January is the best time to refresh wedding photography systems—because the truth is, you don’t need another year of white-knuckling your way through busy season. You need systems that bend with you, support you on your worst days, and stop leaving you feeling like you’re constantly behind.
I know what it’s like to build a business in a world that wasn’t designed for people like us—chronically ill, neurodivergent, layered AF. It’s not about perfectionism or industry-standard checklists. It’s about survival, sustainability, and creating clarity in the middle of chaos. I’ve burned myself out, torn things down, and rebuilt them from the ground up. Not because I love starting over, but because I refuse to keep running a business that drains the life out of me.
If you’re craving freedom, simplicity, and a softer pace, this episode of Keeping It Candid is for you. I’m walking you through why January is the perfect time to reset, how to refresh wedding photography systems without drowning in overwhelm, and where to focus first so you’re not babysitting broken workflows come spring. This isn’t about doing more—it’s about doing less, better, so your business finally feels like it’s working for you, not against you.
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What You’ll Learn About Refreshing Your Wedding Photography Systems in This Episode
January gives you something rare in this industry: space to breathe. It’s a natural pause before inquiries start pouring in, and it’s the perfect time to decide how you want your business to actually run this year.
In this episode, I’m breaking down:
- Why January matters so much as a reset point—not just for your business, but for your energy.
- The four core areas you need to look at first: client management, communication, project management, and finances.
- How tools like HoneyBook and RescueTime can do the heavy lifting for you instead of adding more to your plate.
- Why realistic goals (planned by quarter, not a 12-month stretch) make everything feel less impossible.
- The permission slip you probably need most: outsource the things you can’t—or straight up don’t want to—do yourself.
The focus of this episode is simple: it’s time to refresh wedding photography systems so you’re not stuck repeating the same cycle of burnout year after year.
Behind-the-Scenes: What’s Changing for Me
Before we dive into the teaching, here’s a little peek behind the curtain of my own world:
- I shifted from building HoneyBook systems to working as a Virtual Assistant, and now as an Online Business Manager.
- I’m already fully booked for Q1 2025, which still feels surreal and a little pinch-me.
- My words of the year: alignment for my business, and confidence for myself.
- And—I finally got the call for my long-awaited endometriosis surgery.
All of these changes reminded me that systems are never just about efficiency. They’re about building businesses that can flex with us through illness, life transitions, and the unexpected. They’re about creating breathing room when everything else feels heavy.
Free Resource for Wedding Photographers
If your inbox already feels like it’s running your life, I’ve got you. My Busy Season Email Survival Kit for Wedding Photographers is a free resource built to take the edge off your client communication when you need it most.
It’s ready for you to grab, plug in, and use—so you can stop stressing about what to say and start feeling supported by a system that actually works.
January Is the Perfect Time to Refresh Wedding Photography Systems
January is a reset point. It’s the one time of year when the pace slows just enough to catch your breath. Engagement season is about to hit, which means more inquiries, more emails, and way more moving parts. Getting your systems in order now means you’ll actually be ready when everything speeds up in February and March.
If you put it off until later, you’ll be buried in weddings and edits before you know it—and that’s when the overwhelm sets in. A few intentional weeks in January is an investment in a smoother year, not another round of running yourself into the ground.
Where to Focus When You Refresh Wedding Photography Systems
Client Management
Your inquiry process is the first impression couples get. Simplify it in your CRM, clean up old templates, and automate the emails you send over and over again.
Communication Systems
Your emails should feel like an extension of your brand, not an afterthought. Refresh your templates so they’re clear, supportive, and on brand. Add an FAQ email that answers common questions before clients even have to ask.
Project Management
Stop trying to map out an entire year at once—it’s overwhelming. Use tools like Google Tasks or Asana to keep your daily to-dos organized, and plan in 90-day chunks instead of 12 months at a time.
Financial Systems
Money stress is one of the fastest tracks to burnout. Review your expenses, update your pricing, and set two types of goals: sales goals (future bookings) and cashflow goals (the money you’re actually taking home). Automate invoices with HoneyBook, and track where your time is really going with RescueTime.
How to Refresh Your Wedding Photography Systems Without Overwhelm
Start with an audit of last year—what worked, what didn’t, what made you want to throw your laptop out the window.
Pick one area to improve first. Don’t try to overhaul everything in one go.
Work at your own pace, whether that’s late at night, early in the morning, or somewhere in between.
And most importantly, give yourself permission to outsource the stuff you don’t have capacity for—or the stuff you just don’t want to do.
You don’t need to fix it all at once. Start small. Build momentum. Every system you clean up frees up more of your energy for the work that actually matters to you.
Tools & Resources Mentioned
- HoneyBook — My go-to client management platform for contracts, invoices, and workflows. Get 30% off your first year here.
- RescueTime — A time-tracking app that runs quietly in the background and shows you exactly where your hours are going.
Ready to Streamline Your Systems?
If you’re ready to finally refresh your wedding photography systems, my HoneyBook services are designed to help photographers clean up the backend chaos and start fresh.
I go into your account, clean things up, and organize it so it finally works the way you need it to. From quick housekeeping to done-for-you workflows, everything I offer is built to protect your energy and free up your time.
👉 Explore my HoneyBook services for photographers and let’s get your backend working as beautifully as your client work.
Full Transcript
Note: This full transcript is provided for accessibility and for anyone who prefers to read. Only spelling and grammar have been edited; the content remains unchanged.
Holiday Reflections and a Fresh Start for 2025
Hey everybody. Happy January! Welcome back to Keeping It Candid.
I hope you had a great time over the holidays. Whether you were celebrating or just taking some time off to rest, I hope it was everything your soul needed to bring you into the new year with new energy and excitement for your business.
I was off until January 6th, and I used that time to take a lot of naps, eat so much food (absolutely guilt-free), and do some things behind the scenes of my business like goal-setting and really thinking about what I want the future of my business to look like.
From Workflows to Online Business Management
Throughout 2024, I was super busy with clients who had hired me to build out their systems and workflows inside their HoneyBook account, and I was loving it. Then I had the opportunity to actually take that one step further when one of my clients hired me to be her virtual assistant.
From that point, I started handling some of her client communication, sending out invoices and contracts, and just making sure all of the day-to-day admin work was handled so that she could focus her time behind her camera.
Let me tell you, I loved it even more than I love building systems and workflows for people. But that wasn’t where the transition stopped—because at the end of the year, I transitioned from being a virtual assistant to an online business manager (OBM), taking on even more roles and responsibilities for my clients so that again, she could keep spending all of her time and energy behind her camera, which is her zone of genius, while I handled all of the other day-to-day things.
On top of that, I landed another OBM client. So a year ago, I was passionate about all things systems and workflows—and don’t get me wrong, I still am—but working as an OBM has been such a huge surprise. I really can’t tell you how much I love it. It feels like this is where I’m meant to be.
It’s kind of a pinch-me moment because I am already fully booked for Q1 of this year.
My Words of the Year: Alignment and Confidence
IIt felt fitting when I was thinking about my “words of the year,” something I do every year (one personal, one professional).
My professional word for this year is alignment. I just want everything to feel like it’s all clicking into place, like it’s all coming together the way that it’s supposed to. And by embracing that, I’m hoping it will also help me build confidence throughout 2025.
And confidence is what my personal word of the year is. This year, I really want to remind myself of the workload that I can handle, and that even though I’m on a totally different path than I thought I was heading towards, everything is exactly the way it’s supposed to be.
I know I’m really going to need both confidence and alignment to channel all of my energy and decisions through over the next little while.
Preparing for Endometriosis Surgery
If you’ve been listening to the podcast for a while, you’ve heard about my story with endometriosis. I’ve If you’ve been listening to the podcast for a while, you’ve heard about my story with endometriosis. I’ve been waiting for a date for surgery for a few years now, and I finally got the phone call. I’m actually going to be going in for that surgery as of next week, which will be the end of January.
It still doesn’t even seem real. I’m totally a mix of excited and really nervous, and that varies depending on when you ask me, because there are just a lot of unknowns that are going to come along with this.
When I think about the amount of time I’m going to need to recover, how my body’s going to feel after having such a major surgery, and things like that, it can feel overwhelming. My Type A personality really struggles with unknowns, so I’m doing what I can to not freak out. Thankfully, I take an SSRI medication to help me with things like this, so I’m not spiraling into a whole mess of all the what-ifs. I’m just trying to focus on the positives and thinking about all the things that possibly could come next in this next chapter of my life.
What’s Changing in My Business and Podcast
Even though most of my time these days is being spent as an OBM, everything I offer under Keeping It Candid—the podcast, my workflow services, and my education—is still going to stay exactly the same.
