I called Portrait Innovations the other day to schedule an appointment for my younger son’s first birthday pictures.  I’ve been there before and the big draw is the $9.99 portrait package as well as the fact that you get your pictures within about 15 minutes.  I’ve also gone to the Sears Portrait Studio and what I like about them is that you can schedule your photo appointment online.  Because of the convenience of getting the pictures the same day, I decided to go with Portrait Innovations again.  So I dialed the number for the location studio,

someone answered and asked if i could hold.  I said yes and……..silence.  No music, no messaging, nothing.  This went on for 2 minutes and 48 seconds.  Why did I hold for that long?  At one point (about one minute in), I was curous about how much longer it would be.  Plus I really wanted to have Connor’s pictures to hand out at his birthday party.  I wonder, though, how many people simply hang up and go elsewhere.

I also wonder why their site is not more interactive. Why can’t they offer online scheduling like Sears does?  Why is there an absence of social media involvement?  Sears also offers the ability to share your photos online with others.  I’m not sure if either have Twitter accounts (to advertise special offers, provide tips for what to wear, etc.) or Facebook fan pages but I would think that would allow them to reach more people and, more importantly, create ongoing relationships with their customers.  Think about how many moms out there would probably engage via these avenues.  There are a number of portrait studios out there and these are simply the two that I’m familiar with.  I think these two companies are missing a great opportunity to use social media and interactive marketing to create an engaged (and likely vocal) customer base.