Eric-René Penoy | How to Build Meaningful Relationships with Your Clients | FloInsider Ep #4

Welcome to episode #4 of FloInsider – a podcast for creative entrepreneurs who want a fresh perspective on business, communication, art, design, branding, and life as we know it. 

In this episode we are chatting with Eric-René Penoy – a talented wedding photographer with a unique, cinematic photography style. You’ve surely seen some of his works: they are moody and rather look like stills from beautifully shot movies than regular wedding portraits. However, Eric-René never planned to become a wedding photographer – he actually comes from a background in law and social & economic administration. Yet, an unplanned job at a camera store kickstarted his interest in photography and led him to his current career.

An important ingredient of Eric-René Penoy’s photography is the way he communicates with his couples right from the first touchpoint. In this interview, our lovely host Brandi Potter, chats with Eric-René about his communication techniques and why it’s crucial to build a special relationship with each of your customers. 

Today’s episode is also a bittersweet one. It’s the last episode hosted by the lovely Brandi Potter. Thank you, Brandi, for being a pacesetter for our podcast, for believing in it, and helping us bring this idea to reality. We couldn’t have done it without you. We are sure that we’ll hear from Brandi again on the FloInsider in the future – as a host, or maybe a guest speaker. 

You can also find and listen to FloInsider on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, etc. 

Here are a few cliff notes from this insightful dialogue with Eric-René Penoy:

• As a wedding photographer, you should know what kind of couples you want to work with – what kind of people they are and what they do. Only by having a clear understanding of who is your dream client you’ll be able to create a communication process that will fully align with that target audience. 

• The best thing you can do for your couples is to offer them a service you would have liked to be offered yourself. 

• If one of your couples is very shy and doesn’t like the way they usually look in pictures, help them understand that every person can look good in pictures and it’s your job to show them how beautiful they can look on the camera. If they are truly your couple, they will trust you. 

• Tailored and clear communication up to the wedding day will help your customers get to know you better and get to trust you more without necessarily meeting in person or having numerous video calls.

• One of the worst things you can do for your business is to finish the first call with a couple on an unclear note. Instead of telling them to take their time and process everything you’ve discussed, end your conversation with the following question: “Can I consider that you’ve found your wedding photographer?” If they are your ideal couple, if they truly love your work, and you’ve done everything for them to like you – they will say “yes!

If this episode inspired you and you would like to see more of Eric-René’s beautiful work and connect with him, check out his website: ericrenepenoy.com.

Follow Eric-René Penoy on Instagram: @ericrene.penoy.

Also, make sure to follow our lovely host Brandi Potter – a talented destination wedding photographer. Her work and more about her can be found here: brandipotterphoto.com.