The Pet Photographers Club: Recent Episodes

Caitlin McColl and Kirstie McConnell

Delving deep into the world of professional pet photography with fortnightly interviews and expert guests to help grow your business.

We’ve heard it before, business is not for the faint-hearted and today’s guest agrees.

I’m talking about Alex Cearns who’s been in business for 15 years and has worked with pet photographers from all corners of the globe.

We covered many topics including the usual business structures, marketing and products, but the common theme throughout was not to let fear hold you back in business.

If you’ve caught yourself getting down after comparing your average sales to other photographers, or beating yourself up over the peaks and troughs of business, Alex’s message is sure to hit home.

In the members second-half, Alex shared how she’s booking 250 clients a year, what they’re buying, why they don’t ask for digitals and her thoughts on social media for marketing.

There’s great takeaways from this episode no matter what stage you’re at in business, so tune in!

We covered:

The business structure of Houndstooth Studio
Characteristics to be successful
Business is not linea
Fake it ‘til you make it
Get in front of people and talk passionately about what you do
How to appreciate where you’re currently at with your sales when you see your friends making 5 figures

IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE:

Organic bookings are all but dead, so how is Alex booking 250 shoots a year?
What clients are buying
Social media expectations
What one thing has the biggest impact on a successful business

Mentioned links can be found in the show notes here: https://thepetphotographersclub.com/podcast/1611

Over the last few years I’ve seen how trends have changed and pet photographers around the world have introduced new business models and pricing structures.

But today’s guest is the exception.

She found what works for her early on, and she’s sticking to it. By pricing herself this way she is consistently hitting her averages, and attracting the type of client she wants- all by word of mouth!

I’m talking about Jane Thomson whose work is pure art and just gorgeous, and I am stoked to have her on the show today.

We covered:

Jane’s journey from $350 shoots to the structure she uses today
What gives Jane the confidence to ask for the money upfront
How clients respond when they’re told about the minimum collection

IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE:

What Jane’s clients are buying
The client experience
How Jane sells products, without In Person Sales!
How Jane’s clients find her
All about the charity project and why Jane took it on

Mentioned links are in the show notes found here: https://thepetphotographersclub.com/podcast/1610

CLUB CHANGESFor the first time since the launch of The Pet Photographers Club six years ago, a price rise is coming.

That price rise is because the new membership structure will include over $150 worth of bonus content for monthly members and even more for annual members. Of course, there is also 16 seasons of interviews in the archives of the podcast! That's a lot of valuable content collected over the years!

Don't worry existing members- your payments won't change. The new price is only for new sign-ups from 1st October 2024.

Not yet a member? You can lock in the current low price. Sign up now.

We often hear educators saying that you can find clients anywhere. I know I say it, and I believe it because we really need so few clients per year that we can find enough no matter where we live- well almost.

Today’s guest agrees, but she also pointed out that some markets are easier than others which is why she happily travels two hours to her client shoots back in Boston, instead of trying to find clients in her new hometown.

By making this decision, she also realised she had to make more money per client. So two years ago, Blue Amrich re-designed her business model to meet that new required average sale. In today's episode, she shared what Beyond the Fence looked like then and the biggest change she made to ensure that drive is worth it.

We covered:

Moving into pets because "dogs are better than brides"
What happened when Blue stopped selling digitals
Conversion rate from enquiry to selling
Why Blue didn't move her business when she moved her home
It's a numbers game
Knowing your client

IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE:

Most people haven't thought about the final result
Blue's initial client call
Pricing and products and profits
Why Blue is happy to be working seasonally
How clients are finding Beyond the Fence
Why do personal projects

Show notes can be found here: https://thepetphotographersclub.com/podcast/1609

Today’s guest is absolutely no stranger in this industry. She has been setting standards for pet photographers for a decade or so, but today she’s here not to talk about education, but her own journey as a pet photographer and the changes she’s made throughout the years in order to meet her business goals. I’m talking about none other than Nicole Begley and I’m wrapped to have her joining us today.

WE COVERED:

The push for Nicole to start a business back in 2010 and her first goal
The wake-up call to switch from $175 all-inclusive sessions
The impact of attending a conference
Nicole's first sale from making that switch, and her average from then on
How Nicole's marketing approach changed to align with her new pricing came in
Why Nicole stopped photographing families and went "all in" with photographing pets

IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE:

The confidence boost from a great sale
The mark up Nicole puts on her products to be profitable
Money blocks
The three different pricing structures Nicole has trialled: Collections, Create your own collection, (including digitals), Al A carte
Why Nicole uses digitals as an incentive, and how
Nicole’s golden first question for enquiries
Nicole’s booking process and how she utilises the pre-booking phone call
Why offer a bonus even for clients that have an unlimited budget

Find the show notes here: https://thepetphotographersclub.com/podcast/1608

I’ve spent a lot of time increasing my SEO knowledge over the last 12 months and I can tell you first-hand that eventually it all pays off..! Even still, there’s always something more to learn, particularly in the ever-changing space of SEO.

Today’s guest, Claire Lauer helps photographers rank higher on Google to increase organic bookings and in this episode she shared tonnes of actionable tips to help you do the same as well has her favorite SEO tools. Even after this last 12 months of increasing my knowledge around this topic, I also grabbed some great tops and will be implementing a few changes on my own sites thanks to this episode!

If you’d love to have more enquiries coming to you from people who are already searching for the exact thing you offer- amazing pet portraits, then be sure to tune in.

We covered:

What is SEO and why should we spend time on improving it
Keywords and tools for researching them
How to use these keywords in blogging and why
The importance of image optimisation
How can someone like Claire help us photographers?

In the members-only extended episode:

What is a Google Business Profile
Claiming, optimising and posting on your google business profile
Backlinks: where to get them and why
Understanding Domain Authority
How long do our blog posts need to be and how can we make the most of them for SEO

Find all the mentioned links in the show notes: https://thepetphotographersclub.com/podcast/1607

Today’s guest, Gabi Leon of Gavriella Pet Photography, moved to the U.S. 4 years ago. In the lead up to her move she laid as many foundations as possible to be ready to hit the ground running. Since then, she’s stayed focused on her goal which is to offer a high-end luxury photography business and build a million dollar business.

She isn’t quite getting consistent bookings yet, but the ones she does get, spend enough that it doesn’t matter- which by the way, is on average between $5-6k.

She’s gotten creative with her marketing too and in this interview, she shared one strategy that I haven’t heard of before and if you’re aiming for high sales, you could certainly replicate.

We covered:

What separates Gabi from her local competition
How Gabi prepared for her move to the U.S. to set up her business for success
Where Gabi went to become known and how she went about it
The connection that led to a great opportunity to make a little money, and get great brand awareness
The reality of setting up a luxury business, without shortcuts
Gabi's ultimate financial goal and the income avenues she's planning to use to reach it

Members-only interview

Getting clients through a luxury magazine at a retirement village
Gabi’s plan to be more consistent
The numbers: How often Gabi is photographing, and what the spending clients buy
Why offer mini sessions to the agility world
Gabi’s plan for building a passive income

Links to all things mentioned can be found in the show notes at: https://thepetphotographersclub.com/podcast/1606

Today’s guest launched her dog sports photography business in late 2019.. Within months the 25 upcoming events she’d booked had all been canceled due to covid. Having quit her career job, she was forced to pivot and spend most of 2020 learning as much as she could to relaunch as a pet portrait photographer. Implementing everything she learned, her focus became building relationships which now means most of her clients come from referrals. I’m talking about Michelle Crandall of Pets in Focus and you’ll want to tune in to hear all about that and her business today.

We covered

How covid forced Michelle to change from dog sports to portraits
Why Covid was a blessing in disguise
Knowing your values right now
Why Michelle hasn’t gone back to dog sports
Anxiety around education
How Michelle transitioned her name from dog sports to portraits with marketing

IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE:

How managing a Pet Parade helped Michelles business
The marketing plan Michelle is focusing on
Charitable marketing
Partners don’t need to be dog related
Michelle’s process to choosing a product menu
Michelle’s meat selling product
Michelle’s process
The biggest time saver
The labs Michelle works with and why the variety

When today’s guest moved cities, continuing her landscape photography as her primary income felt impossible without local connections. She considered the contacts she did have and realized they were in the dog world. Combining her love for dogs with her love for nature, Kim Hoshall utilised these contacts to launch a pet photography business. She’s tried many different pricing structures and marketing strategies in the last ten years, and in today's episode- we spoke all about them!

We covered

From a career in dance to professional photography
No connections
How Kim's income is split between landscape photography and pet photography
The importance of connections
How to get started in a new city
Kim's best lead source
Why offer multiple session types, and is that working?

IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE

The attraction to destination adventure sessions
Kim's most popular product
How Kim reaches her typical average sale and what she wants to change
Starting a local dog community podcast as a marketing strategy

This week’s guest found herself with a quiet start to the year after her biggest lead generator, a local event was cancelled right before she was taking time off for an overseas trip. I’m talking about a returning guest to the show, Ina Jalil who instead of allowing herself to mellow in stress, invested in more coaching and took action. Fast forward four months, she’s had a 5 figure sale, her highest to date, and is almost fully booked until Australian winter.

Tune in to today’s episode to learn how she turned business around and before that, the perhaps surprising impact of her rebrand- which has helped her business mindset!

We covered:

Ina’s journey from side hustle to professional
The reason Ina specialises in pets
Digging into your why and the impact
Why Ina uses her name as her business name
What happens when you rely on one lead source
How Ina smashed marketing in a rush

IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE:

The questions Ina asks to help with big sales
10k sale - what they bought and why they booked now
Repeating a 5 figure sale
SEO, blogging and backlinks
Sony advocate
Personal projects for creativity and more bookings

Mentioned links in the show notes

I initially asked today’s guest on the show when I learned about his super successful truck studio and we did talk about it, but he also shared so much else including what gave him the confidence to take out a loan to build this business.

I’m talking about Ryan Erickson who last year, in his first year of full time business turned over more than $200,000 from 150 clients spending an average of $1500 each. There’s tonnes of really great insights and learnings in the first part of this episode, but if you want to know how he found those clients, and here the benefits of his business plan and what that included, be sure to listen to the members-only half. If you’re not yet a member to hear that second half, use the link in the show notes to sign up today with a 14 day free trial.

We covered:

Ryan’s journey from weddings to pet photography
Why open a truck studio
Fundraisers and charitable work
Growing a portfolio
What gave Ryan the confidence to go all in
Ryan’s backup plan

IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE:

Market Research and data, business plans and how that’s helped Ryan reach success
Photo Truck total set up cost
Ryan’s Turnover
How in person events act as passive marketing for Ryan
Why farmers markets
In Person Sales and the client process

Links in the shownotes: https://thepetphotographersclub.com/podcast/1602

How does an $8500 average sale sound to you with a cost of goods of just 5%. That is reality for today’s guest who deliberately moved their studio location to be in a town that aligns with their studio brand. I’m talking about Kim of Kimberly Sarah Photography. She joined us back in season five to share all things client experience and I’ve got her back today to share her insights into achieving consistently high sales. They’ve also just launched a new business, Hey Winston and if you’ve ever dreamed of outsourcing your sales- then it is for you!

We covered:

What is a luxury studio these days
Low volume, high price point
What is a Dog Art Gallery
How to choose a town for your studio space
Kimberly Sarah Photography average sale, and how they reach it
Why they have a studio if they could make the same money without it
Kim’s biggest tips for getting high sales
What is Hey Winston! And how can you help photographers and what will it cost

IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE:

Kim’s studio sales process
Pricing and product options at Kimberley Sarah Photography
The key questions Kim asks that lead to higher sales

Blogging challenge: https://thepetphotographersclub.com/blogging-challenge

Other links in the show notes: https://www.thepetphotographersclub.com/podcast/1601

For most of us pet photographers, we have to have a strong, layered marketing plan in order to get consistent bookings. But what if your website did all the heavy lifting for you? For today’s guest, Angie Rose, that’s exactly the case. Her marketing budget is almost exclusively spent on a her content creator who does all her blogging, which she admits wouldn’t get done otherwise. That blogging, combined with the main website is her biggest lead source and then it’s through her booking process that those leads are converted into dream clients.

If ditching expo’s, affiliate programs and Facebook marketing sounds like a dream to you- tune into this episode to hear how Angie runs her business without all that!

We covered:

What clients book Angie for
Angie’s booking rate and the process to booking
Working with professionals to establish a high converting website
How the website helps attract enquiries and convert them to bookings

IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE:

The benefits of using your name as a business name
How people find Angie’s website
The positive impact of blogging
Outsourcing content creation for newsletters and blogging
How Angie customises her sessions
Why pets with their people?

MENTIONED LINKS

www.angierose.com

www.facebook.com/AngieRosePetPhotography

www.instagram.com/angieprose

www.thepetphotographersclub.com/blogging-challenge

Today’s guest has over 25 years of experience as a pet photographer. Back when she started, pet photography basically didn’t exist. A lot has changed in the photography world since then, but as you’ll hear, a lot of things haven’t really either. I’m talking about Margaret Bryant of Bryant Dog Photography who started out shooting dog sports on film but quickly realised that wasn’t sustainable (for the time) and moved into studio portraits. Since then she’s photographed thousands of dogs in her home studio in Texas and even published a couple of books.

One of which is helpful for us as fellow pet photographers as it’s full of posing tips and other advice. It’s called Dog Photography: How to Capture the Love, Fun and Whimsy of Man’s Best Friend

We covered a lot in this episode, from Margaret’s experiences in the early days of her business, to who our biggest competitor is and how we can book clients anyway. And if you’ve been thinking about offering puppy packages, definitely tune into the second half to hear exactly what Margaret is offering.

We covered:

What did pet photography look like in the 90’s
Photographing dog sports, on film!
Why Margaret changed business models
The reason Margaret opened a home studio
What’s changed in terms of sales over the last 20 years
Where do Margaret’s clients come from
Margaret’s golden rule to survive unexpected difficult times after making it through the GFC and Covid

IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE:

How to make it easy to book through your website
How audience can get to know you and like you for a better client experience
The reason a client should choose you (and not their iPhone or AI)
What are “in but not in” photos
How being observant can help your client and your bottom line
Managing expectations for a good client experience
Puppy first year - what it looks like, pricing, structure and why the client can own the responsibility
Dog birthday parties as a pet photographer
Biggest tips for someone wanting to do puppy first year
The impact of AI for us as pet photographers in business

It’s been just over a year since today’s guest launched her pet photography business. She spent 2022 learning all about business and hit the ground running in 2023. She’s proof that actioning what you learn is the only way to meet your goals. Tune in to today’s episode to hear all about the marketing strategies that worked and didn’t, to get this pet photography business off the ground for England-based photographer, Diane Gollowitzer of Dogs in Focus Photography.

If you are looking to see who has recently walked the path you’ve just stepped onto- today’s episode is for you.

We covered:

Starting a photography business without knowledge of photography
Why Diane quickly realised she needed to re-brand her pet photography business
How starting a new business is just like dating!
Following your passion and aligning your business with your values and desires

IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE:

How Diane filled her first few months in business with paying clients
Christmas Markets and the difference the audience can make
Giveaways as a training ground
Selling gift vouchers
What Diane would do differently next time
Other marketing avenues Diane has tried

Check the show notes for links!

What if I told you that it’s possible to be completely fully booked thanks to past clients either returning or referring? That is the reality for today’s guest, who clearly doesn’t do things in halves! A quick look at either his Instagram or Website is proof of that with stunning images, useful information and beautiful design so it isn’t a surprise to learn that his client experience is also seamless. In today’s episode, we broke down exactly what that experience looks to make his clients tell all of their friends!

We covered:

The reason Carlos is running his business part-time
Client availability for a part-time business offering this style of pet photography
The marketing campaign that actively seeks out the friends of his clients and turns them into clients too
An overview of Carlos' client experience and the elements that lead to referrals

IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE:

The role of an assistant
What a thinking dog first looks like
How custom sales videos work
Selling products with a hands-off approach
Carlos’ pricing structure

Full show notes found here: https://thepetphotographersclub.com/podcast/1511

Despite this interview being with one of the world’s best equine photographers, it’s not about horse photography at all! Instead, Shelley and I dived deep into the editorial world. If you have your own stock library of images, this might just be a great way to add some passive income to your business. Shelley shared exactly how she finds these clients, what it is they’re buying and how her system works to sell images to magazines. In the members half we got into the numbers and then had a little chat about licensing too.

Shelley is truly a wealth of knowledge and what she shared in this interview is sure to get your mind ticking with ideas.

We Covered:

Who is Shelley
When and why Shelley stopped working for private clients
What Shelley thinks is the best training for photographers
The difference between commercial and editorial photography
Why would a magazine order commissioned photography over stock images
Can you make money from editorials
What advice Shelley has for someone wanting to do editorials but without a stock library
How Shelley got into Commercial photography
What is the difference between commercial, branding, and editorial?
Offering video as an edition service
Where does stock imagery fit into your business model

IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE

Becoming a member of publications to attend conferences
Connecting with editors at events - what to ask
What these conferences look like (American horse publications)
What will a magazine pay for a stock image and is it worth it
Submitting photo essays and pitching
Portfolios Vs Photo Essays
Shelley’s income
Licensing
Pricing
Documentary equine films - passion or commercial projects?

Links and show notes can be found at https://thepetphotographersclub.com/podcast/1510

The Pet Photographers Club podcast is back for 2024 and if like me, you’re taking advantage of this quieter season to update your website and put a blog strategy in place to get you closer to position one on Google, then today’s episode couldn’t be better timing for you.

Late last year I decided to hire a PR consultant for my new photography business. After learning from today’s guest, Zoe Hiljemark back in Season 9 and then following her Facebook Group for a while, I knew she was the perfect fit. She’s been busy pitching journalists for me over the last few months while also sharing extra advice with me on blogging and SEO. Based on her advice, I made some changes to my website which had an immediate positive impact.

