That’s where we started. It can be really tough though to keep up your stamina and your spirits when you’re working long hours at the office, only to come home and start it all over again with more work piled up in front of you. Especially when the tiny details seem to get the better of you. Its easy to ask “is this all there is?” as you begin to look for the day when you can enjoy your life too – not just work seven days of the week.

Yep, we have been there. And I’m so grateful we stuck out the odds and made it into the business we have today. Here are a few things that helped us. Make sure you have them in your own life too.

Write Down Your Goals – With Dates

Writing down your goals is probably on every small business website and information guide you’ve ever written. And while the advice may get old, the concept shouldn’t. Its there because it works. Yet if you have a goal list in front of you, have you added dates to it as well?

Rather than having a vague idea of what the future holds, put it to the test. A goal of “I’ll quit my full time job by December 31st of this year” is a lot more motivational than “I’ll quit my job someday”.

Putting a date to things creates a sense of urgency. It allows you to think beyond the basics and find ways to get things done.

Write Down Your Achievements

I write all of my goals and to-do’s in a spiral notebook. I check things off as I complete them. And I also add details to how the project was completed or how I took action to make it work.

Then I can look back over the months and years and actually see how much I’ve accomplished. There is something gratifying about it. When you hit a low and feel like you’ve done nothing, retrace your steps and see what you have accomplished. You will be amazed. And it will help you move further with more complicated, advanced priorities in the future.

Find Regular Work Hours

As much as you desire to turn your part time gig into a full time career, if you don’t take care of you along the way, it will never happen. Try to find a few hours a week to work solidly on your business. It may mean getting up an hour earlier so you’ll have an hour before you drive in to your job. It may mean working over your lunch hour if you can do so at your current job. Or it may mean working into the evening – with no time for television or simply doing nothing. Schedule it. Its easier to get things done if you know you have certain hours to do it in. Its also easier to give yourself a break and really enjoy it.

You should also devote a portion of the weekend to your business, and schedule yourself some time off. You may decide Saturday’s are for your business while Sunday’s are for family time. Or working long hours one weekend so you can take the next off. The key is seeing clearly the time you’ll devote to your business and actually following through with it.

Cut Down On Other Commitments

When you move something new into your life, other things must move out. With 24 hours per day, you’ll only be able to fit so much into it. That may be putting a hobby on hold and in the closet for awhile. Or saying no to extra projects at work or at your children’s school.

As your business becomes more successful, you may even see if your full time job is willing to allow you to go part time. Instead of 8 hour days, how about 5 or 6? This way you can slowly make the transition and make sure its working while you move to your new, full time career.

Above all, don’t worry about saying no, especially to the people you’ve said yes to in the past. Simply say “I’m very busy at the moment and I’ve promised myself I wouldn’t take on any new commitments.” They will understand.

They were real photographers. And deep down we questioned all the time whether we had what it takes to make it to that level.

But as we worked more on our photography, we quickly realized that perception doesn’t always match up with reality. Photographers at all levels have the same struggles as you and me. They just handle it a bit differently. Here are five things every photographer faces at some point every year.

Secret #1 – Photography is Difficult

“I have often thought that if photography were difficult in the true sense of the term — meaning that the creation of a simple photograph would entail as much time and effort as the production of a good watercolor or etching — there would be a vast improvement in total output. The sheer ease with which we can produce a superficial image often leads to creative disaster.” ~Ansel Adams

Anyone can pick up a camera and snap a picture. Even an amateur who shoots occasionally is going to get lucky once in a while and capture a great image. Yet when you get to the professional level, you expect every image to come out perfect every time.

It doesn’t always happen.

As professionals, we’ve trained ourselves to be ready for the unexpected, think ahead to what is going to happen so you can be there when it does, and be patient. Yet its easy to “kick” ourselves when you find the perfect shot – and your camera is at home. Or you see the action and you’re across the room.