The only change is that I’m adjusting the amount of time it’s going to take me to get projects done and the number of clients that I can take on at one time.
And I think especially for the podcast and my education, I’m actually going to have more freedom to do those things, because I won’t have to be worried so much about chasing my next client all the time. That song and dance is something I am all too familiar with from being in the photography industry for more than a decade, so it’s something I am definitely excited to take a break from.
Industry Trend: Pricing Frustrations in Wedding Photography
Now, before we get into this week’s episode, we have to get to our first “All the Rage” segment of 2025.
A conversation that I’ve been seeing happen a lot online is photographers being frustrated because they have a starting price listed on their website, they have information there for potential clients to self-qualify, and yet they still get inquiries where the reply ends up being: “Sorry, you’re out of our budget.”
I get that it can be annoying, because you do have that information on your website. But here’s where I think there’s a little misconception. Of course, there are always exceptions. Some people just don’t read. They don’t take the time to actually go through your website, and unfortunately, there’s no way to avoid that.
But that’s not the case for every person. Many clients do the legwork. They’ve gone onto your website, they’ve seen your starting price, and they’ve said, “Okay, we can at least afford that. Let’s get in touch.”
Why “Out of Budget” Doesn’t Mean Your Website Failed
The thing is, your starting price is your bare minimum. For most of us, that looks like fewer hours, no albums, no engagement session, no extras. And so just because they can afford that bare minimum price doesn’t mean that’s what they want.
They could be looking for a full-day package with all the extras, and when they see your pricing, they realize they can’t get that with you. That’s where the disconnect happens.
So your website did its job. They saw the info, pre-qualified, and reached out. But when they saw the bigger picture, they realized it didn’t fit.
I know booking season is stressful, and scarcity mindset makes it easy to point the finger at clients. But not everyone is out to waste your time. The next time you hear “You’re out of our budget,” just take a breath, pour a glass of water (or tequila, or roll a joint—whatever calms you down), and then move on to the clients who are ready to work within your pricing.
Why January Is the Best Time to Refresh Wedding Photography Systems
Today we’re talking all about getting rid of those old, dusty systems that are just adding more work to your plate, and why January is the perfect time to get that done.
January is a natural pause after the holidays. For entrepreneurs and wedding pros, it doesn’t always feel that way, but in the bigger picture, people are spending less money, slowing down, and recharging.
Meanwhile, engagement season is picking up. All of those couples who got engaged over the holidays are about to hit your inbox. And all of last year’s couples who are now getting married this year are about to start reaching out too.
That means things are about to get busy. And that’s why January is the best time to refresh your systems—it sets a strong foundation for the year and saves you so much time later on.
If you leave it until later, you’ll be too busy. And come fall, you’ll be burned out again, delivering galleries and counting down the days until you’re done. Doing this now makes sure that doesn’t happen again this year.
Free Resource for Wedding Photographers
Don’t wait until you’re drowning in emails to fix your systems. Grab my Busy Season Email Survival Kit — a free resource built to take inbox overwhelm off your plate during peak season.
Where to Focus Refreshing Your Wedding Photography Systems First
First, think about client management. You want to simplify and streamline your CRM workflows, especially for your inquiry process. This is where all of those new bookings are going to come in, so get it cleaned up now. Review your templates and automate the emails that are always going out to clients.
Next, focus on communication systems. Go through your email templates, make sure they’re on brand and effective, and consider adding an FAQ email that you can send at any point during the process. That one simple addition will save you time while helping your clients feel supported.
Then look at your project management systems. Find a way to organize your daily to-do list. Use something like Google Tasks or Asana. And instead of planning out an entire 12-month calendar, break it down by quarter. Right now, just focus on January through March. Then, when March comes, you can plan April through June. Breaking it into 90-day chunks makes it way less overwhelming.
Lastly, check in on your financial systems. Review your expenses. Update your pricing. Set some financial goals—not just what you want to make this year in cashflow, but also sales goals for future work. If you’ve booked weddings for 2026, that money still counts towards your sales, even if you only have the retainer in hand now.
And don’t forget about tools. Use something like HoneyBook to automate invoices and contracts, and a time-tracking app like RescueTime to see exactly where your hours are going.
Tools That Simplify Workflows
You know that feeling when you’re overwhelmed with emails, contracts, payments, and inquiries? That was me—until I started using HoneyBook.
HoneyBook is an all-in-one client management system that helps you stay organized and makes your workflow feel manageable, even on days when your energy is low. As a photographer balancing chronic illness, it has been a game changer for me.
Over the last six years, I’ve leaned on HoneyBook to grow my business without burning out. From automating inquiries to sending contracts and tracking payments, HoneyBook makes it easy to deliver a polished, professional experience without the chaos.
👉 Get 30% off your first year with HoneyBook.
Another tool I discovered recently is RescueTime. It runs in the background on your computer and tracks how you’re spending your time. It shows you what projects, websites, or tasks are taking your hours. As an OBM, it’s been incredible for tracking different clients’ work. And honestly, I wish I’d had it during peak wedding season to see exactly how much time each client required.
Tips to Avoid Overwhelm When You Refresh Wedding Photography Systems
So now that you know what systems to focus on, where do you start?
First, review 2024. Do a little audit on your business and your life. Think about what worked and what didn’t.
Next, pick one area to focus on. Don’t try to fix everything all at once. Set a realistic timeline for getting it done, and remember—you don’t have to work in any particular way. If you’re a night owl, work at night. If you’re a morning person, work then. Give yourself permission to work when you work best.
And if there’s something that needs to be fixed that’s outside your wheelhouse, or something you hate doing? Here’s your permission to outsource it. There’s no rule that says you need to do it all yourself. Hand it off to someone who’s an expert so you can focus on what actually matters in your business.
And if you just want community support instead of outsourcing, join us in the Unfiltered Facebook community, or check out the Chronically Ill, Disabled, and Neurodivergent Photographers Facebook group. You don’t have to do this alone.
The key thing to remember: don’t overhaul everything at once. Start small. Even something like fixing your inquiry workflow or setting up folders in your inbox can free up time and energy right away.
Final Thoughts on How to Refresh Wedding Photography Systems
Okay friends, that’s where I’m going to wrap things up—mostly because my cat is terrorizing my office and I’ve had to stop recording so many times.
Thank you so much for listening to Keeping It Candid. Running a photography business doesn’t have to mean endless hustle and burnout, and I hope today’s episode brought you one step closer to balance.
If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to subscribe and leave a review. It helps other photographers like you find the show and keeps me inspired to keep bringing you more tips every week.
For tools, resources, or ways to work together, head to simplysandrayvonne.ca.
Until next time, keep it simple—and don’t forget to take care of you along the way.
As wedding photographers, we know engagement season can be a wild mix of exciting and overwhelming. When inquiries start flooding in, it’s easy to feel like you can’t keep up with your emails, especially if you don’t have the capacity to add the extra work to your plate. I’ve been there – right after having surgery during engagement season – and I learned the hard way that not having a streamlined inquiry process can mean missed opportunities and lost bookings.
But here’s the good news: like pretty much everything in business, it doesn’t have to be that way. Whether you’re recovering from surgery like I was or just facing the usual holiday rush, having a system in place can truly help you book more weddings with less stress.
Why Streamlining Your Inquiry Process Is Essential
When you streamline your inquiry process with templates and automations, you save valuable time and energy, and you create a better experience for your potential clients. Here’s how a strategic inquiry system can help you during engagement season:
- Quick Response Time: An automated or even semi-automated system helps you reply quickly, giving leads the prompt responses they’re looking for, which increases the chance of turning inquiries into bookings.
- Consistent Client Experience: Every lead will get the same high-quality experience from the minute they land on your website, which is going to keep you and your professionalism top-of-mind.
- Less Email Back-and-Forth: By sending responses that answer questions before they’re asked, and utilizing automation tools like HoneyBook, you’ll avoid unnecessary back-and-forth emails that take up entirely too much time.
Book More Weddings with The HoneyBook Wedding Photography Inquiry Bundle
If the thought of setting up an inquiry system feels overwhelming, don’t worry. I’ve already done the hard work for you with the HoneyBook Wedding Photography Inquiry Bundle! This bundle is designed to help you streamline your inquiry process so you can focus your time and energy behind your camera instead.
Here’s what the bundle includes:
- Email Swipe Files: These ready-to-use templates help you send personal, professional responses in minutes.
- HoneyBook Smart Files: Easily share things like pricing and questionnaires with your clients in one smooth and on-brand digital file.
- Inquiry Workflow Outline + Tutorial: A step-by-step guide to building a clear, efficient inquiry process from start to finish in minutes.
