How Nidhi Dahiya Reached a $11,000 Avg Sale By Doing Multiple Genres Per Shoot (Re-Release)

Summary

The Portrait System Podcast: How Nidhi Dahiya Reached an $11,000 Average Sale By Doing Multiple Genres Per Shoot (Re-Release)
Host: Nikki Klosser
Guest: Nidhi Dahiya
Release Date: July 17, 2025

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Introduction

In this re-released episode of The Portrait System Podcast, host Nikki Klosser welcomes Nidhi Dahiya, a successful portrait photographer based in Bentonville, Arkansas. Nidhi shares her transformative journey from a "shoot and burn" photographer earning $30,000 annually to achieving an impressive average sale of $11,000 per shoot by diversifying her genres and implementing strategic business practices.

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Nidhi Dahiya’s Background and Early Career

Nidhi begins by recounting her origins and initial foray into photography:

• Origin: Originally from India, Nidhi relocated to Arkansas 21 years ago.

• Early Years: She started her photography career by capturing friends and their families, gradually expanding her clientele organically.

  “I started around like $100 a session and grew pretty quickly from there because there wasn't a lot of, or at least I wasn't paying attention to the competition.” [04:16]

Despite having a full-time job alongside her photography business, Nidhi dedicated over a decade to honing her craft, which laid a strong foundation for her later success.

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Transitioning to High-Sales Model

Nidhi describes the pivotal shift in her business model that significantly boosted her earnings:

• Shoot and Burn Limitations: Initially, she operated on lower prices and higher volume but found it unsustainable.

  “I was diagnosed with thyroid, and then I was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis… my body was telling me to take care of myself.” [09:14]

• Inspiration from Sue Bryce: Five years ago, Nidhi began following Sue Bryce’s teachings, which emphasized valuing her work appropriately and raising her prices. This inspiration ignited the confidence needed to implement substantial changes.

  “Sue is amazing… she could charge this, but not sure if people, like ordinary people like me could do this.” [07:50]

• Price Increase Strategy: By raising her prices and focusing on delivering a comprehensive experience, Nidhi transitioned from selling single sessions to multifaceted shoots encompassing multiple genres, thereby increasing the average sale per client.

  “I was charging 2 to $300 for about 10 images,… now I'm raising my prices to $100 an image.” [10:58]

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Marketing Strategies

Nidhi attributes a significant part of her success to effective marketing:

• Organic Facebook Marketing: Leveraging Facebook groups, particularly starting during the pandemic in 2020, Nidhi built a community of over 3,000 members. This group became a primary source of new clients.

  “Most of my clients are coming from my Facebook group.” [15:44]

• Google SEO: She optimized her website for search engines, ranking number one for several targeted keywords, ensuring a steady influx of inquiries.

• Personal Connections and Referrals: Building deep, personal relationships with clients led to consistent referrals, reinforcing her reputation as a trusted family photographer.

  “Connecting with people on a deeper level is the way to really earn their trust and keep on having them refer people.” [14:19]

Despite maintaining a full-time job, Nidhi efficiently manages her time by conducting consultations after work hours and dedicating weekends to photography sessions.

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Client Handling and In-Person Sales Process

Nidhi details her meticulous approach to client interactions and sales:

• In-Person Consultations: She designs personalized sessions by understanding clients' lifestyles, interests, and branding needs, whether for personal branding, headshots, or family portraits.

  “It's getting to know this person authentically… every session, my goal is how can I create variety for this client so she can purchase multiple images.” [18:48]

• Prepayment Bonuses: Offering incentives for clients who prepay enhances commitment and increases upfront revenue. Bonuses vary based on the prepayment amount, encouraging higher investments.

  “If they prepaid $1,500 towards their portraits… they get an extra image and a small product.” [25:06]

• Seed Planting: During consultations, Nidhi subtly pre-sells additional products and services by showcasing samples and illustrating the value of wall art and comprehensive image collections.

  “Most of my clients love these collections. Let me show you this one. And that line works like magic.” [33:48]

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Products and Pricing Structure

Nidhi employs a flexible yet structured pricing model to cater to diverse client needs:

• Custom Sessions: Starting at $1,500 for seven images, these sessions offer extensive variety and are designed to meet clients' broader needs across multiple genres.

• Mini Sessions: Priced at $525 for a minimum of two images, mini sessions cater to clients with smaller budgets while still providing opportunities for upselling during the session.

  “If they don't have that budget... she's going in a mini session instead of a custom session.” [27:40]

• Consistent Pricing Across Genres: All genres are priced uniformly, simplifying the decision-making process for clients and avoiding confusion.

  “All my pricing is same across genres.” [23:09]

• Focus on Wall Art: Approximately 65% of her sales come from wall art, which contributes significantly to her high average sales per session.

  “I strive for them to have this piece that she's looking at every single day on her wall.” [22:05]

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Studio Setup and Workflow

Nidhi's efficient studio setup plays a crucial role in her productivity:

• In-Home Studio: Located above her three-car garage, the 13ft by 26ft space serves both as her shooting area and the location for hair and makeup, eliminating the need for setup and breakdown.

  “Making it easy to create that variety.” [39:03]

• Client-Friendly Environment: The consultation space is cozy and decorated with her own portraits, enhancing trust and showcasing her design aesthetic.

  “One, it allows them to trust me for my design style… it's cozier, more homey.” [39:35]

• Efficient Image Processing: Nidhi outsources basic retouching, spending no more than five minutes on final touches per image to maintain efficiency.

  “I try not to spend more than five minutes per image.” [37:27]

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Personal Insights and Business Philosophy

Nidhi emphasizes the importance of mindset and authenticity in building a successful photography business:

• Mindset Shift: Overcoming negative self-talk and embracing self-worth were pivotal in her transition to higher pricing and better business practices.