And that’s okay – as long as you capture the majority of what is truly important.

Secret #2 We All Struggle With Procrastination

“Our attention span is shot. We’ve all got Attention Deficit Disorder or ADD or OCD or one of these disorders with three letters because we don’t have the time or patience to pronounce the entire disorder. That should be a disorder right there, TBD – Too Busy Disorder.” ~ Ellen DeGeneres

Yep, everyone has this at some time or another. You have the client you aren’t really into – so you put off the work until the last minute.

You know you need to get the images ready for your new brochure – but you just can’t seem to quit watching those YouTube videos.

Procrastination usually comes in one of two forms.

You do anything to avoid the little stuff. You work on large plans for the future, without taking the small steps to put it into place. It’s the dream instead of the action.

You do only the little stuff to avoid taking a really big step. You check email, run to the post office, create a new filing system – anything but create the new promotion you’ve been thinking about.

The only way around it, no matter who you are or what you do, is to take a good hard look at your daily life and decide how to change it to get exactly what you want.

Secret #3 We Fall Into Habit Mode

“A habit is something you can do without thinking – which is why most of us have so many of them.” ~Frank A. Clark

When something works, you do it over and over again simple because it works.

It doesn’t mean it’s the best way to to do. Or the easiest way. Or even the most logical way.

I see it all the time when I train people on using online tools. I’m amazed at the number of people that head into a browser, visit the website we are talking about, then shut down the entire browser when they are finished. Their day is a constant action of opening and closing an entire system instead of simply opening up new tabs.

It’s a habit. Efficient or not, its just something people fall into.

The same goes with photography. Even a seasoned professional may snap an image wide, knowing they will crop in Photoshop instead of taking an extra second or two to focus in on the true subject matter.

Or deal with an amazingly inefficient filing system because that’s the way its always been – even though a few minor adjustments could save hours of time every week.

The only way to change habits is to recognize them first; then work to adjust the pattern to make your life more efficient.

Secret #4 Each Photograph is Never “Finished”

“Art is never finished, only abandoned.” ~ Leonardo da Vinci

When was the last time you snapped an image with the feeling of being finished?

Neither has a professional.

Every photographer looks at his or her work and thinks, “I could change that…” or “I could do that…”. You can always crop in a different way. Or change the color of the final image. Blow it up and frame it in a certain way. Put it together with other images to tell a story.

Secret #5 We Look For Perfection

“Passion is a positive obsession. Obsession is a negative passion.” ~ Paul Carvel

We are all visual, yet most aren’t photographers. Have you seen ads in magazines or newspapers where companies spend thousands of dollars on the ad – them use the most horrible picture on earth? (I can’t say photograph because they really are that bad.) They stretch it to fit the ad layout, or crop out just the pieces they want to use.

A true professional never feels the image is “perfect”. We’re obsessed about finding the perfect location or the softening the light “just a little”.

We’re the ones who take a camera along “just in case” and photograph no matter where we go “just for fun”.

It doesn’t change if you’re an amateur or a professional, have just received your first camera or have been in the business for 30 years. Passion is passion.

When you love something like photography, you can’t imagine your life doing anything but photography. So why not strive for perfection?

AJ Wood
Everything Adobe – whether you are looking for tutorials on Lightroom, Photoshop, or even Dreamweaver, these videos will give you hours of ideas.

Bert Stephani
Bert has been adding videos for a number of years; start with his Confessions of a Photographer series for some quick tips on photographing.

PeachpitTV
PeachpitTV provides a huge array of education and informative videos on a wide range of topics. You’ll find how-to’s on photography, and an interview series from some of today’s hottest photographers.

Karl Taylor’s Photography Tips and Techniques
From fashion shoots to basic photography skills, these professional videos will leave you with a variety of tips to make your photography business better. Watch his 840 Portraits in On Day – pretty amazing.

