You love photography, but running a business? That's a different story. If you've ever thrown up your hands trying to figure it out yourself and said "This CAN'T be that hard!!!" you've come to the right place. Host Annemie Tonken's secret superpower is cutting through the confusion to give you actionable, step-by-step strategies and systems that will help you build a business that reflects your values, serves your needs, and thrills your clients. Tune in to find out why thousands of…
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Here's something see all the time (and have fully been guilty of myself): you run a marketing campaign, it does what it does, and by the time it's over, you don't want to think about it any more... you're just onto the next thing. You skip the debrief. You promise yourself you'll remember what worked. But then six months later you're reinventing a wheel you've already built two or three times. To…
You know that feeling when you get a client email, a phone call, or even just an inquiry and your heart starts racing... Maybe it's excitement, maybe it's fear, or maybe it's a combination of the two, but according to our nervous system, it's all the same. We talk a lot on this podcast about what to say to fill your calendar. What we don't talk about enough is how what's happening in your body…
Most restaurant menus have a handful of apps, a handful of entrees, and a handful of desserts: enough to give people choices and accommodate dietary restrictions, but not so many that people get overwhelmed. So why do most of us limit our photography "menu" to one or two items? When your business only has one package, one price, the offer is take it or leave it: you're handing hesitant clients an…
It's August, which means it's probably feels way too early to think about Black Friday, holiday cards, or filling your calendar for Q4... but that's exactly why now is the time to do it! Every year I watch the same thing happen: photographers coast through summer, and then the second Starbucks rolls out everyone's favorite seasonal latte, panic sets in: empty calendar, no plan, reactive scramble.…
Here's a pattern I've noticed: photographers spend months chasing a version of growth that sounds right, but never actually sits right. Typically this is because they've heard advice or purchased a course that may be well-intentioned, but doesn't really align with their unique circumstances or goals. Before they know it, they've spent their valuable time, money, and energy heading in the wrong…
You can streamline and automate every last thing in your business, but there are still only so many clients you can take on because there's only one of you... unless you build an associate team. This week, I'm sharing my conversation with Ali Leigh, a Minneapolis-based wedding photographer who has been running an associate team for almost a decade. Ali was an open book, sharing the actual nuts and…
My dad had a "system" for organizing his office. You could ask him for anything - any book or file or piece of paper - and he'd be able to locate it in 30 seconds. The problem? No one else had any idea what his system was, and if he wasn't available, nothing could be located. Maybe your office is super organized, maybe your desktop is as clean as the day you got your computer, but I'd be willing…
There's an old story about a fisherman who keeps going out every day with holes in his net. Even though he knows the net leaks, he doesn't think he can afford to take the time off from fishing to mend the holes. I've been that fisherman more times than I'd like to admit, and I'd be willing to bet there's a good chance you have been too. At some point in business, most of us will get in our own…
This last episode in our Summer Essentials series dates back to 2021, but don't let its vintage fool you: it's message is as true - and important - now as it was then: most of your clients don't actually know what they want. Here's what we're chatting about: Why you need to replace "give people what they want" with "show them what they need" The importance of showing (only) what you want to sell -…
This conversation with copywriter and brand strategist Courtney Fanning changed how I think about copywriting. The premise is simple (if a little uncomfortable): we all instinctively write for the type of consumer we are, and if there are four types, that means we're only effectively speaking to maybe 25% of our potential clients. Courtney shares a framework she adapted from Spanx founder Sara…
There's this cookbook my mom had when I was growing up called More With Less. The whole premise was: here are big, satisfying meals made with humble ingredients. It was on her shelf my entire childhood, and honestly... it's basically how I think about business strategy too. This episode is one of our most popular ever, and I'm re-sharing it as part of our Summer Essentials series because right now…