4 Things To Outsource As A Photographer
Outsourcing can be a hard thing to bring into your business. I’ve been there. Starting a business is scary and hard, and we are SO DETAILED in the beginning of this business because we want it to succeed. We figure out what works and what doesn’t work and apply our own style and way of doing things to everything we touch. I remember hitting this point in my business, after years of shooting weddings and climbing towards where I thought I wanted this business to be. Attracting the dream clients and weddings and shoots and finally reaching a price point I felt really good about- my calendar was full. It’s a GREAT problem really, something we dream of especially as we are starting out. But once you hit that spot, you start to ask yourself now what?
The first thing you will likely need to start doing is OUTSOURCING. This is taking some fo the tasks you are doing in your business, and PAYING someone else to do them for you. The goal in this is that during that time someone else is completing said task, you are able to either do something else to bring in money OR take time off! Is it scary to outsource? YES. Can it be hard? YES. It is worth it? YES.
Here are my top lists of things I’d look into outsourcing early on:
PROBLEM: I have no idea how much money I’m making and my business financials are messy.
OUTSOURCE: Bookkeeping
What does this look like?
There are a few routes you can take with this but essentially you are going to want to look into hiring a bookkeeper. That is someone who will keep your financial bookkeeping organized and on track (and when tax time comes around make your life a lot easier!) I should add that, one of the first things you will likely want to do is hire a CPA (and accountant for taxes) Business taxes are different than personal taxes and there are ways a CPA can help you save money on taxes AND make sure you are doing things right. Your CPA will likely also be able to recommend a bookkeeper available for hire. From there you and your bookkeeper will work together to establish a method that allows you to continue to do what you love and allows them to keep track of your income and expenses.
2.
PROBLEM: I am drowning in editing and have no free time
OUTSOURCE: Editing
What does this look like?
I was extremely hesitant on this one for way too long. Our editing as photographers is essentially what makes our photos look like our photos! And we likely spent years and years fine tuning that aesthetic. However, I can tell you from experience that it will all be okay and you will be so glad you do this. I started with a bigger company to test the waters on this. I used Photographers Edit, and I still do have a Pro account with them to use from time to time. They charge .24/images and returned my weddings to me within 3 business days. It was LIFE CHANGING. When I got the weddings back, I’d spend some time combing through them ensuring every single image met my standard but even with that meticulous combing, my workflow improved dramatically. There are also a lot of boutique editors out there available for hire too! Sometimes it’s nice to work one on one and have the same person continuously editing for you.
3.
PROBLEM: I’m juggling too much and can’t keep up
OUTSOURCE: blogging, social media or emails to a virtual assistant
What does this look like?
This ones a little different depending on what you outsource but essentially you will hire someone and train them to do the tasks that are slowing you down. These three examples (blogging, social media, and emails) are all semi redundant tasks once you get the process down and can be easily outsourced. I brought on a VA this past year to help with some of this and just keep an extra eye on things for me and it’s been so nice. I love being able to shoot her a text or email with ideas and things I’d like to incorporate and there’s literally not a better feeling when a task gets finished by her and I totally forgot about it in the first place. Blogging is a huge task for me that gets pushed to the back-burner during wedding season, but it’s also a huge resource for marketing and SEO. So that was the primary focus for her and it’s been a great addition to my business.
4.
PROBLEM: My house is a mess because I don’t have time
OUTSOURCE: Cleaning, Grocery Shopping and/or Childcare
What does this look like?
I know this sounds boujee, but hear me out. Most of us work from home as photographers and it can be the BIGGEST distraction when we are sitting at home constantly looking around and reminded that we still haven't vacuumed or unloaded the dishwasher or picked up groceries. Or maybe you have little ones that are constantly demanding your attention (something I’m working my way through now) There is a weird balance when we work from home that we feel the need to work full time AND be a stay-at-home parent. When in reality, if we were headed into the office for the day, we would not be expected to do any of those tasks. So, get in the headspace that you ARE headed into the office everyday (even if that office is a small desk in the corner of your living room) Working towards being able to hire a housekeeper once a month to come help with some of those household tasks, or switching to ordering groceries for pick up ahead of time, or hiring a babysitter for a few hours certain days of the week to give you that time to dedicate undivided attention to your business.