The Podcast for Pet Photographers
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S16E10 | Guaranteeing a minimum $2000 sale with Jane Thomson
Over the last few years I’ve seen how trends have changed and pet photographers around the world have introduced new business models and pricing structures.
But today’s guest is the exception.
She found what works for her early on, and she’s sticking to it. By pricing herself this way she is consistently hitting her averages, and attracting the type of client she wants- all by word of mouth!
I’m talking about Jane Thomson whose work is pure art and absolutely gorgeous, and I am stoked to have her on the show today.
S16E09 | Clients are everywhere, but some areas are worth traveling to with Blue Amrich
We often hear educators saying that you can find clients anywhere. I know I say it, and I believe it because we really need so few clients per year that we can find enough no matter where we live- well almost.
Today’s guest agrees, but she also pointed out that some markets are easier than others which is why she happily travels two hours to her client shoots back in Boston, instead of trying to find clients in her new hometown.
By making this decision, she also realised she had to make more money per client. So two years ago, Blue Amrich re-designed her business model to meet that new required average sale. In today's episode, she shared what Beyond the Fence looked like then and the biggest change she made to ensure that drive is worth it.
S16E08 | Business lesson learned over 14 years+ as a pet photographer
Today’s guest is no stranger to this industry. She has been setting standards for pet photographers for a decade or so, but today she’s here not to talk about education, but her journey as a pet photographer and the changes she’s made throughout the years to meet her business goals. I’m talking about none other than Nicole Begley and I’m wrapped to have her joining us today.
S16E06 | Skipping the shortcuts and staying focused on a million-dollar business goal as a pet photographer with Gabi Kline Leon
Today’s guest, Gabi Leon of Gavriella Pet Photography, moved to the U.S. 4 years ago. In the lead up to her move she laid as many foundations as possible to be ready to hit the ground running. Since then, she’s stayed focused on her goal which is to offer a high-end luxury photography business and build a million dollar business.
She isn’t quite getting consistent bookings yet, but the ones she does get, spend enough that it doesn’t matter- which by the way, is on average between $5-6k.
She’s gotten creative with her marketing too and in this interview, she shared one strategy that I haven’t heard of before and if you’re aiming for high sales, you could certainly replicate.
S16E01 | High sales start with a flawless processes, and a great location helps with Kim Buccheri
How does an $8500 average sale sound to you with a cost of goods of just 5%. That is reality for today’s guest who deliberately moved their studio location to be in a town that aligns with their studio brand. I’m talking about Kim of Kimberly Sarah Photography. She joined us back in season five to share all things client experience and I’ve got her back today to share her insights into achieving consistently high sales. They’ve also just launched a new business, Hey Winston and if you’ve ever dreamed of outsourcing your sales- then it is for you!
S15E13 | 25 years of dog photography with Margaret Bryant
Margaret Bryant of Bryant Dog Photography started out shooting dog sports on film but quickly realised that wasn’t sustainable (for the time) and moved into studio portraits. Since then she’s photographed thousands of dogs in her home studio in Texas, and even published a couple of books.
We covered a lot in this episode, from Margert’s experiences in the early days of her business, to who our biggest competitor is and how we can book clients anyway. And if you’ve been thinking about offering puppy packages, definitely tune into the second half to hear exactly what Margaret is offering.
S15E07 | Pet Photography Success in a Developing Country
Today’s guest has been a working photographer for almost 20 years. She started out in weddings in the UK and switched to portraits when she moved to South Africa. Fast forward to today, she’s reworked her pricing structure to ensure her business is profitable with the 150 clients per year she shoots for, 80% of which are pet shoots. I’m talking about Emma O’Brien of Emma O’Brien Photographer. I’m sure you’ll be impressed as me to learn that she doesn’t do any paid marketing but instead uses a strategic networking approach to ensure her calendar is full so if you’re looking for free marketing strategies, but sure to listen to the second half of this episode where we go into those in detail.
S15E06 | Using a move to set up a profitable pet photography business, the right way
I’ve asked many photographers what they’d do to start their business if they moved to a new place.. And today’s guest has actually done it. She completely transformed her business from shoot and burn family photography in South Africa, to a profitable, full-service specialised pet photographer in New Zealand. She studied and implemented what she learned in order to make that transition successful and now she’s consistently booking clients who typically spend $1800. I’m talking about Salome of Yellow Pet Photography.
S15E04 | Just three years in business and consistently booking her calendar with $2800 sales averages
Today’s guest started her business just before the Pandemic. She utilised the time through Covid to lay strong foundations for her business and hit the ground running when the world opened back up again. She uses direct marketing with giveaways to book clients year round and from those strategies has an average sale of around $2800 and her highest sale to date is $16k! Remember that she’s been in business just a few years! I’m talking about Marie Wulfram, tune in to hear how she achieves all of this.
S11E09 | How to Work with Dog Brands with Kerry Jordan
Do you have clients who have their own pet-related business? Perhaps you’ve received enquiries from local dog brands before, or you know of small businesses that you’d love to work with, but you’re not sure how to serve them. Are you always wondering how you can create a package that would best serve them - stumped between your normal pricing, recommended licensing pricing, and giving everything for free? Stay tuned.
