Learning to let go: Embracing efficiency in your photography business.
October 8th, 2024
Running a photography business in this highly competitive industry can sometimes be overwhelming and all encompassing. While having instincts, technical know-how, and creative talent are imperative for producing stunning imagery, effective business management isn’t something that comes naturally to most of us. However, it still plays an important part in determining the healthy growth and sustainability of a business. Juggling client communication, social media management, financial tracking, and keeping up with scheduling could easily overwhelm anyone!
Recognizing when to outsource tasks can be tricky, especially when you’ve put your heart and soul into building your business. But practical and effective business practices can not only improve your overall productivity, they can also help you make more informed decisions and maintain the great reputation that you worked so hard to build. Furthermore, streamlining your business processes can improve your workflow and free you up to do more of what you love–creating captivating, timeless, and beautiful photographs. In this article, let’s dive into the essential strategies and tips for embracing efficiency in your photography business.
Identifying your pain points and solutions.
It can sometimes be hard to admit we can’t do it all–or that maybe a part of our business could be better if we streamlined or outsourced the work. To help you get started analyzing the strengths and weaknesses in your business, we’ve gathered some of the most common pain points for photographers.
Streamlining your booking and payment process.
Whether you are new on this photography journey, or you are an established full-time photographer, keeping track of every lead, every contact, or every interaction is challenging. Despite carrying around a device where we can be reached nearly 24 hours a day, booking sessions or client meetings via phone can often result in mix-ups and misunderstandings. Even if you are the best note-taker, coordinating calendars and taking down client information, all while trying to be fully attentive during the conversation, is incredibly difficult. And if there was a miscommunication of any kind, you will then have to play phone (or text) tag until the issue is resolved. Forget about post-it notes, reminder apps, or scribbles on your hand. They just don’t cut it anymore.
By adopting online studio management, you make booking and payment a breeze for your clients. They can effortlessly match their schedules with your availability, book a session, and pay instantly. By linking this tool directly to your website, your customers will be able to find it easily and return to it as needed.
Simplifying your print ordering process.
There is no better feeling than making a sale. Even if you have been in business for a decade, when a client places an order, it has a way of validating your creative skill and talent. When I first started my photography business, online order fulfillment really wasn’t mainstream yet. Every order was taken via e-mail or by phone, then I would have to chase down payment, place the order–and once it arrived, repackage and reship the order to them. Mistakes and miscommunications would inevitably happen, which meant I missed out on precious profit.
Thankfully, there are several platforms out there now that allow photographers to streamline the client check-out process. With no delays in the ordering and payment process, the customer is less likely to second guess their choices, resulting in bigger sales in the end. In addition, since you no longer have to repackage and reship orders, your clients will receive their images quickly, and they can even track their packages online. This is truly a business revolution, saving you precious time.
Turn your images into income.
Sell your photos online from your own custom store. Set up is quick and your clients will enjoy a seamless shopping experience.
Enhancing client communication.
As soon as the gallery goes out, the clock starts ticking. Quick, clear communication during the proofing and selling stage is absolutely imperative to maximizing your profits. Answer any inquiries in a timely manner to keep the momentum going! When clients have too much time to think about a purchase, they can often fall into decision paralysis. It’s helpful to keep in mind that a client’s priorities can also change in just a short amount of time, altering their readiness or capability to buy. Economic changes, personal events, or a shift in preferences can all impact their buying decisions–possibly decreasing the final sale.
With so many ways a customer can contact you, having one place where they can easily relay feedback, leave comments, or make requests helps you and your clients stay more organized during the proofing phase. Navigating editing requests can frequently pose challenges, but with Zenfolio’s advanced client galleries, the commenting feature allows you to effortlessly collate essential information from your clients. This effective communication process ensures that all feedback is organized and accessible, enabling you to make precise adjustments and deliver results that meet your clients’ expectations.
Automating your marketing and promotions.
Having a presence on social media marketing for your photography business can almost feel like a full-time job. From creating content, to posting, to interacting with your viewers–it all takes valuable time. Throw in sales and promotions management, and you’ll feel handcuffed to your computer rather than doing what you love—being behind the camera.
If you want to get some of that precious time back, automation is the answer. There are several social media management tools out there that will allow you to plan and schedule posts in advance across multiple platforms, and they can even help optimize your engagement by analyzing the ever-changing algorithms. Automated email marketing keeps your brand fresh in customers’ minds and helps you build strong relationships. While some versions of these tools can be a significant financial investment, they are essential to grow and scale your business.
Pro tip: Create free trials for your top two or three choices in email marketing tools, then dive in and test their tool (with a few friend and family email addresses) before committing your hard-earned dollars.
Identifying your strengths and what to outsource.
We got into this business because we love creating captivating and meaningful images–not necessarily because we had a knack for business itself. It is not to say that you cannot learn and improve certain skills, but spending twice as long doing a task as a professional and just being “okay” at invoicing really doesn’t cut it in the long run. Assessing what your strengths are–and more importantly, what they are not–will help you create a more successful, efficient business.
