Hey hey guys!
Hope you all have been having a good week! I finally fell under the pressure of this flu going around I think 😦 but I’m feeling a lot better and just hoping I can fully kick this out cuz it’s my birthday on Saturday!
Anyhoo. As you may (or may not) know, I do wedding photography full-time. I have done photography in general for the past 6 years, with the last 4 being specific to weddings, but I always had a job in the workplace (usually in management) too. 2017 was when I decided to make the jump in making photographer my full-time job, and it was one of the best but hardest years of my life!
Now to preface, I am no business expert. I did not suddenly become this all knowing guru haha I still have plenty to learn, but for those of you who are just starting out I think these things could help you get a jumpstart on how this all works 🙂 also, I cannot take ANY credit for anything I have accomplished. I am humbled that God has blessed me to be able to do what I love for my job and I am only able to say these things today because of what He has done for me. Soli Deo Gloria!
So here we go, 10 things I learned in my first year of business:
1. The hustle is real.
I went to a business workshop in September last year put on by The Hons called Hustle & Flow and that was one of the best decisions I ever made for my business! A lot of the information I am sharing is what I learned from that workshop!
E v e r y t h i n g that goes into making a business run is on me now. I had to learn how to juggle wearing multiple hats. And on top of that, all the advertising that is needed in order to get my name out there falls on me too.
To put it simply, I could never slack off on putting effort into my business. Whether that was constantly updating my website, creating new ads, reading, brainstorming, shooting, editing, collaborating, networking etc etc. I could NOT slack off. The moment I did and I started to receive less or no inquiries was the moment I knew I was being lazy.
You have to hustle! You have to research. You have to understand what it means to run your own business, and let me tell you.. not everyone is cut out for this. I constantly meet people who call themselves entrepreneurs or that they own their own business, but once I talk about it more with them, all I hear is excuse after excuse as to why they can’t do this or that for their business or why they can’t invest.
Guys. There were times the money in my bank account was for bills and that was it. I literally couldn’t do anything else. I didn’t know what tomorrow was gonna look like. And believe me, that is NOT a good feeling. I get that. However, I am now at a place where I am living comfortably and on track to pay off debt! But I didn’t get to this spot by being timid in the hard times. I got here because I took risks and invested in my business no matter how much I didn’t want to. You have to be willing to do the hard things if you want to be successful in your business. And you don’t reach that success by being lazy or by being too scared to invest in yourself. Hustle, hustle, hustle!
2. Organization is key.
This might have been a little easier for me because I’m naturally a more organized person. But again, you don’t have someone else taking care of payroll or keeping track of miles or how many bookings you’ve got. You have to figure that out and you have to figure out a system that works for you.
For me, even though I grew up when technology was flourishing, I still liked doing things “old-fashioned.” I purchased a big calendar and documented where my sessions were (mileage), when I got paid, and when payments were due. That was HUGE for me especially when it came to calculating for taxes. I will touch more on taxes in the next point, but organization is so so so important when it comes to running your own business.
There are programs out there like Quickbooks and others that can help with organization. I use Honeybook as a client management system and it’s been great! I am able to send contracts and pricing info so much easier now and it has changed my booking rate for the better!
The easier it is for you to know the behind the scenes of your business – the better!
3. Understand your taxes.
Don’t we all just love taxes? haha. I would say this has been the most complicated thing for me to understand, and I still don’t fully understand it. But it’s so important to understand what all goes into taxes for you.
And by understanding what all goes into it, I don’t just mean paying them. I mean understanding what you can write off too. With this new tax reform coming I’m not sure how much of what I’m about to say will still apply, but I was able to write off so much when it came to taxes and it truly helps!
If you happen to know someone who either deals with taxes on the regular or who is just very smart in that area, I definitely suggest sitting down with them and going over everything so that you 100% understand. I wish I would have done that sooner, and thankfully not doing that hasn’t totally ruined things for me haha but I would have if I had known better. So this is me telling you – get all that figured out! Understand what you have to pay and all the ins and outs of taxes!
4. Bridal shows are good in the beginning.
Now don’t get me wrong, some people can have success doing bridal shows every chance they get, but for me personally, it’s what helped jump start my first year and that’s it.
It was the first thing I did when deciding to go full-time and I ended up booking 6 weddings from it. The reason why I haven’t necessarily done another one is that I feel too much like a sales person when I do them. Like I’m trying to convince the brides that I’m a good choice because of my show special instead of because I’m an awesome person (haha ;)) and maybe that was because I didn’t treat it the right way, but again, for me personally it was a good choice in the beginning to help get my foot in the door!
Another thing I used that helped jumpstart me is an app called Thumbtack. These two options were what brought in a majority of my weddings last year! But I don’t really use either of them anymore because I see my business going in a different direction and also because for the most part, it is lower budget brides who utilize these things! Which is totally fine 🙂 But I just have a vision for my business and these won’t necessarily bring that vision to life!
So if you’re just starting out, I highly recommend these! But if you’re semi-established, I don’t think you would achieve much success – but again, that’s just what I have found for myself. Ultimately, trial and error is your best friend as a business owner! haha
5. Networking is your best friend!
Even before jumping into the wedding industry, I would go to these events called Instameets which are basically big hang outs with a bunch of photographers/models and we would all just shoot each other haha. Literally. But by going to those I was meeting other photographers and we were following each other, so in turn that was creating a wider audience that my work was reaching!