  “Mindset is the main culprit here because all that's negative self talk and just the fear of the known.” [41:50]

• Authenticity: Being true to oneself attracts genuine clients who value and invest in reflective, authentic portraits.

  “When we embrace our authenticity, we show up in the world as real people. And that's what attract all those real people to you.” [44:35]

• Work-Life Balance: Balancing a full-time job with a thriving photography business demonstrates her dedication and effective time management.

  “If I didn't work, I would find something else to work on.” [17:44]

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Final Thoughts and Advice

Concluding the episode, Nidhi shares her favorite inspirational quote and offers advice to aspiring photographers:

• Inspirational Quote:

  “Don't ask the world what it needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive? Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.” – Howard Thurman [43:42]

• Advice for Beginners:

  “Trust your intuition… everything you need is inside of you right now to succeed.” [44:35]

Nidhi encourages new photographers to delve deep into self-discovery, embrace their unique strengths, and commit to authentic connections with their clients.

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Key Takeaways

1. Diversify Genres: Offering multiple genres within a single shoot can significantly increase the average sale per session.
2. Effective Marketing: Building strong online communities and leveraging SEO are crucial for sustained business growth.
3. Client Relationships: Developing deep, personal connections fosters trust and drives referrals.
4. Strategic Pricing: Raising prices thoughtfully and offering prepayment bonuses can transform business profitability.
5. Efficient Workflow: An organized studio setup and outsourcing routine tasks enhance productivity and work-life balance.
6. Mindset Matters: Overcoming self-doubt and embracing authenticity are essential for long-term success.

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Notable Quotes

• "As they say, diamond becomes a diamond because of all the pressure." [00:35]
• "I was pretty nervous, but I knew that this is the only way if I want to keep on doing this, I have to do this." [10:58]
• "When we are tested for our strengths and when we go through the dark times, that's when we really realize what our real potential is." [10:29]

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Conclusion

Nidhi Dahiya's journey exemplifies how strategic business changes, combined with a strong marketing foundation and authentic client relationships, can lead to remarkable success in portrait photography. Her story serves as an inspiration for photographers aiming to elevate their businesses and achieve financial freedom while pursuing their passion.

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Connect with Nidhi Dahiya:

• Facebook Group: Thrive Code by Nidhita
• Coaching Brand: ThriveCodeAcademy.com
• Photography Site: Knits Creations
• Instagram: @NIds_Ids

Join the Community: For exclusive offers and more insights, visit theportraitsystem.com and subscribe to their email list for free resources and updates.

Transcript

[Nikki Klosser]

Hey there, it's Nikki Klosser and I want to let you know about an awesome free giveaway for people on our email list. If you haven't already, click the link in our podcast description or go to theportraitsystem.com signup to get on the list. If you sign up, you'll get a free posing 101 PDF to jumpstart things. It's an epic PDF so you'll definitely want to get this. Also, just by being in our email community, you'll get deals, sales and information about any of our upcoming events and activities. So head over to theportraitsystem.com signup and and sign up today. You're listening to the Portrait System podcast.

[Nidhi Dahia]

As they say, diamond becomes a diamond because of all the pressure. So it's just when we are tested for our strengths and when we go through the dark times, that's when we really realize what our real potential is.

[Nikki Klosser]

Welcome to the Portrait System Podcast. I'm your host Nikki Klosser and this show is here to help you succeed in the world of photography and business. To help you learn to become financially free, doing what you love and so much more. With over 1 million downloads, countless photographers have taken what they've learned from both our episodes and from theportraitsystem.com and they have grown their businesses, quit their day jobs and are designing a life of their dreams. We keep it real and share stories about the ups and downs that come with running a photography business. You'll hear real life stories of how other photographers run their business and you'll learn actionable steps that you can take to reach your own goals. Thank you so much for being here. And let's get started. My guest on the Portrait System this week is Nidhi Dahia and she is a portrait photographer in Arkansas. Nidhi went from being a shoot and burn photographer making only $30,000 per year to now having an average sale of $11,000 per shoot. Nidhi talks about how she often does multiple types of sessions included in one photo shoot and that definitely helps her to get those higher sales. Something else Nidhi talks about is the prepaying bonus options she offers to her clients. Nidhi does everything to headshots, to seniors, to babies and she shoots both on location and in her home studio. Okay, let's hear more from Nidhi Dahia. Hi Nidhi, welcome to the Portrait System. How are you?

[Nidhi Dahia]

Thank you Nikhi. Doing great. Thanks for having me so excited for this.

[Nikki Klosser]

Yeah. Hey, where are you located?

[Nidhi Dahia]

I'm in Bentonville, Arkansas. It's hometown to Walmart, so that's what we are famous for.

[Nikki Klosser]

Ah, okay, nice. I feel like Walmart's just everywhere. Everywhere in the US Now. Did you grow up in Arkansas?

[Nidhi Dahia]

No, I actually grew up in India. So we have only been in states for 21 years now.

[Nikki Klosser]

Okay. Oh, wow. That seems like forever and also a very short time.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Correct. Yeah, it's like more than half or less than half my life. I'm 43.

[Nikki Klosser]

Yeah. Wow. Okay. All right, so Arkansas. Tell me about your town. Like, is it a big town, A small town? Like just kind of paint a picture of what it's like where you live.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yeah, so it is a small town, but it's not as small because it is hometown to Walmart. Also J.B. hunt and Tyson. So Tyson is the company that produces chicken and exports it all over the world. So it is not such a small town, but population wise, it's still pretty small. I have to look at the statistics to give you the right answer, but.

[Nikki Klosser]

Oh, that's okay.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Everyone kind of knows everyone. It's the feel of a small town without it being such a small town.