Mac Photography Tips
Watch videos on everything from digital photography to Photoshop from a wedding and event photographer based out of Sacramento California.

Cameralabs Digital Camera Video Reviews
Had your eye on a particular camera? Check out Cameralabs reviews first. With over 17 million views of his videos, this is the place to come to first.

Snapfactory
A very professional series of videos showing photographers how to be better at photography. Watch some of his videos for free, and try out YouTube’s new rental program – the way of learning for the future.

Rick’s Pixel Magic
Rick Sammon provides some interesting tips on photographing and lighting your images.

ClixAndPixels’s Channel
Professional videos that give you a variety of shooting tips, and a view of what was created in the process. Composing and Framing your shot is a great video to help you photograph for advertisements.

Lynda.com
Have you used Lynda.com? It’s a great video training site that gives you in-depth training on anything software. This is Lynda’s channel, and gives a wide array of samples and how-to instruction on everything from Photoshop to a series of podcasts.

Yes, these wannabes may lack classical training in lighting and posing, but clients trying to stretch their budgets often see them as a viable option.

And so the pricing wars begin.

The reality of it is photography isn’t a product based industry; it is and always will be a service based industry.

Someone may tell you a photograph is a photograph – and the pricing should be comparable from place to place. But if you hear that from a potential customer, they don’t understand the nuances of photography. That isn’t his or her fault. It’s ours as photographers. And in order to create a full fledged, full time, six figure business, you must understand this and build your business into the service business it should be.

Start with your photography

The problem does arise from the photography itself. What makes you different from the wannabes? Does your work stand apart? Or is it easy to confuse your work with everyone else out there?

If you want to make this your true profession and you are wanting to grow into a six figure photography business, your work has to stand apart. You have to understand posing and lighting. You must create truly professional images. Practice, practice, practice. Attend seminars by people that are already making six figures in their prospective fields. Head to judging contests to learn what master photographers are looking for in images.

Then use this to make your photography stand apart from the competition. You can also use your knowledge to make others aware of what they should be looking for. Point to an image with a telephone pole coming out of a clients head once, and a potential client will know exactly how to look for composition as she heads off to visit other prospective photographers.

Change your marketing and sales

A potential client doesn’t know what to look for until you tell her. Arm her with questions.

• Does the photographer have liability insurance?

• Does the photographer have backup equipment?

• How many images does the photographer take at the wedding?

Whatever questions you present, explain your answers in detail and why it matters to her. If she’s armed with the knowledge you have something that other photographers don’t, chances are she’ll be back with a check in hand when she can’t find the customer service level anywhere else out there.

Use stories to teach

Doesn’t the idea of a general photographer sound great? You can visit them for your wedding, have your baby’s portrait created, and have them photograph the new earrings you’ve fashioned for the brochure you’re designing for your new business.

That’s how many people view the photography world. Flip that around and make them think differently.

Would you really want a cardiologist answering a question about a mole on your back? Or a plastic surgeon helping you with a sore throat?

People specialize to become good at what they do. And as a photographer, there is an extreme difference between shooting a pair of earrings for a brochure, and following a bride and groom around for the day of their wedding.

Yet many consumers don’t understand that. Use a story – just like the one I described about the medical field – to get your prospects to understand the differences.

Maintain your pricing

Finally, don’t be seduced into lowering your pricing in order to get jobs. If something isn’t in your arena, or a client wants you but “can’t” afford you, the decision should be on them – not you. Your time is too valuable to spend accommodating the penny pinchers that don’t realize your true potential.

Let them head out and go with the wannabes to save money. Let them be disappointed in the overall service they received. And allow them to help you by providing stories to their friends – stories that will push them towards you with the lessons they learned.

I recently walked into a store to buy a new printer. I had a basic idea of what I wanted, I just had a few questions about one particular model. But when I asked for help, the salesperson spent minute after minute talking about different models with different options – none of which I was interested in. I repeated my question several times; he never answered one of them directly. So I eventually left without purchasing anything, and did my research elsewhere.