With this bundle, you’ll not only book more clients, but you’ll also reduce the screaming-crying-throwingup-kind of excitement that comes with managing a flood of inquiries. Plus, I’m including my Inquiry to Onboarding Checklist for free when you purchase the bundle before October 31st! This checklist helps you take clients from their first inquiry all the way through to booking, ensuring nothing falls through the cracks.
Ready to Streamline Your Inquiry Process?
Booking more weddings doesn’t have to mean more stress. With the right systems in place, you can relax this coming engagement season while still confidently booking dream clients. Grab the HoneyBook Wedding Photography Inquiry Bundle today, and start streamlining your inquiries in time for the new year.
Systems aren’t just about making things easier for you behind the scenes. When you utilize them to their fullest, they’ll help you deliver an amazing client experience in your photography business, too! Diana Wei Fang from The Finer Points joins me for an interview on Keeping It Candid today and shares some real life examples of businesses that are doing just that, and how you can implement the same strategies, too.
Keep scrolling for links to the episode, show notes, and a full transcript.
Show Notes
Diana Wei Fang – The Finer Points: https://thefinerpoints.co/
Free Systems Assessment Resource: https://thefinerpoints.hbportal.co/public/65284177ee5344002416eb2f/1-Welcome
Template Shop: https://simplysandrayvonne.ca/shop
Episode Sponsor: PicTime
Get a free month (in addition to your free month trial at sign up!): https://lifeisbeautifullondon.pic-time.com/referral
Takeaways
- Systems are essential for scaling and moving a business forward.
- Choose a platform that aligns with your business needs and prioritize the client experience.
- Don’t let the search for the perfect platform paralyze you—pick one and get started.
- Center your systems around the client’s needs and create a seamless experience.
- Embrace change and expect to evolve and grow your systems over time.
Chapters
00:00 Introduction and Personal Reflections
02:34 Overview of the Podcast and Guest Introduction
04:00 The Importance of Systems in Business
09:30 Choosing the Right Platform for Streamlining Workflows
19:19 Centering Systems Around the Client Experience
26:55 Don’t Let Perfection Paralyze You: Just Get Started
29:14 Embracing Change and Evolving Your Systems
30:55 Closing Remarks and Call for Listener Input
About Diana
Diana is the Owner and Founder of The Finer Points. She is a Systems Architect who believes that there is room for all of us in the world and that none of us are meant to pursue our dreams alone. Whatever you think of when you hear the word “systems”, Diana will change the minds and hearts with her story and expertise. Through a structured system, she helps creatives and small business owners like you, tell your story and reach your people—in less time. You are Meant To Thrive. It’s not just a platitude, it’s the truth.
What do your taco choices reveal about your wedding photography business? Take my quiz to find out!
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TRANSCRIPT
00:00 Introduction and Personal Reflections
[00:00:00] Sandra: This episode is airing on August 21st, and for me, this is already the start of winter. I know that technically winter doesn’t actually start for many more months, and where I am in Canada, it’s still sunny, still positive temperatures.
[00:00:19] The leaves haven’t even started changing it for fall, but I am a summer girl through and through. I love the heat and Every year prior to this my husband’s birthday, which is August 10th After that the nights start getting colder you start having to have a sweater on at night You start having to wear pants at night.
[00:00:39] You can only wear shorts and t shirt during the day and That just is not cool for me. I need to be in shorts and a tank top 365 days a year. I know I’m in the wrong country for that to happen, but a girl can dream. And so, with it already being August 21st, that means it’s officially winter for me.
[00:01:00] I’m sorry if you disagree, but it just is what it is. And so I’m just over here trying to mentally prepare myself for the cold and the end of my favorite time of year.
[00:01:10] But to cheer me up, I am talking with Diana Wei Fang today, all about systems.
[00:01:16] Diana is the owner and founder of The Finer Points. She’s a systems architect who believes that there is room for all of us in the world and that none of us are meant to pursue our dreams alone. Whatever you think of when you hear the word systems, Diana will change your mind and your heart with her story and her expertise. Through a structured system, she helps creatives and small business owners just like you tell your story and reach your people in less time.
[00:01:42] She and I share the same passion when it comes to simplifying and streamlining the way that you run your business. And she’s actually one of the first people that I ever had the chance to connect with from the HoneyBookPro team that offered me some invaluable advice about the way that I was approaching my workflows.
[00:01:58] Before my call with Diana, my wedding workflow was, I think somewhere around 30 to 40 steps, which had come down from the 72 that I had with my very, very first wedding workflow. So we’d simplified a bit from there, but there was definitely still some room for improvement. And once Diana had a look at everything that I was doing and gave me some tips on how to simplify it.
[00:02:24] It was like a light bulb went off and I have been living with my 12 step wedding workflow ever since that I just love so, so much.
02:34 Overview of the Podcast and Guest Introduction
[00:02:34] So having a firsthand experience of working with Diana, I knew that I had to have her on the podcast and we talked all about different CRM systems, the pros and cons of having everything all in one versus on different platforms. And of course, some tips for creating successful systems in your business.
[00:02:53] Welcome to Keeping It Candid. I’m your host, Sandra Henderson, an international wedding and family photographer and business coach. I help wedding photographers use systems to build out the back end of their businesses to gain control and continue to thrive no matter what life throws their way. And on a more personal note, eneagrine three wing two who’s obsessed.
[00:03:12] I’m obsessed with tacos and my love for traveling combined with navigating chronic illness life are just two of the many things that drive my passion for all things systems, workflows, and beating burnout as a business owner. Join me every week for a candid behind the scenes look at what it’s really like working as a wedding photographer, where I’ll give you actionable steps to take your business to the next level.
[00:03:33] Absolutely no fluff here, friends. So go grab your favorite notebook and pen and let’s dive into this week’s episode.
[00:03:38] Diana, thank you so much for being here. I’m so excited to get to connect with you and talk about all CRM platforms and everything like that, which I know that you are an expert in.
[00:03:49] But before we get to all that, I would love to just give you a chance to introduce yourself and let everybody know a little bit about what you’re all about.
[00:03:56] Diana: Well, thanks. Thanks so much for having me. I’m super excited to be here. I am a systems architect, which is just a really fancy way of saying I really love systems.
04:00 The Importance of Systems in Business
[00:04:07] I believe that systems are all around us. And I think that in order to have a successful business, you need a system. It’s the way to scale, the way to move your business forward. It’s the way to prevent. yourself from becoming another statistic of those scary numbers that we get whenever we start a business.
[00:04:26] Did you know that 50 percent of small businesses fail in their first year? Thank you. Negative Nancy. that I think systems are helpful in all of those things. And so I’m really, really passionate. I’m determined in my lifetime just to see that number. actual, Total 50 percent is actually only for Your first year, the total fail annual number is 90%.
[00:04:51] Sandra: Wow. That’s huge.
[00:04:53] Diana: I am determined to see that number go down in my lifetime. It’s been like that holding steady for a long time. That’s why I do what I do.
[00:05:04] Sandra: I love that. Well, that is such a good motivator and I am totally with you and wanting to see that number go down. So hopefully this podcast will just be one of many ways that we can do that.
[00:05:15] So speaking of systems and all the things, what are some of your favorite platforms to use?
[00:05:21] Diana: In terms of like a physical system for a small business owner, I love HoneyBook personally.
[00:05:27] That’s what I recommend for a lot of my clients. For someone who is like a small team or, probably corporate, I would say Salesforce is really good, but it’s a beast. So I would say HoneyBook. Not everyone needs Salesforce. Okay. And then, actually for event planners, this is not it’s traditional use, but I actually really like this app called planning center online.
[00:05:56] They make. incredible run sheets for ceremonies and things like that. It’s actually made for churches, because who runs events more than churches? But it’s a great hack. It’s a responsive time app. So like if the, if you change the like ceremony and flip it with something else, like it will do the time for you.
[00:06:16] It’ll like, you can have Like notes for the planner notes for the photographer notes for and it’s all in there. You could have DJ notes. It’s really cool
[00:06:25] Sandra: That sounds awesome. I absolutely like obsess over anything that can like Automatically update and trigger things. I just I for years. I’ve been thinking about getting Like playing around with Zapier, but I felt like it was going to be this overwhelming beast that I just didn’t have the time or capacity to deal with.
[00:06:44] And I finally did it a little, like a few weeks ago and I’m obsessed. Like I want to find the way to zap every single thing that I do into each other.
[00:06:54] Diana: The Zapier like the Zapier bug, as I call it, it’s definitely a thing and I understand the passion because it’s like a dark hole. Like you suddenly just are like, well, I can do this and I can do that.
[00:07:09] And then, you know, suddenly you’re Zapping like a hundred things and then you made it more complicated, but you know, you feel better about yourself at the end of the day. So who cares?
