Intro: [00:00:00] Hello and welcome to the Posers podcast, the place where we skip the fluff. Say the quiet parts out loud and dig into what really matters. This is where photography, psychology, and business collide. I'm Jody, your host, and I'm bringing you my raw takes, hard wins, and a whole lot of unfiltered honesty about what it takes to build a photography business that actually connects and makes money.
So ladies, grab your headphones and get your tits up and your ears open because we are going to build something really incredible together.
Well, hello, hello, hello, and welcome back to another episode of the Posers podcast, my beautiful posers. I'm gonna jump in really quick here today because I have a question that I would like to ask that is going to tee up this perfect little episode that I have for you. Because I wanna know: when's the last time that you posted something that you knew was [00:01:00] so good?
You spent so much time creating this reel. You knew that it was gonna be good. You knew it was gonna land. You knew it was gonna slap. And then you post it, and you are met with crickets, with maybe a couple hundred views, maybe a handful of likes. One of 'ems probably your mom and your sister and your best friend, right?
, I wanna know: when's the last time that this happened for you? And I wanna know whether or not you told yourself that it's just obviously the algorithm, that it is working against you. You simply can't crack that, or you told yourself that you are just not very good at this. , Don't worry because thankfully, it is none of these things.
And if you ever said to yourself, like, "Why should I even keep trying at this?" Today's episode, we are talking about one skill that is going to change how every single piece of content actually performs for you, and it [00:02:00] actually has nothing to do with being smarter for once on this podcast because it's actually about being dumber.
Today, we are talking about a concept that is called dummy maxing. I came across this from, , a creator that I actually love to follow. She does a really great job with marketing, and she teaches marketing. And I just absolutely fall in love with everything that she does, and it's probably because she is dummy maxing me, okay?
But her whole point, it was, , presented inside of this carousel that was so Perfectly created. , Her whole point is that, , your audience is obviously not dumb, not dumb at all. But it's that whenever your audience opens Instagram, they are not prepared to have to use their frontal lobe. They [00:03:00] are scrolling quickly, they are half paying attention, they're thinking about 10 other things, or they've zoned out completely and they're in zombie mode, or maybe they are, I don't know, doing something like, you know, waiting in line at Starbucks or something like that, and they're playing on their phone.
So if your content asks them to have to translate what you said into what it actually means for them, then they are gone before they ever even finish reading your very first sentence. So she illustrates this with some before and afters, with the before being like the expert version and the after being the dummy maxed version.
So the expert version of, say, a health coach might want to say to their audience that a person's , blood sugar could be contributing to hormonal imbalance and afternoon fatigue, right? Which is all [00:04:00] technically accurate and makes them sound very, very smart. But it requires the audience or the reader of that content to do the translation work.
All right? So the dummy max version says the same exact thing, but it reframes it as something so much more concrete and so much more lived in. And the dummy max version would say, "If you're constantly ready for a nap at 2:00 PM, it's probably because of what you ate for breakfast." There is the same expertise underlining both of those statements, but the dummy max version requires dramatically less brainpower to understand it.
So her key distinction is that this isn't about dumbing down the idea itself. It's about making the transition from concept to relevance [00:05:00] completely unnecessary. So you take the thing that you would normally explain, and you turn it into something that the audience can picture happening in their own life.
So in this carousel that she created, she uses examples like the 2:00 PM crash, or your jeans that won't button, or like an abandoned checkout page if you're trying to sell something online. So that the audience never has to do the work of figuring out why it actually matters to them, and why it matters to them in their life.
And her point is that clear and specific and almost like stupidly easy to understand content usually signals that the creator who made that content really relates to, really understands the audience. It really just like gets them. Okay? So she had this one line that really stuck with me, and she said that the goal is to make [00:06:00] it so that zero brainpower is needed in order to understand your content.
Not because your idea is dumb, but because the translation shouldn't be your audience's job. It should be yours, right? So this is the piece that I really watch photographers get wrong constantly, myself included. I'm not calling anybody out, because I struggle with this sometimes too. Because obviously, like we all wanna sound smart, and we all wanna sound like we know what we're doing.