I see this all the time in sales. As a salesperson, you get so focused on your message, what you need to say about your products or services, that you forget one important thing.

To listen.

Here are five lessons in listening that will help you increase your sales potential.

Never pre-judge.

We all do it. You see the way someone is dressed, or the car they drive up in, and you determine they aren’t your ideal client before you’ve even spoken with them. Put all of your judgments aside, and listen instead. Start out with a question: Why is photography important to you? Then listen to the answer. Use their thoughts in your sales presentation. One of our biggest wedding clients every got married in a local park and played volleyball at the reception. Yet they loved and cherished photographs, and made us pretty much their entire budget.

Skip the routine.

You probably have a variety of things you say during your sales presentation. Maybe show a presentation to music. Go over your packages. Tour your studio. Whatever is “normal” for you. Always remember what is normal for you is not necessarily what is normal for your clients. They may have seen your work before through friends and family, and be sold on you before they enter the studio. Don’t make it mandatory they listen to your whole speech before signing. If they are ready to sign after 15 minutes, do it.

Don’t interrupt.

Sometimes you hear one thing, and shut down to the true message. When people come in to meet with you, they may have generic questions because they don’t know what else to ask. The standard “How much is an 8×10?” isn’t always about price. You have to listen beyond what that question means. You may discover they ultimately want great value for their dollar, and want to make sure you can deliver.

Dig Deeper – Photography Business Information

Don’t fake listening.

If you go into your presentation knowing exactly what you want to say, you may miss an opportunity. Don’t wait for a client to pause so you can cram in your next comment or response. Wait for them to get everything out. And use their comments and concerns to support the direction you take them. If you have three packages, the top isn’t for everyone. Give them honesty about what’s best for them, and support it with details you’ve heard about their lifestyle.

Be present.

Have you ever been in a sales meeting where the presenter has their phone nearby? They glance at it every minute or two, and even pick it up and text on occasion? Or maybe they have an earpiece in throughout the whole meeting, and you wonder where their attention really lies? Avoid all distractions, and make your center of attention on your potential client. Just by clearing your mind, and putting your focus on your client, your listening skills will increase tenfold.

Want to know the biggest problem in the photography industry today?

Everybody is the same.

Yep, grab a cup of coffee and surf the web for a while. You’ll quickly find site after site built on a similar platform, or using a similar template, and the only thing that changes is the colors and the customers in the images. It all quickly blends together.

Of course you don’t need Internet access to see it. Head to your local wedding guide. Or pick up a high school newspaper advertising to seniors. You’ll see ad after ad looking suspiciously the same – only the names change, yet everything else could almost be a carbon copy.

What the photography industry needs now is massive disruption – something to make customers’ heads spin and make them really take notice of who you are.

Those photographers are out there. They are changing the landscape of photography as we know it. The only question is will you be one of those photographers? Or will you be one of the many left to blend in to the landscape?

1. Simplify, Simplify, Simplify

Apple. Whether you love them or hate them, you have to admit they have a good thing going. If you are PC, you have hundreds if not thousands of choices. Everyone builds their own PC with slightly different variations. You can get a tablet – you have many different choices. You can get a laptop – again, pick from a huge array of options. But when you choose Apple, your choices are simple. They usually come in threes and your choices are easy to understand. Want an iPad? You can have an iPad mini, an iPad 2, or an iPad Retina. Once you make your selection, the choices are even easier. Wi-fi or wi-fi with cellular? 16GB, 32GB, or 64 GB? And your order is complete. Easy to choose. Easy to operate. What you expect is what you get.

Now look at your own options. Are you PC or Apple? Simplification can be your easiest way to attract more clients.

2. Reduce complexity

What does it take to do business with you? Do you have a lot of forms to fill out, meetings to attend, and choices to make? How can you create something that requires less time and less to think about? People are busy. Photography is supposed to be a fun experience, not make lives more stressful. Look at your process from an outside perspective. The easier you can make it, the more customers you will attract.