I asked Zoe to join me again on the podcast to share some of these insights with you all and you absolutely will not be disappointed.

If you’re not a Club member yet, this extended episode with Zoe is alone worth the annual fee. We broke down the customer journey, giving you suggestions on what blog topics to cover for each stage. Zoe shared the biggest mistake most photographers make with their blogs, and among everything else also got into backlinks and understanding Domain Authority.

WHAT WE COVERED:

What is SEO and why should we focus on it
Where do blogs come into it
Minimum word count per page and how to make the copy digestible
Site structure and submitting sitemaps through Google Search Console
The pages we should have on our website
Why should we blog

IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE

Blogging beyond sharing client galleries
Customer journey and how that impacts blog strategy
Blog topic examples for a cold audience, warm audience, hot audience
The importance of re-engagement content or nurture content
How to do keyword research
Understanding keywords
Breaking down the technical SEO optimisation of blogging: Meta description, Titles, heading tags
The biggest mistake photographers make with meta descriptions
How internal links help SEO
What are backlinks, why do we want them and how can we get them
Guest blogging and how to approach it
Understanding Domain Authority

LISTENER BONUSTo make it even easier for you to get started with blogging this month, I’ve put together a blog planner with a table of ideas! Everyone can access it for free until the end of January via the show notes, after that, it will be a bonus for members found only in the portal! Grab yours now!

ACCESS THE FREE BLOGGING PLANNER AND IDEAS

MENTIONED LINKS IN THE SHOWNOTES: https://thepetphotographersclub.com/podcast/1509

Today’s guest is the proof that following what makes you happy, can also lead to financial success. She’s big on diversifying and multiple income streams, but her main business is helping fellow pet photographers improve their craft, which aligns perfectly with the lifestyle she has.

I’m talking about Emily Abrahams of Inspawration Photography and in this episode we covered all of that and in the members half, we got into the details of income options for content creators, particularly breaking down the difference between user generated content vs promotion, and what are media kits. We also chatted all about Social Media strategy which is full of tips for pet photographers.

We extended the episode to also discuss teaching and the education realm so if you’re thinking you’d like to get into education.. Stay tuned for that part!

And to wrap up, we had a little extra chat about AI.

Yes, we covered a lot, and absolutely you don’t want to miss this episode!

WHAT WE COVERED:

Emily’s journey

Why Emily went straight to teaching instead of growing a business shooting for clients?

What are Emily’s income streams

The importance of diversifying your income

IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE

Content creators: What is a media kit & what are engagement rates

What if you don’t have engagement

User generated content Vs promotion on your IG

Knowing your audience on Social Media in order to create relatable content

Teaching isn't for everyone

Emily’s tips for someone who wants to get into education

Should we be using AI for client work

Today’s guest has been a working photographer for almost 20 years. She started out in weddings in the UK and switched to portraits when she moved to South Africa. Fast forward to today, she’s reworked her pricing structure to ensure her business is profitable with the 150 clients per year she shoots for, 80% of which are pet shoots. I’m talking about Emma O’Brien of Emma O’Brien Photographer.

I’m sure you’ll be impressed as me to learn that she doesn’t do any paid marketing but instead uses a strategic networking approach to ensure her calendar is full so if you’re looking for free marketing strategies, but sure to listen to the second half of this episode where we go into those in detail.

What we covered:

When and why Emma introduce pets
Studying photography and is a diploma still necessary
Why to stop looking at other photographers work
How to avoid creating work that looks just like everyone else’s
Using the move to South Africa from the UK to start fresh
Burn out

IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE

Emma’s change in business model to make more money
Working with a coach
How Emma worked out she needed to double her prices
South African incomes
How does the that affect your marketing
Knowing your ideal client
What are business card drops and why do them
Collaborations with other brands
How many clients is Emma photographing per year, and what percentage are for pets
Emma’ shelter work and the bonus marketing that comes from that

I’ve asked many photographers what they’d do to start their business if they moved to a new place.. And today’s guest has actually done it. She completely transformed her business from shoot and burn family photography in South Africa, to a profitable, full-service specialised pet photographer in New Zealand. She studied and implemented what she learned in order to make that transition successful and now she’s consistently booking clients who typically spend $1800. I’m talking about Salome of Yellow Pet Photography.

We covered:

Moving from South Africa to NZ
Website
Shoots per month
Home studio
The impact of working with a coach
How Salome decided which coach would be best for her
Printed reveals and In-Person-Sales
Working with an SEO expert

IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE:

Salome's best marketing strategy
IG & Tik Tok Strategy
Collaboration marketing and auctions
Pricing structure
Salome's strategy to sell more to clients, months later
Offering hair and make-up

MENTIONED LINKS:

Sue Bryce Education: The Portrait Masters
Jono's SEO business: https://noursemen.co.nz/
Yellow Lab: Instagram
Yellow Lab: Website

Are you blaming the economy, or the Facebook algorithms for your lack of leads and clients? The tough love in this episode with Johl Dunn is for you. There was lots of real talk, and actionable ideas shared by Johl who ran a photography business for 22 years- pre-Facebook, through the GFC and during Covid too.

WE COVERED:

What is mindset
Examples of impact of mindset change
Why is now so hard
Are there still people who can afford photography

IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE:

So how can we get in front of these people
What comes first when re-launching your business
These marketing ideas you mentioned: it’s a lot to be doing on the side of another job.. So what do you recommend
Fundraisers on steroids

Mentioned links:

ENTER JOHL'S GIVEAWAY

Johl's Instagram

Today’s guest started her business just before the Pandemic. She utilised the time through Covid to lay strong foundations for her business and hit the ground running when the world opened back up again. She uses direct marketing with giveaways to book clients year round and from those strategies has an average sale of around $2800 and her highest sale to date is $16k! Remember that she’s been in business just a few years! I’m talking about Marie Wulfram, tune in to hear how she achieves all of this.

We covered:

What Marie did to set solid foundations for her business from the get go
How Marie found and booked her initial clients
Why her strategy is the opposite of cold calling
What building a relationship through IG looks like
How to book free shoots, and what the sales from them can look like

IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE:

Using text and DM to communicate
How Marie leverages events
Average spend and what Marie is doing to achieve consistent high sales
Google Ads

Mentioned links:

Marie Wulfram Photography

Photobizx Podcast

Do you feel like your work isn’t good enough, or you have too much competition and you’re unsure of how to stand out or why a client should choose you?

In today’s episode with Karinda Kinsler we discussed the real reason clients book you, and in the members half of the episode we delved deep into how you can truly connect with those clients to grow your sales.

Between all of that we also covered the mistake Karinda learned from in her previous businesses and the impact of implementing change based on that when launching her equine business.

We covered:

Karinda's journey from livestock photography to newborns and weddings, and into equine
The biggest business lesson Karinda faced
People comprehend in different ways
The rule of 8 in sales
How to prepare your clients to spend without a price list
How to feel comfortable with big numbers
Why would someone choose you?
Clients don’t care how good your work is

IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE:

People buy your why
How to connect with your client and make it about them
Building trust with clients
Ask your clients questions and truly caring about them
Client workflow in order to build a relationship
The importance or not of connecting somehow before the first call
Go-to questions for the first call

MENTIONED LINKS

Mindset and Money Mastery for Photographers Podcast

Master your Mind & Money Coaching with Karinda

Find Your Why by Simon Sinek

Find Your Why: A Practical Guide for Discovering Purpose for You and Your Team

As if niching into pet photography isn’t a defined enough market, today’s guest, Kristen Murray has gone even more specific and has created three sub-niches that she serves; bird hunts, underwater dogs and fall adventures- and it is working! Her clients are spending multiple thousands for wall art and box sets or albums, and better yet, she enjoys these adventures with her clients!

For the first half of the episode, I asked Kristen about finding these clients and then we got deep into photographing hunting. The episode comes with a warning, we did discuss what those photoshoots look like, including the details of one form of hunt in particular so if you don’t want to hear about that, just fast forward past. I’ll put a little warning at the time.

In the members’ half of the interview, Kristen really was an open book, talking about why she’s showing her clients lots of images, and how her process avoids the overwhelm that might otherwise come with that.

We also spoke about her pricing structure, popular products and client response.

On top of all that, she got into the specifics of how to get started with underwater dog photography, and we spoke about her newest offering, travel sessions!

WARNING: We spoke about hunting in detail between minutes 11-15 of the first half. The conversation around photographing hunting dogs continued from a more business perspective after that until minute 22.

We covered:

Kristen’s Journey to get to 6 figures from year one
Who is Kristen’s client
Photographing hunting
Getting into the specialty and the most important things to know

IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE:

Showing 100 photos +
Average spend and pricing
Underwater dog portraits, the pricing differences and selling
Travelling dog photography

Mentioned links:

www.kristenjmurray.com

Coaching with Karinda: Master your mind and money

We’ve all seen the popularity of video increase through social media over the last couple of years, but what about video for a more permanent solution? Something not only to be viewed once and posted as a Reel or Tik Tok, but to be held onto closely as a beautiful keepsake to refer back to time and time again.

That’s what today’s guest, Andrea Fleury is offering pet parents. Videos that capture the true personalities and the relationships these clients share with their pets. She captures the tiny moments that would otherwise be the strongest memories of these pets- think snuggles on the couch, audio of a pet snoring or a puppy running in slow motion with ears flapping.

It starts with an upsell to the client, then comes the storyboarding and of course, shooting and delivering the finished cinematic film- and in today’s episode, you’ll learn exactly how that all works!

We covered:

Andrea’s journey into pet videos
Working with an assistant
How to find and hire an assistant and the costs
Who wants video of their pet?

IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE:

Andrea’s marketing plan for video
What is a storyboard, what goes into planning a video, the questions to ask
Preparing for a video shoot
Equipment for video
Pricing, video and albums
and more!

Mentioned links:

https://www.dogtography.ca/

https://www.dogtography.ca/videowaitlist

Today’s guest is a videographer turned pet photographer after documenting his mum's senior dog for the last 6 months of her life. Fast forward to today, his website is ranking page one of Google in the highly competitive London market, and his layered marketing approach converts super well thanks to a refined enquiry process. I’m talking about Alex Class and if you want to know what building a successful business looks like- tune in!

We covered:

Wendy’s story
Transition from video to photography
Alex’s Ideal client
How Alex’s clients find him and what they buy

IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE:

Alex’s client process
What is Cinemagraph Pro
Adding a website lead magnet
How Alex added a website chat bot
What has helped Alex’s website rank so highly

Mentioned links:

https://www.thefullybookedphotographer.com/

https://flixel.com/products/mac/cinemagraph-pro/

www.pawscelebre.com

https://learn.thepetphotographersclub.com/2023-conference

Today’s guest studied photography in college but gave it up after a professor convinced her that she lacked creativity. Fast forward a decade or two, and she not only has a successful full-time pet photography business, but she’s also embracing all that AI offers as a creative outlet!

I’m talking about Carol Arscott and no matter if the world of AI intimidates or excites you, today’s episode is sure to inspire not only with her work, but hearing how Carol came back to photography years after putting the camera down.

We covered:

Carol's experience as a student
The impact someone can have on your confidence
Assignments as students Vs clients
What this AI Series with Moby all about
What’s the future of Moby’s series

IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE:

Mid-Journey Vs PS Beta
Mid-journey time and cost
The industry future in an age of AI
What full-time looks like for Carol
Working with rescues

Mentioned links:

https://www.midjourney.com/

www.carolarscott.com

https://www.instagram.com/carolarscottphotography/

I never quite understood the exact role of a financial planner. I mean, I have an accountant? Don't they basically cover the same thing? Do I also need to pay another finance person? In today's show, that question, among many others were answered.

And look, I know finances aren't usually a crowd favourite topic among us creatives, but I did get an amazing guest on the show today who knows exactly how it is for us as creatives to deal with everything in terms of accounting, financial planning, and then also the psychology around money.

We went well over time. So you are in for a treat.

WE COVERED:

Why a pet photographer needs to talk to a financial planner, or not
When do we need an accountant, and when do we need a financial planner
How to find the best person for your business finances
What does working with a financial planner look like
Do we need a business financial advisor and a separate personal financial advisor

AND IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE:

What falls under the role of “financial planner”
The cost of a Financial Planner
Investing

MENTIONED LINKS:

Episode with Anastasia Chomlack: One-to-one gratitude sessions (Giving back project)

Minerva Financial Arts

The International Pet Photographer of the Year Awards is the biggest of its kind! It was hosted by us here at The Pet Photographers Club until last year, and it's now under new management with Unleashed Education as the host.

They've introduced a few changes which will ensure the competition can continue into the future and so this week I had Craig and Charlotte join me to answer all your questions!

Here's what we covered:

What are The Awards
The 2023 Judging Panel
Why there's an entry fee, what does that get you and how much is it
Change of categories, scoring and awards

IMPORTANT DATES

Entries close June 30th
Finalist announced Sept 1
Awards ceremony Sept 7
Feedback, scores and badges Sept 10

MEMBERS BONUS

For members this week, in lieu of the extended episode, I’ve organised a FREE entry for the first ten of you to request it! Just complete this form ASAP: https://thepetphotographersclub.com/awards-2023

Our guest today, Jeff Brown started his photography career in the defence force which gave him many opportunities. One of which was photographing the queen which of course he used as part of his branding message on his website when he ran his own studio. Today he spends his time helping other photographers grow their business. In today’s episode, we dive deep into branding and websites, and if you are a premium member Jeff gave some really practical advice in the second half to help you improve your website conversion, and stay at the top of Google!

WE COVERED:

Jeff’s background
How Jeff spent a £7500 grant to start his photography business
What is a “brand”
The importance of an easy-to-navigate website

AND IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE:

How to know what Google is ranking well
What is EEAT
The information that keeps people on your site, and actually helps convert them
Is blogging still essential in 2023
How to drive organise traffic to our site

MENTIONED LINKS:

Google's White paper

EEAT

The Photographers' Mentor

Members: Listen to the members extended episode in the portal, or, in your favourite podcast player with the private RSS feed.

You’ve heard it a thousand times before.. “add personality to your website” but.. What does that even mean other than saying “Hey I’m your wine-loving pet photographer?”.. Well today’s interview with Austrian based elopement photographer and copywriter extraordinaire, Mariah Wall has got you covered.

WE COVERED:

How to get started with improving copy
Tips for incorporating personality, naturally
The benefits of repelling some clients
Finding your own brand voice
Brand Archetypes

AND IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE:

How to convert your website visitors into bookings, through your pricing page
Answering objections with great copy

MENTIONED LINKS

https://mariaharianna.com/copywriting-for-photographers

https://www.instagram.com/mariahariannaphoto/

https://iconicfox.com.au/brand-archetypes/

p.s. Members don't forget to use your private RSS link to listen to the full episode in yoru favourite podcast player!

Do you always here that one of the best marketing avenues is to attend dog-friendly events to get in front of the right audience.. But, there aren’t any around you.. Or not enough? Then tune in to today’s episode to hear how our guest created her own dog day out, and it wasn’t even as overwhelming as that sounds!

WE COVERED:

Why Kelly got into pet photography
What the event was about
The logistics of hosting an event of this size
The importance, or not, of a business name

AND IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE:

How the event was branded
Marketing the event
Charging for mini session spots
Upselling digitals

You are in for a real treat with today's episode- John runs not one, but two studios, and over the last couple of years has focused his marketing to become known as an expert pet photographer, despite offering other genres and today, 70% of his million dollar revenue comes from pet photography!

It is a not-to-be-missed, long interview so pop your headphones in, take your dog for a stroll and be prepared to stop to jot down notes.

We covered:

Working with a team
Can you be a specialist and a generalist
Incorporating humans w dogs
Where John’s clients come from
The importance of education

And in the members-only half

Having employees- is the headache worth it?
Can you learn to be a manger
How much the business needs to make to pay the bills
The number of leads it takes to run a studio with these overheads
Conversation rates and average sales
John’s booking funnel

MENTIONED LINKS:

https://johnglaserphotography.com/

https://www.facebook.com/johnglaserphotography

https://www.instagram.com/johnglaserphotography/

If the horse world intrigues you.. But you’re not quite sure about offering equine portraits, do not miss this episode with two of the world's most respected equine photographers, Emily Hancock and Hannah Freeland of Training Barn.

We discussed if and how a pet photographer can also offer horse photography but then we went well and truly beyond that. We chatted about marketing and why shooting competitions was the opposite of helpful for Hannah trying to book equine portraits. We chatted safety and horse behavior.

And then in the members half of this interview Emily gave us an insight into the world of creating and selling art in the traditional sense. She also shared her experience working with a marketing firm for both her portraits and her fine art work, as well as how she sells her fine art work to interior designers.

Hannah shared exactly how she books great clients through referrals, and why clients would fly her to the other side of the world and pay £30k+ for portraits.

WHAT WE COVERED:* Can you successfully offer equine photography alongside pet photography or is it it’s own niche? * Why being an equine competition photographer isn’t the type of exposure that helps you grow your business * Safely offering horse portraits

IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE

Transitioning from equine portraits to equine art
Hiring a marketing team
Working with an agent for art commissions
How to find 20k clients
How Hannah booked overseas clients
Why clients would pay 30k+ for a photoshoot

If you're a member, don't forget to use you private RSS feed to listen in your favourite podcast player. That was emailed to you from "captivate" when you first joined. Instructions here: https://thepetphotographersclub.com/rss-feed

How would you like to have repeat clients, purchasing only digitals, coming back to you multiple times per year? That’s what your calendar can look like as a commercial pet photographer.

Today’s guest, Rowan Williams has a background in high level marketing and brand management- and today uses that knowledge to successfully offer commercial pet photography.

