START #8: MEET ONE/TOUCH ONE

It's a big world out there.  Even in your market or area, there are probably more than a hundred wedding industry professionals and vendors.  One of the most valuable ways to build your photography business is through the relationships you develop with these key industry professionals.  It's also one of the hardest.

Although photographers seem to be a pretty social group, I often hear from friends and peers that the idea of trying to meet planners, venues, coordinators, designers, etc, can be intimidating.  Where do I even start?  How do I get people to refer me business?  What do I do to meet the important people?

Those are all great questions.  Just as in any industry, people want to work with - and refer business to - people they know and like.  People want to work with people they've already developed relationships with.  Calling a bunch of vendors and asking to be on their "preferred" list probably isn't going to be the best long-term strategy.  On the other hand, I think that taking the time to develop real relationships can make a huge difference.

MEET ONE

A good place to start is this: every month, make it a priority to meet one new industry peer or vendor.  It can be a planner, a venue sales director, a florist, a designer - whoever you want it to be.  Make it a goal to meet just one.  This is a goal anyone can meet.  Finding one new person in your market or area to connect with, helps you to start building those relationships. 

There are a lot of great tools to connect with people - often Twitter, Facebook, and other social media are great places to start getting a sense for people - and to even introduce yourself.  How you choose to introduce and meet with someone is up to you - but here are a few suggestions:

It's about them.  No one wants to build a relationship with someone who just wants to get something out of it.  Think about how you would feel if someone reached out to connect - and then proceeded to simply give you some sales pitch about their business and why you should refer them.  You wouldn't.  You certainly wouldn't feel like there was a relationship based on mutual respect.

If you reason for meeting someone is to get yourself business - you probably won't have much success.  Instead, focus on learning more about their business - and who they are as a person.  People appreciate it when they feel valued - and if you treat your industry partners like you do your clients (as the most important person in the world), you'll find yourself with some very valuable relationships.

Be authentic.  Did you ever date someone, and after a while realize that the person who they seemed on those first few dates?  Probably wasn't a fun experience right?  It's tempting to make our business seem bigger and better than it really is - especially when meeting other people in our industry.  The reality is, the truth always shows up sooner or later, and people will eventually see your business for what it is. 

On the other hand, people resonate with people that are authentic and honest - even if their business is still growing or developing.   

TOUCH ONE

In addition to making one new connection each month, every week - reach out to one person who already has a relationship with your business.  This can be an existing vendor or industry partner - or it can be a client.  They key is to reach out and touch one person each week - to reconnect, and strengthen the relationship.

For me, my goal is to send one handwritten note each week to someone.  Often its a thank you note to a client for their business, or a note to a vendor when I read something good about their business - or see a featured wedding published that they were a part of.   I only write a note when it's authentic and genuine - and about them.  I look for cool things that are happening with clients and partners, and send them encouragement when appropriate.

You can write for any reason you can think of - but my only rule is this: NEVER, EVER, EVER INCLUDE YOUR BUSINESS CARD.  NEVER.

Think about it.  If you receive a heartfelt, handwritten note, out of the blue - from someone you've done business with in the past - and after reading it, you find their business card - who is that note really about?  Does it really feel quite as sincere?  I know that some will argue that without some way for them to know how to contact you, how does it help your business.  My thought is that if this is someone, with whom you truly have an existing relationship with, chances are good that they'll know how to get ahold of you when they need/want to.

So, it's January 1st.  

What if you sat down right now and made a list of vendors you wanted to meet this year?  What if you made a list, and started reaching out to them - one a month - as a priority for your business?  What if you started a habit right now - of writing a note to someone who has added value to your business this past year?  

How might your business look different a year from now?

START #7: CLIENTS VS CUSTOMERS

Running your own business means connecting with people who need your services.  

There are a lot of things photographers do on a regular basis to bring in businesses, but one of the most often overlooked is easily one of the most simple.  

One of the most valuable sources of business is how you treat the people you currently do business with.  It's the difference between having customers, and having clients.

How you treat them. 

Have you ever been to a store (or restaurant, or any business really), and felt like the person helping you had something better they'd rather be doing?  Have you ever gotten the sense from the cashier - or server - that you're more of an annoyance, than the heart of their business?  

