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5 Easy Ways To Screw Up Your Photography Business

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Business. It takes so much energy to make everything work. And if you’re not careful, it only takes a few seconds to bring everything crashing down. One wrong move and your business can go from success to zero overnight, leaving you wondering what happened along the way.

5 Easy Ways To Screw Up Your Photography Business1. Your actions get in the way of your success.

I’m a part of a weekly networking group. Every week the group meets at 7:30 am, which means all members should be in the room and ready to go at 7:30 am.

One member rarely shows up on time; she rolls in 5 to 10 minutes late every meeting.  She doesn’t pay attention to the day’s speaker, and instead uses the time to text and work on her tablet. Her attention is anywhere but in the room.

Would I trust her with my business? No. Would I trust her with a referral of a good client or friend? Never. Your actions do speak volumes over your words. Make sure you are always present and putting your best on display at all times when you are visible to the public.

2. Stop marketing.

You are down 20 percent over last year’s figures. You have to make cuts. So you decide to stop sending out postcards, stop the ad in your local guide, and cut an ad or two online. Times are tough, you have to cut back, right?

Nope. When times are tough, it is important to stay lean. But the last place you should cut back on is your marketing. Your marketing gets your name out there, makes prospects see you, and gives you the potential of connecting with a new series of clientele.

That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t evaluate what is in place and refocus your efforts. Make sure you are getting results from what you are doing. Then keep it up or add more. It’s the only way to connect and grow in the future.

3. You post, tweet, talk, blog or comment before thinking.

Have you ever seen this come through in your newsfeeds?

“Yeah, I just booked a wedding today. Now I guess I better learn how to photograph weddings.”

Or

“I just completely screwed up a clients engagement images. They are horrible. Will be working all night on them trying to salvage something. I love you Photoshop.”

These are just two of the many, many damaging things I see coming through the social world. People post without thinking. They don’t see it as a testimony to who they are both as a person and as a business. If so, I guarantee you they wouldn’t post such things for all the world to see.

If you just booked your wedding with Mary Smith, assuming she was a competent photographer by the way she sold herself, wouldn’t you want to follow her on Facebook? How would you feel if the above comment came through on your newsfeed?

Remember, its all about image. You convey your image every single second of the day, with everything you do, both online and off.

4. You let anger and your feelings get in the way of running your business.

It’s hard when someone comes after you in a “pit bull” way. They may scream profanity at you. They may tell you your stupid. They may say things you never even dreamed of hearing in your life. They may tell you you’re the worst photographer in the world. You know it’s not true; yet it’s hard not taking it to heart.

However, the minute you take action against them, that’s when it can truly affect your business.

Running a business means stepping away from your feelings, and doing what’s right for your business. No, you don’t have to take abuse. But you should never “fight back” in any way. Simply turn around and remove yourself from the situation. Write out a check if you need to in order to get this client out of your life. End the relationship as quickly as possible. And never let him or her see you when your emotions are running high over the situation.

5. You focus on profits instead of long term success.

Yes, we’re all in business to make money. But in some cases its more important to focus on client retention and keeping customers happy rather than how much you can make from one client.

Every client that comes through your door has the potential of becoming a lifetime client. They may buy from you again and again, year after year. They may refer friends and colleagues. They may spend thousands of dollars with you over the course of the next ten years. If that’s the case, should you worry about the $10 you’ll lose because of mis-quoting them? Or giving them a “deal” because of miscommunication?

Remember, a happy client can have a major impact on your business, now and years into the future. Your goal with every client should be to bring in only the best, and strive to make them the happiest people on earth. If you can do that with just a few, your business will be set for life.

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4 Tips To Crowdfunding Your Photography Project

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What if you could earn $100,000, $500,000 or even $1 million or more to help turn your project idea into reality?

While it may seem like a “pipe dream”, it’s a reality for many business owners. Thanks to crowdfunding, ideas that people only use to dream about can now become a reality.

The great thing about crowdfunding is you don’t have to rely on heading to a bank, using credit cards, or finding an angel investor to come up with funds for your idea. Now you can put your focus on your project and how you will develop it – then choose the right platform to put it on and people will have instant access to your material.

What? Still have problems following the crowdfunding philosophy? It does take a bit of time to understand, especially if you’re new to the whole entrepreneur world anyway.

