Selling Framed Photographs Increases Your Profit And Your Professionalism

7 Favorite Tricks To Work Through Procrastination

Do you ever find yourself procrastinating? Its human nature.

Many people would define procrastination as laziness – you simply keep putting things off because you have other things to do. But if you look at what you normally procrastinate on, it really isn’t laziness at all.

Instead, its more about fear – fear of not understanding, fear of not being able to be perfect, fear of being completely overwhelmed.

And while this fear is what drives us forward, it can also hold us back.

Here are 7 of my favorite tricks I use when I find myself procrastinating over something big.

1. Start your ideas immediately

When you get an idea, what do you do with it?

Most people get an idea, and start thinking about it.

Then they wonder if it’s a good idea.

And they wonder some more.

And eventually the idea no longer has merit.

And they move in another direction.

If you get an idea, take action. Now. Write it down. Do some research. Formulate it as complete as possible. Print it out and look at it. Take action to put even just a piece into your business.

Just by moving it from the idea mode to the action mode, the likelihood your idea will help you jumps tenfold. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Production Tagged With: overwhelm, procrastinate, procrastination, taking action

7 Things That Should Be On Your Not-To-Do List

by Virtual Photography 3 Comments

I love to-do lists. I don’t scratch them out on sticky notes and throw them away at the end of the day. Instead I keep a spiral notebook and write down every detail, checking things off when they are complete. It’s a nice way to keep a record of where you’ve been. And you can also go back and refer to notes if you have questions in the weeks and months ahead.

And while I’m a firm believer in creating written to-do lists, I also have started keeping a not-to-do list.

I heard about this concept a while back, and have really come to appreciate what it does for your productivity. The idea is to eliminate the activities that are costing you a ton of time during your workday, yet really aren’t providing you with any reward. Yep, they’re basically the time wasters.

The easiest way to find your time wasters is to sit down with your monthly to-do lists, your monthly calendars, and any other tools you use to track your time during work hours. Where did the biggest chunks of time go? Were they productive?

While every business owner is going to have their own areas of concern, there are several areas that seem to affect small businesses in general. Take a look at this list and see if you can see yourself in any of them. I’ve set them up to be in not-to-do list form.

1. Do not answer unexpected phone calls.

The world runs by caller id. When the phone rings, if it doesn’t ring with its own unique ringtone, you glance down to see who it is. Then its decision time.

If it’s during normal work hours and it may be a potential customer, answer it. But if you’re in the middle of a project, talking with a client/friend/co-worker, or its after hours, let it go to voice mail. Have a great message that will provide the caller with the appropriate information. And consider getting a better phone system that can allow you to do different things with the message, such as send you a copy to your email so you can read it at your convenience.

Dig Deeper: Google Voice – an Amazing Tool For Virtual Photographers

2. Do not leave your email program open and check it all day long.

One of the biggest distractions outside of the phone is your email. That little “ding” when an incoming message appears can throw you completely off track and quickly scrambles your priorities. Every email has the potential to delay what you are currently working on by minutes, hours or even sometimes days. Instead, set up two or three times per day to check in and see what needs your attention. I usually spend my first hour or so working on my own project and check email when I’ve accomplished my first set of to-do’s. Then I check in when I’m back from lunch, and again before I shut down for the day. If I’m expecting something important I may check in more frequently. Otherwise three times per day is more than enough. Just because you have access to it with your phone, iPad or other portable device doesn’t mean you have to do it. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Production Tagged With: checklist, getting things done, not to do list, operating a photography business, photographers, planning

100 New Photo Clients Just For You

by Virtual Photography 2 Comments

What would you do if tomorrow morning one hundred people were lined up outside of your doors, credit cards in hand, ready to sign up and do business with you?

Your first reaction is hopefully, “YES!”

Your second reaction may be, “Oh no, now what?”

When one client calls, emails or stops by and wants to do business with you, you can handle the situation with ease. Even if you don’t have everything in place, you can usually muddle through and accomplish the transaction.

But with 100 people lined up, things change. You have to move quicker, think less, and have things in place to make the entire process run smooth.

Think it out. No matter what your reaction was when you read the first sentence above, your mind has probably started thinking of tasks by now. Don’t stop the ideas from coming. Instead, spend some time taking it all in, and writing down a list of ideas. You’re best ideas come when you face a task from a different perspective. I’m willing to bet most of you have only dealt with one client at a time, so the pressure was off. By looking at your business through a different set of eyes, you’ll quickly find where your problem areas are. For instance, maybe you spend quite a bit of time customizing and writing up a contract for each wedding client that comes in. But if you have 100 wedding clients waiting, there is no way you could customize each contract. How can you automate it? Can the contract be saved as a document that is 95 percent complete, with just a few clauses that need to be modified and changed? If that’s the case, type up as many of the clauses as you can and store them in a separate word file. Then its just a matter of copy/paste, and the contract will be ready in seconds. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Production Tagged With: growing your business, how to gain new photography customers, new photo clients, systems

9 Ways To Present Your Photographs And The Value They Portray

by Virtual Photography Leave a Comment

How do you present your final photographs to your client? How you present them says a lot about you. Do you take the cheapest way possible to save money? Or do you spend a little extra to present something your clients can’t get anywhere else.