3. Change from the inside out

In many cases, your lack of efficiency isn’t something that targets the customer, its within your own production area. What can you do to become more efficient, giving you more time to spend with the customer? Research apps and find things that make your job easier. Find software packages that combine billing and accounting and production. Work to improve your processes from the inside out.

4. Make your products smart

In this ever-changing world of technology, what makes us more efficient is having things done for us. Think about it for a moment. Don’t you hate buying a new toy, only to discover you don’t have the right batteries to operate it? You have to stop everything and run to the store to complete the project – 30 minutes of time you may not have had. The same holds true with your photography. What if every image came fully framed and ready to hang? What if they came with a hanging kit – hammer, nails and level included? What if you personally went to a client’s home and hung the image for them? Now that’s smart thinking.

5. Make your company talk

Head back to those websites and look at what everyone else is doing. Do you notice it? Most photographers simply talk at their customers without giving them what they truly want and need. Let your company do the talking instead. Change your website and add all kinds of things that speak directly to your customers. There are many different types of customers out there – some are numbers people, some are feelings people, etc. If you don’t use different types of technology to attract all different kinds of people, you are leaving sales behind. Find new innovative ways of connecting with prospects and customers, and do it to create raving fans.

6. Be completely transparent

Do you hide your business from others? Or are you completely up front with everything you do? When you make mistakes, do you admit it and correct it? The more visible you are within your business, the more you share everything with your customers, the more they will appreciate who you are.

7. Personalize what you do to build loyalty

If customers can’t see a difference – it’s just a picture – they base everything on price. Customer service is where it’s at. Just look at what major companies are doing today. Home depot is now advertising their online customer tracker that allows you to instantly see all of your previous purchase. That way you know what paint you bought for your living room, and how much garland you bought to decorate your home. Why wouldn’t you go back – it’s easy to shop there? The same applies to your photography business. How can you store their preferences and be there when they need you? How can you act without them thinking? How can you save them time, money or effort? The easier you can make the process, the easier it will be to remain a faithful customer.

8. Do something they gotta have

When things are limited, you have to jump to be one of the ones to have access to it. It’s a standard form of marketing because it works. Instead of holding a sale or offering different types of sessions, make it limited. If only a few have access to it – and its something great that everyone is talking about – you’ll have a lot more people jumping at the chance to be included.

9. Focus on your image

This isn’t about making money. This isn’t about what time you can have off to do the things you want to do. Your customers don’t care when you want to go on vacation. They don’t understand that you have multiple clients, multiple tasks and a whole bunch of things on your mind every day. They care about one thing and one thing only – themselves. How does you image make them feel like they are the only person in the world? How can you give them unlimited time when you are with them and make them feel like a million bucks? If you can put them on top of the world, you will have a customer for life.

What does 2013 hold for you?

In many ways, you can look back to the previous year to learn all you need to know for the future. And as we went back and looked at everything we’ve written and posted in 2012 – and what your favorites were too – we discovered a wealth of information that can help you as we roll into the New Year.

If building up an income stream from your photography business is on your list of to-do’s for 2013, get started by looking through our top posts and using the information to help you as you plan out your coming weeks and months. Here is a list of the most popular:

5 Secrets Professional Photographers Will Never Tell You

I remember when we first started out in photography, we would look at the professionals who had “made it” within the industry and somehow think they were different then us. They had a fan base stretched out around the world. They traveled to exotic locations to photograph their clients. They were featured in magazines and talked on stages in front of hundreds of people.

They were real photographers. And deep down we questioned all the time whether we had what it takes to make it to that level….read more>>

10 Steps To Becoming A Better Photographer

When you read the title of this post, what was your first thought? Did you think “better photographer” meant learning how to use your camera more effectively? Did you think “better photographer” meant taking better photographs? Did you think “better photographer” meant building a stronger, more successful business?