She shared what that entails including creating briefs and pricing structures plus in the members extended episode we covered charging for dog models, the impact of Reels and Tik Tok and of course- marketing!

WE COVERED:

Rowan’s marketing background
The charity that introduced Rowan to dog photography
Briefs and getting the information for shot lists
Rowan’s pricing structure and when she collects the funds

EXTENDED MEMBERS-ONLY EPISODE:

The difference between Small business Vs Big Business as clients
Sourcing and paying dog Models
Impact of video and Reels
Where Rowan’s small business clients find her
How big business book Rowan
The different options that clients need

Upcoming workshopSuccessfully launch a profitable commercial pet photography offering!

Get into profitable commercial pet photography

Rowan is guest instructing a workshop in May to help you launch a commercial pet photography offering.

If you’d love to learn step by step how to win big brands as clients, book local small businesses and understand things like usage rights and briefs.. Then this Zoom workshop is for you!

Places will be strictly limited for the live workshop to ensure your questions can be answer.

JOIN THE WAITLIST

OTHER MENTIONED LINKS:

Mayhew - The charity Rowan supports

Dubsado - For client management and automating contracts / invoices

Narrative Select - For AI assisted culling

ImagenAI - For AI assisted lightroom editing

Link’s to Pooch & Pineapple Dog Photography:

Website: poochandpineapple.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/poochandpineapple

Instagram: www.instagram.com/poochnpineapple

Todays guest is Chris Miller, one half of the husband-wife team behind MIL Pet Photography in the UK. He photographs 30 clients a year as his version of semi retirement and in todays episode he shared why it’s worth setting up LinkedIn for your pet photography, and finding a couple of minutes a day to dedicate to the platform.

WE COVERED:

Working as a husband and wife team
Why 60 images is too many
Intro in how LinkedIn is working for MIL

EXTENDED MEMBERS-ONLY EPISODE:

Managing so many social channels
How does LinkedIn even work?
How Chris has reduced the time spent on Social Media

MENTIONED LINKS:

LinkedIn for Photographers course

Andrew’s VLOG Challenge

Chris’ LinkedIn post about the career change

Link’s to MIL Pet Photography:

Website: https://www.millersimage.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/millersimage/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/millersimage/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mil_pet_photography/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/MillersImage

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.co.uk/mil_pet_photography/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@milpetphotography

Today’s guest, Mareike Konrad was one of Europe’s first, if not the first, professional pet photographer. She started her business 12 years ago doing what most of you are doing today- selling digital only packages at unsustainable prices. She quickly realized that in order to put food on her table, something had to change. After reaching out to newborn photographers around the world to learn what worked for them, she introduced albums, wall art and other products too- and when she did- her clients thanked her!

WE COVERED:

Mareike’s journey into pet photography
What Mareike offered when she first started, and why she changes
How much Mareike’s clients spend

EXTENDED MEMBERS-ONLY EPISODE:

The exact products Mareike sells & which are the most popular
Offering digitals and the client response to that
Where Mareike’s clients come from

LINK: https://mareike-konrad.de/

LEARN MORE:

Mareike is co-hosting an online conference for german pet photographers with Sarah Stangl! More on that here: https://mareike-konrad.de/onlinekonferenz-fuer-tierfotografen/

Es wird Zeit, dass sich in der Tierfotografie endlich etwas ändert. Seit Jahren schon beobachten wir den Markt und finden talentierte Fotografen, die sich völlig unter Wert verkaufen. Menschen, die den Spaß an der Tierfotografie verlieren, weil sie sich totarbeiten, um ein geringes Einkommen zu erwirtschaften. Viele, vor allem Frauen, die aus schlechtem Gewissen, ebenso wie aus Unwissenheit viel zu viel verschenken.

Gleichzeitig gibt es ein Konkurrenzdenken unter den Tierfotografen, welches es einem schwer macht seinen Traum zu verfolgen.

Das soll sich jetzt ändern, dachten Sarah (Abenteuerhunde Fotografie) und Mareike (Mareike Konrad Fotografie) und riefen mit „Mutig voran!“ eine Onlinekonferenz für Tierfotografen ins Leben, in der sie sich dem Thema Preise annehmen, ganz viel Wissen zum Thema vermitteln, Erfahrungswerte einstreuen und dir zeigen, was du sofort ändern kannst, um als Tierfotograf:in faire Preise aufzurufen

If you’re interested to know if you can run a profitable pet photography business part-time, today’s guest, Hanako Soncini is sure to inspire. She is Swiss, living in Canada, working full time as a teacher and on top of that, shooting for 30 paying clients a year- mostly only in the Summer break! She spends winter working on her marketing plan and has no intention of ever going full time!

Hanako was truly an open book in this interview, particularly in the members-only extended half we got into financials, pricing structures and lead sources. This is an episode you don’t want to miss so if you’re not yet a member, be sure to join now at the petphotographersclub.com/join so you can hear the entire interview.

WE COVERED:

When Hanako shoots among teaching
How many clients she has per year
Why going full-time isn’t on the cards for Hanako
How knowing your personality can help your business
How the impact of keeping the safety net can differ for certain people

PLUS IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED HALF

Increasing from 17 to 30 clients from 2021 to 2022
When Hanako fits in time for marketing and her best lead sources
Annual revenue, pricing structure & pricing
Automation

https://kiwisphotography.com/

If you are feeling like you’re stuck in an echo-chamber of information, today’s guest is sure to show you a different way. I’m chatting with german photographer Anika Lauer. She started off as a wedding photographer, then transitioned into pets and opened a studio space which she shares with a newborn photographer, even though she is now combining shooting with travel and often has clients out of town or even out of Germany!

If your ears perked up at travel.. You will love the strategy that Anika shares in the members half of the interview which she used to get her first few “international” clients, and it’s something you can do right now!

If Anika’s name rings a bell, no doubt it’s because you’ve seen she’s on our instructor line up for this years Retreat in Tuscany. You can join her for a shoot or two to learn how she captures that gorgeous connection between people and their pets that you’ll hear her discuss in this interview. Plus her classroom workshops will help you to better prepare your clients for a look of harmony and then how to finalise that with her editing style.

Want to join us and the other instructors and attendees?

Bookings close this Friday, January 20th.

Tickets are €2290. Head on over to retreat.thepetphotographersclub.com to learn more.

Did you know that photographers are three times more likely to experience mental illness than the general population?

We’re kickstarting Season 14, and the podcast for 2023 with a conversation around this very important topic with Jessica McGovern from That Tog Spot who not only shares her own experiences, but has also extensively researched Mental Health and the impact on photographers.

Tune in as we break down the three biggest factors and what can be done to help counter those.

P.S. Jess is an instructor at our upcoming Pet Photographers Retreat in Tuscany. Want to join? Bookings close Friday: https://retreat.thepetphotographersclub.com/

Today’s interview topic might not excite you- but it certainly is a useful one! We’re talking insurance. I learned from personal experience the importance of a good insurance policy, you’ll hear all about that and how luck was on my side in the interview!

Other than my story, you’ll learn what means what in your policy and about the application for accepting risk so that you can make sure all your business activities are actually covered. And for the members tuning into the second half you’ll learn the difference between all the policy types you may want to consider and why.

WE COVERED:

How to find what is actually covered
Application for accepting risk and examples
When you’ll never be covered

IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE:

Types of insurance
Which type will cover what?
Cash value Vs Replacement value
Third Party Property Liability
Professional liability / Professional indemnity
What if I can’t work?
How to find a broker

MENTION LINKS:

Tool for finding a broker: https://web.ambest.com/home

https://harvardwestern.com/

Business Foundations Challenge

Are you selling digital only but would love to sell more product? Or perhaps you offer product but you find you can’t sell it? In today’s episode I chatted all about selling product with Maggie Robinson. We also covered the impact of booking a shoot for yourself, how her background in sales helps her in photography and the benefit of IPS that no one likes to mention - the ego boost!

And if you’re a member you’ll hear Maggie share her entire client process in the second half, including the questions she asks on the phone, when she shares her prices and how, how she starts her sales appointments and leads that into a top package sale, and a few key lines that she uses too plus so much more!

WE COVERED:

Why you need to book a photographer today
How a job in trading is the same as photography
The ego boost that comes with IPS, and how it helps you grow your business

IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE:

Maggie’s response to an initial enquiry
When Maggie shares her pricing and how
How many images Maggie shows and why
The only way to start an IPS appointment
How to introduce the top package as the only option
Selling lines that work
The only closing line you need

MENTION LINKS:

Dinky Feet Photography

Tog Academy

Business Foundations Challenge - The Pet Photographers Club

One big takeaway from this interview will surely be the importance of processes, that the sale doesn’t actually happen in the salesroom. If you’re looking for help setting up those processes we cover them week by week in the Business Foundations Challenge. If you’re interested head to foundations.thepetphotographersclub.com

Are you guilty of seeing a particular dog pose or expression on Instagram and wanting to capture it too, before really stopping to think if that was a nice experience for the dog or not? Today’s episode might make you uncomfortable but I challenge you to take a listen and then keep in mind all that you hear during this episode, for your future photoshoots. Personally, I’ll be trying to help my clients recognise stress in their dogs by pointing out when their dog is happy. That’s my big takeaway from this interview!

And if you’re looking for a reference for positive pet poses, head on over to the site to download our free PDF, Pet Poses That Sell.

WE COVERED

The questions to ask clients to prepare for a stress-free photoshoot
The top signs a dog is stressed
How to educate our clients during the shoot

As pet photographers we are always looking for ways to give our clients a reason to stop saying “I’ll book that shoot.. One day”.. And instead, book now. Indian pet photographer, Prathima of Pawparazzi Pet Photography looked deep into the values of her culture to find a way to do just that - and it’s something that’s right in front of us and can easily be introduced around the world.

And if you’re not yet a member, you’re certainly going to want to join to hear the members-only extended episode of this interview. We chatted about making gift certificates profitable, creating desire for wall art, and what to offer if that doesn’t work! PLUS we chatted all about offering shoots outside of your local area, and how you can incentivise your clients to do the marketing for you in a way that’s simpler than you might think!

WE COVERED

The difference between pet parents and pet owners
When the focus is on an occasion
Understanding culture in order to market
Best lead sources
Base package inclusions

Does it feel like every business around you is somehow switching to a subscription model except us pet photographers? All our software, education, even our own dogs food can be purchased on subscription. How would you like to jump on board this trend and improve your cash-flow? Today’s guest took inspiration from another photographer to launch an offering to do just that with a Monthly Print Club. Tune in to hear all about it. In the extended member-only episode you’ll hear all the details around pricing and workload, plus a conversation around the turning point for Cassie’s business which is sure to encourage those of you who are in the early stage of your business. IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE: Stripe - scheduled payments Logistics, workflow & workload Pricing - discounted Turning point Books and model calls Practise clients

MENTIONED LINKS: https://thepetphotographersclub.com/podcast/1210 (Julie Christie podcast episode) Free download - https://thepetphotographersclub.com/freebie-required-average-sale (Required Average Sale)

Do you feel like you’re always chasing your tail? Like there’s always a huge to-do list and you just can’t get on top of it? You know you need a better system but implementing it is a whole other to-do list? If that all sounds familiar, tune in for today’s episode with Kim Hamblin where she shares actionable advice as we break down all the systems that can help you free up more time in your business. We covered How to save time in your business What enables you to bring on a team Which systems are important to put in place How to document your systems efficiently

IN THE MEMBERS-ONLY EXTENDED EPISODE: Kim's top work-life balance tip Having set days for set tasks The most important system to ensure a successful client experience Bank accounts & the finance system Tips for improving your sales system for higher sales How Kim reduced from four days of production to one per week! Having a plan to meet your bookings goals How to bring on a team - know who you want and what their role could be

MENTIONED LINKS Free download: https://www.kimmarietraining.com/7-simple-systems (7 Simple Systems To Build Your 6 Figure Portrait Business) https://petphotographerseducation.thrivecart.com/watch-ordering-appointment/ (Fly on the Wall) Studio ninja code: PPPI50 to save 50% on your first year https://petphotographerseducation.thrivecart.com/marketing-intensive/ (Marketing Intensive Course) https://discpersonalitytesting.com/free-disc-test/ (DISC test) https://cloverleaf.me/enneagram (Enneagram test)

SPECIAL OFFER Kim's Blueprint program mentioned in the episode is being retired. Instead you can join her coaching program instead and we have organised a cash-back offer for you on that! See the details here: https://thepetphotographersclub.com/industry-recommendations (COACHING CASH-BACK OFFER)

Join Caitlin and Kirstie as we interview Patricia Won, expert professional printer from GTA Imaging who answered the lab's most commonly asked questions from pet photographers. We discussed everything from “how do I calibrate my monitor?”, to “how do I make hanging prints easier for my clients?”, to “how do I offer unique products?” and “what can I add onto wall art orders?”. Tune into this deepdive conversation to find out all these answers and more, plus some great tips for how to work better with your printing lab.

Join Caitlin and Kirstie as we interview Patricia Won, expert professional printer from GTA Imaging who answered the lab's most commonly asked questions from pet photographers. We discussed everything from “how do I calibrate my monitor?”, to “how do I make hanging prints easier for my clients?”, to “how do I offer unique products?” and “what can I add onto wall art orders?”. Tune into this deepdive conversation to find out all these answers and more, plus some great tips for how to work better with your printing lab.

Have you considered leasing or purchasing a commercial space to open a studio but always find the cost prohibitive, or the location is just never right? Beth Alexander found the same problem and so she decided to come up with a creative solution- a mobile studio which she had built from the ground up for a fraction of the price of a storefront! Tune in to todays episode to learn all about it including a break down of the costs, the important considerations to make in terms of sizes and requirements plus what Beth’s client experience looks like! MEMBER's ACCESS EXTENDED EPISODE Beth’s typical client Attending events The most important images to Beth’s clients What happens with parking and local council

MENTIONED LINKS Beth's resource: https://unleashpetphotography.com/store/trailer-build (https://unleashpetphotography.com/store/trailer-build) SEO Workshop: https://petphotographerseducation.thrivecart.com/supercharge-your-seo/ (https://petphotographerseducation.thrivecart.com/supercharge-your-seo/)

Have you considered leasing or purchasing a commercial space to open a studio but always find the cost prohibitive, or the location is just never right? Beth Alexander found the same problem and so she decided to come up with a creative solution- a mobile studio which she had built from the ground up for a fraction of the price of a storefront! Tune in to todays episode to learn all about it including a break down of the costs, the important considerations to make in terms of sizes and requirements plus what Beth’s client experience looks like! MEMBER's ACCESS EXTENDED EPISODE Beth’s typical client Attending events The most important images to Beth’s clients What happens with parking and local council

MENTIONED LINKS Beth's resource: https://unleashpetphotography.com/store/trailer-build (https://unleashpetphotography.com/store/trailer-build) SEO Workshop: https://petphotographerseducation.thrivecart.com/supercharge-your-seo/ (https://petphotographerseducation.thrivecart.com/supercharge-your-seo/)

How would you feel if you could say you’ve raised $250k for charity through pet photography and that those sessions were booked 6 months in advance? This is the reality for today’s guest who prior to Covid worked with Shelters all over the country but despite being proud of the fundraising efforts, he wishes he did it all differently! Key discussion points: How Adam went from a marketing role at an animal shelter to professional pet photography What shelters really think when they receive your collaboration proposal What Adam’s packages looked like and how they evolved How and when he fit 300 dog photoshoots into a month!

Members-only extended episode: Facebook Ads The marketing strategy that’s working now for Adam The current pricing model and insights into one of these mythical $10k sales PLUS: Adam’s biggest piece of advice for those of you who are just starting out

p.s. If what Adam says about In Person Sales sparks you interest, definitely check out our Fly on the Wall video. It’s a recording of a real sales session I had with a client to take them from a $1500 digital only package to a $5k sale: https://thepetphotographersclub.com/pricing (https://thepetphotographersclub.com/pricing) Links: https://agoldphoto.com/commercial-pet-photography/ (agoldphoto.com) B&H How to Take Better Pet Portraits in the Studio: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNr3LULGFxc (5 Tips with Adam Goldberg) Westcott Lighting YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YIygMEKuN_w (The Importance of Shelter Pet Photography | Adam Goldberg) Seth Casteel’s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8OoL8EtgtN0 (YouTube)

If you’ve been looking for your next marketing idea, then today’s your lucky day because our latest podcast episode is out now and it’s all about Pet Photo Bingo. It’s a totally unique strategy that Marika Moffit launched and it’s a tonne of fun for you to play with your pet loving audience. Marika is an expert at building community and quirky marketing strategies. We chatted all about: Re-branding Finding a business name What is Pet Photo Bingo

Member Extended episode Common obstacles in implementing Pet Photo Bingo Example of a bingo card and collaboration opportunities Why you would implement this strategy

There’s something for everyone in today’s interview with printing expert, Debbie Bedford from Loxley Colour. If you’re just starting to dip your toe into the world of printing, Debbie shared some great tips for selling prints online. And if you’re an established pet photographer interested in taking your products to the next level, you’ll love our deepdive conversation about fine art printing in the extended episode. Wherever you are in your business, keep listening for another supplier spotlight interview where we get the answers to your most frequently asked questions. In the extended member-only episode: Do you really need to understand Colour profiles, Colour Space and printing specs? Paper weights and what to offer Handling fine art prints Vs the durable lustre prints

About Loxley | www.loxleycolour.com Based in Scotland but shipping worldwide, Loxley Colour has provided professional photographers with high quality, hand crafted prints and photo products for pet photographers for over 30 years. To this day, they continue to creative innovative and unique ways to display your photography. Other mentioned links: Upcoming workshop with Les Walklings: https://thepetphotographersclub.com/upcoming-events-for-pet-photographers (Register here)

Unhappy clients are an unpleasant, but inevitable, part of running a small business. And while negative feedback or criticism can feel like a real blow to our confidence - especially as photography is often such a personal, intimate service - there are strategies to handling unhappy clients that can turn the situation around. In today’s episode, Caitlin share five, easy-to-follow steps to effectively resolve complaints in your pet photography business. p.s. in case you haven’t grabbed your ticket for the upcoming FREE Inbox Zero Workshop yet, make sure you do that soon. Head over to https://thepetphotographersclub.com/inbox-zero-workshop (https://thepetphotographersclub.com/inbox-zero-workshop) to grab your free ticket! LINKS:Inbox Zero Workshop: https://thepetphotographersclub.com/inbox-zero-workshop (https://thepetphotographersclub.com/inbox-zero-workshop)

We all know that the business of pet photography can be challenging, and adding to that is the loneliness that can come with the self-employed life. In this member spotlight video episode we chatting with An Di all about the difference it can make to your business if you do get involved in the community of pet photographers.

