stickyalbums.com

A lot of photographers resist the idea of outsourcing because they're control freaks. The fear that nobody can do it as well as they can keeps them sitting at the computer instead of enjoying their lives. "Just because you can, doesn't mean you should." Ty Fischer, the founder of Rebookü (Retouching Books for You) gets it. He's a photographer too. At one point, he designing close to 200 albums each year and knew there had to be a better way. And now there is. ReBooKu is an album design system that will not only help you get your life back, but it will also help you make you more money. With templates for everything from newborns to weddings (created by some of the top photographers in the industry), a 24 hour turn around window, unlimited revisions and an incredibly affordable price ($2.50 a spread!), you really can't afford to not give them a try. Not convinced? What if you never had to deal with ordering an album again? Rebookü has partnered with H&H. You can now have the .jpgs sent to you or you can opt to have them sent directly to H&H. Album design and ordering has never been easier! To hear more about Rebookü watch or listen to this weeks show. Audio only version here: Subscribe to our feed in iTunes. Win a 10x10 Photographic Pano Book from H&H with the Rebookü template design of your choice! a Rafflecopter giveaway

When we heard Stephen and Jess Robertson speak at Photographers Ignite at WPPI, we found ourselves nodding our heads in agreement throughout their presentation and we knew that we had to have them on the show.  They are the duo behind TogTools, a website that helps photographers learn the skills they need to run a business.  In addition to an awesome blog, they do a really fun and informative podcast and offer online business training.  You should definitely check out their site. "A lot of the people we came into the industry with are gone." Building a successful photography business is a challenge that many photographer's are simply not equipped to take on. Unfortunately, there's little correlation between artistry and talent and success.   The good news is that, "Business is not a mysterious thing that only a select few in the world will hope to achieve. It's really like jumping off a cliff and experimenting to see what works." That's right. Experimenting.  In order to experiment you need to be able to recognize that what you're doing is working or that it's not.  TogTools offers a fantastic, free tool to help you do this. The Photographer's Business Model Canvas (PBMC)  can help you define yourself and your business and create a path for success.  Unlike a traditional business plan, the PBMC is designed to help you think strategically and can be easily changed.     To hear more about the PBMC and learn some simple strategies and business tips, watch or listen to the interview below. Audio only version here: Stephen and Jess interviewed Nate recently.  You can hear that interview HERE. GIVEAWAY One free membership to the First Year Photographer program! (valued at $1195)! TogTools is a business resource for portrait & wedding photographers!  Get the tools and the business strategies to start right the first time and put your business into overdrive with First Year Photographer (FYP).  FYP is a step-by-step business video training program for new(er) photographers who are serious about building a radtastical business! Get the basics of running a sustainable and profitable business down! Enroll today in the Business Basics Bootcamp! ! ! Save 50% off • Photographer’s Business Model Canvas – Learn to build, test, and experiment with different business models using a dynamic & adaptation of the Business Model Canvas. • Finance Your Business – Appropriate financial planning is very important. You don’t want to go into debt for your business if you don’t have to. There are slow seasons in the industry and you need to plan accordingly. • The Tools of Your Business – Learn how to get prepared to run a business smoothly.  Workflows, backups, and other nuts and bolts that go into having a solid business system that is reliable and scaleable. • And so much more…   a Rafflecopter giveaway Subscribe to our feed in iTunes.

  Heidi Thompson, owner of Evolve Your Wedding Business, is a marketing strategy geek and freedom fighter. She is leading the rebellion against being a slave to your business and overcomplicated marketing gobbledygook. Her mission is to help wedding professionals live freer lives courtesy of their businesses. In this week's podcast, she and Nate discuss the importance of setting SMART goals.  You'll also hear about The Inner Circle, an exclusive members only community for wedding professionals who want to grown their business and create more freedom for themselves. Everything I've ever done in my life , everything I like, everything I dislike, is tied to freedom. Does it lessen it or increase it?  I'm all about helping people create more freedom in their lives through their business.   Listen to the complete interview below. Subscribe to our feed in iTunes. Win a One Year Membership to Sticky Albums and The Inner Circle! a Rafflecopter giveaway