[Nikki Klosser]

Okay, gotcha, Gotcha. That's kind of how my town is right now. Yeah, that makes sense. All right, so when I was, I was looking at your website, doing your research. Cause you had submitted, you know, I want to say that really quick for people listening. If you're interested in being a guest on the portrait system, we do have a place on our website. If you click on podcast, you go to the portraitsystem.com and click on podcast and scroll down, there's like a little orange thing and you can record a message. And I loved the message that you sent. And when I went to your website, well, one thing you had mentioned in your message, message that you've only been a photographer for five years. And when I was scrolling through your website, I was like, wow, like your work is really, really dialed in and beautiful for only having done this for five years.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yeah, let me correct that, Nikki. So I have been a professional photographer for 11 years, but five years ago I. Yeah, so I started doing in person sales five years ago after I did stomach suit.

[Nikki Klosser]

Okay, okay, gotcha. So this is 11 years of skills that I'm looking at.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yes.

[Nikki Klosser]

Well, even either way, your work is really beautiful. And I noticed that you do in studio, you do outdoor on location, you do families, you do lots of headshots. Seniors, you said you started boudoir, so you've got portraits nailed down like across the board.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yeah, well, thank you so much. But yes, I do enjoy doing all the genres and it's a great way to keep your calendar full without having to just look for one particular niche.

[Nikki Klosser]

Yeah, that's a really good point because it seems like I would think in Arkansas, you know, seniors would probably be a seasonal type situation, right?

[Nidhi Dahia]

Not really. I mean, we do have extreme weathers, but every day is different because you know, we can have a big weather swing in just like 20 degrees, 30 degrees in one day. So we can shoot all year round. So it's not necessarily as seasonal as towards maybe Florida and stuff.

[Nikki Klosser]

Okay, gotcha, gotcha. Yeah, it's pretty seasonal here where I'm at Michigan because of the winter, right? Yeah, the winter takes over and then we're. Yeah. Just done for. Okay, I wanna back up a little bit because now I'm remembering when you said five years, it was five years from when you actually started being really successful as opposed to.

[Nidhi Dahia]

So I switched to more, you know, proper pricing and not really giving the farm away at shoot and burn prices.

[Nikki Klosser]

Okay, so take us back then before you, you know, increased your sales average, because I know you have a really high sales average. What was your business like as a shoot and burn photographer?

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yes, so I was getting known pretty quickly in my area when I first started. And it basically just started from photographing friends and you know, their families and then their friends wanted pictures. So I pretty much started around like $100 a session and grew pretty quickly from there because there wasn't a lot of, or at least I wasn't paying attention to the competition. So in my head it was like, okay, this is it, I'll do what I want to do. And I really focused on kind of honing my craft and really getting better at shooting and being proud of my work. So I grew my audience in the first six years and I was at a healthy place where I was staying constantly busy, in fact, didn't ever have any free time for myself. So it was really busy because I also had a full time job, which I still do now, even though average is five figures now. So just feel blessed there. But I think what that did for me is growing my audience from there and getting known and just having, you know, a good presentable work was. It increased my confidence. And when I raised my prices, I was just very optimistic that maybe not 100% of the clients would stick with me, but there would be those people who want me for what I'm offering rather than just the cheap price. So I think that just you know, really contributed to the confidence of being an artist and then being smart about the business decisions.

[Nikki Klosser]

Okay. And. And I know you said that you started following sue, like, five years ago, and that's when you started learning about, like, the value of what you do and just, you know, having the appropriate pricing and that sort of thing.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yeah. So I started following sue since Creative Live Days and really watching that. And at that point, I was like, okay, this is the way to make it work without, you know, being sick or being crazy doing this. So that's what sparked the idea in my head that, yes, I can do this too. But I was still very hesitant of implementing everything right away because I was still getting in my head that, who am I to charge these prices? Because, you know, sue is amazing. She's world renowned, and she could charge this, but not sure if people, like ordinary people like me could do this. So it took me about a year before I could actually really implement and make the jump. But, yes, she's the one who kind of lit the fire under me, and here I am now. Couldn't be without her.

[Nikki Klosser]

You said something interesting, Nidhit, about how, you know, you don't want to get sick or go crazy. And. And I think at some point, we all start if we're doing shoot and burn and. And not charging up. Some people do shoot and burn and charge, industry standard, and it works for them. But doing 100, 200, even $500 a session is not sustainable. And we can make ourselves sick and we can burn ourselves out, because when you really do the math, we're not bringing in enough money, most of us anyway, to pay the bills and have a great life.

[Nidhi Dahia]

No. And that's what was happening to me, too. I remember that year before I made the switch, I was diagnosed with thyroid, and then I was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis. So there are these big disease, like, lifelong disease, just kind of telling me that, take care of me. You know, my. My body was telling me, take care of me. What are you doing? And I had to do that because that was also the year we had a business, and that was also the year when we had to close down the restaurant, and my husband was home and not able to work, and everything was on me. So that wasn't a choice for me to quit doing that because I wanted to. You know, one, I love doing it. I was following my heart and my passion. But two, my family needed this extra money to keep coming in. But, no, you're so right. It's good to discover it sooner. I think people are lucky who discover it from the very beginning that this is not the way to go into business and basically kill yourself.

[Nikki Klosser]

Absolutely. And I'm sure at the time that that was an immense amount of pressure to have on you. But it's interesting when we do have that pressure on us, how we are able to kind of take the necessary steps that maybe we wouldn't have before when that pressure is on, you know?

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yes. As they say, diamond becomes a diamond because of all the pressure. So it's just when we are tested for our strengths and when we go through the dark times, that's when we really realize what our real potential is.

[Nikki Klosser]

Yeah. All right. So when you realize, okay, this is. This is not gonna work for me, and you were sick and all of these things, and you decided, okay, in person sales, was it something that you were nervous about doing or were you just like confident and ready to go?

