Best Scheduling Systems For Real Estate Photographers

Scheduling is a fundamental part of your business and deserves to be well thought out. You want to find a system that serves your clients well, while also giving you a way to efficiently handle this repetitive admin task. Many photographers believe they need to fully automate the booking process, but this isn’t always the case! It highly depends on your current and future goals as a photographer.

So… What type of photographer are you? Are you looking to grow your business by expanding your team or consistently raising your prices as a solopreneur? Do you want to move into industries outside of residential real estate such as architecture, design, and construction?

If you plan to stay in the residential real estate industry and hope to expand your team of photographers, then an automated scheduling system makes A LOT of sense. In short, this business strategy lends itself more to automation and efficiency. With this model, you will most likely have a concise set of productized services that are easily selectable with a few add-on options. For example, you may have a “25 photo package” with the option to add aerial photos, a floor plan, or 360 virtual tour.

However, if you want to focus on your craft as a solopreneur – consistently raising your prices, and possibly pushing towards other industries with larger budgets – then a scheduling system most likely isn’t needed! This business strategy lends itself more to service and quality. If this is the case for you, I would stick with the classics: email, text, and phone calls. This can help foster better relationships with your clients by encouraging one-on-one conversations about their goals for each shoot.

For photographers just starting out, I would highly recommend taking the advice of the great Michael Scott: keep it simple, stupid. Don’t worry about finding the perfect booking system, just place a simple contact form on your website and be available for calls whenever you can. This is by far the cheapest and simplest solution for both you AND your clients. Many real estate agents are always on the go and simply want to text something like, “new shoot for you downtown, photos and video asap, when can you do it?”… From here it’s a simple couple of texts and the shoot is scheduled.

So when does this simple solution start to fail? If you are so busy that it takes 1-2 days to reply to a text, it’s time to look for a more automated system. See our list of recommended systems below, categorized as simple, partially automated, and fully automated.

The simple solution…

This simplest solution for scheduling your real estate photography shoots is taking calls, texts, and emails, then organizing your projects with a digital calendar. Simple.

As mentioned above, this solution is great for those wanting to emphasize personal service to their clients, as you’ll be communicating with your clients more often to discuss their vision for each project and the services they need to accomplish their goals. This simple scheduling solution is also great for photographers who are just starting out, as it’s the easiest solution to set up and it minimizes costs.

The partially automated solution…

If you are looking for more than the simple solution, but think the fully automated scheduling solutions are a bit much, then a custom form builder might be the best option for you! It’s in the name, “custom”. You can achieve a lot with these systems, but it may take some additional effort to get them set up just the way you want.

The fully automated solution…

The following systems are built to maximize automation and efficiency. Many of these solutions are especially great if you are trying to manage a team. You’ll notice two types of systems below, “scheduling systems” and “field service management systems”. The first set of scheduling systems will likely work best for most photographers, however the field service management systems are for those wanting deeper project, team, and client management.