Similarly, though they don’t have instameets for wedding photography haha, it is so important to network with other vendors! I will touch more on this in the next point, but by collaborating with other vendors or even just taking them out to coffee, you are creating a connection with them which (hopefully) will turn into bookings for you! Plus, it’s super fun being able to work with people on a regular basis. I have a florist that I have collaborated with and we actually have quite a few weddings that we’re doing together this year!
Even though networking won’t necessarily bring bookings right away (sometimes they do!) it will totally help more in the long run because you’re establishing brand awareness and again, reaching a bigger audience! For me, the best way I was able to do that is with the next point.
6. Styled Shoots help immensely!
The best way I could network with other vendors was through styled shoots! Styled shoots are beneficial with more than just networking though, they are ways to create content and consistently put out good work! They also give you the freedom to be as creative as possible without the pressures of an actual wedding day.
So go ham! Don’t be afraid of rejection, just be genuine and give an incentive. I always tried to get the shoot published on popular weddings blogs and for the most part, a majority of the vendors I reached out to were willing to collaborate!
It was through a styled shoot that I met the florist who I am working with a lot this year! And it actually ended up that one of the hairstylists I collaborated with for a shoot did one of my bride’s hair later that year because she saw the stylist tagged and loved her work!
It takes a lot of planning and effort to put together a styled shoot, but it is well worth it in the end. Just remember to be flexible, you can only be in control of so much so definitely adopt a go-with-the-flow mentality too! 😉
7. Your website is crucial.
Boy oh boy did I have no idea about this.
I mean, yes, I knew it was important to have a website, but I had no idea how much of an impact having a PROPER website had on bookings! But it’s true. Showcasing your work on your website needs to be so much more than just showing people pretty pictures. You have to make people visiting your site feel like they are getting to know you!
If words aren’t your forte, then I definitely suggest hiring a copywriter. Because this has literally changed the game for me. I COMPLETELY and I mean COMPLETELY changed my site once I went to the workshop I mentioned earlier/got mentored! haha
Instead of cookie cutter paragraphs that say you love love and are all about adventurous moments, you have to tell them why they should book you. You have to tell them why you’re different from everyone else and why your experience is important, unique and one of a kind.
Be yourself. And you will attract the clients that were meant for you 🙂
8. Social media presence is more important than you think!
I remember when Instagram first came out with their stories option. I was mad cuz I though they were copying snapchat and never once did a story.
That is until a friend suggested to me I start doing it because it was a way I could connect with not just my already booked clients, but for those searching for a photographer too. The thing about instastories is that a LOT more people can view/see them. And it’s so true! I feel like I know a majority of my 2018 brides way better than if I hadn’t opened up more on social media, and vice versa! My brides have told me they know me better as well.
But aside from instastories (which you should be utilizing) consistency with posting will help validate your presence in the industry. Obviously, when you post galleries on your website, you’re not doing it one photo at a time, you are posting a full highlight gallery. Which means there are times when it is no longer wedding season that you won’t be updating your site as much as you were a few months prior, but because you post on instagram photo by photo, you are showing that you are still active and busy. And as weird as it sounds, people want to book people who are busy! haha
Now look, I get it. Consistency doesn’t just mean everyday, if you reaalllyyy want to see success in follower count (which I don’t suggest prioritizing that, but I understand it has to be established) then you will have to post multiple times a day. “But I don’t want to be annoying!” Hey listen. Stop. If people unfollow you cuz you’re posting too much or they say they don’t want to follow you cuz you’re posting too much. Let em go. The people who support you and lift you up will be the first ones to like and comment – and those are the people that matter 🙂
I definitely suggest focusing on one platform and getting really comfortable in that specific one before putting yourself everywhere. It will be more beneficial to receive 100% of the benefits one at a time then receive 25% from different ones. But once you get going with one and feel comfortable with how you run it, by all means explore other optoins! I feel pretty confident in Instagram now so I’m considering utilizing Pinterest more too 🙂
9. There must be a balance with life & work.
I will be the first to admit I am a workaholic. And sometimes that has caused tension in my relationships! I don’t like to respond to leads any later than an hour, and when it’s booking/engagements season, that means that sometimes I am looking at my phone a lot because I am answering emails/texts, but in turn that meant that if I was with people I wasn’t being present with them.
Initially, I thought making my business a 9-5 thing would work, but unfortunately, that just wasn’t feasible for me. Instead I decided to just be smarter with how I did things, instead of constantly chatting with new inquiries when I was out and about with other people, I would let them know I received their message and that I would be in contact with them later that day.
Funny thing is, what I was neglecting was just simple communication. Just be a human with your clients, communicate, and let them know their time is important to you!
Just remember to have that balance, because as much you might love getting to do what you love, ultimately, your family and friends are always more important. Don’t forget that!
10. Growth can happen even if you may not be searching for it.
It’s crazy to look at my work from this time last year. It wasn’t that it was bad or anything, but if you compare my work from then to now, you will see a difference, specifically in editing.
It wasn’t like I was purposefully trying to see improvement in that area, in some ways it kinda subconsciously happened! I didn’t even realize that I was changing my editing style until later last year when I looked back.
I say this because it’s important to remember that if you’re not necessarily seeing growth from efforts, whether in a specific area or not, it doesn’t mean you’re not growing! You will see something over time as long as you are putting in 110% effort!
Also, don’t let other people’s success/growth determine your own. Everyone is different which means every business is different. The way you run yours may not be the same as someone else. And even though there are some non-negotiable truths that everyone needs to follow, you are on your own journey in the end. Just work hard, keep your mind focused, and you will see results ❤
I hope this helps someone out there! Had I known these things earlier, it would have saved SO much time and effort!
Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!
Katelyn Rose
Katelyn Rose 