[00:07:18] Sandra: Right. It’s so true. I’m totally with you on that. And I also am a huge lover of honey book. Listeners of the podcast will know.
[00:07:27] I talk about it quite a bit. But it is like my right hand in business. I’ve tried a lot of other CRM platforms and none of them really work for me. For the way that my brain works and the way that I like to interact with my clients, none of them really compare even a little bit to HoneyBook. So I’m so excited to have another HoneyBook stand on here.
[00:07:47] Diana: Oh, I love HoneyBook. I love the team. I love like the way they listen and to just like who’s using it. And they’re so relational. I feel like as someone who. Doesn’t work for them. I’m just blown away by their response and their care for each one of us as business owners. And, they’re just incredible humans.
[00:08:10] Yeah. I think that above and beyond, just like edges out any other app, you know, like, cause we’re so tech oriented and I love tech obsessed with tech, but you need good people behind the people, the things that run the tech, you know? And so I think that. Yeah. Makes a huge difference for me.
[00:08:29] Sandra: Yeah, absolutely.
[00:08:30] I’m sure everybody listening can think of an experience they’ve had with a platform or some sort of tech company where they haven’t like gotten any sort of feeling like they’re recognized as a person who is actually using this app and as their client, and it doesn’t feel like there’s a person behind on the other side of the business.
[00:08:51] And so I totally agree with you that that’s so important. And really is going to be what helps. Having systems like that that we’re using is what’s going to help us set us apart as well, I think.
[00:09:02] Diana: Yes, agreed. I mean, it’s bar none because they truly make it a one stop shop for so many of us. And I think it gets overwhelming to a degree, but also it’s overwhelming because we don’t need all those bells and whistles there.
[00:09:17] It’s made for, you know, People like you, people like me, it’s made for wedding planners and florists, and we’re all using the same app, which is kind of incredible, actually, if you think about it. So, right. Yeah. Love it.
09:30 Choosing the Right Platform for Streamlining Workflows
[00:09:30] Sandra: now, while we’re still on the topic of platforms, I would love to hear what your thoughts are on all in one platforms, because we’re both all about streamlining and making things super simple and automated.
[00:09:43] And so, the idea behind every, having everything in one place. seems great, But I would love to hear what your take on it is.
[00:09:51] Diana: I love it. I think you have to be smart about it. I think that, it’s kind of like, you know, when you just, it’s the easiest way, like, Going back to the beginning, when I was introducing myself, I was talking about the fail rate.
[00:10:06] The number one thing we do know about small businesses who fail is that they can’t track their cash flow and that our cash flow is, that we don’t, they quantify a failure as under Not enough cash flow. And I think one of the trickiest things to to track our subscriptions. I think that if you take a good look, you’re not sure what apps you’ve got on a monthly subscription.
[00:10:32] You’re not sure what , TV networks you have on a monthly subscription. And I think that goes the same for our business, you know, like, Canva monthly subscriptions, HoneyBook monthly subscriptions, all these tech tools have monthly subscriptions. And I think just keeping it all in one place actually reduces the amount of tech that you need to run your business.
[00:10:53] I run my business on four pieces of tech, just four apps. I am obsessed with Lots of them, lots of other apps, but I really try to keep it down to 4 because I can keep my expenses low to run it and I can actually invest more into humans. My team gets paid well, and it contributes to their education.
[00:11:17] I’ve got 2 in college right now. The 1 is studying masters and 1 is, you know, doing other things and so I think that is important. That’s important to me to know where my money goes. And so for me, an all in one tool is, I mean, that’s the gold, right? Like that’s the golden ticket is to know and not, and it’s also in our brains, just easier to say, This is where I go to run my business.
[00:11:43] This is where I go to see if someone has paid me to see if anyone needs to be followed up on. This is where I go when you’re having a low season and saying, I don’t know, there’s no leads coming in. What do I do? And you can go to the one tool, look at your pipeline and say, I’ve got 23 people I could follow up on right now.
[00:12:05] Right. Or to even just like emotions take us sometimes, you know, and you’re just like, Oh, look at the pipeline. I actually have 34 people who I’m currently actively working with. I’m not, you know, like an imposter. I’m not doing whatever. Like, we tend to make up these stories running your business, man. It is no small feat, but to have it all in 1 place, I think keeps it so organized for us.
[00:12:30] And I would say, why not? It can get overwhelming. There’s a lot of tools. Do you need it all? I think this is too big for me. You want something to help you grow into it as you grow your business. Your business should change. Your business should grow. And so we want that. We want to see it. We want to see more of it personally.
[00:12:51] I don’t want to download my clients and my contracts and invoices every time. My business outgrows itself and then move into a larger platform, you know, like it’s almost why, why would I do that? I want something I can grow into, make it easy for myself. I want to be overwhelmed for a season, so that my business can take off where it needs to take off.
[00:13:11] And I don’t need to control it in that way. But you do need to know. What you want in your business and tell the tech what to do. It’s not going to read your mind. So I think that pros and cons pros and cons.
[00:13:24] Sandra: Yeah, absolutely. Now there’s some other platforms out there that also incorporate things like websites and galleries and things like that.
[00:13:32] Do you think that there’s any sort of risk that photographers or business owners are taking when they’re going that far? Like they’re all in one. Is that all encompassing?
[00:13:43] Diana: I don’t think so. But again, I would prioritize the client experience, right? So ask yourself, I think it’s different to say, this is where my gallery lives.
[00:13:54] And if you sell albums, or if you have an upsell afterwards, that is where that is going to live, right? There’s another way to send say, actually, all the financials for my client, they’re already used to this platform. And maybe we’re just going to use HoneyBook as an example in this scenario. Your client has been interacting with you on HoneyBook, whether or not they realize it, right?
[00:14:17] HoneyBook’s really good at keeping the client experience within email, but whether or not your clients know that they’re used to that, right? So throughout your journey, they’ve gotten used to what your emails look like, what the formatting looks like, what your tone is, and you’ve developed this relational aspect.
[00:14:34] If it’s important to you for continuity’s sake, then. Bring it back to HoneyBook to sell albums, but HoneyBook album delivery is not a thing, right? And we don’t want it to be a thing. They’ve integrated really well with pick time. And if that’s important to you, that’s fine. Maybe at some point, it’s easier for your brain to say at this point, we switch over and go to pick time.
[00:14:58] And from there, they can select the photos they want to like print. And then we can just take it to print right away. Right. Maybe that is easier for your client experience. I think you need to ultimately decide what’s most important to you in terms of client experience. Do you want them all in one platform familiarity?
[00:15:16] Or do you want them to be able to click on the photo? Order it, create the album right then and there, push go. Both have great uses. There’s no right or wrong answer.
[00:15:25] Sandra: Hey friends. I’m interrupting this episode because I wanted to remind you that the wait list for my brand new template shop is now open.
[00:15:33] This template shop is going to be filled with everything you need to simplify and streamline your business behind the scenes, including things like HoneyBook smart file templates. Email swipe files, workflow processes, and tutorials to help you get them built inside your CRM. So many good things are coming.
[00:15:49] So head over to simplysandreevon. ca forward slash shop to get on the wait list. And you’ll also have a chance to enter to win a free bundle, as well as getting a little special something to say thank you for being here. That’s simplysandreevon. ca forward slash shop.
[00:16:07] Diana: I think that’s what we typically look for.
[00:16:09] We look for one right answer and it doesn’t exist. I’m sorry to burst that bubble for anyone who thought there would be.
[00:16:17] Sandra: That’s so true. That’s one thing that I think a lesson I’ve learned both the hard way and the easy way a few times in the last year. Decade as a business owner is like, you have to try different things and some things that are going to work for you don’t work for others.
[00:16:31] And it’s just all about finding that thing that is going to work for you and resonate with your clients. So those are all amazing points. Thank you so much for that.
[00:16:41] Diana: Yeah. Thank you for asking the question.
[00:16:44] Sandra: Yeah, of course. So what are some secrets that you think that are hidden out there for creating?
[00:16:50] I don’t want to say a perfect system. Maybe let’s say a successful system, a systems that’s going to really like help you thrive behind the scenes.
[00:16:58] Diana: One of the biggest things that I see is that we tend to center our systems around our needs and our business needs. I really want to encourage every small business owners to center your business around your client’s needs because they’re the ones experiencing your system.
[00:17:20] So my favorite example to use with this is actually Amazon because they’re so automated. Right, and Amazon may or may not trigger certain things for certain people, but I will say that we have a lot to learn from Amazon. And if we were truly being honest with ourselves, we kind of are a little jealous of Amazon.
