Herrmann + Starke: The Evolution of a Photography Business
*
After three years building a client base we didn't want, we launched our first reinvention in 1992 using the signature lighting style demonstrated in this image. Though time-consuming to capture using film, this new body of work garnered many awards, which helped put our studio on the map.
*
By 1994, our planning process led us to become early adopters of digital technology. This required a huge investment, nearly all of which was debt. We minimized our risk by developing a new style that fully exploited the medium and used our expertise as early adopters to establish ourselves as recognized digital experts. As a result, we attracted attention from the press, manufacturers, stock agencies and prospective clients.
*
We'd been specializing in still life and product photography for 12 years when Olympus released the first 35mm-style single capture digital camera suitable for professional work. Our planning analysis showed us that the advantages of exploiting this new technology far outweighed the challenges of expanding ourselves creatively and adding people photography to our repertoire. Within a few years, photographing people had nearly doubled our earning potential.
*
After 9/11, Americans wanted images that made us feel safe. Our planning helped us change our visual style in response to this cultural shift. This new work landed us a 2-year contract as the exclusive photographers for Paper Doll, a Baltimore-based shopping magazine. Captured at Red Maple, a hip Baltimore restaurant, this image was part of a section featuring local proprietors.
*
The Paper Doll contract allowed us to utilize all of our skills - capturing people, products and still life images in studio and on location. We captured this mannequin and handbag on location at House of Rain for the "Radar" section of the magazine, which featured vignettes of stores that should be on every shopper's radar screen.
*
Over the years, we've repeatedly seen the advantages of committing time to personal work on an ongoing basis. This point was driven home recently when a client who produces equipment for law enforcement, responded to this personal image by hiring us to shoot an entire ad campaign based on this look and feel.
"You got to be careful if you don't know where you're going, because you might not get there."
~ Yogi Berra
My partner, Mike Starke, and I started our photography business in 1989 at the ages of 25 and 24 respectively. For the first three years, we took any job we could get and worked incredibly hard building a business we didn't want. In theory, we were "doing what we loved for a living," but in reality we were barely getting by producing work that left us creatively unsatisfied. By 1992, we knew we had to change the trajectory our business was on. Our only question was: How?
For us, planning was the answer. Over the 18 years that we've been actively engaged in business planning, we've discovered time and time again the value of regularly taking the time to assess our goals and evaluate how we're going to accomplish them. We've learned that building an effective plan for your business involves 3 distinct steps:
- Defining where you want to go
- Strategizing how to get there
- Prioritizing and scheduling activities
Step 1: Define where you want to go
"The discipline of writing something down is the first step toward making it happen" ~Lee Iacocca
Take a pad of paper and do some real soul-searching. Describe your vision for your business. What do you want to accomplish? Who do you want to work with? How much do you want to earn? How many hours do you want to work? What kind of lifestyle do you want to have? Describe a vision for your business that's as detailed as possible. For example, in the section on your dream clients, don't list client categories. Instead, identify the specific companies and people you long to work with.
If you're already in business, take some time to assess your current situation. What's working and what isn't? What do you want to keep and what needs to change?
Remember, the whole point of this exercise is to help you build a financially and creatively satisfying business: You have to clearly articulate what it will take to satisfy you.
Step 2: Strategize how to get there
"Setting a goal is not the main thing. It is deciding how you will go about achieving it and staying with that plan." ~Tom Landry
Start brainstorming how you can realize your vision. For the first round, don't edit yourself - write down every idea, no matter how far-fetched. Often, our most ridiculous thoughts become the trigger for the best real-world solutions.
Make a list of available resources - money, time, skills, contacts - and evaluate how you can exploit what you have and build what's missing. Assess your strengths and find ways to minimize your weaknesses through training or partnering with someone who has complementary skills.
Step 3: Prioritize and Schedule Activities
"Even if you're on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there." ~Will Rogers
Take your ideas from the first 2 steps and convert them into goals and activities. Goals are big picture items. Activities are things you actually do to accomplish those goals. For example, building or updating your website is not a goal. It's an activity that helps you accomplish a goal. The specifics of what your website contains, how it's structured, the images you choose, the copy you use, whether or not it links to outside resources or a blog, all depend on the goals you hope to accomplish through building or updating the site.
Once you have your list of goals and activities, figure out which are the most important and achievable with the resources available to you. Some really important goals may have to be put off until you're able to amass the resources necessary to achieve them. In that case, developing those resources may become your initial goal.
Finally, break your top activities down into smaller steps - things that could fit on a to do list - and work them into your calendar. As you schedule activities and set deadlines, think carefully about what you can realistically expect to accomplish given your existing commitments. Adding new activities to an already over-burdened schedule is enough of a challenge. Don't make it harder by imposing unrealistic deadlines on yourself.
"Good plans shape good decisions... good planning helps to make elusive dreams come true." ~ Lester Robert Bittel
Use your roadmap as a key decision-making tool. As a tangible reflection of your goals and dreams, it should help you choose how to spend your time and money in the most effective way. As your goals and dreams change - and they will - you can adjust your plans accordingly.
TAKE TIME TO ANALYZE
There are a number of exercises we perform whenever we revisit our plan. We created many of them ourselves but took some directly from academia - particularly Organizational Development and Business Administration. You can easily find information on the following exercises online:
Cost of Doing Business AnalysisEvery business owner needs to understand what it costs just to wake up each morning. The American Society of Media Photographers includes a list of CODB resources on its website.
Values AnalysisSearch online for "Values List" or "Personal Values." Find a list of values that resonates or combine the values from multiple lists. Rank the values in the list on a 5-point scale from "Always Valued" to "Never Valued." Now look at how you're spending your time. Are the choices you're making in alignment with your values? If not, what needs to change?
SWOT/PEST AnalysisEvery MBA learns to evaluate businesses in terms of "Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities & Threats" and examine the "Political, Economic, Social and Technological" factors at play. These complementary exercises take time, serious thought and research... but boy, are they worth it!
ADBASE is the proud sponsor of "I Need to Jumpstart My Business." Judy Herrmann is presenting this educational seminar to chapters of the American Society of Media Photographers during its 2009/10 season. Visit the ASMP website for dates and locations.