But there's this other like added layer for us as creatives that we also want to think that if we say something more poetic or, , more eloquent, then it means that we're more professional. So instead of just saying the thing, then we kinda start speaking in cursive. We speak in like frilly [00:07:00] language whenever we should be speaking in kindergarten block letters.
Because the goal shouldn't be to sound impressive on like your content or on or in your caption or on your website, wherever you're using this messaging. The goal is to stop them from scrolling or to stop them in their tracks and make somebody feel like, "Oh my God, that person gets me." Okay? I'm gonna explain this a little bit further in just a second, and I'm gonna give you some examples that will make this all, like, really make sense.
But this actually came up in a one-on-one with one of my mastermind students this week, and it hit her a little bit hard. So I knew that it was something that I needed to share here too, because it is very likely that you are trying really hard at your content game. And I am sure that you are showing up consistently like people have told you that you need to.
And then here I come [00:08:00] saying, "Okay, now that the consistency is there, now it's time to really hone in on the actual messaging," because a lot of what photographers are saying really sounds compelling, and it sounds poetic, and it honestly reads like... Especially because we're all reading each other's content, we all understand each other's worlds, and so it reads like it should work, right?
I mean, like, if you put out content and you tell your audience that it's okay for their kids to show up really energetic because you'll capture magic inside of the messy, or some other variation of that line, that sounds like it should work. But it's actually kind of elusive, because saying that a kid is, quote-unquote, "energetic" whenever the mom knows that if she books a photo shoot, her kid is going to roll out of the backseat of her car with probably f- by the Foot stuck in his hair and a sugar [00:09:00] crash that is looming, and it is about to explode at any second.
So then saying that her kid is just, quote-unquote, "energetic" and that you'll find this magic in the chaos, that's not going to land for her. So I know that this can feel overwhelming for you to hear. Honestly, it might actually, like, be a little bit defeating because you might think that just showing up was the whole entire assignment, or somebody might have told you that just consistency and showing up was the whole entire assignment of social media.
So I know that that's what it felt like for my one-on-one this week at least. So I'm kind of taking the liberty to think that if it hit her like a ton of bricks, then it might be hitting you that way too. But honestly, the truth of the matter is, is that consistency gets you in front of people. That is 100% absolutely true, and obviously, I want that for you.
But [00:10:00] messaging is what makes them stop. And if you're pounding the pavement every single day saying things that don't land, then you're doing a whole lot of work that isn't going to convert for you. And I'm not saying that that's a reason to stop showing up or for you to throw in the towel on all of this, start waving your white flag, but it is the reason to get really, really specific about what you're actually saying when you are showing up.
So I wanna make this real. I'm gonna say some lines that photographers say all the time with, , the flowery version and then the dummy maxed version, okay? I just gave you the energetic kid version, which I'll say again, , the flowery kind of, like, expert version of this is that your child shows up with so much energy.
And Mom, I know that you're worried that you won't get the photos that you want, but don't worry, the chaos is where the magic happens. Okay, that's the flowery version. [00:11:00] Now here's the dummy maxed version. Seven kids came into my studio last week tweaking on sugar and never sat still once. All of my moms still had galleries full of at least 50 beautiful photos.
Photographing kids is literally my job, and that doesn't mean I can only photograph the ones that sit still. Do you see how those two are different? Do you see how the dummy maxed version actually lands on the specific things that are lived examples of what's going on in your studio versus saying, "Oh, don't worry, chaos is where the magic happens"?
That doesn't land as well for moms, okay? If that lands at all because their idea of chaos does not have any bit of magic inside of it. I can... As a mom of three boys , I can guarantee you that. All right. Uh, here's another one around, like, the investment conversation. So maybe this is in your content, maybe this is on your website, wherever it is that you're talking about, , the [00:12:00] investment and, , what your work is costing.
So the flowery version is That your investment reflects the artistry, the archival quality, the intentionality behind every image in your gallery. While the Dummy Max version of this is, yeah, this costs more than superposed and insanely rushed mini sessions because in 20 years, these photos are the ones that will remind you that some days your kids drove you absolutely nuts.
