Welcome back to the podcast! And welcome to 2024! I’m so excited to spend this year with you & see all of the amazing things you do this year. I just love watching you over on instagram and facebook, so keep posting your beautiful images & sharing your stories. I know your audience loves it too!

Let’s get into today’s episode, the very first one for this new year!

While I don’t have a crystal ball, I have been around long enough to give you a little insight for 2024.

Reality:

2024 Presidential Election

Politics. Let’s get this one out of the way! During presidential election years there is an increased demand for ad space. And if you paid attention to your economics teacher in high school or college, you know that as demand increases, so does the price.

So, because there is more demand & higher competition for available slots, you can expect any facebook or google ads to increase.

This will also affect social media in general. We know how this goes. We will be inundated with political posts. Remember, what you engage with, the algorithm will show you more of. So, engage wisely.

The good news is that post-election, those ad dollars will probably stretch further because there is less demand. So, late November & December could be a nice time to advertise for spring sessions if you want to fill your calendar quickly.

Cell phone cameras are awesome.

This isn’t anything we had to compete with years ago. Today, it’s here & they are only going to get better.

Your experience - from beginning to end better be top notch.

Your content better evoke enough emotion to win over that cell phone argument. It needs to make them want you & nobody else but you to create their images.

Your work needs to stand out. If you can create your work with a cell phone, then it’s not going to stand out. Learn off camera flash, get good shooting inside with dynamic studio lighting & a soft natural light look. Do things that they can’t do!

AI will have a bigger impact on our industry than we think.

If you are using ChatGPT to write all of your captions & blogs, you will sound like a robot. Yes, use it for outlines & ideas, but don’t let it take your voice!

The editing that AI softwares can do is incredible! BUT be careful! It is very easy to go overboard with the editing & create way too perfect of an image. Teens want real. They want authenticity. A lot of them don’t even want much makeup. So use those softwares with caution. The great news is that your production time should decrease & the cost of editing will go down if you choose to use them.

Here’s what you need to know. AI cannot replace your creative eye. It cannot replace the way you personally serve your clients, the way you encourage that teenage girl who is not very confident at the beginning of her session. It cannot hug the mom who is going through the bittersweet moments of her child’s senior year of high school.

Do not be afraid of AI. Instead, embrace it & use it as a tool in your business.

Inflation & The Economy

Ok, just about everything is double what it was a few years ago. Gas, groceries, utilities. There’s no beating around the bush about it. We all know it & there are multiple reasons for it, that you should listen to other podcasts for. I’m just stating a fact & will leave any & all opinions about the situation to myself!

Will this affect your business?

It certainly has the potential too. Photography falls in the discretionary side of a family’s budget. So yes, there will be some families who normally wouldn’t have an issue purchasing that may find it harder this year.

But I certainly haven’t seen any empty parking lots lately. People are still spending & they will continue to spend on products & services they value.

What that might mean is that you need to expand your reach a little more this year to find those people. Get visible. Do something every day to get seen in your community - online & in person. Make it a point to start meeting new people - parents and business owners who might have teens or work with teens.

Because Brian & I are in real estate, we see & hear some things from lenders that affect the economy a little earlier than in the mainstream. Interest rates should be coming down, which will create a nice little seller’s market. That’s a really good thing because it will get money moving again in the housing market! That makes people feel confident & not so hesitant to spend when they are feeling that way.

So it’s not all doom & gloom! There’s no need to race to lower your prices. That does none of us any good! Instead, why don’t we all raise them? Boy, that would help everyone out, huh? Can we all just agree to that please? Look, doing business out of fear will not help you long term. If you can hold the line, double down on your content creation & increase your networking skills, it’s gonna be just fine!

While I’m on the topic of doing business scared, if you go & cancel all your subscriptions, stop going to conferences, stop investing in education, stop all the things you’ve done to build your business (within reason), your business is going to slow down.

Here’s why. Let’s go back to economics.

Money has to flow for the economy to work. When it goes out, it comes back in. When you hold onto so tightly with closed fists, there is no room to receive it. I know, I’m getting into some mindset stuff here, and I’m not telling you to go do crazy things. But I am warning you about stopping the flow of money into & out of your business.

You will attract the same type of scarcity minded people into your world. Why? Because that is what you are focused on. We get what we focus on. Our thoughts become things. Our thoughts drive actions. “Oh my gosh, the sky is falling, stop everything” thoughts will cause you to stop spending. All you think about in those moments is what you don’t have. And what you will create as your reality is a whole lot more of what you don’t have.

It’s kind of like when you gain weight. You hop on the scale & realize you’ve gained 20 pounds in what seems like overnight. But you didn’t. You gained it from a series of thoughts like “whatever, it’s just one cookie” or “i’m too tired to cook, let’s get pizza” or “what a crappy day, I need ice cream”. All those thoughts 3 months ago, gave you those 20 pounds.

Your current reality is what you’ve been focusing on for months now. And that might be really crappy for you right now or you might be rockin’ it! Here’s the cool thing - if you don’t like where you are, you have the full power to change it. But you gotta start focusing on what you WANT instead of what you don’t have.

So, here’s my biggest prediction for 2024:

The ones who focus on what they want to create instead of complaining or worrying about what they don’t have will be the ones left standing at the end of 2024.

I want that to be you! And I know you absolutely can do that! You are a force to be reckoned with. You want a successful business. I know you do because you are sitting here listening to me right now.

Do yourself a favor & go write down everything you want in 2024. Every experience you want to create, every feeling you want to feel. Then write down why you those things. Put it on your wall by your desk. Make it a screensaver on your desktop. Just keep it in sight & stay focused on that this year!! What you focus on will grow.

I predict that 2024 is going to be an amazing year for you. I can’t wait for you to tell me about all the cool things you’re doing. You can always reach out to me on Instagram. I’d love to know!

If you want to double down & get in a room where we all focus on what we want, where we build strong, streamlined businesses, get on the waitlist for Studio Secrets. Doors open January 25th. We’re doing big things in there this year!

Thank you for listening today. If you found value in today’s episode, share with a friend who needs to hear it too. My goal is to help you build a more profitable, productive & purposeful business so that you can spend more time doing what you love with the ones you love. I’ll see you over on instagram! Have a great week y’all!

Related Posts:

Featured