WPPI, but it was nice to "meet" again. I was pleasantly surprised with TWO big hugs and a warm welcome from Jody. All my walls came tumbling down. That one interaction opened up my heart. I was ready to receive, and I was ready to learn, with out expectations or cynicism. Thanks Jody!
From there Promise Tangeman began her part of the night. If you've never heard of Promise. Stop reading and go check our her site. Now. I've always loved this girl, even though we had never met. She shares her life and her personality in everything that she does, so you really just can't help but love her. And anyone with hair as big as mine, I have to say is all right with me! She offered some GREAT tips on branding and figuring out what makes you, you. It's so hard as creatives to really answer those questions and to figure out what makes you tick. She gave some great advice on how to make that process easier and how to find those answers in your every day life. My notebook was FULL by the time she finished talking:) And for those of you who have never met Promise before, she may be one of the sweetest people I have ever met. Seriously:).
Then the second part of the night was Zach and Jody. I was SO excited to hear them speak. As part of Promise's talk she had asked us to pick one area of our business that we are most confident in. I'm all about relationships and so I picked my client relationships. Fittingly, Zach and Jody's talk was all about your client relationships and how to be able to bless your clients throughout their wedding process. It may seem simple, but the mere fact of BLESSING your clients, is huge. What if, as businesses, we operated to bless others, to encourage our clients, to befriend our clients, what would happen? I think a lot of our businesses would change for the better. They had some great insight and tips. I can't wait to start implementing those ideas into my business!
And then there was David Jay. We were all dying to hear him speak about Pass. Because honestly, there hasn't been a whole lot of information about what exactly it is! Ok here's the dealio. Pass is: awesome. Ok, ok, it's so much more than just awesome. Pass is this great tool that will allow photographers to share their images completely online. No more DVD's or thumb drives or whatever you are currently using to deliver your images. That whole process will now be completely online. Pass is looking towards the future of the way images are shared and I believe that this is exactly where it is headed. With a link right into Facebook, your clients can share their images with their friends. The key difference with Pass is that those images are FULLY branded with your brand and point the reader, the viewer, directly back to you. Whaaaat? Yes it's that awesome. No more images, cropped without your logo or credit. Anytime an image is shared on Facebook, your brand is right there with it, making it easy for potential clients to find you. Awe-some. I can't wait to start testing out this program with my current clients. I honestly think that this will make their whole photography experience that much BETTER. It's fast, it's simple and its cohesive.
Here are some photos from the trusty old iphone:)
So from this Bostonian to all the people that made Pass happen, thank you. The tour stop far exceeded my expectations. It has encouraged and inspired me to create the kind of business that I've always dreamed of. And to me, that's worth it.