Many of us have experienced this.  Sometimes people have bad days.  Sometimes people have jobs they don't really like. Whatever the reason - I'm willing to be that the number one reason for it is that they have little invested in you.  Whether or not you ever come back, isn't at the top of the list of their concerns.  They aren't thinking about your long term value to their business - because it's not their business.

I'm not at all attempting to bash cashiers or waiters.  There are a lot of people who are great at what they do - love what they do - and take care of every person they meet as if they're the most important person in the world.

That's the standard.

Most important person in the world.  That's the standard for how we should be treating every person we do business with.  People remember how they are treated, and it dramatically impacts their perception of your product or service.  Treat them well and everything else you do - or provide - will be their favorite thing in the world.  Treat them poorly - and no matter how incredible their photographs - they won't care.  

Make a client for life.

Here's the deal.  Treat people right, and you develop clients - not customers.  Customers are people you treat as though this is the only interaction you'll ever have with them.  You take their money, give them their product, and send them on their way.

Clients, on the other hand, are people you invest in.  You build a relationship so that whenever in their life they need photography, you're the only choice they think of.  Clients are people who trust us to provide services time, and time again.

Clients take work.

Clients aren't free.  They take work.  No one will call you up and simply ask to be your best client for life.  It requires a real investment to grow a relationship.  Every interaction with a client requires an intentional effort to treat them as the most important person in the world.  

We work hard to take care of our clients by doing little things that matter.  Handwritten notes, little gifts, extra prints, or a bottle of wine, are all ways we invest in making our clients feel like the most important people in the world.

Clients cost less.

Even though clients require an investment - and take a lot of work - they are actually far cheaper than customers.  With customers, you're constantly having to spend money to generate new customers.  You're constantly having to bring in new people, and that costs both time and money.  Since customers aren't invested in you - and you're not invested in them - the cost of bringing in new business never decreases.

So you get to choose.  How will you treat the people you do business with?  As clients or customers?

START #6: IS IT IMPORTANT?

Often, when starting out in a business, one of the challenges we face is to try and do everything.  Being a one-man show often brings with it the temptation to do more than we really should - often to the detriment of our business, AND our life.

One of the biggest reasons for this - is that it always seems cheaper to do something ourselves - than to pay someone else to do it.  While there are numerous reasons that this isn't true, there are two specific reasons that I think it's worth it to consider hiring someone else (outsourcing) to handle aspects of your business.

My general rule is this: If it's IMPORTANT, and you either 1) hate doing something, or 2) aren't any good at it - it's worth it to pay someone who is.  Basically, outsourcing can save you time and grief when it comes to a lot of areas of business.  Outsourcing can also save you a LOT of money when you begin to consider what your time is worth - and what you can do with your time to grow your business when you take things off your plate.

Some of the most common areas that are worth considering include: Accounting, Legal, Graphic Design, Editing and Order Fulfillment.  For me, I find that I'm no good at accounting, and I'm not a lawyer.  I also don't love doing order fulfillment, so it's worth it to me to pay others to handle these aspects of the business.  

Sometimes it's hard to outsource because we believe that we are good at something, and think we should do it, even if we don't love it.  Or sometimes, we enjoy doing different aspects of our business - even though we really aren't very good at it - if we're truly honest.  

What are some things to consider when looking at outsourcing for your business.

1. Is this person/company an expert? Are they very good at what they do?  Are they recognized by others as being very good?  If you're going to trust your business to someone else, you deserve to know that they are professional and know what they're doing.

2. Do they understand your business and your goals?  When partnering with a vendor such as an accountant, attorney, or designer, it's important to know that they really understand your business - and who you are.  It can be frustrating and discouraging when you're not on the same page - so it's worth it to figure that out up front.  Really good partners will make the effort to get to know you - and invest in making sure it's a good fit for both.

3. Is this someone you can partner with?  A true partner does more than just understand your business - they have a stake in your business.  A good partner is someone who sees your business success as a win for everyone - and they work hard to help you get there.  Instead of just being a "vendor" they truly are a partner

If we're really honest - there are probably a lot of aspects of our business that could benefit from outsourcing.  Just as internal systems can help create margin - nothing can help you more than taking things off your plate completely, by partnering with a trusted vendor that can help you with different aspects of your business.