4 Tips To Crowdfunding Your Photography Project

According to Scott Steinberg author of The Crowdfunding Bible (it’s a free downloadable book that I would highly recommend if crowdfunding is in your future), crowdfunding can be described as the process of asking the general public for donations to provide startup capital for a new venture. You can avoid the traditional methods of gaining access to capital – writing up a business plan, doing projections, creating a pitch presentation, flying from one city to the next to present – and simply create something that appeals to the people looking on the site. You create your idea and present it through words, photographs and videos right on the site. You offer special rewards at different price levels to those that pledge their support. And when you reach your goals and are fully funded, you can run with your project.

According to the Crowdfunding Industry Report, 452 crowdfunding platforms worldwide raised collectively almost $1.5 billion and successfully funded more than one million campaigns in 2011. The numbers were expected to double for 2012, thought they haven’t been reported yet. And after following a number of projects myself, I wouldn’t be surprised if 2013 breaks records yet again.

Crowdfunding is definitely the future of getting new ideas into the marketplace. Especially with new regulations such as the JOBS Act that will loosen the regulations on fundraising for companies.

Got your interest? Think you have a great photography project perfect for the crowdfunding community? Then maybe its time to put your ideas into action.

Have a solid idea

Crowdfunding may sound easier than the traditional routes of gaining access to money, but it still requires a solid idea from the beginning. What are you planning on offering the world? Is it a product or service? Will you be creating the next camera gadget that people across the globe will desire? Or do you have the idea for a book or documentary that will bring light to a new situation?

No matter what your idea is, make sure you fully develop it before you crowdfund. Can you describe it in a few sentences and have people get excited about it? Can you present it in such a way that people “get” what you are trying to do?

Try your idea out in a one to one situation with family, friends and trusted acquaintances before you put your idea up on a site for the world to see.

Create a sellable vision for your product/service

Once you have your idea, its time to create your sales platform. How will you sell it to the crowdfunding audience?

Start by looking through the many platforms in existence. Some are specific for industries; some have a huge reach because of their growth over the past few years. The biggest isn’t always the best for your concept. Take the time to go through the sites and determine which has the right concept for you and your idea, and which has the kind of investors you need to fund your project.

Plan out the project from beginning to end

Planning a crowdfunding project does take a lot of upfront work. Not only do you have to solidify your idea, you also have to create enticing rewards for the people that follow you.

Tips To Crowdfunding Your Photography Project

For instance, on the Kickstarter site now is a project The Best Idea We Ever Had, a project that wants to photograph how the national parks are being affected by budget cuts and show why they are worth protecting. He has 10 levels of sponsorship available – from $10 to $500+ – with rewards including an ebook, framed images, and fall photo workshop.

As you plan, consider how you will entice people to invest – how will you design your page or project on the crowdfunding site itself, and how you will satisfy all requirements in the event you are fully funded. While you can never understand all the details until you experience them, you should have a pretty good layout of all you will do from beginning to end so you won’t have huge surprises along the way. Study existing projects – both open and closed projects – and learn as much as you can.

Build a strong network

While you may gain a lot of exposure simply by being on the crowdfunding site, remember no campaign is successful on its own. Make sure you build your backup system well before you need it. That includes having a website, social networking profiles and email lists of people that love what you do.

Setting up a project is only your first step. Once it’s set up, you’ll see more traction and leverage your position on the site much easier if you can go out to your audience and have them immediately support you. The bottom level rewards are great to start building traction – and they are easy to get if you already have a wide and diverse audience following you for other reasons. Then build from there.

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Are You Going to Ruin 2013 Too?

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As I spoke with one of my coaching clients, I flat out asked her something that very few people would ever do.

“Are you going to ruin 2013 too?”

2012 had been a difficult year for this client. She charted the last five years of her business. Up, up, up, down, WAAYYYY down. In fact she was so far down, she wondered what 2013 would bring.

“Should I quit and get a job?”

“Is there even a hope for photographers anymore?”

In short, she was having a pity party.

Are You Going to Ruin 2013 TooSo we started talking about the obstacles in her way. I grabbed a pen and paper and asked her to tell me about all the marketing methods she tried in 2012. What specials did you run? Where did you advertise? How many connections did you make with your previous customer base?

And she sat there with very little to say. “Ummmm…”

And pretty soon you could hear her crashing into her “a-ha” moment. She saw the light and began to see where she went wrong.

Five years ago things were doing well. She was making a lot and enjoying her business and her life. She marketed her business in a variety of ways.

Three years ago, things were still doing well. She went on a few vacations and stopped a couple of her marketing methods. She closed down one of her “specials” because she was out of the country. Things began to fall.

