014: Transitioning From Weddings To Seniors | Studio Secrets Case Study With Amanda Johnson
/Tomorrow is a big day around here because the doors to Studio Secrets finally open! This only happens once a year & I am so stoked to welcome in a whole new group of photographers who are tired of the overwhelm and want to set their businesses up for success.
Today I’m interviewing an amazing photographer who joined this program last year, but before we get into that I’m going to briefly just go over what Studio Secrets even is. You’ve heard me hint around about it here, but I really haven’t given you any details.
So if you’re tired of the overwhelm, tired of asking endless questions in free facebook groups not really know who is answering you or what kind of business or experience they have, tired of not having the right systems set up in your business, you are going to want to turn the volume up right about now.
Studio Secrets is a 6 month business coaching intensive for senior photographers. Well, what does that even mean? That means that you get me guiding you through setting up systems for your business so it’s not so stressful anymore. That means you get a 15 module course with everything you would ever need to run a senior photography business. I’ll go through those in a minute just so you know what they are. And it also means that you have all of my templates, tools, and resources that I personally use in my own business to use as your own - senior inquiry & prep magazine, emails, questionnaires, workflow, marketing plans, spreadsheets, consult scripts. You name it, it’s in there.
Here are the modules:
Your dream business
Branding & Messaging
Systems
Productivity
Workflow
Pricing & Products (plus my in person sales system)
Website
The Client Experience (from inquiry to the order delivery)
Marketing
Model Teams (with an entire done for you model team launch plan)
Instagram
Blogging
Pinterest
Becoming The CEO
Overcoming Fears & Excuses
See what I mean? EVERYTHING! And I hold your hand through the whole thing with hot seat coaching calls and a private FB Community full of other photographers going through the exact same process at the same time as you. If you listened to Robbye’s interview last week, you heard us talk about that community a lot. And you will from Amanda today too.
I built Studio Secrets on a 4 part framework focusing on these core areas of your business - Branding, Pricing, Workflow & Marketing. With systems inside each one of those core areas, we will build the business of your dreams.
Maybe you’ve tried the $35 memberships. Maybe you’ve tried the pretty templates. You may have even tried the one subject courses out there or asked all your questions in the free Facebook groups. I’m guessing here because I did all of that too, hoping for those quick fixes for my business.
Sadly, not a lot of that worked. So I went to work to figure it out. I became obsessed with systems & learning how to run a business. I invested thousands of dollars in experts outside of our industry & little by little, I started getting the right things in place. Now my business fully supports me & I want that so badly for you too. I see the struggle, especially right now in the fall. I hear the pain pouring through the Facebook posts when you are deliriously tired from all the late night editing. It doesn’t have to be like that, you guys
How would it feel to save for retirement? To go on a guilt-free vacation? To close your laptop at 5pm? To not work nights & weekends? It’s doable, you guys. And I would love to help get you to that place in your life and business.
Yeah, but Jena . . .
"I’m not ready."
Hey, it’s not a matter of how ready you are.
It’s a matter of how committed you are to your businesses & your goals. You'll never be 100% ready.
"I'm swamped. Not sure I have the time."
That’s the whole point, to go through the process & set up your business in a way so that you aren’t swamped anymore.
"I’ve bought courses & programs before & they didn’t work."
This isn't a bandaid for your business.
This is 6 months of intensive coaching to get to the root problems in your business, set up your systems & fix it once and for all.
"I’ve only been in business a few years."
If I could go back to the beginning & have someone help me completely set up my business to be successful, I would jump on that opportunity & give anything to have all those wasted hours of my life back that I could have been spending with my kids.
"I’ve been in business for 15 years. I just need to tweak a few things."
What is it worth to you to fix those small nagging things & finally have the business you've been wanting all these years?
I hope you’ll listen to Amanda’s interview today and go back to listen to Robbye’s last week. They thought all of these things too. And now they are on the other side of all those fears and all the excuses.
If I’ve peeked your interest just a little bit, stop what you are doing to go get on the waitlist so you can save $500 when the doors to Studio Secrets open this Thursday, November 4th. I’ll be there waiting to give you a big virtual hug and invite you inside.