[00:17:38] Right? And so that’s like, when it comes down to the wire, this is what we want. So. If I think about it, what Amazon has created is that I, Diana, as a user and a consumer of Amazon can get on the website. I know exactly what I’m buying. I know the dimensions, and I know if it’s in my room, right? It wasn’t always like that.
[00:18:01] They listened to their clients and they said, okay, you want something you want to know what it’s going to look like to fit in your rooms. And that reduces returns. Was it better for them to reduce returns? Yes, but actually they, they developed it to serve us because we were always asking, does anyone know if this is going to fit in my apartment?
[00:18:19] Does anyone know? Like they’re listening to the comment section. So they developed it for us. We know exactly down to how many stops I live in Washington, D. C. We are city. So there are stops. We know down to how many stops there are after I’ve purchased something before that truck arrives at my apartment.
[00:18:39] And that is what I don’t need to ever, if you think about it, reach out to Amazon, wait for a person and ask them when my package is going to arrive. I don’t ever need to ask them if I had to pay them. If there’s a payment plan, I don’t ever need to ask them when my warranty, like runs out for this specific product.
[00:19:00] I don’t need to even like communicate with Amazon pretty much ever. And yet I feel as a consumer, so taking care of, I know exactly what I got when it arrives in the mail. It is exactly what it said it would be. It does fit in my apartment. I have read all the reviews of it. They are wonderful. Right. They have created something centered around my experience. And I think that when we create that for our small businesses, we need to do the same. It’s not about the fact that I need to welcome you because, you know, every single website on the Internet says that I should welcome you. To, you know, my thanks for reaching out.
19:19 Centering Systems Around the Client Experience
[00:19:42] I am welcoming you because I genuinely am excited to get to know you. There’s a reason you created your business. There’s a reason you want to work with clients, and there’s a reason why you do what you do. There is a reason you’re not in corporate America. Right. And so like there, I mean, we’re all, we’re all created and there was a reason why we’re not in corporate America.
[00:20:03] Some of us just don’t quite fit in that little nine to five box. And so I think. Helping our clients feel the way that Amazon makes us feel. Without doing anything is our goal, but they centered that around us. So how do we center our system around your potential client? How do we make it so that they feel really cared for, really like knowing exactly what’s next, right?
[00:20:31] And because that’s when it frustrates us. Oh, my gosh, this client is so needy. They have so many questions, da, da, da, da, da. Well, actually, if we answered them for ahead of time, they wouldn’t. Come to our inbox. They wouldn’t need. To email us 35 times in an hour, right? If we actually gave them clear next steps, we wouldn’t forget that we had an inquiry and we would actually secure more leads.
[00:21:00] We would have a clear cut system. And it doesn’t have to lose its relational. ability of it. Like, I don’t feel like I have lost any relational equity with Amazon. I don’t feel that way with Disney. Disney emailed me the other day and was like, hey, thanks so much for visiting Magic Kingdom.
[00:21:17] Guys, I haven’t been to Magic Kingdom in a solid year.
[00:21:20] Sandra: And I haven’t been since 2019, but I’m like, keep emailing me because it makes me happy.
[00:21:25] Diana: Yes. And then an hour later they sent an email that said, so sorry, you did not visit us yesterday. And I was like, but what am I going to do?
[00:21:32] Cancel Disney? Like I’m still in. It didn’t make me feel any less. And then they immediately followed up with like, we hope you do come back. We missed it. This is your experience from last time. It was fully automated. No one wrote me. Right. But they centered that experience around me. And that is also why we love Disney so much.
[00:21:51] They center the whole experience around us. That is what I want for every small business owner because we do have the power to do that.
[00:21:58] Sandra: Those are such great comparisons. I’m also a huge Disney fan. I actually am following you along on Instagram. I think it was last year that you took like a 24 hour trip to Disney to use up some points.
[00:22:09] And I was like, this is my dream, right?
[00:22:12] Diana: It was, I found a 30 flight to Orlando for those listening, and that’s unheard of.
[00:22:20] And I had to, I had to do two more flights to qualify for status. And so for 30 bucks, I flew down to Orlando, went to Disney for a day and came back with stories and got my status.
[00:22:33] Sandra: I love that so much. I am in Canada. And so like 30 flights are completely unheard of, but thankfully I am not a far drive from Detroit. So I will literally just like drive. And it’s cheaper for me to drive over the border and park at the airport and fly from Detroit than it is to fly in Canada. It’s crazy.
[00:22:51] Diana: Exactly. Exactly. 30 flights are not very a thing in the U S as well, which is why you had to hop on the flight.
[00:22:58] Sandra: Yeah, absolutely. Well, I was looking cause I’m actually going to Florida and there was some like 75, 80 flights from Detroit, but it was like, you know, you’re going to get there at one in the morning.
[00:23:10] And I was, I’m like, I’ll pay more to sleep. It’s fine.
[00:23:14] Diana: Yeah, those are a little miserable. Always the morning flights too. And I have to remember I’m an hour from the international airport. And so then I’m always like, an hour before the flight means I have to leave my house at 4 a. m. You know, so I’m always like, is it worth that?
[00:23:29] Yeah,
[00:23:29] Sandra: I always think that. Get stuck on the morning flights too. And for me, because I am usually flying international out of Canada, I’m supposed to be there three hours early and it’s an hour and a half drive, sometimes two hours in traffic to the airport. And so like a five or a 6 AM flight, I have to leave around 1 30 in the morning and it’s awful.
[00:23:45] I’m like, I’ll just, I’ll pay extra to fly during the day so I can sleep because it just, it makes such a nightmare of a travel day.
[00:23:52] Diana: My gosh, that’s a sound crazy, but yes, I would be on your boat. Mm hmm. Same, same. For sure. Yeah, exactly. It better be like a first class ticket, I think, for me to consider otherwise.
[00:24:04] Sandra: So true. I dream of the day that I’m going to fly first class, but I also am worried, like I need to know the first time I fly first class that I’m going to be able to continue to fly first class forever because I’m never going to want to go back to economy after that.
[00:24:18] Diana: I did, I did see chasing status sometimes does pay off because I was upgraded 1 time cross country from San Francisco to D. C. in 1st class and I will I can confirm it does ruin you for life. Especially long flights. You’re just like, oh, what is this leg room?
[00:24:38] Sandra: Right? Oh, my gosh.
[00:24:39] Diana: What is this meal? A meal? Remember those on planes? What a dream. What a dream. That’s so true. But yes, I do. I am a status junkie, like, I don’t know if you do that, but I can talk miles all day.
[00:24:52] Sandra: I have another dream that I have, but all the airlines that I want status with, I would love to. Delta status. And Delta does come to Canada, but a lot of the other airlines that have like really great status options, they’re all US based. So it’s not nearly as fun up here, but one day I dream of it.
[00:25:11] It’s going to get me on there. I’m going to have Delta status one day, for sure.
[00:25:15] Diana: Okay. This is a complete and total tangent, but have you heard of the built card? B I L T. No. They do, they help you, their primary goal, like if you pay rent or mortgage, is for you to get points for rent or mortgage with a credit card, because you can’t get points with that.
[00:25:33] You have to pay, you know, like it charges you transaction fees. So this guy came up with a card for you to pay your rent without fees and get points for it. And so, but then in addition to that. You get one to one transfer for most airlines.
[00:25:54] Sandra: Oh my gosh, that’s amazing.
[00:25:56] Diana: That is how you obtain your Delta status.
[00:25:58] Sandra: Yeah, I should do that. I should look into it and see if we can get it in Canada. Cause that sounds so awesome.
[00:26:04] Diana: Yeah. I know a ton of people who do it and then you can use your points to like literally fly all over the world.
[00:26:09] Sandra: Oh, amazing. I’m going to be looking it up as soon as we are done this interview for sure.
[00:26:13] Diana: Just, I’m not a junkie in the sense of like, I’m going to convert dollars to see if it’s worth it. Like to me. If I get to do it with community, it’s worth it, but I do like to chase a good deal.
[00:26:26] Sandra: Oh, for sure. You got to take advantage of those perks where you can find them, right? Well, on that note, as much as I like, I can go on talking about travel and travel hacks and things like that forever, but do you have any final takeaways about how to tackle systems or finding the perfect platform or anything like that you want to leave listeners with?
[00:26:44] Diana: Yes, I would say 1, most platforms are almost the same. So try not to agonize too much about it. And don’t let that be the reason why you don’t have a system. Pick the system that you naturally feel like it.
26:55 Don’t Let Perfection Paralyze You: Just Get Started
[00:26:59] You can understand the most. I think pick one and go with it. I mean, obviously, Sandra and I, we prefer HoneyBook. So talk to either one of us if you want to talk about that, and we can weigh pros and cons versus other apps with you. But don’t let that Paralyze you like, don’t let that be the reason for analysis paralysis to when you get an app and when you decide on which system you need to be the business owner.
