articles/Business/5-big-reasons-page3
by Jeff Brown Published 01/08/2022
4. Your biggest and most VALUABLE asset is TIME
As photographers time is our most valuable asset, it’s the equivalent of our stock and we only have so much of it available each day. In business your time is not only used for working with clients, its also used to effectively market your business. Faced with the choice would you rather work for a cheap rate client who doesn’t value your service or brand, or decline the job and use the time to market your business more effectively to attract your ideal client type?
You could get stuck in with writing blogs, updating the SEO on your website, or send out an email to your subscriber list. You could even schedule a batch of posts to social media for the coming weeks ahead, to keep up your visibility. Also get yourself out there and start creating joint ventures with other businesses, vendors or people who already serve your ideal clients.
Remember, it’s your time. If you don’t want to work on your business then go and enjoy the day with your family. Get out with your sons or daughters, your wife or husband. Really spend some quality time with them.
5. Protect your MENTAL HEALTH and your SELF WORTH
I’ve left this one to last because its often over looked by many, but in my opinion its so very important. As photographers we often struggle with self-doubt and imposter-syndrome, in fact its rife within the creative industry as a whole. Remember you’re a professional, your skills and talents weren’t just learnt overnight, you’ve put a lot of time, effort, and money into getting where you are today. Would you go to a dentist and haggle about the price before you let them extract a tooth, or would you haggle with a solicitor when you need professional legal advice, of course you wouldn’t, so don’t let people do this to you.
When people won’t pay your worth, it absolutely impacts your mental health. I’ve seen loads of really talented photographers (far more talented than me) who struggle to make money because they are constantly operating at the very bottom of the pile, even though their work is absolutely amazing. This has happened because they’ve fallen into the trap of working with the wrong type of clients, not saying no to the tyre kickers and freebie hunters, and letting a person who buys only on price alone dictate the price of your worth.
I know it’s a tough mindset to get around and often it’s all too tempting to just give in, but if you give in to one, the chances are you’ll give into the next, eventually your talents will be always hitting the wrong type of clients.
Finally, don’t look at the competition, don’t allow yourself to worry about the influx of cut priced photographers in your area. In fact, be thankful for the guys who are doing the weddings for £400 or the shoot and burn branding photographers who give a client their entire image bank for a few hundred quid. These photographers are dealing with the clients you need to keep away from, they are doing you a favour. Let them serve the price hungry end of the market, the competition is less at the premium end, and you’ll soon start attracting clients who really value what you do.
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SWPP - Society of Wedding and Portrait Photographers
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Tel 00 44 (0) 1745 356935
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