Stop Wasting Time & Money
Lesson 7 from: How to Start a Photography BusinessPye Jirsa
Stop Wasting Time & Money
Lesson 7 from: How to Start a Photography BusinessPye Jirsa
Lesson Info
7. Stop Wasting Time & Money
Summary (Generated from Transcript)
The topic of this lesson is the importance of focusing on the client experience and communication skills in a photography business, rather than being overly concerned with expensive gear. The instructor emphasizes that clients do not differentiate based on gear, but rather on the overall experience and quality of communication provided by the photographer. The lesson also discusses the cost of failure in terms of wasted time, money, unhappy clients, negative reviews, and potential loss of future clients. The instructor encourages learning from other people's mistakes and investing in education and skill development.
Q&A:
What is the main focus of this lesson?
The main focus of this lesson is to shift the focus of a photography business from gear to the client experience and communication skills.
How does the instructor emphasize the importance of the client experience?
The instructor states that clients do not differentiate based on gear, but rather on the overall experience and quality of communication provided by the photographer.
What are some examples of things that clients can differentiate in a photograph?
Clients can differentiate good communication versus poor communication, great poses and flattering expressions versus average ones, and good experiences versus not so good ones.
What is the cost of failure discussed in the lesson?
The cost of failure includes wasted time, money, unhappy clients, negative reviews, and potential loss of future clients.
What does the instructor recommend in terms of investing in education and skill development?
The instructor recommends investing in education and skill development through resources such as audio books, online classes, and in-person experiences, but cautions to research and ask for recommendations before investing in expensive classes.
Lessons
Class Introduction
13:12 2Common Myths & Unknown Truths
11:42 3The Road Ahead
13:03 4Find Your Passion
06:06 5The Lin & Jirsa Journey
13:54 6Part-time, Full-time, Employed, Partners?
03:51 7Stop Wasting Time & Money
06:07 8Your 12 Week Roadmap
04:33Great Plans Still Fail
06:01 10Strategy Vs. Planning
04:16 11Mind Mapping
07:25 12Select a Focus
14:16 13Competitor Research
09:34 14S.W.O.T. Analysis
13:54 15Strategy & Long Term Goals
03:50 16Values, Vision & Mission
27:49 17Effectively Managing Your Time
15:05 18Artistic Development
07:30 19Create Your Plan
13:12 20What's Your Product
10:51 21Luxury vs Consumer Products & Experiences
11:44 22Quick Break for Econ 101
16:31 23Your Target Market & Brand Message
21:25 24What's in a Name
09:20 25Your Client 'Why'
05:43 26Crafting the Why Experience
24:17 27Document the Client Experience
08:29 28Business Administration Basics
27:03 29Book Keeping Management
06:51 30Create the Logo & Branding
07:04 31Portfolio Design
15:11 32Design Your Services & Packages
18:51 33Pricing Fears & Myths
08:46 34Three Pricing Methods
25:39 35Package Pricing Psychology & Design
06:15 36Psychology of Numbers
07:29 37Pricing Q&A
23:51 38Grass Roots Marketing
09:36 39The Empty Party
07:03 40Friends & Family Test Shoots
16:28 41Join Groups
04:32 42Second Shooting Etiquette
07:44 43The Listing & Classified Hustle
14:10 44Make Instagram Simple
13:55 45Your Automated Pinterest Plan
08:01 46Facebook Because You Must
07:37 47Giveaway & Styled Shoots
12:17 48Content Marketing & SEO
08:12 49The Monster: SEO
07:26 50Selecting Your Keywords
05:45 51Testing Your Keywords
07:53 52Grouping Main & Niche Goals
12:39 53Your Content Road Map
11:47 54Content Marketing Q&A
10:45 55Inspiration to Keep Working
07:45 56How to Craft Your Content
15:03 57Internal Linking Basics
05:30 58Back Link Building Basics
04:55 59Link Value Factos
14:38 60Measuring Link Value
04:24 61Link Building Strategy & Plan
06:10 62Link Building Plan: Vendors & Guest Writing
06:45 63Link Building Plan: Features, Directories, Comments
03:11 64Link Building: Shortcuts & One Simple Tool
14:44 65What is Sales? Show Me!
12:58 66Your First Massive Failure
05:17 67The Sales Process
07:31 68Your Second Massive Failure
05:23 69Understand Buyer Psychology
10:00 70Step 0: Building Rapport & Trust
15:14 71Step 1: Identify Need or Want
15:39 72Cognitive Dissonance
12:01 73Steps 2 & 3: Value Proposition & The Solution
14:21 74Step 4 : Close, Make the Ask
04:32 75Step 5: Follow Up & Resolve Concerns
06:13 76Family Photography Hot Seat
12:06 77Business Example Hot Seat
15:52 78Boudoir Photography Hot Seat
16:09 79The Best Sales Person
07:45 80Your Mindset, Vibrations & Frequency
06:56 81Always Positive, Always Affirming
11:55 82The Second Money & Dual Process
07:39 83Chumming the Price Waters
03:57 84Creating Want or Scarcity
09:54 85Timeless Advice on Being Likable
11:53 86Selling Over The Phone
10:59 87Forbidden Words in Sales
11:40Lesson Info
Stop Wasting Time & Money
I'm going to say this respect yourself stop wasting time and money. This is a big one for me. Which of your clients can tell these apart? Raise your hands if you think they can. F2 F1.4 F1.2 you guys are laughing why are you laughing? Which of your clients can tell these apart raise your hands. Which of you guys have a hard time telling these apart? Okay so what's all the fuss again. How about the D800 versus the D850. I can't tell. 50 versus 36 versus 28 megapixels. Who knows like seriously. Yet online discussion of photography and in person discussion of photography and workshop discussion of photography, how big of a focus is gear and the gear that you have and what you have. If I can only get that lens then I can do this. If I had an 85-12 I could shoot and be really successful. I've heard that exact argument I can't tell you how many times, I want to deliver that for my clients I can't find clients unless I have an 85-12. Oh my goodness, really? How about this, what if I give you ...