Maybe you love shooting and editing, but you are terrible at keeping track of expenses. Because accurate financial reporting is essential to sustaining the life of your business, consider hiring a professional accountant to help keep tabs of your expenses and incoming profit. Falling behind on editing? It happens to everyone. Instead of falling short of client expectations, outsource your editing to a company like ShootDotEdit to help you catch up. Are your Instagram Reels not seeing much engagement? There are virtual assistants and several AI tools out there now that can help you generate content or create dynamic, search friendly copy. Outsourcing tasks or using other automation tools isn’t cheating—it’s a smart strategy that benefits both you and your business.
Overcoming our resistance to change.
Let’s face it, most of us have a bit of a control freak inside–especially when it comes to things as important to us as our photography business. Sure, we’re a creative bunch. But our work with the camera is a precise calculation of technical wizardry that shapes the final image. Because of the tendency towards perfectionism, photographers often find it difficult to delegate tasks.
While our camera is basically a super computer that also takes pictures, employing automation tools or AI might make us feel like we are surrendering creative control. However, embracing a certain amount of delegation can significantly improve your workflow. Handing over administrative tasks like social media management and client communications can improve customer satisfaction by ensuring timely and positive interactions. In the hands of someone dedicated only to social media, your business can see improved engagement and reach a broader audience, resulting in more inquiries and booked clients, or more print sales.
Since most people are familiar with online booking these days, enlisting the help of automated scheduling tools will save you a huge amount of time and energy. Putting the inner control freak in the backseat will allow you to focus on maintaining your creative vision and book more clients while running a more profitable and client-friendly business.
Leveraging technology and services.
Once you know your strengths and when you’ll be better served by handing off or automating a part of your business, it’s time to find the right tools and services for help.
Delegating administrative tasks.
Integrating online booking and payment systems directly into your website offers plenty of advantages, making the whole process easier for both you and your clients. Features that reference your calendar for scheduling allow clients to view real-time availability and coordinate ideal times for their sessions, reducing the back-and-forth communication typically required to make such arrangements.
Payment portals offer a safe, quick way for customers to check out, and automated reminders help to reduce the chance of no-shows and last-minute cancellations by sending clients timely notifications about their upcoming appointments. Zenfolio’s BookMe feature exemplifies these benefits, offering you a comprehensive tool to handle your bookings, easily manage your schedule and payments, and even automatically create the client galleries after booking is complete, ultimately streamlining your business workflow.
Another option for delegating day-to-day tasks like social media management, invoicing, and client communication is to hire a virtual assistant through a service like Upwork or Fiverr. To find the ideal candidate, look for those with relevant experience, great reviews, and excellent communication skills. In the interview, provide clear expectations to ensure they are a good fit for you and your business needs.
Integrated labs
Photo hosting and selling platforms with integrated labs can make your life so much easier by eliminating the hassle of order management. Gone are the dreaded days of waiting in line at the post office. With a service like Zenfolio, which offers products from some of the most respected brands in the industry like Millers and Bay Photo, you can drop-ship directly to your customer in record time. This automated process not only saves time but also ensures that your clients receive high-quality prints and products quickly and efficiently, enhancing their overall experience.
PhotoRefine
Culling photos after a wedding or event can sometimes take hours. While this was once an incredibly manual task, there are now several tools available to help photographers speed through and find their very best images. Zenfolio’s PhotoRefine is a next-generation technology app that employs AI to vastly reduce the amount of time photographers typically spend organizing, rating, and culling photos after a photo session. With tools like this in your workflow, you no longer have to worry about editing duplicate photos, or spending precious time trying to determine which similar photos are more in focus than another.
Implementing changes and monitoring the progress.
You’ve embraced delegation and added some new tools to help you manage your business. What’s next? To make sure all of these changes work as you hoped, it is important to monitor the new implementations, whether it be personal help or an automation aid.
For example, if you outsource social media or other administrative tasks, compare the number of engagements and costs per hour your assistant works to the time and statistics from when you handled these tasks yourself. Don’t be afraid to speak up and ask for adjustments to what they’ve done so far–not everything will work perfectly right away.
Take the time to truly assess how many hours you spent booking sessions, and how much of that time you are now saving by using an automated tool. Did those extra hours help you generate income by allowing you to schedule more sessions and attract more clients, or to be home more often for dinner with your kids? Every few months or so, check in to ensure that those changes are working for you and your business.
Small business owners wear many hats. Not only are we the first point of contact and the artist behind the lens, we are the head of marketing, sales associate, social media manager, the order fulfillment department, secretary—the list could go on. In between being the actual photographer and editing department, we also hope to have some semblance of a life outside of work too! As your client roster expands and projects pile up, balancing all tasks single-handedly can feel like a high-wire act. It’s time to put some systems in place to streamline your business operations, not only easing your workload, but also giving you back some much-deserved ‘me’ time.