Molly Marie is a women's portrait photographer with a thriving studio in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. Molly also teaches workshops, offers mentoring and has a fantastic business and photography tip blog, Boudie Shorts. This weeks call is full of practical tips to help you rejuvenate and grow your business. Molly offers advice on renting studio space, hiring employees, investing in trade shows and networking and building relationships with other businesses.  We know that these things may sound overwhelming to some of you, but Molly's approach of starting small and taking baby steps to reach your goals will help you see that success is within your reach. Trade Shows Trade shows are a great place to meet potential clients and network with other businesses. You don't need a fancy booth or to attend the biggest shows.  Some of Molly's most profitable shows have been small and inexpensive.  While meeting people and collecting email addresses is important, you need to book sessions on the spot to make trade shows worth the time, expense and effort.  Molly does this by offering a special show package that includes a beautiful hand bag, session, $100 product credit and hair and makeup to those who book on the spot. Referral Program StickyAlbums is an integral part of Molly's referral program.  Each client receives a StickyAlbum with all of the images that they purchased product of.  The album also includes this image. "We get more referrals from StickyAlbums than Facebook". Watch or listen to the complete interview below. Audio only version here: Subscribe to our feed in iTunes.

Today we are mixing it up a little bit. I typically like to focus our interviews around business and marketing, but after meeting Scott in person, I knew I had to have him on the show. Additionally, When you take the time to invest in your own education, and improve your photographic skill, it can go a long way to setting yourself apart from your competition. Not only does understanding the basics of off camera flash help you establish a more unique style, it also increases your versatility as a photographer - helping to make sure you get the shot even when natural light is not cooperating. “Mastering flash photography is like having a sunset in your pocket, just pull it out when you need it” - Scott Robert Lim We all know that having the right light is essential to the success of a photograph, and Scott Robert Lim is a master of light. In today's webinar, Scott discusses how you can add really big beautiful light to your imagery on a tiny budget. He outlines some simple tricks you can use with your flash to create stunning photographs. Watch it here now: Audio only version here: Scott has offered us a few goodies also - here are the links from the webinar! Click here to get the slides from the webinar as a StickyAlbum And here is a more detailed version of the webinar in a PDF Check out all of Scott's products here: www.scottrobertstudio.com and use the code: triplemount to save 10% Giveaway Scott has also given us one of his Tiny Trigger sets you can enter to win below: a Rafflecopter giveaway

Over the past few months, we've been hearing a lot of photographers talk about how difficult it is to compete in their over saturated markets.  So many photographers offering similar products at various price points makes it hard to stand out.  Nate and Photo Business Tools founder Amy Fraughton are here to help you build a strong customer base who will return to you year after year and tell their friends and family about you. A strong customer base is not created overnight.  It takes time and requires that you create relationships with your clients and with potential clients.  How do you do this?  It's simple.  Email marketing.  Many of you read that and thought, "Not simple.   I don't have time and/or I have no idea what to send out."  RIght?  In the video below we're going to walk you through the simplest and easiest ways to build your email list (including a demonstration  of StickyAlbums new promotions feature) and then introduce you to Newsletter Nanny, a product that makes sending a newsletter out so simple that you can't afford not to try it. Why a Newsletter? A well done newsletter helps you:   Establish yourself as the expert in your field.   Stand out in an oversaturated market.   Develop life long customers.   Be the photographer in front of them when they are ready to buy.   Dramatically increase your word of mouth marketing! It takes time, but photographers who use email marketing well will tell you that it's worth it. "When Joy Vertz sends out an email she has to bring in another employee to answer the phone." Wouldn't that be a nice problem to have? For more information, watch or listen to the interview below. Audio only version here: Start email marketing today! For a limited time you can purchase a year long subscription to Newletter Nanny for just $99.  Use the code 99Nanny. Start your StickyAlbums promotion today! Download Amy's 3 Great Tips to Better Photos with Your Camera Phone e-guide HERE. Subscribe to our feed in iTunes.

