Have you ever felt like you are constantly putting out fires and reacting to client emails, inquiries, and endless deliverables!? When I first started my second business, I had this feeling ALL THE TIME. Things took off quicker than I had anticipated and I didn’t have the systems in place that I needed to run my business efficiently. I was being reactive, not proactive. Over the past two years, I’ve learned more and more about shifting this overwhelm and reactive behavior to a much more sustainable, proactive mindset. So today, I want to talk a little bit about this common problem of being reactive as a small business owner and help you shift to being more proactive in your business.
Being Reactive
Before we can dive into talking about how being proactive can benefit you and your business, I want to explain a little more about what I mean when I say being reactive. So, let me ask you these questions:
- Do you find yourself responding to client questions about your onboarding process?
- Do you often need to take calls or answer texts from clients about event details?
- Are you missing important pieces of information to send to your clients and scrambling to send them at the last minute?
- And last, (this one is my favorite for all you wedding photographers out there), do your clients email you and ask when they will be receiving their galleries!?
If you answered yes to any of these questions above, you might learn a thing or two that will get your client experience in tip-top shape! Being proactive takes practice, and solid systems (more on this later!). When you are reactive, communication is lacking and your clients feel like they are missing something from you. This work style does not lend itself to effective and empowering client communication. And, it leaves you feeling like a scrambled mess all the time with emails, texts, deliverables, etc.
Being Proactive
If you are feeling overwhelmed and reactive in your business, listen up! This is something you can fix, I promise. Once you commit to shifting your work style to a proactive mindset, you will save time, feel less overwhelmed, improve client relationships, and have the ability to scale your business for success!
When you communicate and put yourself ahead of the curve (before problems arise), you are going to be seen as an expert. Someone who has their (you know what) together! Your clients will feel empowered and informed. Opening the door for you to deliver your amazing product, whatever it may be, in a timely and professional way!
Cultivating a proactive environment for your business is going to be different for every person. For me, there are many ways I try to be proactive in both my businesses. Today, I want to share three ways I am proactive in my photography business.
Three Ways I Am Proactive in My Photography Business
#1 – The Wedding Night
As soon as I get home from a wedding, I send out an email to the couple. I letting them know what to expect for completion of their images, final gallery, and blog post. In the email, I state that I am working hard on their images and will return them within the time frame stated in their contract. No more emails from couples asking when their galleries will be ready!
#2 – Vendor Communication
It is very important to me to connect with all the vendors at a wedding I shoot. Before the wedding day, I get every vendors email and social handles for two reasons. One, to connect and introduce myself before the wedding. And two, to share the gallery with them when it is complete and credit their work on social media!
#3 – Wedding Day Timelines
This one is a biggy! I used to wait until four months out to make the wedding day timelines. After a few weddings where I ran into a situation of the couple me needing more hours (and me feeling awkward asking them for an additional fee because I didn’t realize this when they booked) I decided I needed to start making timelines ON their consultation call so they know exactly how many hours they comfortably need for their wedding day so they can book the proper collection. And bonus, it gives them a big picture look at their day and provides a sense of comfort knowing that I’m organized and prepared.
Throughout my client communication, from start to finish, I try to be proactive with every portion of my workflow. This way, my client always know I have a handle on things. From planning their engagement session to sending their gallery, I am able to provide accurate and timely information every step of the way. This inevitably builds trust in you as a person and a professional!
In the end, it’s about being one step (or five steps) ahead of your client. Not only will it save you headaches and stress in the future, it will ultimately serve your businesses bottom line. You will leave clients feeling empowered and happy! Deliverables won’t fall through the cracks, panic texts from clients will be very rare, and your time will be spent wisely. You’ll start getting testimonials from clients that say “thank you for being so organized and communicative during this whole process, you made our [wedding, session, event, project] so much less stressful because we knew you had things covered.” Moreover, your referrals will continue to grow as you continue to deliver a solid, trustworthy product to every client you reach!
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