The First 4 Steps To Becoming A Wealthy Photographer

What is the number one reason most businesses fail? It isn’t lack of ideas, lack of enthusiasm, or lack of potential. People go into business for all the right reasons.

Instead, the one reason they fail is they run out of the one resource you simply can’t build a business without – cash. Cash is king when it comes to owning and operating a photography business. There are certain things you can do yourself to avoid using cash – market using Facebook and Twitter, do your own editing instead of hiring, or typing in your own data entry and tax information. Yet if you don’t pay a bill, it will have lasting implications. If you can’t buy product to finish a client’s order, it will impact the success of your business.

The solution comes in the form of cash flow management. And if you put these few steps into place, it could easily help you move from a struggling business to a six figure photographer.

Measure your cash flow

Instead of sitting around waiting for the checks to come in or new clients to materialize before your eyes, take a look at your situation instead. Create a cash flow plan to see where you will stand next week, next month, at the end of the quarter, and over the course of the next year. Cash flow plans are not solid numbers you can use as a guarantee; instead they are an educated guess that will help you keep track of where you are and where you will be in the future.

The easiest way to develop a cash flow plan is to sit down and look at a number of factors already in place. What customers do you have on the books that haven’t paid? When are they scheduled to pay? Do they pay on time? What payments do you owe to vendors? What expenses do you know you’ll be facing in the coming months? By looking at your receivables and your payables, and tracking them according to when they are due, you should be able to develop a rough timeline that will show you when your cash is coming in, and when it is going out. [Read more…]