[00:27:27] Okay. So I think this, I know it sounds like a simple statement, but a lot of times we look at tech tools and we’re like, okay. Cool. Tell me how to run my business and I will do what you say. I’m going to like send an invoice here. Okay. I’m going to send an invoice, right? But you have to, you are the business owner.
[00:27:42] So you approach that app tech tool and say, I want to send an invoice this way with this amount of information. And this is the payment schedule I want to give my clients. This is the late fee. This is if I want to give them to leave me a tip or not, right? You decide that don’t look at the This is where the overwhelm hits in because every app serves more than just you.
[00:28:05] And a lot of them are customizable, but you have to know what you want to customize it to, right? This is the same scenario. We’re going to use Disney and Amazon again. It’s literally like looking at Disney and go, which park for me, Disney, you know, and it’s going to be based on you. What do you want?
[00:28:22] How do you want your clients to feel when they interact with you? So I think a lot of times we’re like, give me give me an email. I don’t know what to write. Tell me what to do it. I can’t run the system until I have it, and I have to find the perfect email template. I will say it’s okay. Not to have the perfect email template. Just go back and listen about the whole Disney thing that they sent Sandra and I right. It’s okay not to have the perfect email. You are going to change it because over time, that’s just who we are as individuals and small business owners. We will change and e will grow and we will scale. And that is expected.
[00:28:56] Expect it. Expect change. Embrace change. Do all of that. But also don’t let it stop you from moving forward and serving your clients the best that you can. So I would say like you define it. You take the reins and control of your business and then apply that onto whatever tech you end up choosing.
29:14 Embracing Change and Evolving Your Systems
[00:29:14] Sandra: That was all so perfect.
[00:29:16] I am not going to add anything because I love everything that you said so, so much. So for everybody that’s listening, if you need to just rewind a little bit, grab a pen and paper, write some notes down. Cause that was serious gold for helping you get started. And on that note, thank you so much for being here, Diana.
[00:29:32] This was such a great conversation and I always love getting a chance to sneak Disney in there. And even Amazon, like you said, like some people have feelings about Amazon, but I think whether It’s good or bad. There are lessons to learn from these big companies, right? So, yeah, I really, really enjoyed this.
[00:29:47] I hope you have a great rest of your day and I hope our paths cross again one day soon.
[00:29:52] Diana: Yes. Thank you again for listening and for inviting me. I’m so excited.
[00:29:57] Sandra: With that amazing interview with Diana under her wraps, that means we are officially at the last few episodes of this season of Keeping It Candid and I cannot believe that I am saying those words. It was so surreal saying them the first time around after season one and the fact that season two is now wrapping up.
[00:30:16] It doesn’t feel any more real and I’m so thankful for each of you who tune in every week that there’s a new episode and for everybody who has reached out to me over social media and in my Facebook communities and all the places. You are the best. exact reason why we are in season two, getting ready to head into season three.
[00:30:38] So I am so, so thankful for you. And speaking of season three, I have a million and a half ideas in store of what I want to do, but I think as business owners, you can all relate to me when I say what we want and what other people want are often two totally different things. I don’t know if you’ve ever been in the situation where you’ve taken a photo at a wedding or at a session, and it’s your absolute favorite one. You want to plaster it around everywhere, and then your client starts sharing photos on social media, and that one photo is nowhere to be found, and all the ones that they are sharing are some of your least favorite photos that you took.
30:55 Closing Remarks and Call for Listener Input
[00:31:19] It’s always so mind blowing, but it really goes to show how our brains work totally different from everybody else’s. We’re all unique. We have different interests. And we see things differently. So I want to take that approach into season three of the podcast. And I would absolutely love to hear from each and every one of you about what you would like to hear, what you would like to see coming your way, what kind of topics you want to hear about, or who I should have on as a guest.
[00:31:49] Your input is seriously invaluable to me. So whether you send me a DM, send me an email, pop into the Facebook communities at The Unfiltered Community, or chronically ill, disabled, and neurodivergent photographers, come and send me a message in any way, shape, or form, and let me know what you want to see for season three, because I will absolutely be taking every single suggestion to heart as I go into planning mode for the next season and for new episodes that will be coming your way later this fall.
[00:32:21] So on that note, friends have a great rest of Wednesday and I will be back with another episode next week.
[00:32:30] Today’s episode of the podcast was sponsored by PicTime. This is the gallery service that I use in my photography business that literally doesn’t compare to anything else I’ve tried. First and foremost, it’s fully accessible to Canadians. All the other platforms I’ve tried have been open to Canadians, but they limit the features that we can access because of having to work with American printers or tax limitations and things like that.
[00:32:54] But with PicTime, it is you. Fully accessible. All features can be used up here in Canada. You can set it to Canadian pricing. You can set it to Canadian printers. If you are a U. S. listener, of course, you have lots of options. But as a Canadian photographer, those Canadian features made me very, very happy.
[00:33:13] Picktime also has pre made and custom automations to help you boost your sales year round.
[00:33:19] There’s also optional AI facial recognition, AI watermark protection, custom storefronts with international pricing options, it even integrates with HoneyBook so you can keep all of your client files organized and linked together and even view the photos from the gallery inside your HoneyBook account.
[00:33:37] I could truly go on for hours about how much I love this platform.
[00:33:42] If you’re looking for something new for your photography business this busy season, I want you to head over to my website or the show notes for today’s episode to get my affiliate link that will get you one free month in addition to the free months that pick time already gives you for a trial.
[00:33:55] So that means two free months for you to get a feel for the platform and get everything set up and running to make your clients happier and hopefully boost your sales in the process.
[00:34:05] Thank you so much for listening. You can find full show notes from today’s episode at simplysandrayvonne.ca/shownotes. In the meantime, let’s connect! You can find me on Instagram and TikTok, just search Simply Sandra Yvonne. And if you love this podcast, I’d be so honoured if you go ahead and hit that subscribe button and leave a review until next time!
This post may contain affiliate links. This means I may receive a small amount of money if you make a purchase from any of our affiliates. This is done at no cost to you!
If you’re a photographer looking to streamline and boost your print sales, using the right tools can be a game-changer. Efficiently managing your client galleries and automating the post-session sales process not only saves time but also has the ability to significantly increase your revenue. I’ve seen it first-hand in my own business!
Today on Keeping It Candid, I’m diving into the benefits of using innovative gallery platforms – specifically Pic-Time. The right gallery service will not only simplify your operations but also offer features designed to maximize your earnings and elevate your client experience. Whether you’re frustrated with your current system or just curious about improving your business efficiency, this episode is for you!
Keep reading for show notes and a full episode transcript.
Show Notes
Template Shop: https://simplysandrayvonne.ca/shop
Get one free month of Pic-Time: https://lifeisbeautifullondon.pic-time.com/referral (affiliate link)
Save 50% on your first year of HoneyBook: https://share.honeybook.com/Sandra
One free month of Showit: https://showit.com/referral/?referralCode=sandralibp
My favourite photography business resources: https://simplysandrayvonne.ca/resources
Takeaways
- Pic-Time is a platform that allows photographers to automate sales after a session, leading to increased revenue.
- Switching to Pic-Time can result in a significant increase in sales revenue, as experienced by host Sandra Henderson.
- Pic-Time offers pre-made automations, email templates, and seasonal campaigns to make the sales process easier and more efficient.
- The integration of Pic-Time with HoneyBook provides a seamless experience for managing client galleries and bookings.
- Affiliate links are available for a free month of Pic-Time and a discount on HoneyBook.
Chapters
00:00 Introduction and Background
01:21 Frustration with Previous Gallery Platform
03:15 Passive Income and Automation with Pic-Time
04:05 Positive Sales Experience with Pic-Time
05:01 Automation Features of Pic-Time
07:13 Integration of Pic-Time with HoneyBook
09:02 Affiliate Links and Conclusion
Take my quiz to find out what your taco preferences reveal about your wedding photography business!
Other Episodes You’ll Love
021 Taking A Look Back At 2022
049 What’s A Photography Locations Gallery? I’m Glad You Asked…
019 The Local Vendor Series with Life is Beautiful Photography
TRANSCRIPT
[00:00:00] Sandra Henderson: Over the last month on the podcast, I have been talking a lot about pick time because now that I am back behind my camera more regularly, it’s a platform that I am spending a fair amount of time in, and I am regularly reminded about why I love it so much. The biggest reason by far is how easy it is to automate sales after a session.