The Boudoir Divas were one of our first users.  At the time, we weren't sure if StickyAlbums would be a good fit for boudoir…Turns out, boudoir photography has become one of our most popular niches.  This week, Nate talks with co-owner and founder of The Boudoir Divas, Marissa Boucher. Photographers of all kinds and small business owners from every industry have noticed that the marketing techniques that have been working for them for years, aren't as effective as they once were. "This year we're pulling back on all of our marketing and going back to where we started.  Word of mouth." StickyAlbums is a big part of that plan.  The Boudoir Divas give a StickyAlbum to every client. Not only does it feel like an extra treat at the end of the session, but the clients who share it, share it a lot.  They're "walking billboards". To hear  about what it was like to shoot boudoir a decade ago, how Marissa knew when the time was right to add to her team and work with a partner and more about how The Boudoir Divas have approached marketing and branding over the past eight years and what they're doing differently today watch or listen to their interview below. Audio only version here: Subscribe to our feed in iTunes.

We're excited to have Sal back for another great discussion about business, marketing and StickyAlbums. Whether you're a new StickyAlbums customer, someone who's been using it for a while or still on the fence,  you'll want to take the time to watch this.  Sal shares how he uses StickyAlbums as a pull through, why it's the perfect answer to the "I just want digital negatives" dilemma and also talks about why mobile make a better MARKETING platform than a PROOFING platform. "StickyAlbums allows clients to share the product with everyone in their circle." Sal also shares some of the new ways he plans to use StickyAlbums in 2014. Audio only version here:   Subscribe to our feed in iTunes.

Kirk Voclain has been shooting high school seniors since he was in high school. Thirty years later, he's an industry leader who photographs over 100 seniors each year and runs the popular Pro4um. Nate and Kirk recently sat down and talked about how Kirk uses StickyAlbums as an "upfront teaser" to motivate clients to purchase more prints. The teaser apps are free and sent to clients after their sessions. They have 3-4 low resolution images, are heavily watermarked and have ads. His clients love them. "Everyone wants the app with no ads..." and they're willing to pay to get it. It's a win win because not only is he able to make larger sales, but his clients have his work at their fingertips and he gets referrals because of it. Kirk also uses StickyAlbums at the end of the season to get clients back in for one final round of ordering. Here's the details and how Kirk plans to experiment with StickyAlbums in 2014. Audio only version here:   Subscribe to our feed in iTunes.

If you're going to Imaging USA this weekend, be sure to attend Jeffrey Shaw's platform class, "Prosperity & Purpose:  The Photography Business Through A Different Lens".  It's jam packed with actionable tasks that will help you make 2014 your most pros...

After spending hours and hours designing wall displays for a client, Ariana Falerni concluded that there had to be a better and easier way to do it.  In 2010 she created Photographer's Wall Display Guides, a Photoshop template system that uses clipping masks and images of real room interiors to help you create amazing wall displays for your clients to use during in-person ordering or to put as examples at the end of online galleries.  At the time, there was nothing like this on the market and the guides were a huge hit! "Get your clients to realize that your work is the perfect artwork for their home." In 2012 Ariana released Shoot & Sell an iPad and now Android app that has been helping photographers all over the world supersize their sales of wall art which garnered Shoot & Sell the Hot One Reader’s Choice Award for best mobile business app! The app is loaded with features including the ability to instantly take an image of your client’s wall or use one of the included stock room images, organic bloom frames, create and save projects, a ten level undo, and watermarking so that you can share via email, Flickr, Facebook, Library, Twitter or Instagram! To hear more about Shoot & Sell and tips for using it effectively in both in person and online ordering sessions, watch this video with Nate and Ariana.  Don't miss out on the special Black Friday price (valid through Cyber Monday!). Audio only version here: See how Samantha Irelan uses the templates on her website HERE.  It's awesome! Subscribe to our feed in iTunes.

“By simply sending our blog posts out to our email list each week, we have increased repeat bookings by 34%” - Jeff Richardson In this webinar with Jen Basford of SeniorsIgnite, we discuss why Email marketing is the most effective tactic you are not using. We give a simple overview of the tools and tactics out there, but most importantly share real examples of how photographers are growing their business with a simple and CHEAP email tactics. Stop being intimidated, get a clear action plan to start growing your own marketing snowball. ”…The effectiveness of using email to market and promote our studio shot through the roof when we became more consistent, plus it's fun to hear the phone ring almost instantly after the emails are sent!" - Joy Vertz Audio only version here:   "Successful photographers make time to stop working IN their business to work ON their business." - Jen Basford   Subscribe to our feed in iTunes.