If you’d love to chat with other pet photographers (and maybe even make some new friends!), don’t forget we have out free Members Virtual Meet Up this Sunday on Zoom! Find out more about that here: https://fb.me/e/3hippYaL9

TOP THREE TOPICS:

The biggest challenges An Di found when launching the business and how to get through it
How being confident in your offer allows you to support others
What An Di is working on now for The Faithful Hound

LINKS:

Website: www.thefaithfulhoundphotography.com
Social Media:
https://instagram.com/thefaithfulhoundphotography
https://facebook.com/thefaithfulhoundphotography

Does the idea of doing an in-depth analysis of your competitors make your insides squirm? First of all - you’re not alone (because, same!) But our guest today, Julie Christie from Togs in Business, is insisting we do the hard work to really help our businesses. Tune in for a deepdive discussion into the most important elements of a good, useable marketing plan for your pet photography business

And if you listen to this interview and realise you need a simple template to write your plan in, click here for THE ULTIMATE PHOTOGRAPHY BUSINESS PLAN, an awesome FREE template that Julie has put together.

Most of us start out as pet photographers because we love animals, and we love taking photos. We combine these two passions into a hobby, and at some point, that hobby becomes a source of income. Accepting payment for something that you truly enjoy is a strange concept in this modern world. Even once we start doing business orientated tasks, it can be hard to forget that this all started as a hobby. If that sounds familiar, tune in to this weeks episode as Kirstie shares her top 5 tips to help you evolve from a hobbyist to a professional pet photographer!

Surround yourself with a great support network

Start using the phrase “I’m going to work” and “I’m at work” instead of “I need to do some editing”, or, “I have a photoshoot tonight”.

Stop doing work for works sake! Try these productive options instead:

a.) Visit your local dog-friendly parks, beaches, trails and cafes- photograph dogs and chat with their owners.
b.) Simplify your booking system
c.) Revisit your numbers to find areas of improvement - leads, booking rate, average sales, etc
d.) Contact your local media with a press release
e.) Launch a local petpreneaurs coffee group
f.) Check your bank account for recurring expenses, and cancel the subscriptions you don’t use!

Proudly introduce yourself as a pet photographer and show examples of what you do when people ask!

IMPLEMENT, IMPLEMENT, IMPLEMENT! Ideas and education are great, but they don’t have any impacted until they’re implemented!

Links:

Business Foundations Website: https://foundations.thepetphotographersclub.com/
July Members Meet Up: https://thepetphotographersclub.com/events

Like everything good in life.. we’ve grown! The podcast that Caitlin and I started in 2018 as a tiny passion project has since grown into so much more. The Pet Photographers Club is now a thriving community which hosts the awards, events, an active membership, delivers courses and more! With all this growth, we thought we better let you know what The Club is all about!

HERE’S A RUN DOWN ON WHAT WE DO AT THE PET PHOTOGRAPHERS CLUB

We’ve switched up the seasons, which are now year long with bi-weekly podcast episodes. Extended episodes for members stay!

If you are the type of person that absorbs information better when reading than listening- then you’re in luck because every second week you’ll now be getting written content to your inbox!

You’ll be getting more and more workshops + events

Sometimes you just need a step-by-step guide to implement an idea you hear.. that’s why we are putting out more courses + ebooks - like the Marketing Intensive For Pet Photographers, The Self-Publishing Program and the Business Foundations Challenge, among others!

You don’t have to be a member to join in any of that.. BUT.. members get fabulous discounts and we do offer tonnes of benefits to our members.

LET’S RECAP ON THOSE MEMBER BENEFITS..

You would have noticed a bunch of new member perks this year if you entered The International Pet Photographer of the Year Awards which included an extended entry deadline, the option to edit your entries and of course, the option to enter 4 extra images!

Member perks haven’t stopped now that Award entries have closed though. You continue to get:

Access to the Private Mastermind group

Extended podcast episodes

An upgraded listing in the Directory

Shout outs on Instagram and the opportunity to be featured in our Member Spotlight series

Discounts for EVERYTHING plus free access to a bunch of resources.

MEMBERS GET ACCESS TO ALL THIS FOR FREE:

Ultimate Marketing Manager ($24.95 value)

Planning for pet photographers ($24.95 value)

Guide to Instagram Reels ($9.90 value)

Pet Holiday Calendar ($4.95 value)

Pets are the new people ($4.95 value)
That’s a value of $70 for FREE!!!! PLUS easily access these freebies

Average Sale Calculator

Build your gear and resources library

Getting Started with Google Calendar

Six steps to a fully booked calendar

10 tools to automate your business

Shot list for pet photographers

Five common self-publishing mistakes

Website Design Checklist

The Workflow Worksheet

With all these benefits, there’s only one thing left to do.. join today for just $10 a month!

And if you’re new around here- Thanks so much for joining us! And of course to our long-standing members, we appreciate you! Thank you for growing this community with us!

As a pet photographer and an animal lover, you’re painfully aware of the limited lifetime that we get to spend with our pets. We all wish that they could be around forever - and we all know they won’t be.

It’s often one of the most powerful reasons our clients hire us for a photoshoot - so how do we communicate it with sensitivity?

In today’s interview with Sam Jacobson of Ideaction Consulting and the Own Your Business Podcast, we dive into this and so many other questions about navigating buyer psychology for higher conversions. He’s an absolute expert in sales, pricing and communication, you definitely don’t want to miss this one!

So you haven't entered the International Pet Photographer of the Year Awards yet. I get it - it can be overwhelming trying to decide on which photo to pick, finding the time to enter - or maybe you're experiencing a lovely dose of imposter syndrome "there's no way I'd ever win, so why bother . . ."

Well, I'm just popping on today to be your own personal cheerleader. You can do this! You LOVE photographing pets. You work hard to constantly improve your business and your photography. Whether you've been doing it for 10 weeks or 10 years, there's a place for you in these awards. Believe in yourself and your art.

Let me tell you, we had so many messages of joy and surprise from photographers around the world last year as the Top 100 and Top 25 shortlists were released. A common response was "I never expected to be shortlisted!" Pet photographers seem to be a humble breed! So if checking out the previous years’ winners has you doubting yourself, set your goal this year to make it into the Top 100. Remember, you’ve got to be in it to win it!

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

✔️ Entries are open from 1st - 31st May 2022
✔️ Entry is FREE
✔️ Two experience levels: Emerging and Professional
✔️ Enter four images: Portrait, Action, Pets + their People and Open.
✔️ Club Members get four bonus images to enter
✔️ Six judges: Alex Cearns, Bud Thorpe, Caitlin J. McColl, Charlotte Reeves, Jessica McGovern and the 2021 Winner, Veronika Shandor
✔️ Images are judged on Visual & Aesthetic (e.g. design principles, creative editing, style, composition), Technical Execution (e.g. exposure, focus, lighting, colour + tones) and Judge’s Response (e.g. emotion, mood, creativity, originality)
✔️ Sponsored by The Hantler, Photomechanic, Studio Ninja and The Pet Photographers Club
✔️ Read through the Entry Guidelines here:

Links:

Awards Website: https://thepetphotographersclub.com/awards
Entry Guidelines: https://thepetphotographersclub.com/entry-form
Get Seen - the Step by Step Guide to Getting Publicity with the Awards: https://thepetphotographersclub.com/get-seen

Imagine building up your pet photography business so that you had a luxury studio space with three employees, photographing 250 clients a year - and then closing it all down to roadtrip with your dog across the United States for three months of the year. Terrifying? Amazing? Our guest today swapped her high-end studio for the travelling van life, and doubled her earnings with the transition. She’s built a successful business that supports her adventurous lifestyle - stay tuned for our interview with Arica Dorff as she shares all her secrets and tips for making pet photography roadtrips work.

If the extent of your branding stops after logo, colours and font, you NEED to tune into today’s interview with Abby Grace Springmann. She is an expert brand photographer, speaker and educator and in this interview Abby Grace teaches us all about how to build a brand that is deeper than just the visuals - including the test to take to find out your superpower and how to distill your communication into 3 key messages.

I challenge YOU! Whether you are just starting out in the world of pet photography, or you’re a seasoned pro, we could all use a little creative challenging. Pushing our photography not only benefits our client work and our portfolio, but it’s good for the soul. You’re a photographer after all - sometimes it’s too easy to get buried in the business, but you wouldn’t be reading this right now if you weren’t, at the heart of it, an image maker.

Challenges force you out of your comfort zone, pushing you to experiment with new ideas and techniques. They can be difficult, forcing you to stretch your artistic muscles and test your skills. But they are so, so rewarding!

Tune into the latest episode for six different challenges for your pet photography. And if you're serious about challenging yourself and improving your photography, don't miss out the next round of Embark by our friends Charlotte Reeves and Craig Turner-Bullock at Unleashed Education.

With six months of fun, creative and education challenges, plus videos, competitions and daily encouragement, it’s the perfect way to push your pet photography to the next level. Embark kicks off May 1st and enrolment closes April 30th. Head over to https://thepetphotographersclub.com/embark to find out more!

Beautiful albums filled with portraits of their beloved pet are the perfect keepsake for our clients to treasure for a lifetime - but if you’re not currently offering albums it can be overwhelming to know where to start! What’s the best size, how much should you charge, how do you design them? We chatted to album expert, Alexandria Baugh from Queensberry to answer all these questions and more.

In the extended episode, we dove into pricing albums. If you don’t yet know your Required Average Sale, there’s a free calculator available to download - just head over to thepetphotographersclub.com/freebies to grab that one!

Also, Queensberry have kindly extended an offer to our listeners for 40% off any sample albums! Just click here to email Alex and find out more.

Listen to the extended episode in the Member Zone

The International Pet Photographer Awards have received global attention with articles in the New York Times, The Daily Mail, The Telegraph and more to celebrate the winners and the pet photography niche as a whole.

With this years awards soon approaching, we wanted to give you a bit of insight into what to consider when choosing your images.

Tune in to this weeks episode for a reminder of how judging works, and some of the conversation from our Peer Review last year!

If you haven’t already, be sure to grab your ticket at: https://thepetphotographersclub.com/peer-review-2022

Pugs, Labradors, Dachshunds, Rottweilers - whatever the breed, there are crazy proud pet parents out there excited to celebrate them! Rebecca Kostka of Shy Wolf Photography has tapped into this breed enthusiasm with a marketing strategy that is bringing in new clients each month - tune into today’s episode to hear all about her Breed of the Month campaign.

p.s. If you love what you hear and want to implement a Breed of the month campaign too, you’re in luck! Bec is currently working on a resource to share all the steps involved so that you can implement your own Breed of the Month campaign. Join the waitlist at thepetphotographersclub.com/breedofthemonth

Our guest today has raised thousands of pounds for dog charities with her trademarked “Catchathon” events and her latest event is garnering attention from news outlets all around the world. So we caught up with Carolyne Cowan of Carrie Southerton Dog Photography to ask her all about Catchathon, charitable marketing and how to host successful photo events.

Click here to listen to the extended episode in the Member Zone, where we dive into the specifics of pricing and marketing fundraising events

Links:
Catchathon
Carrie Southerton Facebook Page
Catchathon Food Banks GoFundMe Page
Get Seen: How to Write Press Release for Pet Photographers
The Pet Photographers Conference - Use Code: LISTENERBONUS to save $50

Have you started thinking about your entries for The 2022 International Pet Photographer of the Year Awards? Entries open on the 1st of May and we’ve got you covered with extra insight into what to enter and how to improve your potential entry, with our Peer Review session on 4th April (EST): https://www.thepetphotographersclub.com/peer-review-2022

In the meantime, tune into this video episode with last year’s winner, Veronika Sandorova of Ve Shandor Photography in Slovakia. She pulled back the curtain to give you behind the scenes insight into her award winning images.

P.P.S. If this interview has inspired you to push your own creativity, one of the classes at the upcoming Virtual Pet Photographers Conference is all about pushing your creativity with Karen Alsop- a master of compositing! Find out more about the Conference and all the classes here: http://thepetphotographersconference.com

The Instagram algorithm is seriously favouring Reels at the moment, so if you're not already using them in your pet photography business - now is the time to start! Tune into today’s episode for Six Quick Tips for how to start using Reels.

Need some extra help getting started? Check out the Pet Photographer’s Guide to Reels (with 45 Reel ideas, the Reel formula + 13 bonus tips). It’s free for club members, or available to purchase in the education store here: https://www.thepetphotographersclub.com/education

Do you have clients who have their own pet-related business? Perhaps you’ve received enquiries from local dog brands before, or you know of small businesses that you’d love to work with, but you’re not sure how to serve them. Are you always wondering how you can create a package that would best serve them - stumped between your normal pricing, recommended licensing pricing, and giving everything for free? Stay tuned.

Kerry Jordan of Fur & Fables works with small dog businesses grow their brand and feature in magazines like Town & Country. Today, we’re here to talk all about how she started with brand photography, how those sessions might different, and of course, the age old question- how to charge for it!

IN THE EXTENDED EPISODE:

Pricing structures for branding, and what about licensing and usage?
How many images do brand clients need and how often?
The recent Instagram changes to becoming video dominant
Where and how you can build relationships to attract
What messaging helps the businesses to see they NEED professional images?
How knowing dog behaviour helps seperate you from the brand ambassador working for merchandise

Click here to listen to the full extended version of this episode in the Memberzone

LINKS:

Website: www.furandfables.com
Instagram: www.instagram.com/fur_and_fables/
Facebook: www.facebook.com/FurAndFable/

Jenn Bays | Success Beyond the Lens

Are you using Pinterest to grow your pet photography business? Or (like us!), is your Pinterest board full of photos of your dream house and recipes that you’ll never cook? Did you know that implementing a Pinterest strategy into your social media marketing is a really easy way to improve your Google ranking? Stay tuned for our interview with Jenn Bays of Success Beyond the Lens to learn everything you need to know about how to get started with Pinterest for your business.

IN THE EXTENDED EPISODE:

*How to set up your Pinterest account for maximum success

Click here to listen to the full extended version of this episode in the Memberzone

LINKS:

Website: successbeyondthelens.com
Instagram: instagram.com/successbeyondthelens
Facebook: facebook.com/jennbays

Ooops sorry - correct links to this week’s episode in this email!! We’re also releasing a bonus episode later this week, so if you’re new to the world of professional pet photography and keen to take the next step, stay tuned for that one!

I've been working fulltime in my business, Ragamuffin Pet Photography, for over a decade now and it has become my personal tradition to carve out a time at the beginning of each new year to sit down, review the previous year and plan for the upcoming 12 months.

In our recent Planning for Photographers workshop, I shared the exact Review + Reset process that I use for my own business and life. Studies have shown time and time again that setting challenging yet attainable goals is linked with higher motivation, self-confidence and task performance. In today’s episode you’ll learn how to craft your own BIG GOAL for 2022.

p.s. did you miss the live workshop? You can still catch the replay here: https://thepetphotographersclub.com/plan

I remember exactly how I felt when starting my business. It was completely overwhelming. I just wanted someone to give me a checklist and say “here, do this” so today, I’m doing exactly that and sharing my 5 steps to creating a sustainable pet photography business.

1. KNOW YOUR NUMBERS

2. KNOW YOUR IDEAL CLIENT, THE EXPERIENCE THEY WANT & WHERE THEY HANG OUT

3. CREATE A WEBSITE, THAT ACTUALLY CONVERTS

4. DRIVE TRAFFIC TO YOUR WEBSITE WITH A SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNT THAT'S MORE THAN PRETTY PHOTOS

5. CREATE A 12 MONTH MARKETING PLAN (BOTH ONLINE AND OFFLINE) AND FOLLOW IT

Little extra marketing hint: Be sure to know what your goals are for each avenue (Eg. Why are you on Instagram and what do you want to achieve at the next pet event?), and how you will measure the results!

Events Mentions:

BUSINESS FOUNDATIONS CHALLENGE - Starts January 26th
MARKETING INTENSIVE WORKSHOP - (For established photographers) - February 1st
P.S. Enrolment for our Business Foundations Challenge closes THIS FRIDAY.
Secure your seat here: https://foundations.thepetphotographersclub.com/

Alison Hockings | Alison Writely

Are you worried that your website is a little bit . . . bland? As photographers, it can be easy to skip the copywriting and just focus on our images online, but words are powerful and catchy copy converts! In today’s interview, Alison Hockings from Alison Writely teaches us how to inject personality into your writing AND how to rank #1 on Google without sounding like a keyword robot.

Alison is a kick-arse copywriter who helps fellow creatives polish boring words into copy gems. She has a knack for writing copy that’s both engaging for your audience and loved by Google- a balance we are all in need of finding!

IN THE EXTENDED EPISODE:

Alison’s best tips for optimising your copywriting for SEO (i.e. how to rank #1 without sounding like a robot!)