S11E04 | Enter 2022 with a profitable price list
What are your business goals for 2022? If one of them is to feel more confident in your prices, (and increase your income) then todays episode is especially for you with my three steps for creating a profitable price list! Spoiler alert, it has nothing to do with the prices of the photographer down the road or multiplying your costs by a random number!
1. Know how you spend your time and your desired hourly rate
2. Know your cost of business (download free calculator)
3. Sell what you love- at prices that meet your targets!
FREEBIE: https://www.thepetphotographersclub.com/freebie-required-average-sale
P.S. we are taking a little break over the festive season and hope you are too! If you’re missing us, we recommend you dive into the archives during this time!
P.P.S. Are you in your first 18 months of business or haven’t officially launched yet? Join Kirstie in our Business Foundations Challenge for weekly Zoom class to set up a profitable and lasting business in just 3 months!
S10E12 | Five Aha! Moments from 2021 with Caitlin & Kirstie (Must Listen Episode)
Oh my goodness, it is ALMOST DECEMBER?! Where did 2021 go? To celebrate our annual Black Friday Super Sale, Kirstie and Caitlin took a look back through the 2021 Podcast Archives to pick out our personal top five AHA! moments.
If you missed any of these episodes along the way, consider this your sign to go back and have a listen. Or just tune into this episode and we’ll sum up the best bits for you!
S10E11 | Sarah Stangl Raised Her Swiss Dog Photography Prices by 75% - and Business Boomed!
When Sarah Stangl was faced with the unnerving realisation that her pet photography side hustle was not profitable enough to become her full-time job, she knew she’d have to either raise her prices, or quit altogether. She took the leap, bumped her prices by significant 75% and focused on creating incredible hiking dog photo experiences in the Swiss Alps. Tune into our in depth interview with Sarah Stangl of Abenteuerhunde to find out all about her European adventure dog photography business.
S10E08 | Getting started with offering professional printing and products as a pet photographer with Atkins Photo Lab
Making the transition from an all-inclusive, digital only photographer, to offering products can be overwhelming. Firstly, there are so many suppliers, and each of them have so many unique products to choose from! And even once you choose products- how do you price them?! Then there is the file handling and the preparing images for print. Is it all worth it?
Paul and Kate of Atkins Pro Lab in Adelaide Australia joined me in this episode to answer all your questions, and to reassure you that it doesn’t have to be complicated.
S9E08 | How to Use the Storybrand Website Framework in your Pet Photography Business with Ryan Toth
Have you heard of Storybrand? It’s a very popular and proven marketing strategy that helps businesses clarify their message and build a sales funnel into their website. In this 7-part framework, you cast your clients as the hero - rather than your website being all about YOU, your website tells a story that your client can relate to. Sounds intriguing, right? We interviewed website expert and certified Storybrand guide, Ryan Toth of Clearbrand to find out all about this powerful framework and how pet photographers can use it to improve their websites.
S8E10 | How to Sell Wall Art to Businesses with Michael Puck
Michael Puck is shaking things up in the world of professional pet photography. Fuelled by his desire to help save dogs from kill shelters, he runs his business, K9Photo, as a nonprofit.
But although k9Photo is a charity, Michael does not ask for donations. The revenue is entirely generated by selling multi-thousand dollar dog wall art collections to non pet related businesses. In this fascinating interview, Michael shares how you can position dog wall art to businesses in your own local area, to open up a vast new world of opportunities. This is an interview that your MUST NOT MISS!
S8E02 | 3 Mistakes Pet Photographers Make
Over and over again we see the same mistakes with pet photographers related to their services and the way they’re getting the word out. These mistakes are attracting the wrong people and keeping you from making the money you deserve. So today we’re going to go over 3 mistakes that are keeping you from dream pet photography clients and consistent income.
S6E02 | Mark Rossetto Reviews a Member's Price List
So we’re very excited to introduce a NEW type of episode for Season Six of the Pet Photographers Club - the EXPERT REVIEW. And what better way to launch this than with formidable photography business coach, Mark Rossetto?
Mark Rossetto is an award winning Master Photographer, an international keynote speaker and a qualified Photography Business Coach. He is highly regarded and has coached hundreds of photographers from beginners to seasoned professionals all over the world including Australia, USA, UK, Europe and NZ.
In today’s Expert Review, Mark dived into the price list of club member, Rebecca Kostka from Shy Wolf Photography. We’ve picked out an awesome audio clip from this episode to share on the podcast, but this is a video episode so really we recommend that your watch the full Expert Review in the Member Zone. Mark is truly an expert, so you won’t want to miss this one!
S5E07 | Creating a High-End Customer Experience with Kimberly Buccheri
Kimberly Buccheri knows how to launch a business. She was published in NH magazine within the first 4 month of starting, and has average sales of $5000. She runs a low volume, high customer care studio and is the other half of the team behind Kimberly Sarah Photography.
Listen to this week's episode of the Pet Photographer's Club to learn all about how Kimberly Buccheri went from being laid off to running a successful studio.
S4E04 | Thinking Outside the Box with JB Shepard
JB Shepard is a self-taught photographer and digital artist who walked away from a career in marketing and design to pursue his passion for creative pet portraiture. He is best known for his signature headshot style of dog photography and the whimsical paper hats that feature in many of his portraits.