extremes, which of you can tell which is the $500 Rebel Kit versus the $ Full-Frame and Lens combo. This is an example from Photography 101 we actually blow them up so you can see them side by side, it's so difficult to tell, this was a $99 prime on the left side versus a $2000 prime on the right side. If you're having a hard time with it, what do your clients think? How about this. How many of your clients can tell the difference between good communication versus poor, raise your hands. Yeah we're all good at knowing that. How about great poses and flattering expressions versus just average ones, that'll show through in a photograph. Good experiences versus not so good ones, that's something that they can differentiate. Guys there's nothing on the imagery side that they can differentiate, what we're talking about on our side, this is for photographers only. What they differentiate is the experience and they'll talk about that, but you bring your, tell me your name. Lee. Lee, I'm Pye nice to meet you. So you've got an 85-12 I'm sorry brother they're just not going to talk about it you know what I mean, that's fine but we're all brainwashed to spend thousands on gear and nothing on education. This is one of those things that I wanted to talk about because these are all things that have happened to us. So I want to tell you the cost of failure. Time this is your most valuable asset, this is all you've got the one thing you can't make more of. Okay so wasted time that's on the small side of things that you could potentially fail at. How about money? We have had refunds, not a lot, but think about this for one second. If we've shot over the last five, six years 300 plus weddings, let's say it's 1500 clients. It would be doing great if you had less than 1% refunds which we do, we have in something like ten years we've given two. Even those two let's say they were $6000 in total, compare that to how much money you spent on your education. $6000 how much could you spend on education and never even come close to $6000? Isn't that kind of a stupid thought to think of like oh my goodness if I could've done something to prepare for that, so unhappy clients, negative reviews and negative word of mouth oh my goodness those can cost you big time. Because it's not going to effect one future client it's going to effect multiple, so if you're booking at two 3000 a negative review can effect the next $20, of income, those are huge. Future clients, if you get enough negative reviews, if you get enough negative word of mouth out there you could potentially take the entire business. And we've seen it happen, multiple times and it all goes back to simply don't shortcut yourself, don't shortcut the process, don't buy into this whole oh yeah you're going to be shooting a $10,000 wedding, here's how to shoot $10,000 weddings next week. Maybe you'll get one, maybe you'll get two and then you'll tank your business right afterwards because you're not yet there ruined it. Here's the cost of education. Audible my favorite place to, I listen to books constantly I go through about a book a week on Audible. So that costs me $250 bucks a year for an entire subscription, cheap. Online classes I spend personally at least $800 to bucks on online classes per year, I budget that into what I'm going to be spending. And in person experiences, I spend money on too. But the one thing I caution about that is just go off word of mouth, don't buy into what the hype is, ask people who attended those classes because a lot of those can be hit or miss and they're a lot of money. But still if you added all these things up together over the course of five years it still wouldn't come close to losing a client or potential clients in the future correct, that's the cost difference I want you guys to think about when you guys are thinking about this. Learn from other people's mistakes, life's too short to make them all yourself.
Class Materials
Bonus Materials with Purchase
Ratings and Reviews
Armstrong Su
This class and materials are to the point and eye-opening on the business side of photography. Pye Jirsa is an amazing and fun teacher as well! Most photographers need more business classes offered to bring us who love to create art back to reality for a more successful business that makes a living on it's own. This course will definately get you started in the right direction and so cheap too! Great investment! armstrong outdoor tv case outdoortvcase Pye Jirsa is one of the best instructors that I have the pleasure to learn from. He and his team have given me so much more than they'll ever realize. Knowledge, wisdom, training, friendship, mentoring, inspiration, joy... I cannot thank Pye enough for changing my life for the better. I owe them more than they'll ever realize. Thank you, Pye Jirsa!!!
Angela Sanchez
This class has been an eye opener for me; a point of change in my vision as photographer. Pye is and AMAZING, INSPIRING, GENEROUS instructor, with an, authentic desire to help people and to share with them the best of his knowledge. I will not have enough words to say thanks to Pye Jirsa, as a teacher and as a human being, and thanks to Creative Live who allows us to benefit from the experience of such a knowledgeable, educated, well-versed photographer and instructor. 1000% recommended!
Yenith LianTy
Been following this guy forever. Pye Jirsa may be well known in the wedding & portrait photography world and if there is something that this guy knows it is how to create a business, a sustainable one. The workbook he provided is comprehensive, and I honestly wish I had this when I first started out as a photographer! I love that he talks about his failures, keeping it real and honest for anyone starting out. He is definitely one of the best instructors around, super humble, down to earth and with a sense of humor to boot. The course is worth it! THE WORKBOOK is AMAZING! SUPER DETAILED!