Two years ago, she dropped a few more marketing methods and specials.

Then with her lack of funds, she dropped out of a few more last year. Life happens. Things change. And she didn’t change with it. She let life happen to her.

Now everything was crashing in around her. The past three months have been “sweat time” – maybe you’ve experienced it too – the feeling of sweating it out hoping a large enough order comes in by the end of the month in order for you to pay your bills.

“Stop.”

I stopped her in her tracks and started turning her focus to 2013 and all of its potential.

“When was the last time you spoke to your best clients?”

“Back in October, I found out one of my best clients was pregnant again and her baby was due the first of the year. But I heard this from a friend of a friend. I’ve done her first two kids, so I was hoping she’d call me for this one too.”

And there was her first problem.

Instead of calling and touching base with this client – a great client from the past – she put the potential on the client.

She put her sales strategy on a busy mother-to-be of three!

“Nope, not going to work,” I said. “You’re not going to ruin her 2013. Instead, you’re going to connect with her today and make sure she hasn’t missed the greatest opportunity of her life. She has newborn portraits of her first and second child, imagine how she will feel the rest of her life if she misses out on this once-in-a-lifetime experience with baby number three.”

And we created a plan. A phone call. A card. A visit. A gift. We brainstormed all kinds of ways she could connect on a personal level with this very important client.

And once we got the ball rolling, the ideas started flying.

We quickly had a plan for all of her other clients she’d “lost” in the previous year.

We created several new promotions to take place in the first half of 2013.

We jumpstarted her 2013 marketing plan so much, she spent the next 24 hours busy at it, connecting in ways she hadn’t done in months.

And it worked.

In less than a week, she had great ideas and a new zest for her business.

What about you?

Are you going to ruin your 2013?

Or are you going to do something about it.

Choice is yours. You can do it. But it’s all up to you.

——

Have questions of your own? Ready for one-to-one advice that can put you back on track for 2013? You may be ready for my personal coaching sessions. With one-to-one coaching, its all about you. You decide where you need help. Together we put you back on track to improve your chances of success in 2013 … and beyond.

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4 Reasons You Should Approach Your Photography Business Like A Marathon

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Ready. Set. Go.

You decide to take up running, head out the door and pick up speed. Within minutes, you’re exhausted, ready to faint away. You hate it, so you quit.

Sound familiar? That’s the way many people approach life in general. They decide to do something, go into it full force, and quickly fade without their goals anywhere in sight.

But what if you approached it in a slightly different manner?

What if you looked at it as if you were a marathon runner?

When someone decides to run and become a marathon runner, they can’t reach their goal in a day. A full marathon is 41.2K, or 26.2 miles. The average runner will finish in 4 ½ to 5 hours. It takes time to build up that kind of stamina. It requires both mental and physical work to get you prepared for all you will go through.

4 Reasons You Should Approach Your Photography Business Like A MarathonThe same applies to your business.

Sprinting towards anything will give you failure every time. It leaves you stressed out, creates huge mistakes, cuts corners in places that might not necessarily be good, and lowers your quality on all levels.

Smart business owners approach their businesses like a marathon instead, knowing they will be in business for the long run. They pace for the big win.

Many small steps lead to a big goal.

To become a marathon runner, you have to see yourself completing the marathon long before you start practicing for it. If you don’t have the vision, you will never do all it takes to accomplish it. The same holds true for your business. What does it look like? What does it feel like to cross the finish line? That finish line can be different for everyone – some may want a part time income, some may want international fame. But if you don’t see it, you’ll never achieve it.

Then once you see it, you pace yourself to achieve it. This week I’ll run 1 mile, next week I’ll run 2. This week I’ll run in cold weather, next week in warm. Every week, you accomplish one more thing that leads you to your final goal, the marathon. In business, it’s the little things that add up. Getting your tax license, creating a website, signing up for a networking event – every little step adds up to helping you bring in clients … and achieve your goal. [Read more...]

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The Only 7 Assets Your Photography Business Should Strive For

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I recently wrote a post 13 Ways To Make Sure 2013 Doesn’t Suck For Your Photography Business. I’ve been doing a lot internal planning with my own business for 2013, and I used that post as a trigger for all of you to start thinking about what you want the New Year to bring into your own lives. In order to stick with that theme, I’ve decided to run a “13 Days Of Photography” feature throughout December to help provide you with a ton of ideas and tips on things you can do for your own business starting on January 1st. Here is 7…

The Only 7 Assets Your Photography Business Should Strive For

What does a healthy business look like? Lots of customers. Lots of sales. Lots of profits. There are many different ways of looking at it.