Alright, let’s officially start today’s episode with Amanda Johnson of Amanda Johnson Photography. She joined Studio Secrets last year and was kind enough to let me interview her so that you guys would actually know what the Studio Secrets experience is all about. I can give you lots of details, but these girls tell their stories and I just love that. So, here we go with Amanda . . .
Jena 0:00
Hey girl, I'm so so excited, Amanda, that you are here with me. Um, I loved having you inside Studio Secrets. So thank you, number one, for having you on here to answer some questions. Hopefully this will help some other photographers make a good decision about Studio Secrets, if they are wanting to join this next go round or not. But let's start with you. Tell everybody about you, maybe your family, your business, that sort of thing. Let’s do a quick intro. How about that?
Amanda 0:32
Okay, sounds good. So my name is Amanda, and I live in North Dakota. So I'm out kind of in the middle of nowhere. I guess the first thing that I would say is that you can have a photography business anywhere. Do not let people tell you that. You hear that all the time. Well, I live in this little town and nobody will pay these prices. I can't do IPS. And I have been doing it for years, actually. And I have four little kids. We live on a ranch. And people drive well over an hour out here to my studio gladly to have me do their photos. So when I joined Studio Secrets, my biggest thing was I had been at a plateau I would say for I mean, I've been doing IPS for probably three, this is my third summer now I think, so I'd already done it a couple years. Loved it. I've done classes. I will say that. Lots and lots and lots of classes. And so when this came along right away, I was like, Oh, I gotta do this. I gotta do this class. But I was like, is it actually going to be helpful? And thankfully, Jena actually jumped on a call with me first and I'm like, hey, straight up, like, is this gonna work for me?
Jena 1:41
I remember that call. You were going, but tell me for real.
Amanda 1:46
Exactly like, I will throw money at you. But I got to learn something. So that was my biggest thing. And I will tell you first before we get into it, it was, well it was the best class I ever took. By far the most comprehensive I will say, even though I've been in business for years and done IPS for three years, I gained and gleaned so much from it. I was impressed.
Jena 2:11
Oh
Amanda 2:12
And my biggest thing was you were so helpful. Like just running past I think things pass somebody that's already done all this just to even confirm. Like, it's like I know I should do this. But like, is this right? And just to have that confirmation? Like Yes, you need to do this. This is how it is. People will pay. Do not cave. You know what you’re doing. Do it. Just so helpful, like so helpful.
Jena 2:36
I love that. And you're right. People will drive and they will come to you no matter what, it's really easy for us to throw those excuses out. I've done the same thing.
Amanda 2:48
I did too.
Jena 2:49
They are lies that we tell ourselves almost to protect ourselves. Well, it's because of this. Um, you know, spoken to other photographers, Robbye, you know her, and we were talking about this a little bit and that, you know, the things that you put out into the world are the things that you attract.
Amanda 3:10
I'm a firm believer in that.
Jena 3:11
If you say they're not going to come, they're not going to come. If you say Heck yeah, I’m worth it and they will come to me, then yes, they will. Yeah, I know you are right on all of this with me. Um, well, you explained a little bit about your business before Studio Secrets. Um, do you want to expand on that a little bit?
Amanda 3:32
Yeah.
Jena 3:32
For the seniors who are taking on, did you feel like, and you don't have to throw out his specific numbers, but like with your pricing, were you happy with it? That sort of thing. Where did you struggle the most, you know, those sorts of things?
Amanda 3:45
Yeah. Um, so before Studio Secrets, I was shooting about 20 to 25 seniors a year. Um, and I did IPS. Like I said the last couple years and my averages were like, 1300 I think the one year and 1500 the next so I was happy with that. But I want it to go to 2000 or 2500 is my goal. Yeah. And in the beginning of Studio Secrets, I will say that first like module, putting out your dream and like your goals and writing it down is like that's who I am man. I wrote it down. I'm like, this is like, for real now. Like, I'm going to do this, this is going to happen. Um, and so that I love that getting your brand getting like who you are figured out because then it's smooth sailing the rest of the course I was like, No. I know what my goals are. I know what my dream is. This is what's gonna happen.
