Mistake #1: No 5-year plan or concrete goals

It’s not enough to say “I want to be a photographer.” Talent alone will not create a successful photography business.

Every business and great achievement starts out with a plan. When you know what you want, you get what you want.

When you have a plan, your marketing will have direction and will have a much better chance of success.
Imagine yourself next year and in 5 years. What will your studio look like? Your clients? Your income? Your photography? Your home? Your studio? List it all.

Then, use that list to create a 5-year plan with yearly goals. Break it down into monthly goals and steps. Start taking action – NOW!

Mistake #2: Marketing a poor quality product

There are a lot of “photographers” out there. It’s so easy to get into, especially these days with digital cameras.
There’s nothing wrong with having a poor quality product. We all started there at some point. But the key is to recognize when your product is ready for marketing.
Don’t start marketing before you have something decent to offer. If you do, you will be marketing your inabilities. And once you are known for poor quality, it is hard to change that perception.
Be realistic, open and honest about your product. You need to build your skill set and create the ability to repeatedly and consistently create effective and saleable images.
And once you get there, never rest on your laurels. Photography is like a unicycle. Stop peddling and you fall off.

Mistake #3: Poor or no marketing

There was a time, just before digital cameras came along, that all you needed to do was get some gear, lights, a studio, a sign and business cards and you had a reasonable crack at success. Everyone thought we were magicians.
Well, the genie is out of the bottle now and everyone is a photographer!
People will not flock to us the way they used to. We need to offer great products and services that place us above and beyond the “point and shoot” photography world.
Good marketing is reliable, responsible, affordable and measurable. If you invest the time in creating great marketing plans, it will pay off.
And, in my experience, marketing works best when it comes from the source. This is one task I wouldn’t recommend delegating.

Mistake #4: Focusing on media

Dan Kennedy and others talk about the three steps in the marketing process: market, message and media – in that order. Many people mistakenly skip the first two steps, but these are critical to a successful marketing process.
First, you have to identify your market. Who is going to buy your photographs and why? You can’t sell something if there is no interest.

When you have your market, the next step is to create powerful messages (offers) designed to speak to that market - wedding packages, senior sessions, baby sessions, kids klubs, family programs.
Get away from the one size fits all pricing and create offers that sizzle and resonate. Think Starbucks. All they sell is coffee, re-packaged.
When you’ve analyzed your market and created your offers, then you are ready to go to the media phase. How are you going to deliver your message to your potential market?

Remember, if everyone is your market, then no one is. Niche your services. Define them. Once you have figured out a market that is small enough to get your arms around, yet big enough to be profitable, the delivery method can often be very affordable.

Direct mail is my favourite technique. Websites are great too, but they only work if people know you have one. Displays, offers through affiliations and cross-marketing are also very easy and affordable media.

Mistake #5: Failure to build the herd

Most businesses fail to build the herd, yet that is where the gold is. Past clients are proven. They do not need to be sold to you, they already are. They are trained and ready to buy again. And they will refer all their friends, more folks just like them.
It’s called database marketing, and it is the biggest secret of all for those who care and dare to use it. What is it? Simple. Keep a log of your past clients and keep in touch with them via phone, mail or email.
It’s simple, cheap and very reliable.

Mistake #6: Thinking “high-tech” equals high profit

This is probably the biggest mistake most people make. They focus on the latest and greatest techniques and equipment for making great photographs and forget about marketing.
Don’t get me wrong. I love good lenses, the latest cameras and cool pieces of equipment that make my life easier, but I recognize when I need to drop it all and focus on the marketing.

Photography is not separate from business. It, like any business, is an idea that needs development.
A carpenter builds his castle, just like you build your dream, not because he has awesome carpentry tools, but because he has a plan, good ingredients, time and patience. He builds one brick, one wall at a time. Then he gets to step back and see what he has created.

It’s the same for you. If you have a plan, start today, right now, working with whatever you have at your disposal, and start building, one brick at a time.