But some things matter more than others.

What if you were suddenly forced to shut your doors and move 2000 miles away to a place you’ve never been before? And you were only allowed to bring seven things with you. What would those seven things be?

All you would really need is the essential foundations of building up your business. You need the assets that turned your business into a successful venture.

Assets are the foundation of a healthy business.

And while there are many things that could be lumped into the asset column of your business, different assets have different priorities in your “take” list. Yes, your camera equipment may be an asset. But cameras are replaceable. If you lose it today, you can buy an identical one tomorrow. And the moment you purchase it, it begins to depreciate in value – meaning it won’t sustain you for the long term.

So … what would be on your asset list to take with you across country?

In my mind, your real business asset are the things you’ve built yourself and have complete control over – no one can ever take them away from you.

1. Your content

Your content includes a variety of things. It includes your portfolio of images. It includes the letters you’ve written and the brochures you’ve created. It includes the content on your blog posts and the articles that have been published about you in the local newspaper. Your content is what defines you and what turns you into you.

2. Your list

A business is only as good as the people on their lists. It may include your past customers. It may include people that follow you in your social sites. It may include vendors that you’ve worked with in the past or would love to work with in the future. The more thorough the list, the more successful your business will be. [Read more...]

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13 Ways To Make Sure 2013 Doesn’t Suck For Your Photography Business

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It’s the first “workday” of December. The year end rush may be leaving you drained, stressed, feeling overworked, and definitely anything but full of holiday spirit. With just a few weeks left in 2012, why not make it a goal to make the coming year a whole lot better than what you’ve experienced this year? Yes, it can be done. But there is only one way to make it happen – a little planning. These 13 tips can put you on track for a better 2013 – starting today.

Go BIG or Go Home

Don’t just sit around wishing in 2013. Take BIG action steps to fulfill your goals. Hire the coach you’ve been thinking about. Increase your visibility within your community. Do something! The more you do, the bigger your chance of moving your business forward.

Work ON Your Business

Your business isn’t just a way to replace your job. If that’s your sole goal, head back to the work place, as it will be A LOT less stressful. Instead, your business should be more than putting out fires and dealing with daily problems. Block out a section each week for planning and focusing – it’s the only way you’ll create a plan that will move your business forward.

Do One Marketing Task Every Day

Hoping for new clients will never bring them in. The only way to make it happen is to go out and find them. Do one thing every day to make a connection – call a past client, respond to posts on a forum, write a blog post, attend a networking function. Ideally, do it first thing in the morning so it can be sidelined due to a problem or “fire”.

Commit To New Things Every Month

Always work in your office with little contact to the rest of the world? While working with clients is important to your business, working with mentors is the only thing that will bring fresh new ideas into your life. Sign up for classes throughout the year. Buy those books you’ve been meaning to read. Head off to a photography conference. Then make sure you take your best ideas and put them into action. [Read more...]

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How Zombies Could Be Destroying Your Photography Business

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When you are starting and growing your photography business, you quickly realize you can’t do it alone. With all the different types of tasks that enter your life, it soon becomes apparent that its easier to have people you trust to help you along the way.

Yet some people that are around you that you may be relying on for answers may not be the right people for the job. In fact, some people will help you kill your business much quicker than you can build it up. See if any of these people are currently in your lives and “helping” you build your business.

Raving Fans

These are usually the people you are closest to and support your every endeavor. They think your amazing, incredible, and you can do no wrong.

While it may be nice to hear great things along the way, unconditional praise is anything but helpful. We make mistakes. We get things wrong. And when we do, its important to have people that can step up to the plate and let you know what they really think.

Egomaniacs

While its important to keep the never-ending praise at bay, the opposite end of the spectrum isn’t healthy either. This type of person thinks they can do no wrong, and will fill you up with their great advice. Even though they’ve never started a business themselves or have any experience in running a business, they will be the first to tell you how to do it and what you’re doing wrong. [Read more...]

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The Only Way To Be Successful Is To Be Unsuccessful

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Ready to make your photography business grow by leaps and bounds? Here is what you should do:

Try more.

Do more.

Fail more.

Sounds funny, right?

Yet if you think about it, you’ll quickly see how true it is.

Thinking about doing something accomplishes zero. It’s the action that makes something move from dream-mode to reality. So the only way to move forward it to take action.