Click here to listen to the full extended version of this episode in the Memberzone

LINKS:

Website: https://www.alisonwritely.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alisonwritely
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/alisonwritely

DISCOUNT CODES:

ILOVETRAFFICILOVESEO

P.S. Looking for more website pointers?

Grab our website design freebie here: https://www.thepetphotographersclub.com/website-design-checklist

What are your business goals for 2022? If one of them is to feel more confident in your prices, (and increase your income) then todays episode is especially for you with my three steps for creating a profitable price list! Spoiler alert, it has nothing to do with the prices of the photographer down the road or multiplying your costs by a random number!

Know how you spend your time and your desired hourly rate
Know your cost of business (download free calculator)
Sell what you love- at prices that meet your targets!

FREEBIE: https://www.thepetphotographersclub.com/freebie-required-average-sale

P.S. we are taking a little break over the festive season and hope you are too! If you’re missing us, we recommend you dive into the archives during this time!

P.P.S. Are you in your first 18 months of business or haven’t officially launched yet? Join Kirstie in our Business Foundations Challenge for weekly Zoom class to set up a profitable and lasting business in just 3 months!

If you were seriously inspired by the award winning images in the 2021 International Pet Photographer of the Year Awards, then you won’t want to miss this very special video episode. It’s a deepdive discussion with the Category Winning photographers, Travis Patenaude (Action), Esther Rybczynski (Open) and Jackie Eke (Portrait). I asked them all about their process for choosing competition images, found out the stories behind the photos and got their best advice for other pet photographers.

This episode is a bit of a niche topic, but when I became pregnant, I discovered that there was really very little content out there about how to handle pregnancy and maternity leave when you are a fulltime solopreneur/photographer.

To be honest, I felt a bit lost - when should I finish up shoots? How do I handle clients? When do I need to start back again? In the hopes that it will make someone (you?) feel less lost in the future, here’s ten things that I learned as a pregnant photographer.

TEN THINGS I LEARNED AS A PREGNANT PHOTOGRAPHER

1 Reduce your workload

2 Set client deadlines

3 Buy yourself a belly band

4 Allow extra session time

5 Update your database

6 Outsource

7 Automate your social media

8 Create a maternity leave waitlist

9 Pause your inbox

10 Plan your comeback

Check out this week’s blogpost and podcast episode for more details on each of these ten lessons.

Most photographers I know are so busy toward the end of the year that their marketing gets completely neglected and then in the new year, their calendars are empty.

Hopefully you have a 12 month marketing calendar in place to avoid that, but if not, fear not- I’ve got you..!

This episode today is to share my favourite campaign with you to ensure that you can kick off 2022 with bookings in the diary.

I’m talking about a Pet of the Year Competition.

1 Re-connect with this years clients#2 Let the clients do your marketing#3 Access their network to fill your calendar!

But the last giveaway you tried was a fail? Fear not! Just ask the right questions and require a holding fee! Details in the episode!

P.S. Want the step-by-step guide AND access to the workshop replay?

Grab it herehttps://www.thepetphotographersclub.com/poty
And save 20% with the code: LISTENERBONUS

Other upcoming events

Start your business with solid foundations! I’m tlaking a proper 12 month marketing plan, a strong price list you believe in, knowing what to say and when.. and of course, tackling sales!
Join our Business Foundations Challenge: Doors open for January

Oh my goodness, it is ALMOST DECEMBER?! Where did 2021 go? To celebrate our annual Black Friday Super Sale, Kirstie and Caitlin took a look back through the 2021 Podcast Archives to pick out our personal top five AHA! moments.

If you missed any of these episodes along the way, consider this your sign to go back and have a listen. Or just tune into this episode and we’ll sum up the best bits for you!

TOP FIVE AHA! MOMENTS

#1 Mark Rossetto’s discussion on establishing a network with industry professional during theSeason 8, Episode 3 Expert Panel episode. You can make your networks as official (think Pet Collective a la Marika Moffitt) or as unofficial (Kirstie organised a casual local coffee group) as you fancy!

#2 Mikaela Vargas made SEO simple for us in Season 10, Episode 7. Did you know that Google uses “neural matching” to understand synonyms - meaning we totally don’t have to (and shouldn’t) use the same “xyz location pet photographer” keyword again and again throughout our websites?

#3 Chris Garbacz from Studio Ninja shared a great hack - just use “job types” to track your leads and get detailed reports in your CRM. Listen to Season 10 Episode 6 for more CRM tips - and if you love Studio Ninja as much as we do, you can grab a great discount with the code PPPI50

#4 Zoe Hiljemark helped us practice what we preach with her awesome press release guide. After we interviewed Zoe for Season 9, Episode 6, we used her tips and template to craft our own press release for the 2021 Pet Photographer of the Year Awards - and the results blew us away! Articles were published all around the globe, including in the New York Times, the Telegraph and the Daily Mail. Check out the blog post for Zoe’s tips about how to approach the media here: https://www.thepetphotographersclub.com/the-blog/how-to-approach-the-media-to-promote-your-success-in-the-awards

#5 Meg McMillan is a personal branding photographer and really got our cogs whirring for how we could adapt that business strategy as pet photographers in our Season 10, Episode 5 interview. We especially enjoyed her pricing strategy for microbusinesses.

P.S. Excited for our Black Friday Super Sale?

20% OFF STOREWIDE - USE THE COUPON CODE BLACKFRIDAYhttps://www.thepetphotographersclub.com/black-friday

Other upcoming events

21st Nov- Pet Photographers Meet Up in London: Grab an invite
30th Nov- Workshop: IMPLEMENT A PET OF THE YEAR COMPETITION2022- Business Foundations Challenge: Doors open for January

When Sarah Stangl was faced with the unnerving realisation that her pet photography side hustle was not profitable enough to become her full-time job, she knew she’d have to either raise her prices, or quit altogether. She took the leap, bumped her prices by significant 75% and focused on creating incredible hiking dog photo experiences in the Swiss Alps. Tune into our in depth interview with Sarah Stangl of Abenteuerhunde to find out all about her European adventure dog photography business.

IN THE EXTENDED EPISODE:

Marketing her adventure dog photography experiences
Using expos and fairs to gain commercial clients

Click here to listen to the full extended version of this episode in the Memberzone

LINKS:

Website: www.abenteuerhunde.ch
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/abenteuerhunde.fotografie.ch

P.S. Ready to Raise Your Prices?

Download our Required Average Sale Calculator here: https://www.thepetphotographersclub.com/freebie-required-average-sale

Whether you're just starting out in the world of professional pet photography, or you're a seasoned pro, a familiar trap that many of us can fall into is creating photography for our clients and not ourselves.

Creating a personal photography project will not only reignite your passion for your craft, but it can also seriously boost your business.

Tune into this week’s episode to learn about four ways personal projects have helped increase my client base, revenue and marketing strategies.

P.S. It’s not too late to grab your ticket to the Hair of the Dog Summit - it’s only $10, and runs from Nov 2-4. Both Kirstie and Caitlin will be presenting, alongside a panel of experts covering all sorts of different topics. Don’t miss out!

Charlotte & Craig | Unleashed Education

Have you ever looked at your image and thought "something is just not quite right?" but you can't put your finger on what's making you uncomfortable? It could be one of many things; colour temperature, focus, the dogs expression, to name a few.

Sometimes all we need is to step back to the fundamentals of photography and look at them as individual aspects. In today's members only episode, Craig and Charlotte do just that as they review the composition of 10 submitted images.

Craig and Charlotte are the co-founders of Unleashed Education. Between them they have over 30 years of photography experience.

Picture this…

You’re heading out to a dog photo session, feeling confident, inspired and excited.

Tucked away in your brain is an entire library of possible shot ideas, with a solid knowledge of exactly how to create each type of shot.

You'll instinctively know how to find the perfect spot, how to use the light, how to handle the dog and which exposure and focus settings to use - plus what to do when things don’t go according to plan!

This is the outcome you can expect after completing Unleashed Education’s dog photography challenges!

Charlotte Reeves and Craig Turner-Bullock have put their many years of dog photography experience into creating these world-first interactive dog photography challenges.

They guide you step-by-step through the creation of each shot, with an instructional video, plenty of real-life examples and stories, and daily encouragement and inspiration. Plus, heaps of support and added bonuses to keep you engaged and motivated!

Embark starts on November 1 - enrolment closes on October 31, 2021.

They hope to see ready and raring to go at the start line!

LINKS:

Website: https://www.unleashed.education/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/unleashed.ed/

UPCOMING EVENTS

Embark Unleashed Challenge: 1st November 2021
Enrolment closes on October 31, 2021
ENROL NOW

Hair of the Dog Summit: 2-4th November 2021
A three-day online pet photography event for just $10
GRAB YOUR TICKET NOW

Pet Photographers London Meet Up: Sunday 21st November 2021
A casual afternoon catch up for UK pet photographers, details here.

Making the transition from an all-inclusive, digital only photographer, to offering products can be overwhelming. Firstly, there are so many suppliers, and each of them have so many unique products to choose from! And even once you choose products- how do you price them?! Then there is the file handling and the preparing images for print. Is it all worth it?

Paul and Kate of Atkins Pro Lab in Adelaide Australia joined me in this episode to answer all your questions, and to reassure you that it doesn’t have to be complicated.

Click here to listen to the video version of this episode in the Memberzone

LINKS:

Website: https://atkins.com.au/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/atkins.pro.lab/

RELATED FREEBIE

Stuck for how to price your products (or pricing in general)? Start with your required average sale. You can work that out with our FREE calculator. Once you have that number you can create a price list that allows your clients to spend that!
ACCESS OUR FREE REQUIRED AVERAGE SALE CALCULATOR

UPCOMING EVENTS

Hair of the Dog Summit: 2-4th November 2021
A three-day online pet photography event for just $10
GRAB YOUR TICKET NOW

Pet Photographers London Meet Up: Sunday 21st November 2021
A casual afternoon catch up for UK pet photographers, details here.

So - be honest with us. Are you up to date with your blogging? Or are you like so many of your fellow photographers, so busy working on all the other areas of your business that blogging tends to fall by the wayside. Is blogging even still a thing these days, anyway?!

Um yes, yes it is. Tune into our interview with Mikaela Vargas from Pet Marketing Unleashed to learn how you can confidently and efficiently produce blog posts that not only attract your dream clients, but also increase your web traffic and inquiries. We’ve got news for you - blogging is not dead!

IN THE EXTENDED EPISODE:

Simple Blogging SEO
Partnering with other pet businesses through blogposts
How to plan your blogging

Click here to listen to the full extended version of this episode in the Memberzone

LINKS:

Website: https://www.petmarketingunleashed.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/petmarketingunleashed
Unleashed Petpreneurs Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/unleashedpetpreneurs
Blogging for Your Pet Biz: https://shop.petmarketingunleashed.com/blogging-course

FREEBIES FROM MIKAELA:

Blog Topic Ideas for Pet Businesses - this freebie also includes a 20% discount for the course! https://www.petmarketingunleashed.com/blog-topics

Partnership Email Template for Pet Businesses - https://www.petmarketingunleashed.com/partnership-template

Chris Garbacz | Studio Ninja

Managing a business can be stressful. You have a thousand and one hats to wear, and with that, means a never ending to-do list. As your business grows, so does that to-do list, but you don’t need to have an office full of sticky notes and an excel file with client details. You can have all those things in a CRM (client relationship management software, and if you use a photographers specific CRM like Studio Ninja, you can also keep contracts, quotes, invoices and so much more in there too. Better yet, Studio Ninja comes with sample templates of all of things and more!

In today’s interview, Kirstie interviewed the co-founder of Studio Ninja to learn what makes them different, how they help you, and what exactly these CRM’s can do for you.

Oh and if you’re ready to make the switch- they offer a free migration service )yep, even from sticky notes!) and with our coupon, you’ll save 50% for the first twelve months.

Coupon Code: PPPI50

LINKS:

Website: https://www.studioninja.co/

If you’re a pet photographer who works with - or would like to work with - pet businesses then you’ve likely already realised that everything you already know about working with private clients really isn’t applicable when you move to the B2B space.

Throw into the mix that most of the commercial photography education out there doesn’t apply when dealing with small, local or boutique pet businesses and you might find yourself totally lost about how to best serve these clients. We’re talking your local groomer, doggy day care, pet bakery - all businesses who could potentially bring in a fantastic new income stream - if only you knew how to serve them best.

That’s why we invited Personal Branding photographer Meg McMillan of Meg Marie Photography onto the show today. Meg is killing it in the world of small business and personal branding clients and today she shares how you can take that same approach and apply it to your pet photography business!

IN THE EXTENDED EPISODE:

Tips for shooting behind the scenes
What to shoot: the difference between client and branding sessions
Booking workflows and questionnaires
Overcoming objections

Click here to listen to the full extended version of this episode in the Memberzone

Changing up your session offerings to suit you better

Like most of us, Angela Schneider of Big White Dog Photography in Spokane, WA, offered “standard” pet portraits in her local park. With some downtime during Covid, she rebranded to a name that suits her, and then took a moment to think about what she really enjoys and her adventure sessions were born.

Tune in to hear more about that in this snapshot episode, and to grab the rest of the interview, head on over to the memberzone.

Not a member? Join today for just $10.

Click here to listen to the full extended version of this episode in the Memberzone

Every now and then we have a guest on the show who gives me the exact kick-up-the-bum I didn’t know I needed. Johl Dunn of JD Mindset Coaching is that guest! He was one of our most popular presenters at the Pet Photographers Conference earlier this year, so we just knew we had to get Johl back to the Pet Photographers Club to share more of his expert advice and actionable tips for rewiring your mindset. We were so caught up in the conversation with Johl that we ended up going DOUBLE overtime (oops, sorry Johl haha) - it’s a fascinating conversation and one you definitely don’t want to miss!

IN THE EXTENDED EPISODE:

Setting Boundaries - Treat Yourself like a Big Business
Saying No to Charities
The power of meditation

Click here to listen to the full extended version of this episode in the Memberzone

LINKS:

Website: https://www.johldunn.com

SPECIAL OFFER:

Learn more about the special cashback offer with JD Mindset Coaching for listeners here: https://www.thepetphotographersclub.com/coaches

Don’t you wish you could be a fly on the wall watching the judging that goes on behind the scenes of the International Pet Photographer of the Year Awards? Well now you can be!

We brought together the five judges of the 2021 Awards: Alice Loder, Cat Race, Craig Turner-Bullock, Sara Glawe and Caitlin J. McColl to share their top tips for pet photographers entering awards AND a members-only bonus deepdive video into their “Judge's Choice” favourite images. It’s totally fascinating to hear the judges agree about what they loved about each image - and argue about what could be improved. A definite must-watch panel discussion for any pet photographers interested in learning more about what catches the eye of these leaders of our industry.

Click here to watch the Panel Discussion video in the MemberzoneP.S. Registration for the 12 Week Business Foundations Challenge closes this Thursday at 10am Rome! Secure your place here.

Goal Trackers Call with Ina J Photography | Big White Dog Photography and new member Suzy McCracken

We kicked off Season 10 with a Goal Trackers call. Goal Trackers are a member perk- a way to get to know other pet photographers, discuss your current goals and get some feedback from others. This quarters I was joined by Ina, Angela and Suzy.

In this episode you will hear:
• How Ina pivoted when Covid Lockdown limited her Mini Session bookings (00:06:50)
• The new product that Angela is introducing and why it makes sense for her (00:15:27)
• And the steps Suzy is taking to prepare for launching her business (00:23:12)

———

BUSINESS FOUNDATIONS CHALLENGE

Speaking of setting up a new business, our 12 week challenge to do just that is starting on the 13th September.

During this challenge you will write your own business playbook and put it into action to fill your calendar (and your bank account).

• If you’re starting out and feeling overwhelmed by pricing or how to get the phone to ring- this is for you.

• If you’ve been in business for a bit but you aren’t seeing a financial return yet- this is for you.

• If you need to create a plan for just one aspect of your business- join us for only that class (p.s. Marketing classes are almost full).

LIMITED PLACES AVAILABLE

2021 International Pet Photographer of the Year Results

The annual Awards are an annual celebration of the artistry and skill of professional and emerging pet photographers from all around the globe. This year, more than 2500 pet portraits were submitted by pet photographers located in 52 countries. The top 100 shortlisted images were released first, followed by the Top 25, then the category winners and now, the overall International Pet Photographer of the Year, Veronika Šandorová from Slovakia.

In this special video episode, Caitlin and Kirstie discuss the winning images in relation to their scores.

This video episode is available to everyone. If you’re a member, we recommend watching it in the memberzone. Otherwise, catch it on YouTube.

Zoe Hiljemark has collaborated with us to create a four part, step-by-step guide to approaching the media for promoting your success in the awards. There’s one section of the guide available for free on the blog to help get you started.

Whether your pet portrait has been shortlisted as one of the top 100 or the top 25 in its category, or you have been announced as one of our four Category winners or even as the Overall winner – the International Pet Photographer of the Year - there is every reason to celebrate!

CHECK OUT THE SAMPLE PRESS RELEASE FOR FREE NOW

And if you want more help with approaching the media, grab the full guide this week while it’s on sale (by 50%)!

Don’t forget, you have to act fast with getting your story out there to the media. So jump on this now!

Learn more

Optimising your Instagram Account for more clients

Having thousands of Instagram followers is one thing- but having the right followers and then optimising your content to turn those followers into clients is a whole other project. Join Kirstie in this video episode as she shares her top nine tips for optimising your account- plus a special offer for an upcoming workshop at the end!

This video episode is available to everyone. If you’re a member, we recommend watching it in the memberzone. Otherwise, catch it on YouTube.