Jena 4:34
Yeah. And, you know, some people think that's like the fluffy part and just kind of, you know, skirt over it. And I'm not saying like anyone in our group because we had some really serious business owners in the area. But it can be looked at like, Oh, it's goals and it's your dream. No way. It's a vision, right and it really sets the course.
Amanda 4:58
It drives you.
Jena 4:59
It really does.
Amanda 5:02
I had skirted around that like the whole brand thing for a long time. I knew kind of who I was, obviously we're in a farming community, like straight up ranching and farming. So I am a very rustic outdoors country type of person. That's who I am. And I knew that, but I did not have everything pulled together, like your packaging, your branding, your wording, even my emails, the way you talk, the way you come across. Everything now is so streamlined that I actually finally feel like okay, I got my crap together. I've been playing around for a while with it, but now it's like, no, this is who I am. People know it instantly. Like they know right away.
Jena 5:36
And I love that because people are either attracted to that or they are not. And you know what, if you're not, that's okay. They're not your person.
Amanda 5:45
Exactly.
Jena 5:45
It just makes room for the people that are your people, right?
Amanda 5:49
Yes, definitely.
Jena 5:50
I love that. I love that. So why don't you Um, and I don’t know if you could nail it down to one thing, but like, so what made you join Studio Secrets? In the beginning? I know you said you've done a lot of classes before.
Amanda 6:05
Yeah, Um, I felt like I needed that little last bit of help. I felt like I got to this place. Like I said, I kind of plateaued. Like I knew how to run sales sessions. I actually loved sales sessions. So that's like, my favorite part. I'm so excited every time it comes to that. So like, I knew I was doing sales sessions. I'm getting people in the door. But I still felt like there was some, like part of the whole business that I was missing. My website sucked. Like, that was the first thing I remember. Jena was so sweet, but she was, so like, your website sucks. I was like, it does, doesn't it?
Jena 6:39
I said it in a sweet way then?
Amanda 6:41
Yes you did! I can take it. I'm like, I know. Right? Help me. So my website, I knew I had struggled with that for a few years like and it was like this. I didn't know what to do. So like, I guess it's good enough people are coming. I don't know. So to actually get that figured out was my I would say biggest, biggest thing out of the course I got so much, but the website for sure. And then my pricing, I wanted to get to that next like I should be at 2000 to 2500. That's what I wanted. And I just didn't know exactly how to get there, how to put it together. And automation. I have no time. I mean, I've got four little boys. We live on a ranch. I help my husband and I was like, honestly, I was to the point of crying and swimming in how do you be a business owner and a mom and a wife and not lose it? Like somewhere someone's gonna sacrifice. I literally didn't know what to do.
Jena 7:32
Yeah.
Amanda 7:32
And my husband's like, what do you think? What can we do to fix it? I'll help you. What? And I was like, give me the money. And I'll pay Jena and she'll tell me how to do it. So like, for reals though, it helped me like automation. Like I did Honeybook. And I was kind of like this for a while. I was like, No, like, pay the money. And just get it figured out. It has saved me. Oh, so much time.
Jena 7:55
I remember you struggling with that decision. It was so hard for you because you had already had, like a lifetime membership or something to another one.
Amanda 8:02
Yes to another one. And it wasn't good.
Jena 8:04
Another system and you didn't like it, but you're like, I've already paid the money and I don't want to pay anymore, and I'm like, just please just trust me on this.
Amanda 8:12
Well I felt like sometimes, like I felt like when do you stop? Because I know maybe I think everybody, actually all photographers I've talked to struggle with that, the nickeling and diming of different apps, different systems, I have to have this. I have to have that. It's like 100 here, 400 there, $230. And it's like, wait, when do I get album design software and IPS software? It's like, when do I stop? How much do I need? And how much am I being ridiculous? You don't I mean?
Jena 8:25
Yeah you have to make smart business decisions.
Amanda 8:30
Yes. And that's when I sat down I realized actually that was I think in module two or three that I sat down and wrote out literally what are my subscriptions? Which ones do I use? And which ones can I get rid of and combine and once I looked I'm like well if I got Honeybook I could literally cross off like three other subscriptions I'm using and I don't even need them. So that was like I was like, I'm just gonna do it. If I find out it doesn't work fine. And I did not find that out. It has been wonderful this year. The automation, even just having the email templates like and we got that in Studio Secrets all set up. I changed it to sound like me and now it's like, somebody emails me it's like I can change a couple of words to make it sound like not canned and send it and I'm done.