Try more.

And the more you take action, the more you’ll accomplish.

Do more.

And when you do a lot of things over a period of time, some things will work, and some won’t. Which means ultimately, you are going to

Fail more.

Successful people try more, do more, and fail more.

So if you meet a successful person it’s because they’ve failed enough to be successful.

They aren’t scared of the outcomes that will fail. They are scared of all the outcomes they never tried.

If the fear of failure is holding you back, stop. Make today the day you work at becoming unsuccessful. Because the more unsuccessful tasks you try, the more success ultimately you will find in the long run.

Some things will work. And some won’t. But ultimately, you have to

Try
Do
Fail

In order to find your own level of success.

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5 Secrets That Make Some Photographers Successful … And Some Photographers Fail

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I bet you’re like this:

If someone asks how your job is going, you say okay. You may elaborate a little, but it’s just a job. Nothing exciting. It pays the bills. You worry if you’ll get a raise next year, or if your job will even exist next year. But for now, it gives you the income you need.

But I bet if someone asks you what you really want to do, something different will take place:

You’ll get that spark in your eye, you’ll sit a little taller, and you’ll feel a little excitement way down deep. You’ll talk about how you’ve been shooting for a while now and really love photography. You met a photographer (or found them online) who is doing something close to what you would love to do. You’re dreaming of turning that idea into a reality … but it just hasn’t happened yet.

So, did I touch any buttons?

I love chatting with people that have a dream. I know because I was once there too. I hated my corporate job and couldn’t imagine doing it for any longer than I had to. I wanted something else I could do that I truly enjoyed. And so I did what many, many people don’t. Andrew and I started it up as a side business.

You see, there is a big difference between dreaming about it and doing something about it. It’s easy to get home at night and sit down completely exhausted from your day, only to say “tomorrow”. But if you keep saying tomorrow, it will never happen.

Instead, we spent nights and weekends learning all we could about business and photography. That’s where most photographers fail – they love learning about photography, but without the business skills, they are almost 95 percent guaranteed to fail.

And that’s what truly set us apart, and allowed us to move to the top 5 percent income earners in the photography field in under two years.

There really is more to a photography business than simply taking pictures. Yes, that’s the fun part. But unless you have just as much fun planning your business, marketing your business, selling to clients, and more, you’ll never achieve success.

Which is why I thought about it and came up with 5 secrets that help people break through the barriers of “just another hobby” to actually start building a successful business model.

1. Think Like A Five Figure Business Owner

There is a big difference between a small business owner and someone with a job.

When you have a job, “the boss” takes care of everything for you. You do your job and get a paycheck. So you don’t see the entire business model under a microscope. You don’t see the marketing, the planning, the accounting, the legal aspects – everything it takes to run the business. You simply do your job and get paid.

Once you start up a photography business – no matter how much you choose to make – there are dozens of things to consider. Do you have insurance to cover your mistakes? Are you bringing in enough prospects to turn them into clients? Is your business set up in the right legal manner?

Yep, you can no longer think like an employee; you have to think like a business owner. And that thought might never have crossed your mind before.

Dig Deeper: Making Peace With The Enemy

In order to succeed as a business, you have to think like a business. And that means changing your mindset to move from an employee to an entrepreneur. [Read more...]

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3 Easy Ways To Get Rich Fast and Become a Millionaire Overnight

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They make promises that are almost hard to believe.

“Zero to $1 million This Year!”

“Skip the learning curve. With our system you’ll earn millions in 30 days!”

“It’s so easy, even a child could do it.”

They scream these concepts at you in every way possible: television, radio, magazine, newspapers, even the mail in your mailbox (what little you still receive).

But if you’ve been wanting a change, they may intrigue you.

If you’re worried about your job, it may be enticing.

Now, if you could just scrape together the (insert large price tag here) you’ll be able to read how easy it is to get rich fast.

Accept for one problem.

There is no easy way to get rich quick.

I’ve often said Andrew and I are a seven year overnight success story. That’s because it took us seven years of working corporate, spending nights and weekends learning photography, starting our business out of our home, learning the details of entrepreneurship, and sticking with it year after year until we figured out the pieces to make it a success.

Sure, it looked easy once we got there. And when the recognition started, people around us saw us go from “nothing” to “instant recognition” in a short period of time. But what they didn’t see is the learning period that took place before the growth spurt.

So from my viewpoint, there are 3 ways to get rich quick. [Read more...]

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