Rangefinder Magazine
May 2005

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Business Savvy by Ira Gostin
The Righteous Path to Business Success & Salvation (Hallelujah)

Every day that you wake up, you should be thankful for the gift you have of being a photographer. You have worked hard to achieve your present position, so it’s not a gift in the traditional sense—you have paid for this gift with a lot of sweat equity! This is a wonderful place to be in life; however, as you have probably figured out by now, being a great photographer doesn’t directly correlate to running a successful photography business.

Your Success
The measure of your success is a personal decision. The first and most important task on your Righteous Path to Strategic Business Success and Salvation is to determine how you will measure that success. It is different for all of us. Is your success measured by your degree of financial earnings? You will need to determine what those specific financial goals are. Maybe your idea of success is more time off with your family, or getting a new company car every year. Whatever it is, it should be a realistic goal, and you should write it down so you keep it in the forefront of your mind.

Success is a fabulous but often misunderstood concept. Webster’s dictionary defines “success” as:
1. favorable outcome or desired outcome;
2. the gaining of wealth and fame.

You have to look within that definition and craft your own definition of what your success is. It is a highly subjective and personal piece of the strategy and business process. Your success can be as simple as earning 10 percent more in gross sales than last year or eliminating a day of work—moving your studio to a four-day work week, or it can be as complex as expanding your business on a large scale or growing your studio.

A Success Plan
So now you have determined what your idea of success is. This is your ultimate goal. Know you must design a strategy of objectives that will put you on the correct path to achieve this success. The strategy is your road map. Whether you write a traditional business plan or develop a plan on a series of bar napkins, you need to write down your plan. Imagine getting in your sailboat and sailing across the world without a map, without a plan and without GPS. Disaster would be imminent. Your plan provides you with an easy-to-follow path to help you achieve your goals.

Accept the fact (please embrace it!) that you are the CEO of your photography business, as well as the photographer. Unless you have a full-time business manager, you’re it. (Note: If you do have a full-time business manager, stop reading. Your left brain needs to be left alone. Hand this article to your business manager, and go put your feet up and think of creative, right-brain things!)

As the CEO, you need to develop the strategy that will guide your business and help you achieve your desired success.

I want to reiterate, you do not need to write some huge business plan. Just write a simple document that you can respond to and that will keep you motivated. You need to write it yourself, not hire someone. It must be a part of you and something you will refer to over and over, not just a document you hand to your banker. The business plan is for the bank, the success plan is your strategy to achieve the level of success you desire.

Get Organized
Once you have decided that a success plan is the way for you, you need to get your business organized. Buy yourself some file folders, small plastic organizing tubs or file cabinets. Put together a small notebook or a file in your PDA to jot down notes to help you with your business. Be aware that from this point forward, you have to stay up on being a CEO, as well as a photographer. Take small steps; don’t try to reinvent your business the first day. Work your calendar and schedule business days around your shooting days. Organization is the first step to taking control of your business.

A photography business (usually) has the following tasks or departments:
• Photography—creation of images
• Marketing—promotion of your business to potential clients/customer as well as new client/customer identification and development
• Sales—selling the product or service to the previously identified client/customer
• Customer Service—keeping the client/customer happy; post-job follow-up to keep them coming back—referral is part of this and very important
• Fulfillment—delivering finished products to your clients/customers
• Studio Management—keeping the lights on, camera equipment maintained, phone bill paid, etc.
• Accounting—keeping everything paid and money in and out; identifying how to pay bills and what to finance; ensuring your banking and financial needs are being met
• Education—this is YOUR education—staying current in the industry; keeping up on your professional memberships; attending conferences and conventions
• CFO (Chief Fun Officer)—keeping it all fun and exciting for you!

As you can see, there are a lot of hats to be worn on a daily basis. All of them are important to keeping the business running effectively. Identifying the areas of your business that take time from your schedule and keeping them organized will help you stay ahead of your business and provide you with more free time.

Photographers generally have trouble grasping the basics of time management, but by dedicating a little extra time to this task, you will identify and eliminate hordes of time-wasters, and seize efficiency for your business.

Objectives
Now that you have identified the success goal or goals for your business, you need to write the plan, or strategy, of how you will achieve your goals.

Goals are the big picture, and objectives are the stepping stones along the path to achieving your goals.

Goals MUST be simple in their approach, must be measurable, and must have a completion date.

Of the business article “buzz phrases” floating around, my favorite is the “SMART Goal Strategy.” A goal should be SMART:
• Your goals should be Specific.
• Each should be Measurable.
• Hold yourself Accountable.
• Your goals must be Reachable.
• There must be a Timeline.

Following the SMART process, a goal could be: “I want to increase the number of weddings I photograph in the two winter quarters (fourth and first) by six weddings from the four I average now. I will do this by stepping up marketing during the summer months when I am very busy, (but will make spending time on this a priority) by implementing a direct-mail program targeting winter brides, beginning in July. The direct-mail piece will provide a direct incentive to utilizing us in this normally slow time. We will also implement a telephone follow-up program in August, with an email ‘harvest’ contest tied to our web site. We will then evaluate this program each month during the fourth quarter and into the first quarter to ensure effectiveness.”

This is just an example, and it doesn’t have to be a huge document. There’s the goal, clearly stated with simple objectives below it. Don’t make your goals merely: “I want to shoot more weddings and make more money this year when it’s cold.”

Hold the SMART concept to each of your goals and see if they fit, or adjust them accordingly.

The Path
Lastly, you have to increase your awareness level of your business. Being the great photographer you are just isn’t enough any more. The following are a few tips to keep the path clear, keep your vision for your business bright, and allow you the time to grow the business to the levels you want.

• Get organized: The most important task is to really get the clutter gone from your business—eliminate all the useless email and time-wasters from your business.
• Write out your strategy: You have to put it in writing for it to be effective. This is a must do.
• Make it a priority: Following the Success Strategy you have written is your priority. Write it, follow it, believe in it, and support it.
• Monitor your progress: Make sure you are not wandering off the path. Staying on track is a key to success.
• Know your market: Understand who buys what you do. Make sure you are catering to that market well. This is really important!
• Customer service is a must: Make sure you are pushing your business to deliver stellar customer service.
• The CFO rules! Every month, let your inner CFO (Chief Fun Officer) have a full or half day for an important CFO meeting. Go to a play, go fishing, go shopping, go to a museum, go to a ballgame, or get a massage. Take $50 out of petty cash, and let the business treat you to a day of fun and relaxation.

Enjoy a day to enjoy life as a photographer. This may sound a bit silly, but I promise you, after you try it one month, you will be hooked!

Ira Gostin is a photographer, cowboy and educator based in Reno, Nevada. Business Savvy will be a regular feature in Rangefinder. If you have questions about this month’s column, or want to suggest future topics, contact Ira at ira@gostinproductions.com/. He has shelved plans for becoming a Photography Business Evangelist.