As photographers, we fill many different roles. We are creative ideas people, business owners, marketing managers, customer service providers, image editors and more. In addition to all the hats we wear as photographers, many of us are also spouses, parents and household managers. While balancing so many aspects of your life, it can be challenging to recognize the right time to focus on scaling your photography business and, when you are ready to grow, how exactly to approach it.
Shifting your focus on how to grow a photography business can mean increasing your income and, maybe surprisingly, may lead to less daily work for yourself and more time with your family.
The Right Time for Growth
First, understand the right time to start scaling up your photography business. If you work toward growth too soon, you may outrun the processes and resources you have in place. If you wait too long, you may miss out on great opportunities. While it’s important to be ready, there are a few things you won’t need in place before you grow that may surprise you.
What You Don’t Need
• A Full Range of Professional Equipment
There will always be newer and better photography equipment on the market. It’s easy to get swept into thinking you need all the latest lenses and lighting gear to grow your business further. However, as long as you’ve got a camera capable of making large prints and a basic light reflector, you’re ready to move forward.
• A Photography Studio
You do not need a photography studio to expand your business. In fact, signing a lease on a studio before you’re ready may mean dealing with the stress of managing a significant monthly expense. Focus first on bringing in clients before you commit to a studio space.
You May Be Ready If:
• You Have Efficient Systems in Place
Before you consider expanding, assess your working systems, such as your client communication, bookkeeping, workflow and editing processes. Growth without proper systems in place can overwhelm your business.
• You’re Consistently Growing Already
You may be ready to expand if you are consistently gaining clients and your profits are increasing from your business already.
• You’re in High Demand
If your session calendar is booked and growing organically, it is probably a sign that you’re ready to take your photography business to the next level.
How to Grow Your Photography Business
While nearly anyone can start a photography business, growing and maintaining profitability takes some planning and work. Here are six ways to seek out growth when you’re ready to expand:
1. Invest in Yourself
To succeed in business, you’ll also need to succeed personally–whether investing in photography business coaching, further education, delegating specific tasks to others, outsourcing or simply taking care of your mind, body and soul.
2. Find a Mentor
The best way to learn the ins and outs of the photography industry is to work with someone who understands it. A photography business mentor or coach will help you evaluate your business's current state and help you make plans for a more prosperous future.
3. Choose Your Niche
As a photography business owner, one of the most important decisions you’ll make is choosing your specialty. By honing in on a particular niche, you can focus on being the very best in your area at that specific photography service. Choosing a niche will help attract your ideal clients.
4. Set Your Goals and Priorities
Growth looks different for every business. Deciding on your specific photography business goals and setting your priorities will help you better schedule your time. This action also gives you room to say no to things or to put tasks that are unhelpful at present on the back burner.
5. Focus on Marketing
While marketing for photographers can look like anything from donating to charities, social media messaging or volunteering at your children’s school events, establishing a marketing plan is essential to growth. As you scale up your business, you will want to outline and focus more on an actionable plan of ideas and strategies.
6. Outsource Tasks
Speaking of hiring other people, outsourcing certain tasks can be extremely helpful when expanding your business. Take a look at everything you do regularly for your business. Now separate those tasks into things you do well, things you could be better at, things you love to do, and things you avoid until unavoidable. Those things that you really don’t enjoy or struggle with may be tasks that can be outsourced to other people, freeing up more of your own time. These tasks include bookkeeping, social media management, image editing and more.
Deciding it’s time to scale up your photography business is a big step. However, recognizing when you’re ready to grow and understanding the steps needed to start the process can benefit your business and family and provide peace of mind.