[Nidhi Dahia]

I was pretty nervous, but I knew that this is the only way if I want to keep on doing this, I have to do this. So backing out was not an option in my head. But I'll be very honest, I was very nervous. Like charging, you know, at that point, I think I was charging 2 to $300 for about 10 images, something like that. And now I'm raising my prices to $100 an image. So it was a lot of that negative self talk at times in my head, but I decided this is the only way to. So there wasn't taking a step back at that point.

[Nikki Klosser]

Okay, gotcha. So how did you do it? A lot of people will say, okay, I wanna switch over to in person sales. I wanna raise my pricing. But like, what about my past clients? And what if people tell me I'm too expensive? What if my calendar is completely empty moving forward? All of these are reasonable questions to ask, but so many of us have done it and have been really successful with it. And I'm curious what steps you took in order to make that happen.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yes, absolutely. I think what worked really well in my favor was my marketing was working really well. So I was getting new inquiries coming in and I never had my prices on my website or anywhere in the public anyways. So the new clients who were coming in didn't know that I'm making a big jump. Except for those who were coming in from referrals from previous clients. Then I would say that I have switched things around. I have made some changes. And rather than handing you over this USB and letting you figure out I am creating these beautiful prints for you that you can just sit down and enjoy right away. So I was more going into the experience format and really making them feel like, yes, this is what they want. But I think that was really good that I have new people coming in so I didn't have to explain to everyone why my prices are different now. And because there were healthy inquiries coming in, I wasn't completely worried that nobody will book me me like somebody would book me. And it was just that if the old clients will convert and stay with me and a lot of them did. And every time a repeat client booked me with the new price, that was again another confidence boost that I'm on the right track.

[Nikki Klosser]

Okay, yeah. Now talk to me a little bit about your marketing because you said you felt pretty confident in your marketing.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yes, I'm a very intuitive marketing person. I do have three business degrees, so. So I think this just kind of comes naturally to me. So my marketing is all organic and it's mostly Facebook. But then I also have done a lot of work around Google SEO and I've recreated my website and everything. So I do rank number one on Google for a lot of keywords that I'm trying to target. So. Yeah, and then referral as well. Because from the very beginning I believe that connecting with people on a deeper level is the way to really earn their trust and keep on having them refer people but also bringing them back to me and me becoming that family photographer for them so they're not going anywhere else. So those things were happening from the very beginning. I think the only thing that I really focused on differently once I started doing in person sales was more of their portrait experience and not necessarily changing me as a person. So. And I'm still doing the same things that I was doing back then.

[Nikki Klosser]

And I know you said it's organic, like are you doing things in person? Are you, you know, like getting out in your communities? Yeah. What do you. So what works for you? I guess so.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Main marketing that I do is on my Facebook. Since I have a full time job still, I don't have a lot of time to go out networking, but I have done that as well. So I really treat my clients as friends and I hang out with at least one or two clients every single week. So I go out for lunch and dinner with my friends or those friends are past clients and they keep on referring more clients to me. So it's really important to me to really become this inside person more as a friend rather than just a vendor that they do business with.

[Nikki Klosser]

Yeah, I Love that you just said that.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yeah, thank you. But yes, on the Facebook too. Now it's more of my Facebook group where I'm really building those relationships and warming up the audience before they get to work with me or know me. That started in when the pandemic started. So 2020 hit and I was home from work, everything was shut down and I was like, well, I have all this extra time now that I can focus on the business. So 2020, I started my Facebook group and I started really investing my time and energy into that and that has grown to 3,000 plus people now. And most of my clients are coming from my Facebook group.

[Nikki Klosser]

Awesome. You said you have a full time job as well in addition to photography, correct?

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yes, I am a behavioral business researcher. I'm a managing director for the state university here for the business business school. Oh, wow. So kind of a nerd.

[Nikki Klosser]

Very cool. Oh my gosh. You're busy, Busy.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Love it. I'm a workaholic.

[Nikki Klosser]

Yeah, I'm a recovering workaholic, so I remember how that feels. Now, do you, do you want to ever do photography full time or are you kind of content doing both?

[Nidhi Dahia]

For now I'm content doing both. But yes, the long term plan is to just do the photography full time and then ultimately retire from that as well. Because, you know, I'm 43, I don't plan on working until I'm 80 or 90. So I have an exit strategy. I'm working on that. But that's why it's so important to have that healthy retirement savings too. A lot of time. As business people, we all learn that we have to do our survival nut and these are the expenses we have to cover. This is how much profit we want to make. But in that income, when we look at, we are not really thinking about our retirement plan and that was a big focus for me a year ago. And my goal is to have, you know, several million dollars in my retirement plan by the time I retire.

[Nikki Klosser]

Right. That sounds amazing.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Thank you.

[Nikki Klosser]

Okay, so, so let's talk about then. How often are you shooting and when are you shooting?

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yeah, so I shoot on the weekends. So Saturday, Sunday are my shoot days. I allow up to four hours for a custom session. And then I also do a mini day where I do, you know, seven to eight clients in a day every 45 minutes. And that happens once a month. But shoot dates are our days are Saturday, Sundays, and then sometimes I do more late afternoon on Fridays as well. So my goal is to do 10 sessions a month.

[Nikki Klosser]

Oh my gosh. 10 sessions a month and you work full time.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Wow. Yes. And I have systems in place, so I'm happy as I could be.

[Nikki Klosser]

That's great. That's great.

[Nidhi Dahia]

If I didn't work, I would find something else to work on.

[Nikki Klosser]

Right. I kind of like that quote. If I don't work, I'd find something else to work on. Okay, so then tell me a little bit about your sessions, because you had mentioned. Well, do you know your. Your averages, your sales average for each genre?

[Nidhi Dahia]

For each genre, yes. My Overall average is $11,000 for the last 25 sessions.

[Nikki Klosser]

$11,000?

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yes. Wow.