If you shop at Wal-Mart, you expect the cheapest plastic bag possible at the checkout. You’re there to save money, and you don’t want to spend anything more than absolutely necessary.

But if you go to Tiffany’s, how it’s presented is almost as important as what is inside the box. If you give a Tiffany’s gift, you can present it in the box and in the bag it comes from the store in, knowing the recipient will squeal with delight when they see that light blue color.

How are you presenting your images? And what value do they have in the eyes of your client?

CD

Does a CD truly portray value in your photography? Or is it the cheapest presentation possible? Even if you create a custom insert in the jewel case, and etch the CD with your logo, they don’t get to experience your images upon receipt.

While a CD may be a great addition to a large package order, it should always be presented as an afterthought. You want people to look at your photography and experience the artwork – not have to take it home and pop it into their computer.

Loose Prints

A stack of loose prints has low value to a client. They receive a stack of loose prints from the big box store. Yes, they may love the images, but by presenting them in a stack, they can shove them in a drawer, touch them with dirty fingers, and bend them by throwing them on a desk.

Cardboard Folders

Cardboard folders have been around for decades. It’s a great way to add value to an image, and give the customer a better way to temporarily display it, and hand it out to family and friends that have placed orders. It’s also a step up from a loose print, and can be used to combine a two or three images, similar to what sports photographers give when presenting a group and individual image.

[Read more...]

Filed Under: Production Tagged With: images, packaging, photographs, presentation, presenting your photography, value

8 Things A Photographer Should Never Do

by Virtual Photography 6 Comments

Trying to run a successful business? Unfortunately many photographers think of themselves as photographer’s first, business owners second.

If you’ve started up your own business, your business is everything. Your niche, or what you specialize in, just happens to be photography. Business is business. If you want to be successful, you have to make sure your business has key characteristics in place before you grow it to the next level. Yet that can be hard for some. Take a look at these 8 things, and see how many you are currently doing.

1. Hold checks and bills until “payday”

Do you ever find yourself holding a bill back until a client comes in with an order? You have a cash-flow issue.

Many businesses go under not because they are low on clients, but because they don’t have enough cash on hand to pay current expenses. Start a savings account now and build up three to six months of cash-flow. If you normally spend $2000 in a month, have $6000 to $12,000 on hand. This will help you during downtimes and slow periods.

2. Do everything for the first time

Do you find yourself typing up the same email again and again? Do you find yourself answering the same questions over and over? You may be lacking a system.

Chances are you repeat yourself a lot throughout the week. “Do you have this date open?” is a common question emailed to wedding photographers. Sit down and come up with a great email for both answers – yes and no. In the yes email, you can describe your services, ask for more details like where the event is taking place, and lead them to different portions of your website. In the no email, you can refer a friend that may have the date open. If you create a great email upfront, you simply copy/paste, and change a few of the details.

For every instance you find yourself repeating your actions, sit down and create a perfect system. Then use it again and again. It will give you more time to do the important things in your business. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Production Tagged With: business, growing a business, marketing, Photographer, production, systems

How To Get Great Help For Your Busy Season

by Virtual Photography Leave a Comment

In the heart of your busy season, wouldn’t it be nice to have an extra pair of hands around?

Yet for many photographers, the thought of hiring a full time employee can be daunting. Can you really afford to pay them 12 months of the year?

Why not hire an intern instead? Internships can be a great benefit for both you and the intern if you approach it in the right way. An internship for a high school student can begin giving them career goals, and showing them how to own and operate their own business. An internship for a college student can provide work experience as they move towards their dream job. And for a photography student, it can show them real world experience and how to apply their coursework towards building a lifestyle.

While internships can be a valuable asset to your business, it can also be a miserable experience for both you and your intern if you don’t approach it the right way. Here are a few tips to running a successful internship program.

1. Start with a plan – The biggest mistake you can make is hiring an intern and retrofitting them into work. Having them sit around watching the clock, or making coffee and copies won’t do. Instead, look at your workweek and determine where they can help. Can they create a system for your office to get you more organized? Use the skills they are learning at school.

2. Find great interns – Interns can come either on a free or a pay basis. Keep in mind that you’ll have more of a selection if you are willing to pay them something. Start with your local school, colleges and art institutes. Talk with career counselors and find out more about the process. They usually know the school well, and can offer you tips for finding great interns. We actually found an intern in her senior year of high school that was a great photography assistant. She worked with us every summer all through college.