P.S. Our video episodes are usually members only. To catch more videos's like this, Join us at thepetphotographersclub.com/join

—————-

CREATE THREE MONTHS OF RECYCLABLE INSTAGRAM CONTENT IN THIS ONE HOUR WORKSHOP

Would you love to “set and forget” your Instagram posting with content that actually helps you grow your business (and not just your following)?

Let’s organise it so all you have to do is a few stories or reels every now and again!

Learn more

Please tell me I’m not the only one who has always procrastinated writing my client blog posts! There seems to be a thousand other things to do in my business, so blogging inevitably gets pushed to the side and before I know it, it’s been months (years?!) since I last wrote a client session blog post. Which is really a shame because I know that these posts are a great resource to have on hand for enquiries AND an easy way to update and add new content to my website (you’re welcome SEO juice).

So I sat down to brainstorm a way to properly integrate blogging into my client workflow - and ideally save myself some time too!

So here it is: my easy, peasy blogging hack! In a nutshell, it’s as simple as presenting your client their proofs via a blogging platform - tune into today’s quick tip episode as Caitlin shares exactly why and how you should be using this hack to save time in your business.

p.s. this is also a video episode, so if you’re a member then we recommend watching rather than listening!

Click here to listen to the full extended version of this episode in the Memberzone

I want you to take a moment and open up your website. What is the story you’re telling? Is it all about your journey as a photographer, your style, maybe lists some awards and achievements? There’s a portfolio page, obviously - and probably a pricing page too (or “Investment”, if you fancy haha). Essentially what I’m asking is - is your website all about you?

If the answer is YES, then it might be time to consider a different approach

Have you heard of Storybrand? It’s a very popular and proven marketing strategy that helps businesses clarify their message and build a sales funnel into their website. In this 7-part framework, you cast your clients as the hero - rather than your website being all about YOU, your website tells a story that your client can relate to. Sounds intriguing, right? We interviewed website expert and certified Storybrand guide, Ryan Toth of Clearbrand to find out all about this powerful framework and how pet photographers can use it to improve their websites.

IN THE EXTENDED EPISODE:

What does the client do next?
Capturing leads with your website
Defining your offer and pricing

Click here to listen to the full extended version of this episode in the Memberzone

LINKS:

Website: http://myclearbrand.com/
StoryBrand Website Template: https://clearbrand.com/storybrand-website-template-thanks

Use code: ppclub for 20% off Clearbrand website templates

Catch a snippet of the free workshop hosted by Kirstie to build a pre-shoot questionnaire that is actually useful AND easy for your clients.

The full replay of this live workshop is now available to Club members.

We covered:

Why you want a pre-shoot questionnaire

What questions to ask to sky rocket your sales

When to send it to your client and how

What kind of images to use

and more!

Join The Club today to watch this and other special episodes.
thepetphotographersclub.com/join

Already a member, look for s09e07 in the memberzone here

Do you find the whole concept of PR for your pet photography business utterly overwhelming? Pitching? Profile raising? Publicity? Where are you supposed to start, who are you supposed to contact, what are you supposed to say?

So you bury your head in the sand of your business and tell yourself that you really don’t need to worry about PR anyway.

The thing is though - it could be HUGE for you. And it doesn’t have to be overwhelming.

Tune into our interview with Zoe Hiljemark, a PR and Marketing expert who works exclusively with professional photographers. Her mission is to help photographers become ‘PR savvy’, gain visibility and grow a loyal audience - and she shares all her best tips in this episode. It’s time to get that head out of the sand and see how you can use PR strategies to grow your business!

IN THE EXTENDED EPISODE:

Pitching to different kinds of media (from print, to radio, to tv)
Lead times - what are they and what’s appropriate?
Zoe’s favourite tool for connecting with journalists

Click here to listen to the full extended version of this episode in the Memberzone

LINKS:

Website: https://www.zoehiljemark.com
Blog: https://www.zoehiljemark.com/news
Facebook Group - PR Savvy Photographers: https://www.facebook.com/groups/prsavvyphotographers
Social Media: https://www.instagram.com/zoehiljemark

What better way to inspire and motivate yourself than by listening to the goals and strategies of fellow pet photographers around the world?

Today I was joined by Kelly Schulz of K Schulz Photography in Bloomington, Minnesota and Ina Jalil of Ina J Photography in Canberra for our season 9 Goal Trackers meeting.

Eavesdrop into our conversation about everything from book launches to doggy brand ambassadors and if you haven’t already, we’d love for YOU to share your Top Three Goals for the next three months over in the Mastermind Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/The.Pet.Photographers.Club

MY THREE GOALS:

Wrap up all my open jobs before Maternity Leave starts (eeeep!)
Complete my part of judging the 2021 International Pet Photographer of the Year Awards
Edit our awesome pre-recorded interviews for Season 10 of the Pet Photographers Club (it’s going to be our best one yet!)

Click here to watch to the video version of this episode in the Memberzone

In the midst of 2020 lockdown, going a little bit crazy with nothing to do (and no way to service my clients), I thought it would be a brilliant idea to learn how to do digital painting. It seemed like the perfect extra service to offer my clients - gorgeous artwork that could be created even after their pets had passed.

Excitedly, I bought myself a wacom tablet and enrolled in a digital painting course, ready to become the next Vincent Van Dog.

Well. It was not nearly as easy as I had hoped it would be - that skill takes some serious practice! I’m a little embarrassed to admit that after a month or so, I put down wacom pen in defeat. My dreams of offering digital painting as a secondary revenue stream to my clients were quietly retired - until we heard about Lesley Davidson and her ghost painting service with the Painterly Portrait.

Tune into this latest interview episode to find out everything you want to know about digital painting for pet photographers - whether it’s Lesley’s best tips for learning yourself, how you can hire a “ghost painter” if (like me) you’re not a digital painter and in the extended episode we brainstorm different ways that you could successful integrate this service into your existing business model.

in THE EXTENDED EPISODE:

Session and pricing ideas for introducing digital painting to your pet photography business

LINKS:

Website: https://www.thepainterlyportrait.com.au
Social Media: https://www.instagram.com/thepainterlyportrait and https://www.facebook.com/thepainterlyportrait

ALSO MENTIONED:Awake Group with Sebastian Michaels (Compositing)
Elevate Your Art: Digital Painting with Michelle Parsley

Click here to listen to the full extended version of this episode in the Memberzone

Are you an on-location pet photographer? In today’s special episode, with Pet Photographer of the Year awards sponsor nPhoto, we discussed the benefits of giving your clients just three set locations to pick from for their photoshoot. We recommend a park option, beach option and urban option - but of course, you could adjust these to suit your own environment. If you’re still leaving the location scouting up to your clients, this is a must-listen episode!

Want to hear more tips for how to streamline your pet photography business? You can watch/listen to our full interview with Eugene Nagawieckiat nPhoto and catch more live chats with photographers over on the nPhoto facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/nphotolab/videos/383456186418316

p.s. Have you entered the 2021 Awards yet? Entries close really soon - May 31st 11:59pm GMT/BST. nPhoto has generously sponsored not one, but two prizes - check out the details and enter online here: https://www.thepetphotographersclub.com/awards

With entries now open for the 2021 International Pet Photographer of the Year Awards, we thought it would be the perfect time to chat with the 2020 Category Winner, Saskia Rosebrock of SasR Photography. Saskia wowed the judges with her outside the box interpretation of the ‘Pets and their People’ category and in today’s episode she shares her own experience with entering - and winning - during the awards, plus her journey as a landscape-loving dog photographer.

A perfect dose of inspiration and motivation for you if you have not yet entered this year’s awards! Don’t miss out - entries close on May 31st. You can check out the beautiful work of previous years’ winners and find out more about entering the awards yourself here: https://www.thepetphotographersclub.com/awards

LINKS:

Website: https://sasr-photography.de
Social Media: https://www.instagram.com/sasr_photography and https://www.facebook.com/sasr.photography

Have you submitted your entry for the annual International Pet Photographer of the Year Awards yet?

We’re halfway through May, which means there’s only a couple more weeks to go! These awards are open to all countries, 100% free to enter and there are so fantastic prizes up for grabs thanks to our generous sponsors. Tune into the latest podcast episode as Kirstie and Caitlin share everything that you need to know to enter - and win - the 2021 awards.

There are four categories: Portrait, Action, Pets & Their People and Open.
Images are judged on three criteria: Technical (/10), Visual (/10) and Judge’s Response (/5). Read more about the scoring on the website here: https://www.thepetphotographersclub.com/scoring
Read the rules here: https://www.thepetphotographersclub.com/entry-form
Trust your gut instinct
Get inspired by last year’s winners: https://www.thepetphotographersclub.com/categories
(If you’re a member of the club, you can also view the 2020 shortlisted images in the Member Zone)
Bring your fresh perspective to the category. Thousands of images are entered each year - memorable and unique ones will stick in the judges’ minds!
Enter all four categories - the overall winner is based on the highest combined score, so entering all four categories gives you better odds!
Master your technique. Often the images that don’t make it through to the Top 100 shortlists are passed due to technical details like focus, over/under exposure, sharpening etc.
Involve your community - take this opportunity to generate some local buzz and engagement with your audience.
You’ve got to be in it to win it!

IMPORTANT INFO:

Entries close 11:59pm GMT 31st May
Two entry levels: professional and emerging
Website: https://www.thepetphotographersclub.com/awards

Following on from last weeks interview with Michael Puck, we wanted to share with you how to get your clients thinking more about wall art before they even contact you! In this episode Kirstie focuses on Room Mock Ups for your marketing material.

Covered in this episode:
1.Why you need Room Mock Ups
2. How to Create them and Kirstie's top pick of platforms to use
3. Choosing a room view
4. Making them look realistic
5. Where to use them in your marketing material

Extended episode in the Member zone: https://members.thepetphotographersclub.com/courses/take/members/lessons/23395040-s8e11-using-wall-mock-ups-for-marketing-material

LISTENER BONUS:

http://canvy.com/voucher/thepetphotographersclub

Michael Puck is shaking things up in the world of professional pet photography. Fuelled by his desire to help save dogs from kill shelters, he runs his business, K9Photo, as a nonprofit.

But although k9Photo is a charity, Michael does not ask for donations. The revenue is entirely generated by selling multi-thousand dollar dog wall art collections to non pet related businesses. In this fascinating interview, Michael shares how you can position dog wall art to businesses in your own local area, to open up a vast new world of opportunities. This is an interview that your MUST NOT MISS!

p.s. Michael has shared even more tips in his newly released, FREE e-course which you can find here: https://www.k9photo.org/ecourse

TOP THREE:

Why K9Photo is a non-profit
How Michael finds and contacts leads
Michael’s first question to potential new business clients

IN THE EXTENDED EPISODE:

Michael gets specific with numbers and pricing

LINKS:

Website: https://www.k9photo.org
The Free E-Course: https://www.k9photo.org/ecourse
Social Media: https://www.facebook.com/k9photo.org

Click here to watch the full extended, video version of this episode in the Memberzone

It’s almost that time of year again! We’re busy behind the scenes here at the Pet Photographers Club getting ready for the 2021 International Pet Photographer of the Year Awards. Entries open on May 1st, so make sure you sign up to our free newsletter to get reminders about entering. This year we’re very excited to introduce a new online event prior to the awards - the Awards Image Peer Review.

Considering if your image needs further post-production? Maybe you can’t decide between two action photos or which category that image should be entered into? Join the Awards Image Peer Review on the 27th April to get invaluable feedback from Kirstie and your fellow professional pet photographers from around the world. Tickets are $10 for non-members, or free for Club members, but seats are strictly limited so grab yours now: https://www.thepetphotographersclub.com/awards

To celebrate the upcoming awards, we interviewed Morgane Caradec - the 2020 Emerging Pet Photographer of the Year. Morgane wowed the judges last year with her unique and instantly recognisable style (those dreamy pinks!). In this video episode, she shared the process behind the scenes of creating those images, picking what to enter for the awards and her journey so far as a pet photographer.

LINKS:

Website: https://morganecaradecphotographie.fr
Social Media: https://www.instagram.com/morganecaradecphotographie
https://www.facebook.com/MorganeCaradecPhotographie

VIDEO EPISODE DIRECT LINK FOR MEMBERS

Partnering with local pet-friendly accomodation is a fantastic way to tap into a market of potential clients who really, really love their dogs. So how do you go about setting up that sort of partnership? One of our long-time members, Rebecca Kostka of Shy Wolf Photography, reached out recently with this very question. So Caitlin sat down with Bec to answer all her questions - and we recorded it so that you can learn too!

WIN-WIN-WIN STRATEGY:

What the partner gets:
1. Ongoing marketing to your audience (you share the images + capture behind the scenes social posts everytime you’re there)
2. Ability to offer a unique/memorable experience to their guests
3. Professional images of their location to use on their website/marketing material/social media

What the client gets:
1. Memorable keepsake and experience during their vacation
2. Photography at a unique location
3. Optional: special offer (e.g. print credit with the session)

What you get:
1. Marketing to a new audience of your target client (people who really, really love their dogs)
2. Tap into urgency - special offer is only available during their stay

LINKS:

Countrywide Cottages Offer on Website: https://countrywidecottages.com.au/sleep-and-smile
Countrywide Cottages using the images: https://countrywidecottages.com.au/pet-friendly-accommodation

EXTENDED EPISODE DIRECT LINK

In this week’s episode, we chat to the In Person Sales mastermind, Rachael Boer, about all barriers and blocks that photographers experience when selling their artwork. Rachael shares everything, from her top tips to breaking down mental barriers, the experience of switching from online galleries to IPS, how IPS has changed with COVID (and what you can do to adapt) and in the extended episode we addressed the elephant in the room - can you do IPS and still sell the digitals?!

TOP THREE:

Mental Barriers to IPS
Switching from Online to IPS
Adapting to COVID

EXTENDED EPISODE:

Sell what you love
How to pick your products
Using limited edition / new products to bring in old clients
Selling digitals with IPS

LINKS:

Website: https://www.ipsmastermind.net
Revive! by IPSM: https://www.weloveips.com
Social Media: www.instagram.com/rachaelboerphotography
www.facebook.com/rachaelboerphotography

EXTENDED EPISODE DIRECT LINK

Valentine’s Day. Mother’s Day. Father’s Day. Halloween. Christmas. There are a handful of classic national holidays that professional photographers often market themselves around, but what about those smaller, random holidays? There are so many different pet related days throughout the year (everything from Doggy Date Night on February 3rdto National Pet Parents Day on the last Sunday of April).

In this Member Spotlight video interview with Ina Jalil of Ina J Photography, we deepdived into her success with running National Dog Day minisessions. Ina shared all the details, like how she launched her campaign using Facebook Events, filled her booking goal and made the event profitable with follow-up in person sales.

If your marketing calendar is in need of a dose of inspiration for 2021, make sure you tune into this episode. You can also download our free PDF guide for all the 2021 Pet Holidays here: https://www.thepetphotographersclub.com/2021-pet-holiday-calendar

TOP THREE:

Launching using only Facebook Events
Booking ten $50 minisessions and follow-up in person sales
What Ina would do differently next time

LINKS:

Website: https://inajphotography.com
Social Media: https://instagram.com/inajphotography
https://facebook.com/inajphotography

At the age of just 20 years old - and in the midst of a global pandemic - Caitlin Hodges transformed an industrial unit into a professional pet photography studio and launched to a fully booked calendar of excited clients.

Want to know just how she did it? Tune into today’s interview with this talented photographer, as Kirstie and Caitlin learn all about her journey. Don’t miss out on the special extended version of this episode too, as Caitlin Hodges shared all the juicy details of studio launch special, pricing and using Facebook groups to grow your business.

TOP THREE:

The logistics of transforming her space into a studio
How Caitlin launched her studio with a fully booked calendar
Not letting age/confidence hold you back

EXTENDED EPISODE (FOR CLUB MEMBERS)

The details of Caitlin’s studio launch special
Raising your prices after you start
Using Facebook Groups in your community
Using Facebook Reviews to grow your Word of Mouth

LINKS:

Website: www.caitlinhodges.co.uk
Social Media: www.instagram.com/caitlinhodgesphoto
www.facebook.com/caitinhodgesphoto

I don’t know about you, but a career as a professional, travelling artistic dog photographer sounds pretty close to a dream job! Our latest interview guest has carved out a name for herself in the photographic industry with her instantly recognisable style and dreamy travel dog photography - it’s none other than Alicja Zmysłowska! Tune in to hear the story behind her inspirational career journey, insights into developing your own signature style and tips for building your name and following when sharing images online.

TOP THREE:

Exhibiting photography and getting published

Going viral with dog photos

Shooting personal images vs paid work

Extended episode (members only)

Alicja’s strategy with social media

Artistic Dog Photography Workshops

LINKS:

Website: https://alicjazmyslowska.pl
Social Media: https://www.instagram.com/alicjazmyslowska
https://www.facebook.com/zmyslowska.photo

Starting Fresh

The Conference was last weekend and it was even better than we expected but exactly as we’d hoped!
The feedback has been amazing…

If you’re having serious FOMO.. fear not.. you can still access the content.
The option for Lifetime Access is now available.

Get Lifetime Conference Access

One of the most popular aspects of the Conference was our Expert Panel Discussions. We had three different calls with a bunch of the Conference speakers, each covering a specific topic; Goal Setting, Sales Room Roleplay and Starting Fresh.

Today we are sharing with you a portion of the Starter Fresh discussion. We asked the Panelists what they would do to kick start their business if moving location or changing genres.. Listen in as Mark Rossetto shares his the big marketing campaign he’d do to launch.. and then as he has to defend it to the rest of the expert panel question his strategy.

If you’re a Club Member, be sure to listen in the Memberzone as this is just a tiny snippet.

Enjoy!