[Nikki Klosser]

Nidhi, that's amazing.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Thank you. And I didn't realize that until I started doing my averages just last month because somebody had asked me, what is your oral like? I haven't looked at that in a while, so let me check. And yeah, sure enough, it's current average is $11,000. I was amazed, too.

[Nikki Klosser]

Wow.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Thank you. And because I do all these different genres, it's not like a clear to kind of divide it up, because one client, I may be doing her boudoir, her branding, and then her family joining towards the end. So it's kind of like a mix of everything.

[Nikki Klosser]

I love that. Now, now, personally, I think that's super smart, and I've done the same in the past with combining sessions like that and how you're so much more likely to sell more images. Can you talk a little bit about how you encourage clients to have multiple sessions in one?

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yeah. So let's say, for example, a client is coming in for her branding images. Then I'll be talking to her about her brand, what her branding cover colors, what her vision is, what her personality is. I'll also be talking to her about, you know, other aspects of her personality. Not just, okay, I'm. I'm friendly. I want to look like more approachable, confident. This, you know, badass boss, babe, vibes. But also, what are some of your interests? Are you more of an outdoorsy person? Are you into hiking or biking? Because we are in the Nashville state here, so a lot of people have these extra interests. It could be that they have a boat and they just. Just live on the lake, and that's where they spend most of their time. So as a personal branding session, we should be bringing or showing that aspect of her life because it's so dear and close to her. That's like a big part of who she is, and that's what a personal branding session is. It's getting to know this person authentically. So then I would pitch the idea of going out on the location. So now we are moving from studio to outdoor location. And if we are out on the location, are you more of a, you know, an urban girl? Maybe we want to go to a cafe or go to, you know, a bar, have a cocktail in the picture. Just showing that side of her rather than just, you know, trying to connect with the client. And then this client is getting to know her. It's more like showing who she really is authentically and showing up in her marketing like a real person and then taking from there. Okay, tell me about who's in your family. Maybe we should bring them in for your maybe about Me page where you can show, say for holidays you can make a post about from my family to yours. And here's your picture of your family. So your client is really getting to know all about you. And that's how I paint the pictures. And for every genre, you can kind of see where it goes from there. It's like, you know, always starting from her and digging deeper into what she desires and who she really is and maybe even things that she hasn't thought of before, before approaching a photographer. But now I'm really serving this client well and giving her something like, let's say she's a, a public speaker and she has these speaking engagements, but she hasn't thought about those bio pictures or having those conversational poses that she could use for an announcement like that. Now we are going more into variety. So every session, you know, my goal is how can I create variety for this client so she can purchase, you know, 40, 50, 60, 100 images, even if they're not going for wallet and stuff. But for my sessions, I try to sell 65% wall art and 35% image collections. The image collections could be digitals or, you know, folio prints or even albums. So every session, that's what I strive for. I strive for them to have this piece that she's looking at every single day on her wall. And then including the family too. It always goes up from there.

[Nikki Klosser]

Yeah. Is that what you focus mostly on to get your sales average up? Are those print products?

[Nidhi Dahia]

So, yes. So my focus is more on wall art. So. But I have done digital only sessions, like, you know, branding sessions for the client is like, no, I really just want marketing images. Then it's more focused on the variety.

[Nikki Klosser]

Okay.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yeah. So the main goal is of course, wall art. It's easier to have five figure sales when you are including wall art because it goes up easily.

[Nikki Klosser]

Yeah, yeah. Now Your packages initially. So people have asked me this before, like, well, what if someone reaches out for personal branding but then you talk them into to bring in their family in or to do some sort of more personal, glamorous type shoot. Now do you have to show them your other pricing? And I was like, no, I just have additional either products or digitals that they can purchase. I'm just showing them they're starting out with my personal branding prices. But then they can add on all these extra things and that's just how I've done it. I'm curious how you add these things on if someone is coming in initially for headshots, but then they end up in a boudoir session.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yes. So all my pricing is same. It's same across genres. And that's why there's no confusion of, you know what we want to sell this client so they can go into, let's say an image collection which is 20 images. Those 20 images could be half boudoir, half branding, or maybe even half family, whatever they want. And the pricing is the same. Yeah, my client magazines are same too. I don't have it separated for okay, this is for branding client and this is for rest of the genres. It's all the same. So even if in their head they don't want wall art, they don't want albums or anything, they're still getting the same beautiful printed magazine that is planting seeds for all these other options. So yeah, it's make it easier and.

[Nikki Klosser]

Exactly what you said, planting seeds is what's happening. You are pre selling to these clients without them even realizing you're pre selling.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yes, and they do realize I'm pre selling too because I also do prepayment bonus options. So my clients are usually paying anywhere from 2 to 3,000 to. I have had clients pay 10,000 before I even picked up the camera. So making it easier for them to spend money at different steps. And all that happens during the consultation. So I do my consultation which is like the designing of the session in person. That's where they come in and look at got samples of everything in the studio. And we are really going deep into designing her session. This is where we are talking about all the variety, what we're going to wear, what we going to create in terms of print products and really having her buy into that and then pay in advance just to get a few extra freebies. And then at the time, you know, if somebody has paid you 8, 10 grand before you picked up the camera, imagine what's going to happen once they actually see their pictures.

[Nikki Klosser]

Yeah, no kidding. Now you said that you give like bonuses for prepayment. Tell us about that.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yeah, so very simple. The prepayment bonuses are if they prepaid $1,500 towards their portraits. It could be digital collection, it could be used towards whatever they want. They just get an extra image and a small product which could be like a tabletop print. If they prepaid 2,500, they get two and so on. So I don't have a limit on that. So I've had clients who have prepaid $8,500 plus tax just to get those extra images and, you know, making it easy. But also now the client is not feeling like, oh, I'm required to pay this. She's happy to pay this because she's scoring some extra freebies for doing that.

