This Can't Be That Hard

This is Part 1 of a two part series. In this episode, I interview Gabriel Biderman from B&H. We talk through the general arguments for mirrorless and the more specific nuances of what I want and need as a family photographer. Whether you’re a mirrorless fan already or just casually considering a switch from DSLR, I hope you’ll find this series educational and entertaining. LINKS: B&H Camer...

A well-done photography client prep guide is a thing of beauty: it is a fantastic, professional way to represent your brand to your new clients, it helps reassure them that you know what you're doing and are going to be a trustworthy guide through the process, and it helps you avoid lots of time spent answering and addressing common questions and concerns. But putting a good guide together is...

You may have heard the marketing term "Value Ladder," and while the concept of encouraging new business with small offers that lead to progressively larger ones is pretty simple, translating that into a strategy for your photography business might not be. In this episode, I am talking about value ladders: how to build one in your business and how to make sure you don’t fall off. LINKS EP...

Ben Hartley from The Six Figure Photography Podcast is a marketing whiz, and he attributes much of his success to something he calls Chain Reaction Marketing - a strategy that ensures your marketing efforts have as much impact as possible. As entrepreneurs often wearing ALL the hats in our businesses, this strategy is vital to stretch our marketing time and dollars to their limits… and all it requ...

Where do you get your best ideas? I take an hour-long walk with my dog on a leash and a business podcast or audiobook in my headphones 4-5x/week, and I get most of my best ideas that way. It’s not uncommon for me to pause whatever I’m listening to, pull out my phone, and dictate a thought or idea into the notes app, and today’s episode is the direct result of one of those ideas.  I was recently li...

Ever worry about what would happen if you were to break an ankle and be unable to work for several months? That was always a nagging worry in the back of my mind, but it wasn't until it actually happened to me in the winter of 2018 that I did anything to protect my business. In the summer of 2020, I launched a portrait membership and secured around $4K a month regular income that I could rely...

Video on Instagram has quickly become one of the best ways to humanize your brand and market your offers to your ideal clients. That’s why today I’m sharing a value-packed conversation with Instagram Video superstar Natasha Samuel. Natasha is sharing her content pillar strategy and how to use that to ensure that you’re delivering the perfect balance of personal and professional why video content (...

When is good customer service most important? When things are at their MOST uncomfortable… think colonoscopy-level discomfort. The good news? Even something as unpleasant as a painful medical procedure can be remembered in a better light if the experience ends well. And if that’s true for a colonoscopy, imagine the possibilities in our photography businesses! Today, I’m sharing some lessons from N...

You may think of Pic-Time as an online gallery software provider, and it's true: they offer photographers a beautiful way to present their images. But there's so much more to Pic-Time. When you go beneath the surface, you'll find a variety of incredibly powerful marketing and sales tools. It's a unique opportunity for photographers to get the power of big business strategies bu...

Rebecca Rice is known as the Queen of Mini Sessions, and for good reason! Her approach is a great reminder that good things can absolutely come in small packages! In our chat, Rebecca and I discuss marketing mini sessions, timelines for promotion, and the importance of knowing your ideal market. Additionally, Rebecca discusses pricing, location choices, email marketing, and using automations to en...

Every other Friday, at 2pm Eastern, I join up with a group of talented people on the social media site, Clubhouse, to discuss topics relating to photography and the business of photography. We pick a different topic and this week’s topic was Our Favorite Business Tools. People in the room are able to ask questions or add to the discussion and we never know who might join in. This week, Sarah Landa...

Connecting with the right photography clients can feel overwhelming: what do they want? Where are they hiding? What’s the right price point or message or strategy? One of the most important things you can do as a business owner is put yourself in the shoes of your clients, and today’s conversation with Lachlan Shum - founder of the Focal Marketplace - is going to help you do just that. Lachlan’s e...

Automations: friend or foe? If you think automations are only for big businesses or have avoided using them because you believe they limit your ability to deliver a personalized service, today’s episode is for you. I talk about three common misconceptions about using automations in your business, and about how - when used properly - automations can benefit not only you as the business owner, but y...