[00:00:18] Since switching to pick time. I have been able to achieve a 90 percent increase in sales revenue from digital photos and printed products in just 13 months. And today on the podcast, I’m going to tell you how I was able to make that happen.
Welcome to keeping it candid. I’m your host, Sandra Henderson, an international wedding and family photographer and business coach.
[00:00:40] I help wedding photographers use systems to build out the back end of their businesses to gain control and continue to thrive no matter what life throws their way. And on a more personal note, I’m a strong enneagram 3 wing 2 who is obsessed with tacos and my love for travelling combined with navigating chronic illness life are just two of the many things that drive my passion for all things systems, workflows, and beating burnout as a business owner.
[00:01:02] Join me every week for a candid behind-the-scenes look at what it’s really like working as a wedding photographer where I’ll give you actionable steps to take your business to the next level. Absolutely no fluff here, friends. So go grab your favorite notebook and pen and let’s dive into this week’s episode.
[00:01:21] Back in 2022, I was beyond frustrated with my old gallery platform because there were so many features that they were releasing that weren’t available to users living outside the U. S. If you wanted to use these features, you had to go with U. S. printers and charge U. S. currency, which for anybody living in Canada or outside the U.
[00:01:41] S., that can really start to add up when you’re factoring in the exchange rate and shipping and things like that. I talked to the company multiple times. They kept reassuring me that Canadian options were coming soon. And they said that for a couple of years before I finally just got fed up and knew I needed to start looking elsewhere.
[00:02:01] So, after doing a little bit of research into the different options and talking to friends, I tried out PipTime and I have truly never regretted that decision. I made the switch in November of 2022, which is arguably my busiest time of year because I knew that it would be worth it, even with all that extra work on my plate.
[00:02:20] My total sales from digital photos and prints in 2022 was a whopping 250. It’s great. I’m not, I shouldn’t say I’m not complaining. It was great. I like it. Everybody can use an extra 250, but I knew that there was a lot more room to grow there. I actually had a few clients tell me that they weren’t placing orders because they didn’t want to pay the exchange rate and I don’t blame them for that.
[00:02:45] I would have done the exact same thing if I were in their position, so I needed to find a new way to do things. After making the switch to PickTime, my sales increased by 90 percent to 2, 500 within 13 months of switching to the platform. Upselling is so important, especially if you have a chronic illness because more often than not, we have fewer working hours than someone who doesn’t have health issues, but we still have the same bills to pay, sometimes even more, and we still have a life that we want to live.
[00:03:15] When you use a platform like Pic-Time, it becomes passive income to sell digital photos in print. Of course, there is a bit of work that you have to do on your part, in the beginning, to get your storefront set up, but after that, you can literally sit back and let your clients self-guide themselves through the ordering process, having their order sent directly to the printer, and even shipped directly to the client, all without you ever having to get involved.
[00:03:40] I hate it so, so much when you’re online and you see people talking about making money in their sleep because nine times out of ten, it’s absolutely bullshit. But I literally woke up last Thursday to a 110 sale. And since that client is having it shipped to their home, all I had to do was click approve the order and then it was done.
[00:03:59] And clicking the approve order button is even an option that you can turn off if you want to be completely hands-off, but I have a little bit of a trust issue with technology. And so I just want to make sure that everything looks okay before I send it to the printer. No matter which option you want to go with, Picktime makes it so, so easy.
[00:04:19] Y’all know how much I love systems, automations, workflows, and getting things just working in a streamlined and simple manner. And Picktime has so much that’s already built into it to help make that happen. There are automations that are already existing and made ready for you to just apply to any gallery that you’re sending out for things like celebrating someone’s wedding anniversary, giving them a discount as a thank you after they’ve made a purchase, for something like giving an abandoned cart discount, which you may have seen on other e-commerce sites where if they put something into their shopping cart and then they don’t purchase, you can automatically send out a discount for them.
[00:04:55] All of these are already made and live inside everybody’s Pic-time account as soon as you sign up. Hey friends, I’m interrupting this episode because I wanted to remind you that the waitlist for my brand new template shop is now open. This template shop is going to be filled with everything you need to simplify and streamline your business behind the scenes.
[00:05:14] Including things like HoneyBook smart file templates, email swipe files, Workflow processes and tutorials to help you get them built inside your CRM. So many good things are coming. So head over to simplysandrayvonne.ca/shop to get on the waitlist. You’ll also have a chance to enter to win a free bundle, as well as get a little special something to say thank you for being here.
[00:05:39] That’s simplySandraYvonne.ca/shop.
So it literally is as simple as just applying it to a gallery. The email templates are ready to go. You can change the colour and make them on brand if you’d like to, but otherwise, you don’t need to do any work at all. They also release seasonal campaigns for things like Mother’s Day, Christmas, and things like that throughout the year.
[00:06:02] So you can constantly be sending out Automated sales campaigns with just the click of a few buttons. Another thing that I do in my business is that I gift every client a 30 percent discount that’s good for 30 days when I deliver their gallery. And that discount can also be shared with their friends and family.
[00:06:19] So that gives them the opportunity once they receive their gallery and they’re getting their digital downloads to take advantage of that excitement, all the emotions that they’re feeling when they look at their photos and go and order some prints for their walls or gifts for family members and things like that.
[00:06:33] It has been really, really beneficial for my business. And outside of ordering prints and products, one of my favourite features is one that I actually use for my mini-session clients. So they are able to log into their gallery and they can choose the photos that they want included. They can have instant access to downloading those photos, and they can purchase more if they would like to upgrade their gallery.
[00:06:57] So if they want to order one extra photo, three extra photos, get the whole gallery, They’re able to do that and do the selection process, the purchasing, and the downloading, all automatically without me having to be involved. Before I switched to Picktime with the old gallery service I was using, I sent my clients their gallery.
[00:07:15] They went through and picked their favourite photos. Then they had to send me an email to let me know they were done making their selections. After that, I would have to go back into their gallery. I would have to activate downloads specifically for the photos that they selected. Then I would have to send them another email to let them know the downloads were available.
[00:07:32] There was a lot of back and forth and I really hate anything that involves a lot of back and forth emailing the clients. So switching to pick time made it so that I don’t have to do that. I have automatic emails set up to remind people that their gallery is expiring. There’s truly no shortage of options when it comes to being able to customize this for your business to serve your clients and help you make some more money.
[00:07:56] And if I haven’t sold you on using PickTime yet, one other thing that I am absolutely obsessed with is the fact that PickTime integrates with HoneyBook. I was already using both of these platforms separately before this announcement was made, so I was truly jumping for joy because they are able to be integrated.
[00:08:13] When a client books with me through HoneyBook, a new gallery is automatically created. created for them inside pick time. And once I upload all of their photos into their gallery, I’m able to see those inside their HoneyBook account as well. So it’s super cool how everything is able to be integrated and you’re able to get a more comprehensive picture and idea of everything that is going on within one specific client.
[00:08:36] I don’t know about you, but I hate having things in all the places, trying to keep track of what lives where. So having one spot where I can just go into their honey book account and I can see all the things there are quick links and access to the gallery from there. It just makes things so much easier.
[00:08:52] If you want to give pick time or honey book a try, head over to simplysandrayvonne.ca/resources, or as always check the show notes for this episode there. There you are going to find affiliate links to get a free month of pick time in addition to the free month trial that you already receive when you sign up. And you can find an affiliate link for 50 percent off your first year of HoneyBook.
[00:09:14] Next week, I am going to be back with another interview, this time joined by Kara Duncan from the Kara Report talking all about consistency in marketing. Until next time, friends, have a great rest of your Wednesday. I am off to go spend the weekend feeling really, really old because my stepson is turning 17.
[00:09:34] And I really just don’t understand how we got here so fast. So I hope that your weekend comes with nice weather, amazing weddings, great clients, and not feeling as old as I do. Are you looking for a simple, easy-to-use website platform that will help you incorporate your brand voice after you’re done listening to this episode?
[00:09:54] ShowIt is exactly what you need. It is truly the best website platform for photographers, hands down. Trust me, because I have tried a lot of them, and I’m pretty sure at least half of the gray hair on my head came from trying to navigate the horrible platforms I was using before. With ShowIt there are so many templates available that you can choose from that are geared towards the photography industry.
[00:10:17] All you need to do is implement your photos, your own brand colours, and your own copywriting. Everything else is designed for you, so instead of having to put together an entire website from start to finish, from the ground up, laying every single piece along the way, you can just pop in the information and you are good to go.
[00:10:35] The SEO strategy that you can build into every page is incomparable and the customer support is amazing. So if you’ve been feeling like your website could really use a new facelift, or if you just want to get started with your very first website, I want you to head over to my website, simplysandrayvonne.ca/resources
[00:10:52] or check out the show notes for today’s episode to get my affiliate link, which will give you one free month of show it. I promise you will not regret it. Again, that is simplySandraYvonne.ca/resources, or you can find the link in today’s show notes as well.