Caitlin and Kirstie

The realisation that your business isn’t quite working out the way you’d planned isn’t a fun one. You might look back at your last few sessions and see that the clients weren’t the type you want to be working with. Or you might not have any past clients to look back on and feel like you’ll never create a consistent income.

I’ve been there. We’ve all been there.

It’s a scary feeling, but know that there’s always a way to improve and start turning your business into what you want it to be.

Over and over again we see the same mistakes with pet photographers related to their services and the way they’re getting the word out. These mistakes are attracting the wrong people and keeping you from making the money you deserve. So today we’re going to go over 3 mistakes that are keeping you from dream pet photography clients and consistent income.

CONFUSING PRICELISTS

A big mistake keeping you from consistent income is not having your artwork products and packages priced properly. The biggest offenders here come in when you:

Don’t have packages (especially if you’re not confident selling a la carte)

Have too many packages/products

Have packages that aren’t focused on the results you can get a specific type of client

With two many price list options, it’s easy to overwhelm your clients and end up with decision fatigue at your sales sessions. This isn’t an experience that your clients will enjoy - and it won’t help you get the sales you need for your business to thrive. I’m personally a big believer in selling packages (although tune into our Sales RolePlay Expert Panel at the Virtual Pet Photographers Conference to hear about the many different approaches to sales session that successful photographers are using).

For me, packages simplify the sales process, allowing me to help guide the client and design an artwork order that will become a cherished keepsake of their furry family for years to come.

To learn more about business, pricing and sales success, tune into Alex Cearns and Caitlin J McColl's presentation at the Virtual Pet Photographers Conference.

MARKETING OVERWHELM

Marketing yourself and getting clients in the door is tough. I used to get my name out there any and every way I possibly could. I was on every social media platform, at every pet event and expo, constantly publishing content, and so much more.

The problem with that is when you're sharing your attention with so many marketing platforms, you can't put enough effort toward what actually works.

When I realised that charitable marketing strategies was where my clients came from - and where my personal strengths and passions lie - I totally dropped everything else. Game changing!

To learn more about bringing in clients the right way, check out the Virtual Pet Photographers Conference presentations from Mark Rossetto, Andrew Hellmich, Marika Moffitt and Nicole Begley

CLIENT EXPERIENCE

As a photographer, you should get a large portion of your clients from past clients. When someone has a great experience, they're going to talk about it.

So what does it mean if that's not happening for you? It doesn't mean that your pet photography isn't amazing. It means that you need to create a better experience for the clients that work with you. Give them something to talk about!

Your client experience includes everything from how you onboard new clients, to the actual photoshoot experience, to what happens in the sales room and the delivery of their finished orders. Looking closely at your client experience, from enquiry to delivery, can help you make your business memorable.

To create an experience that past clients can't stop talking about, tune into the conference presentations from Kim Hartz, Kimberly Buccheri and Erin Bonilla

CHOOSE ONE AND TAKE ACTION

Look back at the 3 mistakes we went over, choose the one that is currently affecting you the most, and take action on it!

And for a whole lot more help making your pet photography business more simple and profitable, check out the 2021 Pet Photographers Virtual Conference. We've got over 15 expert speakers lined up and ready to teach you everything from developing your signature style, to creating an amazing client experience.

Some more speakers you might recognize include:

Alicja Zmysłowska

Caitlin Hodges

Craig Turner-Bullock

Cat Race

Charlotte Reeves

...and a whole lot more!

We kick off on the 4th February and this is one event that you can't afford to miss. Click here to learn more or click here to purchase your ticket.

Can't wait to see you there!

Caitlin and Kirstie

What have you implemented from the podcast last year?

In todays episode, Kirstie shares we learned from 2020.. and what 2021 will bring..

KIRSTIE’S TOP THREE TAKEAWAYS:

Using Airtable (as a CRM)
Introducing Video (for building clients trust)
Personal Projects (for personal/professional development and giving back)

Listen to the episode for all the details and to find out what's coming up in 2021.

Don't forget to share your takeaways in the Mastermind Group!

Last season we introduced Expert Reviews to The Pet Photographers Club. The reviews are for members only and with video. If you're listening in iTunes you'll get to hear the first couple of tips that todays guest shares, but audio only! Jump over to the Club website to hear the rest and catch the video.

Today's guest is Andrew Hellmich. Andrew owns the long running photography studio, Impact Images in Australia. He also hosts the fabulous PhotobizX Podcast and is also the man behind The Daily Vlog Challenge. The three-week challenge takes you from sweaty palms and multiple retakes to feeling 100% comfortable to hit record and go.

Many of us photographers are scared to start utilising video in your business marketing because we want the quality to match out photography, or because we just don't know where to start! Not fellow Club member, Jessica Wasik of Bark and Gold Photography. She has jumped right in and put her fabulous video out there and in today's Expert Review, Andrew Hellmich is back on the show to shares his review!

Have you ever asked your clients outright why they love you? Kinda awkward - but SO important. Our guest today, the fabulous Kim Hartz of Kim Hartz Photography and Through the Business Lens podcast, battled her nerves and called up some of her best clients to ask them that very question - “What is it that you love about working with me?” The answers surprised her!

Tune into this episode to hear how Kim used those calls in her rebranding journey, plus so much more (including insights into setting boundaries when you work from home, getting personal on your about page, setting yourself up for success with Planning Client Sessions and how to attract your ideal client). Yes, this is a jampacked episode, one you DEFINITELY don’t want to miss!

TOP THREE:

Ask your clients why they love you
Setting boundaries when you work from home
Getting personal on your About Page

LINKS:

Website
Through the Business Lens Podcast
Brand Brilliantly Course

We are obsessed with Airtable. Part spreadsheet, part database, Airtable is the way that both Kirstie and Caitlin organise all the information from each of their businesses. In today’s video deepdive, Caitlin shares her top five ways that you can start using Airtable to organise your photography business.

Track Your Gear
Organise Your Educational Resources/Downloads
Analyze Your Sales
Schedule Your Marketing
To-Do List and Workflows

TRY OUT AIRTABLE YOURSELF

Create a free account: https://airtable.com/invite/r/HoNlTcOR
Download our Education + Gear Library Template from the Podcast shownotes

Hands up if you’ve ever photographed for a fundraising calendar?
Many pet photographers will, at some point in their career, find themselves getting on board for their local pet rescue. Usually this involves scheduling a couple of days to photograph 12 different pets from the rescue, who can then sell the calendars to hopefully raise some funds. Most of us aren’t paid for this time, but it’s something we’re happy to do to help our pets in need. But in an era where wall calendar sales are slowly declining, we have to wonder - could there be a better way???

Introducing Jessica Wasik - mastermind behind the annual pet calendar contest strategy. The better way to create fundraising calendars.

Jessica Wasik of Bark and Gold Photography specialises in celebrating the joy and love between Pittsburgh pets and their people. She’s a big believer in using systems to automate her workflow, so she can spend more time with her clients and building an amazing experience for them. She also routinely thinks outside the box with her marketing strategies - including photographing an Annual “Anniversary party” to profitably build her email list AND using her calendar content strategy to raise tens of thousands of dollars for Pittsburgh's local rescues.

In this episode, Jessica shared so much not only about her journey as a pet photographer, but also about the specifics of her marketing strategies and how you can make them work in your business!

p.s. Did you know that Jessica’s Guide to Successful Calendar Contests, including email templates, swipe files and a 40+ page PDF is all included in the Hair of the Dog Academy?! Doors will open again soon - click here to jump on the waitlist.

TOP THREE:

Jessica’s Automation Flow and Client Experience
Anniversary parties and what to offer to the attendees
The better way to create fundraising calendars

LINKS:

Website: Bark & Gold Photography
Social Media: https://www.facebook.com/barkandgoldphotography
https://www.instagram.com/barkngoldphotography

When Carol Moorhead of Dog-Tog mentioned doing more “Zoom Casts” during one of our members Goal Trackers meetings, we were instantly intrigued. What on earth is a Zoomcast and how is she using it to build her local network? Tune into our latest Member Spotlight video to learn all about how Carol is interviewing local pet businesses.

LINKS:

Website: www.dog-tog.com
Social Media: https://www.instagram.com/dog.tog.fl
https://www.facebook.com/dog.tog.fl

Co-host Kirstie McConnell was a pet photographer for 8 years before moving to Italy this year. Before her move she always studied to become a Pilates instructor and now teaches classes online to her clients around the world. As a photographer herself, she understands the aches and pains that come with the job, when you don’t give your body the attention it asks for! In this episode she shares her favourite Pilates stretches for easing back pain.

Watch the free video version here: https://www.thepetphotographersclub.com/podcast/0703

Cris Skinner of The Journey Photos is a dog photographer based in the rugged and picturesque state of Alaska, USA. As a former United States Marine, she was inspired by Cooper, her medical alert service dog, to create two special photography series. These projects - ‘I Am Your Constant In The Chaos’ and ‘I am Your Calm in the Storm’ - are about honoring the incredible work of Service Dogs. Join us in this video Member Spotlight episode as we chat to Cris all about her business, her photography and her inspiration behind these incredible images.

LINKS:

Website: https://thejourneyphotos.com
Social Media: https://www.instagram.com/thejourneyphotographybycris
https://www.facebook.com/TheJourneyPhotographybyCris

P.S. Early bird tickets are now available for the Pet Photographers Virtual Conference. Grab yours today and save $100!

What better way to inspire and motivate yourself than by listening to the goals and strategies of fellow pet photographers around the world?

Today I was joined by Danyel Rogers of Wag to My Heart Studio in Portland and Ina Jalil of Ina J Photography in Canberra for our quarterly Goal Trackers meeting.

From holiday mini sessions, to contacting old & existing clients, to finalising book projects - this 20 minute episode is packed with great ideas and I’m sure it will inspire you to set your own goals for our final three months of 2020 (woohoo!)

MY THREE GOALS:

Finish filming the videos for the Productivity for Photographers Bootcamp
Contact clients with unused session vouchers (assuming we have the okay to do photoshoots again in Melbourne by November!)
Build the platform and systems required for the Virtual Pet Photographers Conference

P.S. the Daily Vlog Challenge that Danyel and I chat about during this episode is run by the brilliant Andrew Hellmich from PhotobizXposed. There’s another one coming up towards the end of the year - you can sign up here: https://photobizx.com/180/36 - I’l be participating too!

If you ever feel like you’re in a creative rut, or you have a photo series that you’d would love to evolve into something bigger, you’ll definitely want to tune into the season six finale - it’s a Medley episode!

Hear from seven different photographers, each with their own unique success stories and insights into Personal Photo Projects. We’ve combined interview highlights from our chats with Andrew Hellmich, Jack Jackson, Jennifer Zapatka, Diana Lundin, Erin Bonilla, Craig Bullock and JB Shepard for this inspiration-packed episode.

By the way - do you have a photo series that you’d love to share with the industry? We love using this platform as a way to shine a light on the beautiful work of pet photographers around the world - just fill in the Member Spotlight form online here: https://bit.ly/club-member-spotlight

WANT TO HEAR MORE? THE FULL EPISODES + LINKS TO EACH SERIES:

Andrew Hellmich: www.thepetphotographersclub.com/podcast/0108
Jack Jackson: www.thepetphotographersclub.com/podcast/0601
Jennifer Zapatka: www.thepetphotographersclub.com/podcast/0607
Diana Lundin: www.thepetphotographersclub.com/podcast/0611
Erin Bonilla: www.thepetphotographersclub.com/podcast/0110
Craig Bullock: www.thepetphotographersclub.com/podcast/0301
JB Shepard: www.thepetphotographersclub.com/podcast/0404

Have you ever wondered about the story behind photographers who turn personal projects into book deals? In this episode, LA pet photographer Diana Lundin shared the processes and experiences behind some of her most well-known photo series - including “Dogs vs Ice Cream” (published by Familius in August 2019) and her Dog Noir series.

Diana also shared some behind the scenes insight into the creation of specific images, so if you love hearing about the artistry and conceptual planning for creative pet photography, you’ll LOVE this episode.

This is a video episode - watch it online in the Member Zone.

LINKS AND RESOURCES:

Website: www.dianalundin.com
Social Media: www.facebook.com/dianalundinpetphotography

Kirstie McConnell is an award winning Photographer, an internationally respected photography business coach, co-host of The Pet Photographers Club and passionate believer that givers get. She created her own website to ensure that those who land there, book a photoshoot, and she is now giving pet photographers around the world the opportunity to have their website built in this same way.

In today’s Expert Review, Kirstie dived into the website of club member, Judy Reinford from Judy Reinford Photographic Artist and is sharing her top ten tips for improving your own website.

(p.s. Are you keen to have an aspect of your business reviewed by an expert? You can apply in the Member Zone, or nominate a guest if you have someone you really want to learn from).

LINKS AND RESOURCES:

https://judyreinfordphotography.com/

Need help with your website? Check out Kirstie's option!: http://thepetphotographersclub.com/website-design

She’s got over 20 thousand followers and she’s just 20 years old. We couldn’t wait to catch up with Isabella Willmann, the Amateur Pet Photographer of the Year, to chat all things creativity, inspiration and instagram.

Over the years, Isabella has evolved her dog’s Instagram page into a photographic showcase and she had some great tips and insights for how you can grow your instagram, too.

THE HIGHLIGHTS:

Isabella’s strategies for growing an Instagram following

Creating stunning self portraits

Making a photography idea come to life

VIDEO EPISODE:

This is a video episode - watch it online in the Member Zone.

LINKS AND RESOURCES:

Furrygraphs Website

Isabella’s Instagram

When Sara Glawe won the 2020 International Pet Photographer of the Year Awards with an outstanding 3 out of 4 entries placing in the Top 25 Shortlists AND two images picked for the Judges’ Choice Awards, we couldn’t wait to chat with her and find out all about her story! We learned that Sara Glawe is a German pet photographer with a passion for colour harmony, and that she balances her thriving Arts with Heart business with a full time job. Tune into this episode of the Pet Photographers Club podcast to hear all about Sara’s tips for entering (and winning) the awards, how she taught herself about colour and so much more!

THE HIGHLIGHTS:

How Sara takes inspiration from her European city for her ‘City Dog Walks’ experiences

How to achieve colour harmony in pet photography

How Sara picked her winning images for the International Pet Photographer of the Year awards

IN THE EXTENDED EPISODE:

Sara Glawe shares more about her colour retouching process (check out the before/after edits of her winning “Grey dog” photograph) and how she balances full-time employment with running her successful photography business - listen to the extended episode or watch the video version in the Member Zone.

LINKS AND RESOURCES:

Arts with Heart Photography -website
https://instagram.com/artswithheartphotography
www.facebook.com/saraglawe.fotografie

Jennifer Zapatka fell in love with photography as a high school student, developing black and white film in the darkroom. Over the years, she lost touch with the craft - until her first puppy, Oats, arrived on the scene. All of a sudden, all she wanted to do was photograph her adorable new furry friend - ‘With Love & Oats’ was born!

Now in her third year of business as a full-time pet photographer, Jennifer specialises in creating an exceptional client experience. We sat down to chat with her all about process, from planning to printing, the strategy behind her limited edition sessions and how she balances business with creativity through her passion project - ‘With Love & Dogs’.

THE HIGHLIGHTS:

Talk about organised! Jennifer completely set up her business - from price lists, to client guides, to studio management system - before she even opened her doors. This has allowed her to create a strong brand right from the get go.

The With Love & Oats Welcome Packet is filled with everything that Jennifer’s clients might need to know, and it comes in a beautifully designed 16-page guide (complete with doggo treats). She’s really thought of everything, and in this episode Jennifer gave us a sneak peek into her custom designed guide.

IN THE EXTENDED EPISODE:

Jennifer Zapatka shares her tips and strategies for creating profitable limited edition sessions and gives us a behind-the-scenes look into her passion project, With Love and Dogs. Listen to the extended episode or watch the video version in the Member Zone.

LINKS AND RESOURCES:

With Love & Oats - Website
With Love & Oats - Instagram
With Love & Oats - Facebook

What better way to inspire and motivate yourself than by listening to the goals and strategies of fellow pet photographers around the world?

Today I was joined by Danyel Rogers of Wag to My Heart Studio in Portland, Cris Skinner of The Journey Photography in Alaska and Carol Moorhead of Dog-Tog in Florida. We had our first ever Goal Trackers meeting and I loved hearing all about the plans of these three very different pet photographers.

From self-publishing books, to working on personal photo series, from transitioning to In-Person-Sales to introducing new packages - this 20 minute episode is packed with great ideas and I’m sure it will inspire you to set your own goals for the next two months.

MY THREE GOALS:

Complete the Daily Vlog course with PhotobizX
Host another online Pet Photography Challenge for my clients and community
Launch the Tails of the World collaborative book (eep!)

Hands up if this is you . . .

You know that you should be doing more video in your marketing. 🙋‍♀️

You might have halfheartedly attempted a few Instagram stories or maybe even a Facebook live, but you just feel so awkward talking to the camera. 🙋‍♀️

You keep hearing about how video marketing is the way forward. The all-powerful Algorithm loves video, potential clients connect with you via video, video advertising is so powerful - THE LIST GOES ON! But still, you keep putting it off because it’s also really overwhelming and you’re not really sure where to start? 🙋‍♀️

SAME!

That’s why we’ve brought photography marketing expert Andrew Hellmich back to the Pet Photographers Club show. Andrew has been successfully using video to grow and market his photography business for years, and he’s now teaching other photographers how to do the same with his Daily Vlog Challenge.

We were so impressed with everything that Andrew taught us in this episode that we both personally enrolled into his next challenge! Tune into Season 6, Episode 5 of the Pet Photographers Club to hear Andrew share some of his best Video Marketing tips - this is an episode you won’t want to miss!