[Nikki Klosser]

Right. Hey, just a quick break to tell you that since you're here listening, you have access to a really great offer for our listeners only. We have a special promo code you can use to get 50% off the cost of membership. Just go to theportraitsystem.com or click the link in the description and use the promo code PODCAST50 to get 50% off of a membership. We rarely discount membership, so this is a big deal. As I hope you already know, the membership is how I and so many guests on this podcast reached our success. And it gives you access to countless amazing videos, an awesome community, and all the tools you need to build a massively successful business. So use the code podcast50Now to join the community and to start building the business of your dreams. I'll see you there. Now, at what point are you sharing about this?

[Nidhi Dahia]

This is happening at the in person consultation when we are designing her session. So I'm booking the session date and the consultation date on the phone when I'm first connecting with this person. So that that's happening at the discovery call. I'm collecting the session fee on the phone for the discovery call and then scheduling them in to come in to design more in detail.

[Nikki Klosser]

All right, so. Oh my gosh. I'm just a little blown away here because in addition to working full time, doing 10 shoots a month and you do in person consultations?

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yes. So the consultations are happening after work, after five o' clock on a weekday or sometimes maybe mornings on the weekends. And then my shoots are happening in the afternoons on the weekends, or if we are planning to go outside, then I do late afternoon shoots. So the light is nice and soft outside.

[Nikki Klosser]

Right. Wow, wow, wow, wow. Okay. I want to talk a little bit more about, about your pricing. So like if someone comes in, what's the minimum amount they're going to pay? Like do you have packages or do you have a la carte? Like how is it structured?

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yes. So if you're booking a custom session, the minimum collection is $1,500 for seven images. So if a client doesn't have a budget of spending 1500 plus her session fee, which my session fee is 600, if she doesn't have the budget of $2100, she's going in a mini session instead of a custom session. And as I mentioned, the mini sessions, I do them once a month. So I, you know, holding spot for these people who may have a lower budget rather than saying, hey, it's still the same price, they're just shooting, saving the session fee at the mini session. So it's still a saving for them. But they're still my ideal clients. So I'm not wasting time trying to build two different types of clientele where somebody's going in for a cheaper session versus I'm too, you know, I'm priced out of their zone for my custom session. But yeah, does that help answer the question you were asking?

[Nikki Klosser]

Yeah, yeah, for sure. Now, how do you handle clients? I know someone out there is probably thinking this, how do you handle the client who comes in and says I just want one headshot is that you just direct them to the mini session or how do you handle that?

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yeah, so my minis are minimum, two images. So it does have hair, makeup included, the mini session. Currently I charge $525, so my individual images are 250 each. Now I'm still on the lower side because again, my focus is more on selling wall art than the image collection. So that's my way of keeping the barrier to entry low. So if they don't have a budget of even $525, then they're not the client for me. But if they do have that budget and again, everyone coming in for the mini session is going to buy more anyways when they see their images. But if they're strictly on budget and that's all they can spend, that's totally fine. It's just 45 minutes of my time. I do, you know, book eight clients back to back. So I don't mind every now and then if there is a more price sensitive client coming in who just wants two images. But yes, if somebody wants just one headshot, no, I'm not getting off my couch.

[Nikki Klosser]

Yeah, yeah. I'm the same. I'm the same. All right, so I know in person sales is something you said you switched to and that really made a big difference going from shoot and burn to that. So will you take us through your in person sales process? Like do you do photo viewings right away afterwards or do you have, you know, do you retouch things and then do they come back? Like, tell us about that?

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yes. So my reveal is happening straight out of camera. If a session is shorter, if the client has the energy, we do it right after the shoot while they are in the studio. If it's been a long session where, you know, they don't have the energy to go through this again, I. Depending on the client and as well, when I know that this client is not invested into wall art and stuff and I can get the reveal done in maybe, you know, 40, 45 minutes, I may do it right after the shoot. But if it is a big client who we are planning to create wall art and all that, then I want her to be in fresh energy and she may want to bring her husband with her. So, you know, I just had a boudoir session last week and we didn't want to jump into it because I knew that she, she wanted her husband to come make the decision with her. So we do it on a separate day. But regardless of when we are doing it, I am doing it straight out of camera reveal and I'm only retouching the images that they have purchased.

[Nikki Klosser]

Okay, so they. You have a studio?

[Nidhi Dahia]

I do. My studio is in my home. So I have an in home studio. It is a separate space and set up like a proper studio, but it saves me that commute time.

[Nikki Klosser]

All right, so they come either, you know, right after the session or come back to the, to the studio. And what happens during the session? Like, how are you getting people? I mean, I know a lot of this is prepaid, so maybe I should ask that actually, like when you're doing that consultation, you're saying, okay, if you prepay this, you get XYZ and people are saying, okay, sounds good. Or like, how do, how do you go through that process?

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yeah. So first we are starting with designing the session and really building that session enough for variety, for talking about her decor at home. Like, okay, well let's, let's talk about what is your decor like, what is your style like? Because, you know, if you were to get a wall art or a piece, where would it go in your space? And really helping her imagine that. Because once a client has imagined a portrait on her wall. She has to have it. So a lot of psychology going into it. But, you know, after designing the session and showing her the samples, I would ask her, so what are you inclined towards? What do we want to create? And sometimes they have a clear vision of what they want, and sometimes they're like, I'm not sure. Everything looks great. Then I can tell them, you don't have to decide today. But let me tell you about my prepayment bonuses so that you can have a healthy credit sitting for you to use towards whatever you like, but you get freebies just for paying in advance. And then I. Yeah, so then I got them through that and asked them, you know, would you like to take advantage of it today? And she says, yes. How much are you thinking? And sometimes it blows your mind. Like that 8500 client, she first inquired for a mini session. So that kind of blew my mind when she said, let's do eight.

