Growing Your Photography Business (Part 3): Business Plan, Professionalism, and Pricing
To make sure that your photography career ๐ธ is set up for long-term success, you must make sure you are working on the business side of it.๐ธ
Photography is a rewarding career that allows you to provide high-quality visuals for people or businesses. It helps them achieve their objectives, but you also have to make sure that you have margins that will help your business grow.
Business Plan
โYou'll fail at 100% of the goals you don't set,โ -Mark Hansen. A business plan is an outline of your business goals and steps needed to achieve them. It could be as simple as a 10-page document made to help your business stay on track. ๐ค๏ธ
Business plans are useful for working with your staff, investors, and stakeholders in the future. It will help them see the overall picture and how you operate. Plus, you save time. A good business plan will attract like-minded people to get involved in your business, and the structure will help you avoid issues that may arise.
Some of the key parts to a business plan include your values, ethics, target market, how you set yourself apart and your future plans.
I always remember the phrase, โPeople donโt buy what you do, they buy why you do it.โ The business plan is the most important tool you can use to best connect to your audience and gear you up for success.
Iโve created a practically-informed Finance Sheet that can help you reach your financial goals.
Professionalism
Photography is essentially about serving truth and beauty through images. Just like any business, the trust placed upon us requires a moral obligation to act truthfully and to earnestly develop habits and standards expected of professionals. ๐จโ๐ผ๐ฉ๐ฝโ๐ผ
Professional behavior across all aspects is crucial including how you set expectations, manage appointments and deliver on schedule.
To help you further, Iโve come up with this easy-to-use โSHOT LISTโ and to make your time management easier.
Pricing
Pricing your services correctly is important to make sure your business grows. Make sure you are setting your pricing so that you are profitable. ๐๐๐
To correctly determine your rates, closely monitor your costs, time spent, the average price in your market, and the margins you would like to have. Also keep an eye on your revenue, asset depreciation (your items losing value), and your NET income.
Keep in mind that your goal at the end of the day is not just to produce beautiful work, but to be sustainable by bringing in profits that enable you to thrive.
To help you further, Iโm offering this Finance Sheet which I refined through the years.
In case you missed it, here are business tips part 1 and part 2.
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Success in your business involves establishing a solid financial foundation. Thank you for reading my photography business tips and I wish you many years of success!
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