Photo Field Notes Podcast: Career Advice for Photographers

In the span of 5 years, Liz grew and sold a successful blog, got bought out of her second company, and built the third into a multiple six-figure party that just won’t quit! In other words, she now teaches online entrepreneurs to simplify the whole “email marketing thing” and finally master their sales in a way that leverages their personality, vision, and values.

As a money management coach, Erinn Bridgman empowers entrepreneurs to design businesses that are not just ‘profitable’, but actually grow their personal wealth. Born with an entrepreneurial spirit, Erinn cut her chops by scaling her photography business to over six figures in under two years, affording her the capital to begin funding the real estate empire she and her husband now run. Erinn now supports business owners to not just ‘scale their business’ but to use it as a means for building personal wealth.

I try to show different viewpoints on this podcast, and for the past few weeks, I've been really digging in to understand why I left the in person sales model and why it never felt quite right to me. After discovering the podcast Duped: The Dark Side of Online Marketing with Michelle Mazur and Maggie Patterson, I realized that in person sales has potential to be emotionally manipulative toward clients. Buckle up as I dig into my research and share stories to back up these points. I'm also sharing a better way to offer clients the full service, including opportunities to get art into their homes, without manipulation and hard sells.

Charlotte Isaac is a Business Operations Consultant who gave up her role as a corporate ops manager inside of a creative agency so that she could serve small business owners who love their people just as much as she does hers. Through her signature program, Ease Seekers Society, and her DIY Dubsado shop, Charlotte helps overwhelmed and overworked entrepreneurs build customized solutions so they can serve their clients better, automate busywork, and feel confident in their business.

Andréa Jones has built an online business committed to empowering businesses to utilize the power of social media in a positive and impactful way, without being overwhelmed and drained by it.

Paige Ray is a commercial photographer for brands that are a creative force in their industry. Today on the podcast, she's sharing tips on how to pivot from one specialty to another as a photographer OR how to "pivot" your prices to make more money as a photographer - including how to introduce your pricing to clients as a high ticket item.

Today I'm talking with Kate Kordsmeier about how to set up evergreen funnels to drive consistent leads to your photography business. Kate Kordsmeier is a writer, educator, and creative entrepreneur. She lives in Atlanta with her husband, two kids, and three fur babies. She was a full-time journalist for nearly ten years and was featured in several high-profile magazines. After being diagnosed with PCOS and leaky gut syndrome, she started a holistic wellness blog, Root + Revel, which became incredibly successful. After turning her blog into a six-figure business, she created my course The Six-Figure Blog Academy, where she teaches students how to monetize their blogs using the exact step-by-step method she did for her. She also has a podcast, Success With Soul, where she dives deeper into how she work from a place of rest, not hustle.

As a small business owner, you're responsible for every financial decision in your business. Today, Danielle Hayden is walking through why she recommends keeping a financial dashboard (and what should be in it) to make ongoing business decisions. She's talks about how to use those numbers to set your goals and run your day like a CEO, planning for seasonality, paying yourself, and how to decide which investments are worth the risk in your business (Studio? Elaborate mini session setup? New gear? Training?). Danielle Hayden is a reformed corporate CFO (chief financial officer) who is on a mission to help rule-breaking female entrepreneurs understand their numbers so they can gain the confidence needed to create sustainable profits. After spending 10+ years in the boardroom as a corporate finance officer, Danielle is now in her sweet spot as the co-owner of Kickstart Accounting, Inc. where she helps business owners with bookkeeping, financial analysis, and education and as the author of the Profit Planner book series. When Danielle isn’t crunching numbers on her clients’ behalf or crafting the next iteration of the Profit Planner, you can find her hanging with her two kids as she inspires them to lead their fullest lives or doing any, and almost every fitness-related activity ranging from Spartan races to pilates.

Emily Reiter is the founder of Anna Delores Photography and a wedding photography educator who empowers fellow creatives to grow their businesses with elevated styling skills, connections with wedding vendors and publications, and entrepreneurial savvy to maximize long-term success. Former careers in visual merchandising and a business startup have provided Emily a unique skill set ideal for flourishing as a creative entrepreneur, and she is passionate about sharing what she’s learned with other wedding professionals. Whether through in-person workshops, online courses, or one-on-one mentoring, Emily loves to lead other photographers to a thriving career in the wedding industry.

Michelle Knight is a mother, wife, world traveler and storyteller. She is also a Personal Brand Coach and Marketing Strategist and the founder of Brandmerry.com. She works with entrepreneurs to create an authentic, captivating and money-making brand through the power of story. Michelle supports business owners at various stages of their business who share one common goal - creating an authentic brand that allows them to show up as they are, build a loyal community and experience time, financial and location freedom as a result of their work. Now she travels full-time with her family around the US and Europe and spends her time supporting women to achieve time, financial and location freedom.

Today on the podcast, Kelli White is sharing how she built her business in both photography AND videography, and how you can expand your own business with video. Kelli is an Indianapolis based photographer and filmmaker, where she works with families, couples and brands to tell authentic stories through photos and video. Kelli has a passion for educating and encouraging new female filmmakers through her videography education website, She Learns Video.

Kelsey is the founder and creator of the Aligned Business™ Academy, a 12 month business program designed to create a thriving business model that supports you in scaling to 6-figures while living your life without burning out. She is also the owner of Pinegate Road, a personal branding agency. Now 32, Kelsey is enthused by working with entrepreneurs to fulfill a “life first” approach while building the business of their dreams. Learn how you can apply Kelsey's approach to scale up your business AND work less hours.

Lisa Princic is a trained business strategist and the host of the Scaling Deep Podcast. Lisa's clients turn to her for help with business growth when they are worn out from chasing the next mass marketing trick, but know they need to go beyond word of mouth. She is a results-oriented, deep thinker who has an innate instinct for “seeing” the value of a business and turning that into a pipeline of ideal clients. A staunch believer in business simplicity and intention, Lisa helps her clients accomplish their goals by focusing on what to do AND what to ignore.