In reality, it can mean all of this and more. Photography has so many facets; each one you delve into can take years to learn and perfect.

Yet if you had to sum it up in 10 steps, what would they be? As I thought more about it and looked back over the past 20 years I’ve been a photographer, I realized I didn’t just look at it from a “taking pictures” angle. To me, being a better photographer also means building the business. And since that is the purpose of this blog, I thought I would divide it into 10 steps…read more>>

15 Things You Should Never Say To A Professional Photographer

What are some of the funniest (or maybe scariest) things your clients have ever said to you? I know we always said we should right a book with all of our experiences. Clients can say the most amazing things – and most of the time they don’t even realize the implications of what they are truly saying. Take a look at these 15, then come up with your own…read more>>

How To Start A Photography Business Without Wasting Money

What made you decide to take your love of photography to the next level and start a business with it?

Perhaps you aren’t sure if your 9 to 5 job is secure; will it really be there for you in the near future to pay your bills?

Or maybe you’ve seen a program on television that inspired you to the lifestyle some photographers have. I’m always inspired when I watch Art Wolfe’s Travels To The Edge.

In any case, your new business venture can very quickly take on a life of it own. As you begin to learn more about the business side of things, you’ll find things that are hard to live without. Training programs. New equipment. And so much more…read more>>

14 Do’s and Don’ts To Win Over Your Photography Clients

The key to a great business is having great clients. Here are some simple rules to ensure that your customers love you and want to use you again and again. And again. Do find your competitive edge. What makes you special? What makes you unique? Its not just your passion or your love for the business. It has to be your approach to photography and the way you run your business. Find that one unique thing that sets you apart and use it to bring in a ton of clients. Don’t badmouth your competition. You probably have one or two competitors who you think very little of. They run their business completely against your ethics and you know “dirty little secrets” about them that makes you have anything but trust. Don’t tell. As much as you know about them, its important to turn the other way and…read more>>

12 Words That Will Change The Value Of Your Photography

This infographic will let you choose your words that will change the value of your photography…read more>>

The 7 Deadly Sins Of A Photography Business

If you are operating a photography business, you are in competition with thousands of other photographers all vying for your prospects attention. When it comes to photographing, many have a natural eye for creating amazing art. But when it comes to running a business, most of them don’t have a clue as to what they are doing. The same problems come up again and again, keeping them away from doing the one thing they want most of all – finding success. So how about you? Do you commit one of these deadly sins with your own business….read more>>

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…read more>>

The Code For Blocking Pinterest … And 12 Reasons You Shouldn’t Use It

There are a lot of photographers out there up in arms over Pinterest.

Pinterest allows people to create visual pin boards by finding things online and “pinning” them to a board on their Pinterest account. Because Pinterest is a visual social site, what attracts you to click on things is the photograph. Yet you can look through the images on Pinterest without having to go back to the site of origination to view who’s images they are. Which means there are many photographers upset by copyright infringement – can people really “move” your images around and share them in a variety of ways without crediting you, the photographer…read more>>

Your Blog Post Checklist – Make Your Photography Blog Attractable

Do you blog on a regular basis? If so, you’ve probably posted a few that were anything but complete. You forgot to spell check. You didn’t include the link you planned on using. Or you simply made it a short post because you didn’t know what else to write. Writing posts on a regular basis takes more than talent; it takes a checklist to make sure all of the pieces are included. Even if writing isn’t your “thing”, here is an easy way to make sure every post you create is perfectly targeted towards your readers..read more>>

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

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…read more>>

Wishing all of you a prosperous New Year!

To your success,

Lori

When was the last time you were asked, “can I just print my own copies” or “can you Photoshop this out”? If so, you should really appreciate this video…. Shtuff People Say to Photographers

What are your client saying to you in your Photography Business?

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