[00:11:11] Thank you so much for listening. You can find full show notes from today’s episode at simplysandrayvonne.ca/keepingitcandid. In the meantime, let’s connect. You can find me on Instagram and TikTok. Just search simply Sandra Yvonne. And if you’re loving this podcast, I’d be so honoured if you go ahead and hit that subscribe button and leave a review until next time.
Ever get bogged down with clients asking for photography location ideas? I did, until I created a “locations gallery” in my PicTime account. It’s a lifesaver for keeping my sessions fresh. And I get to avoid the overused default spots that get so boring after a while. Listen to this week’s episode of the podcast to hear all about it! And keep scrolling to read the transcript.
Show Notes
Template Shop: https://simplysandrayvonne.ca/shop
Get A Free Month Of Pic-Time: https://lifeisbeautifullondon.pic-time.com/referral
Takeaways
- Creating a photography locations gallery can save time and streamline the process of suggesting photo shoot locations to clients.
- Including important details about each location in the gallery helps clients make informed decisions.
- Curating a portfolio through the photography locations gallery allows clients to visualize the look and feel of their own photos.
- Using a gallery service like PicTime is essential for preserving and delivering client photos.
- Technology advancements, such as cloud storage, are crucial for safeguarding clients’ memories.
- Utilizing templates and automation tools like HoneyBook can enhance efficiency in business workflows.
Chapters
00:00 Introduction and Announcement
02:33 Streamlining Photo Shoot Location Suggestions
05:22 Curating Your Portfolio Through a Photography Locations Gallery
06:40 The Importance of Using a Gallery Service
07:08 Preserving Memories with Technology
07:36 Conclusion and Promotions
About Sandra
Sandra Henderson is a photographer, systems strategist, and podcast host based in Ontario, Canada. She specializes in helping photographers create strategic systems for their businesses to help them get their time back so they can spend it doing the things they love most. As an entrepreneur who also navigates chronic illness life, Sandra takes a unique approach to using systems that will help businesses thrive no matter what life throws your way.
On a personal note, she loves tacos, all things Bravo, 90’s music, travelling, and spending time at home with her husband, stepson, and two cats!
Click here to get instant access to my brand-new free masterclass!
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TRANSCRIPT
[00:00:00] Sandra Henderson: Welcome back to the podcast, friends. Now, before I get started with everything that I have in store today, I just wanted to share some really exciting news. I am going to be launching a template shop. I’ve been working so hard on this behind the scenes.
[00:00:15] Over the course of this year, I am going to be launching things like HoneyBook smart file templates, email swipe files, and workflow processes that you can copy over into your CRM with a tutorial video on how to get it all set up.
[00:00:28] Anything and everything that you can use to get your business more simplified and streamlined behind the scenes. If you head over to simplysandrayvonne.ca/shop, you can get on the waitlist. And while I’m putting the finishing touches on everything, you are going to have the chance to win a free inquiry workflow template bundle when the shop launches.
[00:00:46] And you’ll also get a special little something as a thank you for being on the waitlist and for sharing this excitement with me.
[00:00:54] So I want you to head over to simplysandrayvonne.ca/shop, get on the waitlist, and I will be sharing all the details soon, as soon as everything is ready to launch.
[00:01:05] Now we’re going to get to the intro in just a second, and then I’m going to be diving into one of my absolute favourite systems in my business that you can easily build on the go throughout the year, no matter how busy you are.
[00:01:21] Welcome to keeping it candid. I’m your host, Sandra Henderson, an international wedding and family photographer and business coach. I help wedding photographers use systems to build out the back end of their businesses to gain control and continue to thrive no matter what life throws their way. And on a more personal note, I’m a strong enneagram three wing too who is obsessed with tacos and my love for travelling combined with navigating chronic illness life are just two of the many things that drive my passion for all things systems, workflows, and beating burnout as a business owner.
[00:01:47] Join me every week for a candid behind-the-scenes look at what it’s really like working as a wedding photographer, where I’ll give you actionable steps to take your business to the next level. Absolutely no fluff here, friends. So go grab your favourite notebook and pen and let’s dive into this week’s episode.
[00:02:07] Okay, honest question. How often do you get emails from your clients asking if you have any ideas of where to go for photos? If you’re anything like me, you probably get asked this question by about 90 percent of the clients that you work with.
[00:02:21] The back and forth of that conversation was taking up so much of my time, which I was happy to do because I want people to have that perfect spot for their photos. But I knew that I needed to find a more efficient way to keep serving my clients without having to spend all of that time emailing back and forth.
[00:02:39] That’s when I decided to create what I call my locations gallery. Inside my PicTime account, I have a gallery that includes folders within it for all of my favourite photo locations in and around my area. And then inside each of those folders, you’re going to find a variety of photos from each location at different times of the year and different times of day, as well as a graphic that outlines important details of what to expect.
[00:03:02] So for example, when this location is best to use, whether that’s a specific time of day or specific time of year, if the location is accessible or not, if there are any travel or entrance fees that are associated with using it, and any other important details that I want someone to know before they make this location their selection.
[00:03:20] I love doing this so much because it gives my clients the chance to explore some locations that they may have never even heard of before. I’m sure every person listening to this episode can think of one specific location that’s a default go-to in your area. Whether that’s like a park or a certain monument, this is the spot that every photographer in your area goes to.
[00:03:40] It’s the default one that people who don’t know where to go for photos, they’re going to choose this spot. In my area, it’s a place called Springbank Park. It is a beautiful spot. Don’t get me wrong, but after going there 20 times in one year, it can get really old and I’m sure that you all feel that way.
[00:03:56] It just gets really boring, really creatively unfulfilling, and you just don’t want to go there anymore. So with this locations gallery, I’m able to keep things fresh by suggesting my favourite locations and honestly, I don’t even include those default locations because everybody already knows that they exist and they do not need me to remind them that it’s an option.
[00:04:17] For any listeners who are my chronic illness and disabled friends, this is also a chance for you to not include any locations that you’re not comfortable working in. So that way, you never have to deal with the extra anxiety of knowing what to expect in terms of accessibility. Another great thing about creating a locations gallery like this that you can share with your clients is that it’s a great way to help you curate your portfolio in a certain way, with a certain look or feel, while still giving your clients the option to choose their own spot.
[00:04:47] It really helps them visualize what their own photos are going to look like if they make the choice to go there. And it’s something that you can create on the go throughout busy season. Whenever you go into your gallery to upload photos to deliver to a client, select a few favourites and drop them into your location’s gallery at the same time.
[00:05:05] There are no extra expenses because you are already paying for this gallery service for your clients anyway. If you’re not using a gallery service in your photography business yet, I highly recommend that you do. I got married in 2016, so not that long ago. We are just coming up on eight years, and two years ago, I went to go and pull some wedding photos off of our USB for our anniversary, and I realized that the USB was dying.
[00:05:28] Thankfully, I was able to pull all of those photos off. It took over a day for me to transfer those photos onto my computer, and I kid you not, Once it was done, I was never able to get my computer to read that USB again. So I am so, so thankful that I was able to get those photos uploaded onto a cloud server.
[00:05:47] And it just reminded me of why it’s so important to progress with technology sometimes when it comes to preserving people’s memories. A lot of times, new computers and new laptops don’t even have USB ports anymore. Some people just use iPads, which don’t have USB ports. So it’s more important than ever to just make sure that your business is set up with a gallery service just to save your ass if anything goes wrong and make sure that nothing ever happens with your client’s photos.
[00:06:14] I highly recommend Picktime. I made the switch to using Picktime back in the fall of 2022, and I have had no regrets ever since. I have a whole episode coming up as to why it’s so amazing and how I have been able to increase my print and product sales by 90 percent since I started using it. That episode is coming out in a couple of weeks, so make sure you check back for that.
[00:06:38] If you head over to my website or the show notes for today’s episode, you can get my affiliate link. And that is going to get you one free month of pick time in addition to the one-month trial that pick time already gives you when you sign up. So you will get two free months to go and check it out and get it all set up and running.
[00:06:55] Anyways, friends have a great rest of your week and I will be back again soon.
(Outro music) Thank you so much for listening. You can find full show notes from today’s episode at simplysandryvonne.ca/keepingitcandid. In the meantime, let’s connect. You can find me on Instagram and TikTok, just search @SimplySandraYvonne. And if you love this podcast, I’d be so honoured if you’d go ahead and hit that subscribe button and leave a review. Until next time. (Music fades out)
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