[Nikki Klosser]

People love freebies. They love it. There was this. This book that I'm listening to, and something that he had said was that. But in doing all of this research, people with many different companies of many different types of things, people really respond to freebies. And also my most popular or whatever is most popular. So if you were to add the words in, like, well, my most popular package is the prepaid, blah, blah, blah. And as soon as people hear that other people like to do that, they kind of. It does something to us psychologically. All of us, like, all of us consumers for some reason. Well, maybe not all of us, but you know what I mean.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yeah. So people like to feel validated that they're making the right decision, especially when it comes to big purchases. So I use that line for my wall art collections that, you know, most. Most of my clients love these collections. Let me show you this one. And that line works like magic.

[Nikki Klosser]

Yeah, it's like the same concept. Most of my clients meaning, like, this is what everyone else wants. I had a feeling that you were doing something like that Just because you're such a smart businesswoman. I can, like, tell, you know, so. Okay, that's really cool.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Thank you. I need to call you every morning just to feel good about myself.

[Nikki Klosser]

Well, you know, and sometimes it takes having these kind of like one liners or scripts that we can use consistently so that we're not just flailing out there thinking, like, like, I don't know.

[Nidhi Dahia]

What to say next.

[Nikki Klosser]

How do I get them to buy this? You know, if we. If we have some things rehearsed and practiced and we know what works. It's sometimes it's just a matter of sticking with that.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yeah. And it becomes easier with practice. The more clients you're going to serve, the, you know, you. You start to find out what works and just stick with those things because they work constantly. So I have tons of those lines that, you know, I use with every genre. In fact, I did a training on how to sell wall art to every genre just recently. That was a free training and a lot of people attended that and found it really helpful. And that's just me sharing, you know, what do you say to this branding client to purchase wall art? What do you say to somebody in maternity to purchase wall art? So, yeah, over time it becomes really easy. But when we also focus on how can we serve our clients to the best of our ability, when we put our energy into serving this person, making her feel so valued, giving her products that we know that is going to make her feel beautiful and confident and, you know, just good about herself every single day. I think our job becomes so much easier when we don't think about we are selling something to. How can we serve them?

[Nikki Klosser]

Yeah. Yeah. Something I've been wanting to ask more to my guests about is about what they shoot with the type of lenses, you know, with lights, without lights and because I was looking through your family work and I have a guess as far as what your favorite lenses are. But I curious what outdoor specifically what lenses do you tend to shoot with the most?

[Nidhi Dahia]

So my go to lens for outdoors is 72 hundred.

[Nikki Klosser]

I knew it. That was my guess. I should have guessed. I should have said it.

[Nidhi Dahia]

I love the dreamy bokeh.

[Nikki Klosser]

I do too. And there's just something about the compression that I'm obsessed with. I use it a lot. I've been using my 72 hundred a lot lately.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yeah. And I would use that in the studio too, if I had the space. So that is my absolute favorite lens. Lens. But in studio, I'm using 24 to 70.

[Nikki Klosser]

Okay. Yep. All right. And then do you use lights outside or are you just getting creative with your editing?

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yes, all natural light. Because I. I am a lazy shooter.

[Nikki Klosser]

I don't like to. Same nitty.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yeah. So. Yeah. Well, God gave us a free light source. Use it.

[Nikki Klosser]

I know, right? Okay. So then. Because sometimes I'm noticing like you're retouching and the editing and everything. It's really beautiful. How much time are you spending for the portraits that people do purchase anyway? How much time are you spending editing these portraits?

[Nidhi Dahia]

So I outsource retouching so my retoucher will retouch the skin and maybe some fly aways and just like obvious things. And then I'm putting my finishing touches. So every image is different, but I try not to spend more than five minutes. Minutes per image.

[Nikki Klosser]

Wow. Okay. Yeah, that's great. I mean, I don't know how you would find the time to do more than that. Your time is spent. Yeah. Okay, awesome. All right, cool. And then tell us about your in home studio. What is that like?

[Nidhi Dahia]

It's just my happy space. It's not very big, but it is on a different level. So we live on the first floor. My studio's on the second floor. I just have one like a typical, like a standard size bedroom size, which is the meeting room. So that's where I meet them for their consultations. That's where we are doing the reveal. I have a tv, which is, if I have to guess, I think it's about 50 inches. So it's let's say 10 by 10 room. It's not super big or anything. There's just a couch that the client is sitting on and there's a chair that I'm sitting on. So there's a coffee table with books and folio boxes in front of them. And there are pictures on the walls. On the three walls. One wall is just the tv. So that's the meeting space. And then the shooting space is about 13ft by 26ft. So it's above a three car garage. And that's the space where the hair makeup is happening too. And then I'm shooting in that same space too, so I don't have to, you know, set things up or break it down. I do have backdrops on rollers and just kind of making it really easy for me to quickly create variety. I can. Even in my mini sessions that are usually 20 minute shooting time, I can easily create, you know, 50, 60 images for them to select from. So. Yeah. Making it easy to create that variety.

[Nikki Klosser]

Yeah, that's great. And how big did you say your shooting space was?

[Nidhi Dahia]

It's about 13ft by 26ft. If I have to guess, I have to. Yeah. So it's, it's as big as a three car garage because it's right above my garage.

[Nikki Klosser]

Okay, gotcha. All right, so they come in and they enter through your. Your home and then they just walk upstairs?

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yes.

[Nikki Klosser]

Yeah. All right. Very cool. And the reason I ask is some people are nervous about having a space at home and will it work out so People like to have a picture of, you know, what it's like.