TOP THREE TIPS:

Upload to Youtube: this boosts your SEO AND saves your server
Viewers respond to casual, helpful videos - don’t get hung up on the idea that everything needs to be perfect and professional
Join (or set yourself) a video challenge that will encourage you to post frequently. Not only does this give you an ‘excuse’ to your audience for why you are posting videos, it will quickly build your confidence! We recommend Andrew’s Daily Vlog Challenge

IN THE EXTENDED EPISODE:

Andrew Hellmich dives into the power of replying to enquiries with video (and the logistics of how to do that) PLUS shares a great strategy for using video testimonials to build business relationships. Listen to the extended episode in the Member Zone.

Having organised and judged these awards for a couple of years now, we’ve decided to sit down and make notes on the most common areas that we see entrants stumble - and compile a list of tips and advice to help you succeed!

Tune into our latest video to hear our nine best tips on how to win photography competitions - in particular, the Pet Photographer’s Club International Pet Photographer of the Year Awards.

This is a video episode, so if you missed the live chat in the FB Mastermind Group, you can head to the Member Zone to watch the replay. We’ve also included tip #1, which is all about the judging criteria, on iTunes and Stitcher.

LINKS AND RESOURCES:

The Pet Photographer of the Year Awards
Watch the Full Video

On the heels of a dinner party in which the Australian wildfires and their catastrophic impact on wildlife was discussed amongst animal-loving friends, our guest today was inspired to create a fundraising initiative that saw pet photographers all around the globe joining forces and raising over $20,000. Listen in as we chat to Karen Black of Indigo Pet Photography all about her Paws for Oz initiative.

TOP THREE TODAY:

Collaborating with other photographers to create change together
Generating publicity
How to raise funds for charity, but still be profitable for your business

EXTENDED EPISODE:

Karen Black dives deep into: Selling Prints after Minisessions and Generating Publicity for the Movement
(Full extended episode is now available to listen/download in your Member Zone)

LINKS AND RESOURCES:
Indigo Pet Photography
Paws for Oz
Karen’s Facebook
Karen’s Instagram

So we’re very excited to introduce a NEW type of episode for Season Six of the Pet Photographers Club - the EXPERT REVIEW. And what better way to launch this than with formidable photography business coach, Mark Rossetto?

Mark Rossetto is an award winning Master Photographer, an international keynote speaker and a qualified Photography Business Coach. He is highly regarded and has coached hundreds of photographers from beginners to seasoned professionals all over the world including Australia, USA, UK, Europe and NZ.

In today’s Expert Review, Mark dived into the price list of club member, Rebecca Kostka from Shy Wolf Photography. We’ve picked out an awesome audio clip from this episode to share on the podcast, but this is a video episode so really we recommend that your watch the full Expert Review in the Member Zone. Mark is truly an expert, so you won’t want to miss this one!

(p.s. Calling all members - are you keen to have an aspect of your business reviewed by an expert? You can apply in the Member Zone, or nominate a guest on our website).

WATCH THE VIDEO

LINKS AND RESOURCES:

Mark Rossetto Website
Photography Business Coach | Free Facebook Community
Need help with your Price List? Check our Mark’s online Coaching Courses

Welcome back to Season Six of The Pet Photographers Club!

Beautifully timed with the end of Pride Month, we’re starting this season learning all about the Don’t You Want Me project. This documentary photographic series showcases the beauty and resilience of LGBTQ+ people with their rescued dogs. Jack Jackson, co-founder of the project (and fellow member of the Pet Photographers Club!) joined the podcast to tell us all about it.

Don’t You Want Me is a global social impact photo project - think Humans of New York, except with powerful queer and trans narratives combined with cute dogs - the project is bringing people to tears.

Photographers, dog lovers and humans on a mission Jack Jackson (Toronto) and Deb Klein (UK via Brooklyn) have joined forces to tell these powerful stories. In today’s episode, we chatted with Jack to find out their inspiration behind the project, the impact it’s having in the community and their goals for the future of DYWM.

TOP THREE TODAY:

Collaborating with other photographers in photo projects
Using Facetime to conduct worldwide sessions
How Jack’s dog Jet saved their life

LINKS AND RESOURCES:

Don’t You Want Me - Website
Don’t You Want Me - Instagram
Doggy Dates Toronto

Have you heard - the 2020 International Pet Photographer of the Year Awards are now open for entries!

With a talented panel of judges, over $2500 in prizes and eight difference categories to win, you don't want to miss your chance to be crowned the 2020 INTERNATIONAL PET PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR.

There are three experience levels (Professional, Emerging and Amateur Pet Photographer) so there's opportunity for anyone and everyone to win.

What are you waiting for?!

Entry is FREE and closes on SUNDAY 14TH JUNE

Tune into the latest episode of the Pet Photographers Club Podcast to hear all about the categories, prizes, judges and more.

CLICK HERE TO ENTER + FIND OUT MORE

Anastasia Chomlack has found a way to bring photographers together and encourage the community around her, despite these weird and uncertain times. She runs a wedding collective (which we discussed during the extended episode) and specialises in business branding, but what we really wanted to dive into today was her fantastic new initiative - One-for-One Gratitude Sessions.

Times are changing so quickly, and thankfully in the few weeks since this episode was recorded we’ve already seen businesses, states and provinces start to open up again. Hopefully this episode gives you some inspiration and guidance for what would be a brilliant way to open up your business again (or get yourself ready for a time when you can start shooting!)

TOP THREE TODAY:

Gratitude Sessions and how to make them work for pet photographers
Generating goodwill by giving back
Nomination options

EXTENDED EPISODE:

Anastasia Chomlack Discusses: Gratitude Sessions + the Benefits of Running a Photography Collective
(Full extended episode is now available to listen/download in your Member Zone)

LINKS AND RESOURCES:

Anastasia Chomlack: Whistler Wedding Collective
Anastasia Creative
Gratitude Sessions: the Facebook Group
Gratitude Sessions: Resources for Photographers

In this video deepdive, Kirstie and Caitlin discuss different strategies they're using to keep their own businesses alive during coronavirus lockdown.

Usually these deepdive episodes are for members only, but we thought we would share the audio with everyone today, just to spread some motivation, inspiration and knowledge during this weird, weird time.

We hope you’re okay, staying safe and sane. As always, if there is anything we can do to help, please don’t hesitate to reach out - we’re all in this together!

Todays guest, professional pet photographer, Olly Clarke of Paws and Claws Photography knows how to act fast. When he was faced with social distancing and quarantine bans that stopped him, and most of us across the globe, from photographing, forcing him to close down the studio, he created a new business.

Listen to this week's episode of the Pet Photographer's Club to learn all about how Olly Clarke went from running a successful studio to selling puzzles within a matter of weeks!

Tiffany Kelly

Join us for a live Member Spotlight episode, as we chat to Tiffany of Noble Soul Photography from Cleveland, Ohio.

.....................................

About Tiffany: I am a full time vet clinic administrator by day, and by night and weekend I run my pet photography business, Noble Soul Photography. Noble Soul was created, and named in honor of my heart dog, Watson - who was just about as noble as they come.

I have studied photography for over a decade, but have only been actively working as a business since 2018. I was scared to make the leap to being a professional photographer, and worried I wouldn't have enough time - but one thing I have learned: when it counts - you will make the time!

I walk a fine line between my regular career and my side business, but I wouldn't trade it for the world. As for me personally, I am a super nerdy techie, and I am a sucker for anything crafty!

Kimberly Buccheri knows how to launch a business. She was published in NH magazine within the first 4 month of starting, and has average sales of $4000. She runs a low volume, high customer care studio and is the other half of the team behind Kimberly Sarah Photography.

Listen to this week's episode of the Pet Photographer's Club to learn all about how Kimberly Buccheri went from being laid off to running a successful studio.

S05E06 | Swapping to Virtual Ordering Appointments + a Covid-Update

Bud Thorpe | Kimberly Sarah Photography

Our guest today is one half of the team behind Kimberly Sarah Photography. With over a decade of experience in photography education, Bud Thorpe teaches pet photographers how to master studio lighting, sharing the same techniques that he’s used alongside his fiancé Kimberly to grow their own pet portrait studio into a luxury boutique success.

Listen to this week's episode of the Pet Photographer's Club to learn all about how Bud Thorp is running a successful studio based on deliberate and calculated business decisions.

Travis Patenaude | Stinkeye Photography

In 2012 my wife and I were blessed to be rescued by a Galgo named Leena. This scared little white Galgo inspired my wife and I to start Love Hope Believe Galgo Adoption (www.adoptagalgo.com) in 2013. When our group was first starting out, we were lucky enough to have a member of Hearts Speak (www.HeartsSpeak.org) take photographs of our adoptable Galgos and give me several tips to take better photos of our adoptable dogs. Since then I have been working on my photography skills and taking photos of the Galgos during our trips to Spain. Now I have the opportunity to pay it forward. My wife and I have made five trips to Spain to volunteer at the shelters and have transported 60 Galgos back to the US for adoption. In December 2014 I published my first photo book "Galgo Espanol After The Hunt" (http://www.blurb.com/b/6708469-galgo-espanol-after-the-hunt), and followed that we two more books.

Chris Fisher | Adventure Pup Photography

Combining his love of the great outdoors with his passion for photography and working with dogs, Chris Fisher of Adventure Pup Photography has created a business that inspires people to go on adventures with their dogs and have him photograph it!

Listen to this week's episode of the Pet Photographer's Club to learn all about Chris's instagram strategy, unique approach to partnership marketing and creating an unforgettable dog photography experience.

S5E02 | Snapshot - Goal Smashing in 2020

Marchien Heidstra | Heidstra Fotografie

We first stumbled across the beautiful work of Marchien Heidstra when she won the Pets and their People Category in the International Pet Photographer of the Year Awards. She specialises in a fine art approach to natural light pet photography. She also teaches other photographers how to create that creamy post-processing style with her editing workshops.

Alex Cearns | Houndstooth Studio

Alex Cearns has won over 250 awards for business, philanthropy and animal photography. Houndstooth Studio and Alex’s work is frequently featured in magazines and on television. She is also a published author, keynote speaker, wildlife photography tour leader and brand ambassador. And on top of all of that, she runs a highly profitable pet photography studio in Perth, Australia.

WE DIVED INTO:

Alex’s transition from Police to pet photography

What worked to get Alex her initial influx of clients and what she did next

The importance of social media today and running a constant ad

How Alex uses Social Media for her clients images

Why Alex seeks out media coverage and how she has landed 125 media interviews

Landing a publishing deal

Working with Charity

plus what Alex’s schedule looks like to fit all this in!

You’ll recognise the bright and colourful signature style that Chad Dahlquist brings to his work, whether he’s shooting in the studio or on location. His career as a photographer has included commercial work, weddings, head shots and families - but his move into pet photography back in 2017 brought a whole new passion for photography to his business.

S4E09 | Snapshot - Care of Artwork Guides for Clients

Ron Schmidt has captured the hearts of dog lovers worldwide. His colourful, creative and quirky photography can be found commercially and throughout the publishing and licensing industry and if you’re a fellow pet photographer, we have no doubt that you would instantly recognise his work.

S4E07 | Snapshot - Three Ways to Speed Up Your Editing

Claudio Piccoli is a name you may recognise, and whose beautiful, action dog photos you certainly will. He’s a Nikon School Master, author of the Personal Workflow book and teaches other aspiring photographers how to ace those incredible dogs in action shots.

S4E05. Snapshot - Dealing with Unhappy Clients

JB Shepard is a self-taught photographer and digital artist who walked away from a career in marketing and design to pursue his passion for creative pet portraiture. He is best known for his signature headshot style of dog photography and the whimsical paper hats that feature in many of his portraits.

S4E03. Snapshot - The International Pet Photographer of the Year Results

S4E02 | Quick Tip - Working with Micro Pet Businesses

Sarah McGraw is a professional traveling pet photographer who specialises in natural, candid-style portraits. Her business has continued to evolve over the past decade and as of April 2019 she officially announced that she only be accepting commercial clients. We’re so excited to share with you all about this change and find out how this talented pet photographer is serving commercial clients and small businesses

Nicole Begley requires no introduction. She’s the founder of the online community that we all know and love, the Hair of the Dog Blog and creator behind the online education membership for pet photographers at Hair of the Dog Academy. Today she joins us on the podcast for the second time, to dive deeper into business as a pet photographer, particularly pricing structures.

Multi-award winning photographer Claire Garrett of Petography in Perth, Australia, has been exclusively working with pets for 10 years now. She’s the author of Tails of Perth and incorporates a unique spin on traditional pet photography with her Haute and Hound photoshoots.

Mark Rossetto is regarded as one of the world’s best photography business coaches. He started shooting in the UK, moved back to Australia to establish his dream studio where he shot 500 families per year. He has since sold his studio, which is still successful and now pours his heart and soul into coaching photographers. In this episode Mark shares the the six steps to answering the "How Much is.." question that photographers are often faced with.

Sarah Mousey of Serata Equestrian photography is in the first year of her business and has already turned over $150k! She offers something a little unique, with a rural studio to capture beautiful natural portraits of horses with their riders.

Season 3 | Episode 4 | Snapshot on Three Easy Ways to Pretty Your Packaging

Cat of CatsDog Photography has built a loyal fan base with her bright, colourful photography and even brighter personality. She launched her business back in 2013, growing it from a part-time venture to a full time career in just three months and six years later business is booming with a team of six members.

Season 3 | Episode 2 | Snapshot on Client Gifts

Craig Bullock from Furtography in New Zealand, has been photographing pets for over 15 years, is a multi-award winning accredited master of photography, author of three bestselling books and the photographer behind the amazing Dog is Love series. He is New Zealand’s Portrait Photographer of the year and a Fuji X ambassador. In our interview he shares his experience with working with publishers for personal projects, and so much more!

Season 2 | Episode 12 | The Best 18 of 2018 - changes in our businesses this year

Iain Sim from Nice Chat, Let’s Book shares all things Facebook Messenger Automation.

Coming at you this week with a mini episode: How to Sell Gift Vouchers? Caitlin is a big fan of selling gift vouchers with a hands-free, automated system, whilst Kirstie likes to create a special gift experience by presenting and packaging hers beautifully

Luci Dumas is a master photographer who specialises in heartfelt portraits and has been running a successful portrait business for 36 years. Her super power is selling multiple large portraits per client and she generating a consistent flow of new clients with her networking strategies.

Coming at you this week with a mini episode: What’s in our Camera Bags? Kirstie and Caitlin share their three favourite lenses for pet photography sessions - to watch the full episode, where we take you through EVERYTHING in our camera bags, just join the Club!

Jamie Piper of Cowbelly Photography has over fifteen years of experience working with editorial and commercial clients; everyone from pet insurance companies, to animal magazines, to dog food businesses. She specialises in creating modern, authentic images that help her clients get away from that stereotypical ‘stock photo’ look: a mission which led her to creating the Fetch Stock company. On top of all of this she also shares a tonne of eduction resources through her website Commercial Photographers’ Resources.

Our latest question of the week is bouncing off some recent discussions we’ve been having in the Member’s Only Mastermind Group on Facebook about implementing pre-paid Online Ordering Deposits. Caitlin created this strategy earlier this year and it’s been working really well (particularly for the Tails book sessions), so we wanted to share how you could also use this strategy to encourage action and orders for Online Galleries.

BETH PATTERSON | DAILY DOG TAG

Inspired by the love of dogs, Beth Patterson created the online space, Daily Dog Tag which focuses on professional photography, rescue and quality products for dogs and the people who love them. Over the last six years Daily Dog Tag has grown into one of the top - if not the number one - blogs showcasing gorgeous pet photography from around the world and in today’s interview, we asked Beth all about it.

Caroline M Wood helps photographers spend more time behind the camera and chasing their pets around, and less time chasing clients for signatures and payment. She specialises in bringing personal touch to automation and creating quiet business strategies to make any introverted heart sing!

Whether he’s shooting in his studio, or exploring the Scottish highlands on an outdoor adventure session, Ewan Cheyne of Mutley’s Snaps is the master at creating playful, quirky, personality-filled pet portraiture. In todays episode we spoke all about originality for pet photographers and more.

Robert Gerrish, best selling author and host of the Mellow Brick Road, shares his insights and experiences with writing and publishing your own book.

Allison Shamrell of Professional Pooch shares how spoiling her clients has led to more bookings and higher sales as a pet photographer

Erin Bonilla of Bonilla Pet Photography shares her strategies for attending pet events as a photographer with The Pet Photographers Club

Andrew Hellmich of Impact Images and the Photobiz Xposed Podcast, shares how to rock your sales strategy, whether you're selling in person or online.

We dive deep into using Zapier to automate your business. We also discussed some tips to improving the SEO of your website's homepage, a new way to seed relationships with local dog-friendly businesses, printing your own photography book, payment plans

Nicole Begley of Hair of the Dog blog/community, joins us to share her process into booking pet photography clients by donating to silent auctions.

Caitlin and Kirstie dive deep into the benefits of hiring a photographer yourself, so that you can fully understand the client experience. We dissect what we've each learned about doing this, then brought our partners into the show to see what we could discover about our shoots from their perspective.

It's another Deepdive jam packed with tips and advice, so make sure you don't miss out! Join us at thepetphotographersclub.com/join

Jenika McDavitt of Psychology for Photographers, dives deep into the subject of injecting personality into your business as a way to connect with your ideal client.

In this Members Only Deepdive, Kirstie teaches us how she used a photo workshop fundraiser to book qualified clients and Caitlin discusses using competitions to build her client base. We also dive deep into building relationships with other photographers.

Charlotte Reeves shares how to find your style, improve your photography and grow your business with confidence on this episode of The Pet Photographers Club.

Hello and welcome to the Pet Photographers Club everyone! This is our very first episode, a little introduction to the podcast with your hosts, Caitlin McColl and Kirstie McConnell.