Growing in 2019 as a Photographer | Seattle Newborn & Maternity Photographer

December 19, 2019 By Stephanie With 0 Comment

In My Thoughts

This year has been such a huge year of growth for me as a business owner. Last year I really felt like I focused on things like education and my style etc but 2019 I focused solely on the business side of my business. Running a small business is not easy. There are a million things to think about from taxes and licenses to costs of doing business to client experience and marketing. The list really is huge.

Working On Me

The first thing I feel improved this year was my confidence in my abilities to provide a consistent gallery to my clients. I love what I do and have worked so hard over the last few years getting it to this point. Don’t get me wrong I feel there is always room to grow and learn but I am happy with my portfolio and the work that I provide. I really love that my clients can go to my website and pick out poses and props they like along with seeing such the variety of colors and goodies I have that they can use at their sessions.

Making Some Connections

In 2019 I was able to make some really good industry connections. These helped me provide a better service to my clients. Whether it is a new vendor for tiebacks, wraps and buckets to a new videographer to help me make some behind the scenes videos etc. Not only that I have made some new photographer friends who share the same view of our industry that I really admire. I know it seems weird that other photographers are helpful but really having someone to turn to if I need a backup due to illness or someone to bounce ideas off of makes such a huge difference.

Client Experience

Now this one is really important to me. For my maternity clients, I really went crazy expanding my gown closet. There are so many dresses to choose form now when you come in for a session. I think I am at 50 different colors and styles. Let me know if you want to see some of them!

I also upgraded most of my products this year as well. I have finally found exactly what I am looking for in terms of specialty products. Each session now comes with a personalized sales appointment so we can work together to find the perfect wall art for your family. I have a new gorgeous rustic heirloom album and rustic farmwood print boxes to show off those gorgeous smaller images.

Being able to really offer a custom experience from start to finish when you book with me was a change I have been wanting to make for a while. I can’t wait to share it all with you. Check out my website for a quick view into some of the goodies available.

Things I Have Learned

Balancing work and family can be tough. I have been working on my business part time since I started back in 2013. Now that all my kids are in school full time I have a lot more time to devote to my business. I have been able to start working during the day and leaving my weekends for my family when I can. It has been wonderful getting that time back. Not to mention getting work done during the week and working less in the evenings has been nice too.

Valuing myself, my time and setting up my business more like a “real” day job has been so important in helping me set those boundaries and getting better at balancing work and family. I really feel like i learned a lot this year. I love. My job and can’t wait to see my growth for 2020.