How to get more School Formal Photo Booth Hires

Every year tens of thousands of high school (and primary school kids) around Australia graduate and the school puts on a photo booth at the Formal. As with all important celebrations, but even more so with the young, the one thing that they just have to have is a Photo Booth! 

If you are a photo booth operator and you're not getting a slice of the action or if you are but you want more read on to find out how to get more school formal photo booth hires.

Why target school formal photo booth hires?

PROS

• The school formal market can be a great source of additional business 
• Schools are often a great source of referral business and will use you year after year
• Many schools hold their formals on the less busy days ie during the week or on a Friday helping you maximise bookings and profits
• High School kids are a great source of viral exposure for a photo booth business on social media
• Some schools will hold their formal mid year or well before the end of the year
• Teachers are spending the schools (or the students) money not their own so aren't as likely to shop around as much as private party holders
• Exposes your business to the kids parents and can be a source of referral business for more profitable events

CONS

• Schools are traditionally bad at paying on time 
• It is a competitive market and many schools are budget poor so you may have to do deals to get the work
• Dealing with teachers can be challenging
• The year co-ordinator's tend to change every year which can make on going communication hard
• If you attend your booths your attendants will need a blue card to work with the kids
• The majority of schools have their formals during Nov/Dec which is also a busy time for Weddings and Xmas Parties
• Formal hires tend to go through a lot more paper than non formal hires
• Primary School age kids may need a booster seat to reach the camera depending on your booth set up

Best tips to get more school photo booth hires

So now you know what you should be targeting schools here's my tips on how to reach them:

• Be your own sales rep and visit your local schools and hand your brochures to the front office try and get the name and email of the Formal Co-Ord to follow up
• Build an email database just for schools which you can market to year after year
• Plan at the start of the year and set a schedule for how you are going to reach the school formal market (email blasts, social media campaigns etc)
• Email blast a Formal Special deal throughout the year but especially early in the year with follow ups throughout the year. (eg Feb/Mar an intro email advising you are School Formal specialists and to register to receive a special deal, Apr/May send out a special earlybird school formal only deal 
• Promote your school formal experience by advising which schools you have looked after before
• Talk to the teachers you have booked in the past, many teachers change school and/or know teachers at other schools making them a great potential source of referrals
• Offer a free school formal hire competition via social media to entice virality of your ad

I hope this blog has convinced you one way or the other about the benefits of and how to better target the school formal market for your photo booth business.

Happy Boothin!

Disclaimer: While every caution has been taken to provide readers with most accurate information and honest analysis, please use your discretion before taking any decisions based on the information in this blog. Author will not compensate you in any way whatsoever if you ever happen to suffer a loss/inconvenience/damage because of/while making use of information in this blog.

(Image Credit: Flickr)

(Photo Booth Blogger: Justin Jowett)