3. Set challenging goals – Use their knowledge and experience to help you move forward with your own business. Because your intern will probably be a teen or in their early 20’s, use their knowledge of social networking skills. Can they help you develop marketing ideas for their age group? This is a great tool to have, especially if you are targeting the younger generation for senior portraits or even weddings.

4. Don’t become the babysitter <– If you interview and find the right intern, you should be able to give them a project and walk away. Remember this is a way for you to get twice as much work done in half the time. If you are micromanaging, it’s as if they aren’t there.

5. Provide more opportunity along the way – Show trust throughout your time together. If they do one job well, build on that concept and give them a harder task. Don’t expect things done your way – learn from them too. This is a way to get second opinions on ideas you’ve been planning. You can even move them into more complex tasks – how about cold calling, and offering them bonuses if they bring in sales? We had a booth one year at our local Parade of Homes, and had our intern work the booth throughout the event. We offered a bonus on any portrait client she brought in to our business.

6. Treat it like a job – Make sure your intern realizes this is a job. Set up regular hours, and abide by rules and deadlines. If you let them head off to the beach one day, they’ll continue to slip away every chance they get.

7. Make sure you know the rules – If you pay your intern, they may be considered employees. But if you offer an unpaid internship, you have to abide by the US Department of Labor rules. Make sure you meet the six criteria for unpaid interns.

Filed Under: Production Tagged With: assistant photographer, help for your busy season, hiring an employee, intern, internship, staff

5 Work At Home Habits To Avoid – Are You Guilty?

by Virtual Photography Leave a Comment

Ahhh, the thought of working at home can be ever so appealing. In fact that’s why a lot of people go into business for themselves. What could be better than staying at home, earning money while you’re there, AND getting a few things done around the house as well?

However, working at home brings its own set of unique challenges. And in many cases, if you fall into the “work at home” trap, it can quickly cause you to lose productivity, and actually prevent you from creating a successful business.

Here are the top five habits I see that can stop you from building the business of your dreams.

1. Establishing work hours

Your home. It’s easy to slip into the office any time you choose. If the phone rings at 6 am, why not answer it? Production time at 2am when you can’t sleep – why not?

Working at home starts out with the best intentions. It’s easy to head out to lunch with friends, and shop during a mid morning when crowds aren’t as fierce. Yet if you don’t treat your business like a business, and set up normal hours built around what you need to get done, you’ll quickly get overwhelmed.

Do what’s best for you. If you are productive from 9pm to midnight after everyone else is asleep, by all means put that into your schedule. The key is to create hours that you can stick with day after day.
[Read more...]

Filed Under: Production Tagged With: office, Photography Studio, production, Work At Home Habits To Avoid, work at home tips

Is Digital Cheaper Than Film?

by Virtual Photography 8 Comments

What’s one of the most common misconceptions in the photographic industry today?

Digital is cheaper than film

At first glance, it sounds correct.

With a film camera, every time you capture an image, it costs you money. You have to buy the film, you have to develop the film, and you have to print the image on to paper. When we were shooting film, we found it pretty accurate to assume total costs for one image was $1.

But with digital, every time you capture an image it’s essentially free. You place the card into your computer, download it, put it online or a CD/DVD, and usually only print the images you are paid for.

So it seems like digital is cheaper than film. But the problem with that assumption is you are looking at output only. The real cost comes at the front end, or with the cameras and technology itself.

I read a great article over on Digital Work Flow, The State of Business for the Digital Photographer Preparing for 2011. In it states:

Today a basic digital set of two professional SLRs, several lenses, dedicated flashes, laptop, desktop computer, card reader, memory cards, color management and processing software, monitor, printers, storage and back up storage, will cost approximately $20,000 to $80,000 or more.

Comparatively, a basic film system would likely cost under $20,000 and would likely remain current and functional for 10 years or longer.

So here is the comparison:

$20,000/10 years = $2,000/year average cost if you’re shooting film
$50,000/5 years = $10,000/year average cost for digital

And if you’ve been in the industry for a while, you know how quickly you replace your equipment. My daughter received a point and shoot for Christmas that is more powerful than the professional camera we were shooting with 5 years ago.

Total costs need to calculate everything. It’s unrealistic to charge a client a few dollars for a print because it only cost you a dollar or two to print it out. You still have to pay for your equipment, plus other expenses like rent, salary, phone, Internet, marketing, etc. And for your experience as a photographer and as an artist.

The only way to charge what you are truly worth is to educate your potential clients on what it takes to be a professional photographer, and how to tell the difference between you and an amateur trying to make a quick buck. Will they be in business a year from now? Who knows? [We’ve had clients come back to us 8, 10, even 12 years later for prints because they know we are here.]

Filed Under: Production Tagged With: camera, digital, equipment, film, photographic, Photography