Last month, we were looking at StickyAlbum viewing stats and noted an album that had been viewed over 600 times.  Naturally we were interested in hearing more about it so we contacted the album's creators, Dana and Spencer Rogers from Edenhurst Studio in Chicago. We learned that the StickyAlbum contained images from a Mad Men inspired engagement session that is absolutely fantastic. In talking to Dana and Spencer, it became clear that they know how to sell wall art. By working closely with their clients from the very beginning, they conceptualize one of a kind sessions and then create a collection that can be hung in the clients home and enjoyed for  generations. "The collection tells the story of the day but also of this time in their life...it's a gift, a treasure." To hear more about their Mad Men inspired session, how they sell wall art and utilize StickyAlbums to meed their client's desire to have digital files and use an incredibly well designed and high quality print piece to reach both old and new clients, watch their video interview. Audio only version here: Show what you Sell: Notice the details these images below taken from their press printed direct mail piece: they are showcasing the end result - printed artwork hanging in their clients homes. This further builds their brand, and attracts the type of customer who is looking for more than a disc with digital images.   Edenhurst Studio Dana and Spencer Rogers of Edenhurst Studio are professionally trained and renowned commercial and fine art family photographers who began their careers with celebrity photo shoots (Billy Bob Thorton, Sugar Ray’s Mark McGrath and Henry Rollins) while also working on national advertising campaigns for several Fortune 500 companies including Coca-Cola, SC Johnson, Walgreens and McDonald’s. Dana graduated from the esteemed Art Center College of Design in Pasadena California and Spencer honed his photography skills at the Art Institute in Florence, Italy.  After falling in love and getting married in 2005, their career path, along with their lives, happily changed with the birth of their only son, Cash.  Seeing the opportunity to share their talents with families searching for unique ways to capture their most important and special memories, Edenhurst Studio was born. Using their extensive professional, commercial and story telling photographic expertise, Dana and Spencer began to help families here and abroad capture their most personal stories through their lenses.  Edenhurst Studio has had the rewarding opportunity to work with their clients, together creating not only truly outstanding photographs but priceless and precious works of art. Edenhurst Studio’s philosophy and mission is to help families capture those moments and memories that go by all too fast. Dana and Spencer’s studio is located in Chicago’s South Loop but often prefer to travel to locations to best accommodate their client’s needs. Subscribe to our feed in iTunes.

In part two of his interview with Nate, Jeffrey Shaw talks more about how serving your clients well will set you apart from the competition and shares his approach to selling more than just digital files. "I'm not interested in providing my clients with digital files they'll never use.  That's not service." Jeffrey encourages photographers to make what they do very clear.  Not just on your website, but also when you talk to people about your job. "Answer the question "What do you do?" with the answer to the question, "Who can I refer you to?" For some great tips on doing screen share sales and turning every question into an opportunity, watch the video below.   Audio only version here: FREE eGuide Want to learn more from Jeffrey? He is speaking at Imaging USA in January! Plus he is offering this awesome eGuide here totally Free! How to identify and avoid 6 common thinking patterns that sabotage your ability to succeed in your business. Exactly how to replace each of these patterns with a phrase that opens your thinking to new possibilities and creates greater connections with potential clients. How these simple, but powerful, shifts give you greater control in your life and business Why ‘If you build it, they will come’ doesn’t work anymore andwhat approach you should take instead. Subscribe to our feed in iTunes.

Jeffrey Shaw has been a portrait photographer for 30 years.  He's watched the industry change dramatically in that time, but one thing has remained true.  In a competitive environment, how you serve your clients is what will set you apart from the competition. "Big Corporations are trying to make themselves look small.  We're already there...the small business owner.  We have an unbelievable power...our service." By focusing on the portraits, albums and products that we can create for our clients, we can truly serve them. "Sales isn't about taking.  It's actually our biggest act of service." To hear more from Jeffrey, watch part one of this two part video interview. Audio only version here: FREE eGuide Want to learn more from Jeffrey? He is speaking at Imaging USA in January! Plus he is offering this awesome eGuide here totally Free! How to identify and avoid 6 common thinking patterns that sabotage your ability to succeed in your business. Exactly how to replace each of these patterns with a phrase that opens your thinking to new possibilities and creates greater connections with potential clients. How these simple, but powerful, shifts give you greater control in your life and business Why ‘If you build it, they will come’ doesn’t work anymore andwhat approach you should take instead.   Subscribe to our feed in iTunes.