But most of the time you loved them so much that your heart felt like it would explode out of your chest, That hits a little bit harder. So here's one for posing. The flowery version is, through intentional posing and play-based movement, we create authentic images that resonate with your soul and truly feel like your family.
Okay, now the Dummy Max version is, you know how you wrestle on the couch on Sundays right after eating pancakes, and you tickle your kids so hard that you [00:13:00] think you might crack a rib, but they can't stop laughing anyways, and the world just feels like it is so perfect? Yeah. We're basically gonna do that exact same thing, but we're gonna take photos while we're doing it That just hits.
That slaps. That makes them actually think of examples of when they have that kind of experience at home with their kids. And they're like, "Oh man, that's all that we're gonna do? Cool. Sign me up." Here's one for the newborn session. So the flowery version would be, " This season is fleeting, and these images preserve the tenderness of new motherhood before it slips away."
Whereas the dummy max version would be, "Your baby will never be this small again. In six months, he will be crawling all over, running you ragged, And he won't look anything like what he did as a newborn. You think that you'll remember every single detail, but I promise you, you will not." All right?
Here's one for senior sessions. The flowery version is, "We capture [00:14:00] the essence of who you are becoming as you step into this next chapter." Whereas the dummy max version is, "These are quite possibly the last photos you'll ever take by yourself. Because the next set that you're gonna take are your engagement photos."
you see the pattern here? Are you noticing that? Every single flowery version is some kind of big, elusive concept. Whereas every dummy max version is so specific to that exact moment that the person reading it can really picture themselves inside of it Without having to do any work to actually get their brains there.
That, in and of itself, is literally the whole entire skill. It is that simple content does not mean that it's less intelligent content. It usually means the exact opposite, actually. It means that you understand the idea so well that you can make it stupidly easy for someone else to understand it too.
And [00:15:00] that is like a fine-tuned weapon in your business. That is a skill. That is not any kind of dummy downed, downgrade. Say that three times fast. All right. So here's the framework of how you're actually going to do this. All right? So number one, go into your content, or any content that you are creating from here on out, and write it as you normally would.
And then find the sentence where you go elusive. And stop and think How can I say this in a more concrete way? All right? Which part of what you are writing requires the reader to stop and think too much? A- anything that makes them stop and think, "What does this actually mean for me?" That should be a red flag for you.
Okay? Number two, you're gonna turn it into a [00:16:00] moment that actually happens in your client's day or life, like the 2:00 PM sugar crash, the missed nap. And not just like, "Oh, the kids are crazy," but like literally talking specifically about the one who won't stop trying to spit little Spider-Man webs from his hands while you're in the middle of a photo shoot.
Why has that happened to all of us, right? Okay? Not just the stiff and awkward session that your clients might have hated last year or the year before, whatever, but the session where, , Dad had a bead of sweat dripping down his back as he held his nose on his wife's ear and his muscles started to cramp.
Make it specific. Make it obvious. Make it something that they have actually lived. Make it something that they have actually felt before. And then number three, you are going to cut out anything that needs that kind of translating. If your buyer [00:17:00] has to translate what you said into why it matters for them, they will not do it, not because they are lazy, but because nobody does that anymore, because social media is simply moving way too fast.
And with that, I want you to go dummy max the fuck out of your life. No, go dummy max something today. Pull a caption. Pull something from your website, one of your, like, I don't know, even on your About Me page, you can be doing this. All right? So make it so obvious that a fourth grader could really get it.
Until next week, that's all I've got for you. Bye for now, posers.
Outro: Okay, so that is a wrap on this episode of the Posers Podcast. If you loved it, please subscribe, rate, and review because honestly, algorithms are needier than all of our [00:18:00] ex-boyfriends combined. And ladies, I need all the help I can get. If you've got thoughts, questions, love letters, even hate mail, please send them my way.
I actually read every single one of them. So until next time, stapled, stay messy and don't let the bullshit win. Tits up. Ears open and go build something. Incredible. Bye for now, friends.
