Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Mallory Bridgewater. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Mallory , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to hear from you about what you think Corporate America gets wrong in your industry and why it matters.

Corporate America may not fully understand the potential of using a photo booth as a marketing and branding tool. While photo booths are often used as a fun addition to events, they also have the potential to increase brand awareness and engagement. Some of the ways corporate America may be getting it wrong in the photo booth industry include:

1. Underestimating the value of customization: Photos and videos can be customized to include your company’s logo or branding to help increase brand awareness and promote your business or organization.

2. Not considering the different types of photo booths available: There is no one-size fits all approach to photo booths. A photo booth industry expert can assist you with determining what type of photo booth will provide the unique experience you need to make your event stand out.

3. Not using a photo booth as a lead generator: A photo booth can be used to collect the demographic information of participants during the event. You can collect names, email addresses, and phone numbers simply by having the photo booth conduct a survey or giveaway (spin to win).

In summary, there are many ways that corporate America may be overlooking the potential of the photo booth as a marketing and branding tool. By understanding the value of customization, the different types of photo booths available, and data collection, companies can better leverage the power of photo booths to promote their brands and events.

Mallory , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

DC Photo Booth Company was born after attending my best friend’s wedding. My husband and I attended the wedding in November 2019 and we interacted with a 360 booth during the wedding reception. Photo booths always provide classic fun, but the 360 booth provided a fresh new twist to the experience. It was a crowd-pleaser all night long. By the end of the night, not only was I moved by all the love in the air, but I was also inspired to break out of my 8-5 mold and become a business owner. I started doing market research and attempted to learn as much as possible about the event/gig industry and photo booth community. Since then, we have survived the pandemic, expanded our services, and even rebranded.

DC Photo Booth Company services the District of Columbia, Maryland & Virginia metropolitan areas. We offer the following types of photo booths: traditional with prints, digital, video, and 360 booths. We are committed to providing a unique, customizable experience for our clients.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

At DC Photo Booth Company, we believe there are many factors that have contributed to our success. Our reputation within the photo booth market has been strengthened by providing high-quality service, building strong relationships with clients, having a professional and positive online presence, being innovative, and consistently delivering quality service.

Alright – let’s talk about marketing or sales – do you have any fun stories about a risk you’ve taken or something else exciting on the sales and marketing side?

I am a lover of food. In the Spring of 2022, I was introduced to The Family Reunion at the Salamander Hotel, which was created to celebrate the black and brown contributions to the food industry. I instantly knew my company needed to be in the building to provide photo booth services to the attendees. I wanted the company to attend so badly, that I was willing to provide our services for the 3-day event for FREE.

I wrote an outreach email that detailed the services we provided, highlighted why the services were needed, and provided the monetary value of the services. I sent the email to as many people as I could, hoping it would end up in the right person’s inbox. Almost instantly, I was notified that my emails weren’t delivered to key persons due to spam filters/blockers that I could not get around no matter how hard I tried. Other emails simply went unanswered. I was proud of taking the leap but disappointed that my goal wasn’t achieved.

A few months later, I received a phone call from a marketing agency looking to provide photo booth services at an unnamed event. As I listened, I realized that the event they were referencing sounded very much like The Family Reunion. It was really hard to contain my excitement once the agency confirmed my suspicions of the event being The Family Reunion.

Needless to say, our company won the contract for the event. It was such a wonderful feeling and accomplishment to be able to provide our paid services at the event that I was gladly willing to work for free.

Contact Info:

• Website: dcphotoboothco.com
• Instagram: @dcphotoboothco
• Facebook: facebook.com/dcphotoboothco
• Linkedin: linkedin.com/company/dcphotoboothco

Image Credits
Olivia Reed with Olivia Reed Photo John Reynolds with EHS Photography