Sometimes it’s easy to get caught up focusing on how many followers we have on social media. LaShawn Wiltz coaches us on a different way to view that metric, which can help us zero in on what’s important and might just also lead to new business opportunities! Resources: New to the podcast? Go to thiscantbethathard.com/welcome to get access to 3 of Annemie's best free resources. Join our commu...

In this episode of Mini Mentoring, Susannah Storch & I talk about transitioning from a longstanding career in weddings to focus entirely on family photography (after a year-ish off for Covid). How do you shift your messaging and get the word out that you’re still in business but doing something new? Resources: New to the podcast? Go to thiscantbethathard.com/welcome to get access to 3 of Annem...

We all have to raise our prices occasionally - sometimes a little, sometimes a lot. If that were as simple as adjusting a few numbers, perhaps price adjustments wouldn’t feel quite so daunting. But there’s more to it than just math… like, how do you come up with those new prices? How do you justify them to your clients? To yourself? How can you introduce those prices to existing clients in a way t...

In this episode of Mini Mentoring, Marc DeCarli & I talk about creating targeted messaging on your website that will attract the right customers. We talk about what needs to go first, video strategy, and the nuances of taglines. What’s the best way to quickly capture the attention of your visitors, then educate them in a way that takes them from wanting to hire A photographer to wanting to hir...

100 whole episodes!!! Whether it’s a celebration of all the inspiration, education, and action-taking for your business or just a cheers to no more zeros in front of the episode number, 100 episodes deserves a bit of celebration, right?!? ! I wanted to figure out a fun way to commemorate the milestone, but before I did, SURPRISE! I was given the gift of a day off. Join me today for a super-fun sur...

In this episode of Mini Mentoring, Candra Schank & I talk about the nuanced differences between business models, and how to ensure that the model you choose aligns with your unique gifts. Resources: New to the podcast? Go to thiscantbethathard.com/welcome to get access to 3 of Annemie's best free resources. Join our community! We'd love to welcome you into our supportive, business-fo...

Have you ever been told your prices were too high? When you were - because we ALL have been - did it ever make you want to yell “too high compared to WHAT?!?!” Well, here’s the answer: your prices are being compared to price anchors, and if you don’t pay attention to them, those anchors can sink your business. Today on the podcast, I’m teaching you what price anchors are, how they affect buying de...

In this episode of Mini Mentoring, Klayne Rolader & I talk about the self-doubt that creeps in when you’re not booking as many clients as you’d like to. Is it your work? Your prices? Your clients? Resources: New to the podcast? Go to thiscantbethathard.com/welcome to get access to 3 of Annemie's best free resources. Join our community! We'd love to welcome you into our supportive, bu...

Brand photography is big business… and it’s an amazing opportunity for photographers of all kinds to add a revenue stream that can be managed during the regular work week… the trick is setting yourself up for success by understanding how to market, price, and run brand photography correctly from the start. Vicki Knights and Eddie Judd from the Shoot Edit Chat Repeat podcast join me to talk about t...

In this episode of Mini Mentoring, Evelynne Gomes-Greenberg & I talk about the head game that happens between the launch of a new business and that time when business really starts rolling in. How is it possible to stay upbeat, positive, and confident while your inbox remains quiet? Resources: New to the podcast? Go to thiscantbethathard.com/welcome to get access to 3 of Annemie's best fr...

There are some big (and perhaps overdue) changes happening at This Can’t Be That Hard - all exciting and all shared on today’s podcast! I’m introducing the newest (and actually, the first!) official members of Team TCBTH, as well as giving you a sneak preview of what I have in the works for you in the next few months. Listen in to hear all of that… and to learn how you can get access to my newest...

In this episode of Mini Mentoring, Donna Craddock & I talk about strategies for staying consistent in your marketing and messaging, even when life is anything BUT consistent. Juggling chronic illness and a one-woman business? It can be done. Resources: New to the podcast? Go to thiscantbethathard.com/welcome to get access to 3 of Annemie's best free resources. Join our community! We'...