Plan Your Work, Work Your Plan
How many of us have heard the above saying, plan your work, work your plan? Funny, I first heard it in a song by an underground hip hop group. Who woulda thunk? Nonetheless, I did not know how profound an effect that would have on me until I decided to “seriously” run my own photography business.
Now before I decided to do this, I kind of took my pricing with a grain of salt. I mean, I was doing it on the side and was making decent money in my regular job. However, when the steady paycheck stopped, it was time to get serious. I mean, how else was I going to still afford my Godzilla Maki Rolls? Who wants to give up their current standard of living? Well if it isn’t much to begin with, then I guess that question is answered. But still, given the opportunity, we all still want to improve it, right?
Well first it was Lawrence Chan of Tofurious who inspired me to find my pricing and stick to it. As a matter of fact, he is a skilled professional photographer and marketing guru. You can find a copy of his book about pricing here. For those challenged with pricing their work, I highly suggest reading his book. Secondly, I had to find my pricing that would enable me to still buy my Godzilla rolls ( and of course, feed my family)! Then how about my niche, the mantra of the business, and how I was going to reach those lofty goals that I had set for myself? This called for a business plan!
First of all, I wanted a great template to follow. I chose Business Plan Pro which provided templates and an easy to follow wizard that helped me to define my mission statement, goals, and metrics to measure my progression. Now a third of the way through it, I am feeling good. My business has been defined, objectives set, and yes, my pricing has been determined.
The reason I wrote this was not to teach you how to write a business plan, but to offer a way for us photographers to stick to our pricing and art. Many times people will want us to do shoots for free or for discounted prices, and this may appear harmless when it is done in small amounts. However, this philanthropy will add up in time, and with a business plan you will be able to see how this is diverting you from your goals. Without a plan, you will have no idea what is happening. When it comes to your style of shooting, both people and the money may persuade you to follow a path that is opposing to your goals and even ideals. But the danger of this is forgetting who you are as a “visual artist” and foregoing the very vision that you set out to establish with your art. Having a plan and working your plan will help to keep you on track with your goals, your vision, and help you to avoid the dangers associated with becoming sidetracked!
Frank
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Great post!! I completely agree with you and it is something thst I, myself am working on. Keep up the great work…..very insightful.
Frank,
Great post. i too believe in :planning your work and working the plan”. We often have really good intentions as artist and business people. We also get caught up in the excitement of the shoot or engagement.
The is where the plan come into play. It takes all emotion out of the business aspect of what we know we love to do and that’s capture life.
The industry as a whole is so varied by age, experience, and specialization, but the 1 consistent foundation should be a solid plan of attack.
Thanks again for the post.
Kevin