[Nidhi Dahia]

I think, like having a home studio, I feel. And again, I find positives in everything. But I personally feel it makes a big difference because they can walk into my living space, they can see the portraits hanging of my family in my space and how I'm using it, how I have decorated it. One, it allows them to trust me for my design style because they walk in and they're like, oh, your house is beautiful. So, you know, this is a way for you to show your interior design skills as a creative. Plus, you're also showing them portraits the same way as you would expect your clients to display it in their home. So I feel like it just makes things a lot more easier. It's also cozier, more homeier feel than going to, let's say, a busy downtown street where it's hard to find parking and then they're carrying water pieces in. So, yeah, I mean, as long as it's clutter free and you're proud of the space and there's a good energy in there, it doesn't matter. Before I built this house in the studio, I was setting up in my living room and moving furniture aside and putting these, these backdrop stains and changing backdrops and of course, that was a lot more work. But clients paid happily in that space too.

[Nikki Klosser]

Yeah, yeah, that's really a good point because it doesn't. It doesn't matter necessarily where you're shooting. It's how you made them feel, it's the connection you made with them. It's their portraits. So.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yeah, absolutely.

[Nikki Klosser]

Yeah. Awesome. Well, it sounds like you have a really, really great thing going on. And did you say you had a goal for when you're gonna retire? I know you gave me your number, but what?

[Nidhi Dahia]

I'm going for 60. We'll see. We'll see. So working for another 17 years and then retire and travel the world, that's the plan.

[Nikki Klosser]

Sounds amazing. So we're almost the same age. I'm two years older than you.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Okay.

[Nikki Klosser]

Yeah. Awesome. Well, thank you so much for sharing everything. This is really, really great. And, you know, and like you having the business background as well, it's interesting how even though you have this great business background, sometimes, you know, going through the shoot and burn process and everything, it's like sometimes we just have to remember to apply the things we know to our own. To our own business.

[Nidhi Dahia]

You know, I think mindset is the main culprit here because all that's negative self talk and just the fear of the known. Because what's known is failure. And when we just go and, you know, start dwelling into that fear that what if we fail?

[Nikki Klosser]

Isn't that the truth?

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yeah. But what if we don't and we succeed and we make all our dreams come true? Like I couldn't have imagined having a million dollar goal for my business five years ago, right when I was broke and hurting and, you know, making $30,000 a year.

[Nikki Klosser]

Yeah. Yeah. It is pretty wild that you went from $30,000 a year with your portrait business to like an $11,000 sales average for one shooting. I mean, pretty incredible. So awesome.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Pretty amazed, too. So thank you.

[Nikki Klosser]

Well, I do have a couple more questions that I always ask at the end of each episode. And the first one is, what is something you can't live without when you're doing a photo shoot?

[Nidhi Dahia]

Well, my camera. I could do with anything. Just my camera and my lens and that good connection with my client, really. I mean, we don't need hair, makeup, we don't need fancy lights. It's the client trusting you and you really having the fun. It's all about that energy to me.

[Nikki Klosser]

Yeah. Yeah, agreed. All right, number two, how do you spend your time when you're not working? There's gotta be some time when you're not working.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Reading books on a book form. So every single day. And now it's more thanks to audible and audiobooks that. That it's so much easier to read books. But yes, I have to listen to a book every single day.

[Nikki Klosser]

Every day. Yeah. Awesome. Very cool. All right, number three is what would you. Oh, wait, that's not number three. Oh, yeah. Number three is what is your favorite inspirational quote?

[Nidhi Dahia]

My favorite inspirational quote is by Howard Thurman. He says, don't ask the world what it needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive? Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.

[Nikki Klosser]

Oh, I like that. Great quote. All right, and number four is what would you tell people who are just.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Starting out to just trust your intuition? Everything you need is inside of you right now to succeed. So just go within, meditate. If you need to sit down in a dark room with yourself, just. Just figure yourself out. Discover yourself who you are. Stop hiding behind what you think you should appear as. But when we are true to ourselves of who we are, when we embrace our authenticity, we show up in the world as real people. And that's what attract all those real people to you.

[Nikki Klosser]

I love that. That's great, great, great advice. Awesome. And then if people are looking for you, Online, where can they find you?

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yes. So I do have a photographers group because I am also a co coach. It's Thrive code by Nidhita here on Facebook. I also launched my coaching brand this year which is thrivecodeacademy.com that's a great way to get in touch with me on Facebook and online.

[Nikki Klosser]

Awesome. And that's for photographers who want to learn more about running business, right? Coaching for business.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yes, it's all about business coaching and how to raise your averages and how to attract the right clients. So you're working smarter than Hunter and we all need that.

[Nikki Klosser]

Cool. And what about an Instagram?

[Nidhi Dahia]

My Instagram is NIDs and IDS. I'm not active on Instagram as much so I barely use it. But I'm more of a Facebook business, so.

[Nikki Klosser]

Awesome.

[Nidhi Dahia]

My business Facebook is. My photography site is Knits creations.

[Nikki Klosser]

Okay, very cool. Well thank you again Nidhi. I really appreciate it. And will you be at the Portrait Masters conference conference?

[Nidhi Dahia]

I will be at the Project Master. I'm so looking forward to it. Awesome.

[Nikki Klosser]

We'll get to meet in person. Very cool.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Yes, looking forward to it. Thank you Nikki. This has been amazing.

[Nikki Klosser]

Thank you. I will see you in September then.

[Nidhi Dahia]

Okay, sounds great. Can't wait.

[Nikki Klosser]

Thank you so much for listening to the Portrait System podcast. Your 5 star reviews really help us to continue what we do. So if you like listening, would you mind giving us a review Wherever you listen? I also encourage you to head over to subriceeducation.com where you can find all of the education you need to be a successful photographer. There are over 1000 on demand educational videos on things like posing, lighting, styling, retouching, shooting, marketing, sales, business and self value. There's also the 90 day startup challenge plus so many downloads showing hundreds of different poses. We have to do checklists for your business, lighting pieces, PDFs, I mean truly everything to help make you a better photographer and to make you more money. Once Again, that's Sue briceducation.com.