Kiamarie Lambert has been a New Jersey wedding photographer for the last fifteen years with an average sale of $8,500 per couple. In this episode of The Portrait System Podcast, Lambert speaks with host Nikki Closser about her business and about how, in addition to word of mouth, she relies on her Instagram profile to create free marketing viewers swoon over. 

Lambert’s Instagram profile has been a major piece of marketing for her both as a wedding photographer and as a mentor and educator. In fact, years ago, when Nikon reached out to her represent them at WPPI, they did so through Instagram. While Lambert makes no qualms about sharing that she posts to her account every day, making Instagram align perfectly with her brand goes beyond that daily diligence to the way she curates her website and how the two inter-relate. Clients are drawn to work with Lambert because of the aesthetic she portrays on her Instagram, and often prospective clients will ask which florist or day-of coordinator was used for a particular image she has posted. Lambert has a list of all the vendors she loves working with on her website, and as soon as someone makes such an inquiry, she sends it right over. In this way, clients are both attracted to her brand because of the vendor work in the images, and she reinforces that brand continuity when new clients work with the same vendors.

[Read: Trending: Wedding Portraits without Faces]

Weddings are seasonal work, so to keep her Instagram fresh in the off-season, Lambert sets up inspirational shoots using her friends and family as subjects. She loves to go antiquing for beautiful props and wardrobe and has a collection of silk flowers to dress the set. Lambert is always up front on her Instagram that these shoots are not actual weddings but are purely for inspiration, and they are a great way to showcase her hybrid style of using both digital and film while keeping her Instagram active even during the off season. Lambert says Instagram loves it when accounts do daily postings and that they will keep images from your profile front and center for your followers and include them for non-followers as a suggested profile to follow.

[Read: On Adding Film Photography to Your Wedding Business]

Another aspect that has helped Lambert focus on her marketing that might seem somewhat counterintuitive is hiring assistants and associate photographers. Lambert says that bringing on associates meant that she “was able to just do more, build more in my business, and put more of me towards the business and look into different things. I rebranded. I did a new website — all things I wasn’t doing because I was just so busy all the time.” 

To learn more about Lambert’s wedding business, visit Kait Lambert Photography, and you can follow her on Instagram here.

The Portrait System Podcast helps portrait photographers navigate the world of photography, business, money, and much more. Hosted by Nikki Closser, the podcast is powered by The Portrait System, a comprehensive, online educational platform that teaches all aspects of running a successful portrait photography studio.

Book Clients with Instagram: A Portrait Photographer’s Guide to Instagram

Vertical Videos for Photographers

6 Modern Glamour Story Templates

4-Slide Carousel Template for a Social Media Story

IG (Story and Post) Deco Floral Template