Jena 9:19
Yes. And back to like subscriptions and that sort of thing. Because I struggle with that too. Oh, I could just do it myself. my artistic self record diva yet? Oh, it's $10 a month, and then I think okay, it's 10 it's $20 a month. It's okay Jena, can you afford $240 for the year to save yourself 20, 40, 50 hours worth of work? What is my hourly rate? And we went through that in Studio Secrets. You know how much you can bill yourself out for, what your hourly rate should be. You compare that to a system, another employee, outsourcing editing and it starts to really come together This is a smart decision. This is a not smart decision because you know your numbers.
Amanda 10:12
Yes, oh the numbers thing was and I'm a numbers person so that was really my other second funnest part of the course. I love running numbers. So like figuring out cost of goods and all how much I'm worth and how much this person is going to pay, what I'm going to make, I was like, oh yeah, I can do this all day long. So that was like so helpful to actually see it written out and I was like even some of my products I was like well that was stupid because I'm basically making nothing on that. I don't know how come I didn't see that before. So that was super. So, that's why I'm not reaching my numbers. Duh. Like in Studio Secrets, I will say too, that Excel spreadsheet you gave us that did it was so easy to stick in your numbers and it was just right there and it was so like well so easy than me sitting there doing all the math and trying to figure it out to build your collections and everything. It was so easy. So easy.
Jena 11:07
Good. Good. Good. Okay, that makes my heart very very happy. So I'm going to assume just based on what you've said that you feel like or how has your business changed for the good since being inside Studio Secrets?
Amanda 11:26
I will say first of all I haven't done near everything you told me to do. Already my website has changed. I love my website and I have not been blogging like I should blog um, but even with changing the website and the little tweaks that we did and the way that we did it I just now checked before I came out here actually and Google is my number two for my inquiries that I'm getting in Instagram is first and Google is second good. Referrals is third and I have never had that. I mean like literally I don't even know if I was found on Google every time they come in I'm like, tell me on Google like really really? Like wow! I’m impressed. And I'm just like so encouraged because I'm like this actually can work. And if I actually put time into it, it could be even better. So that is number one. And then number two, I just quick did my, and I've only done like six or seven sales sessions, but so far, I'm at a 2200 average.
Jena 12:22
That is awesome where you were like at 1300 before.
Amanda 12:25
1500 last year and that was like barely 1500.
Jena 12:29
Yeah, stretching it. That's so awesome. So I guess I could ask you, do you feel like the investment paid off?
Amanda 12:37
Yes. I would pay you again. Oh, heck yeah.
Jena 12:40
You would pay me again? Alright!
Amanda 12:41
Yeah,
Jena 12:42
Let me get my credit card machine out real quick.
Amanda 12:43
Invoice me. No, by far, it was even like you said earlier, the community. Like those zoom calls. That was another one of my favorite favorite things. I don't think I missed. If I did, I missed one maybe. Like those are so important to me to be like to even gleaned from other people. There were so many ideas on like thoughts. I was like, wow, I never thought of that. I didn't realize everybody was so helpful. It was so nice to confirm with you and be able, Okay, I gotta ask Jena this, because she's gonna tell me no, you're not doing that. Or Yeah, that's a good idea. Like, just to confirm that be like, okay, throw that in the trash cause that was a bad idea. So that was really helpful just to have that mentorship because I don't think I've ever had that with other classes. It was pretty much an online or one phone call. And then it was kind of done. This, I could work through and still have someone to come back to and talk and be like, Okay, how does this look? Or do I need to do this again? Or what does it look like? So I really appreciated that.
Jena 13:40
Yeah. I love that. I love the community aspect. And I think everybody is just so encouraging.
Amanda 13:45
Yes.
Jena 13:46
And will push you to do better.
Amanda 13:48
Yes.
Jena 13:49
Um, and when you're not doing so good, we'll smack you around a little bit, and we had to learn how to work with each other, and I think just that in and of itself has been really cool. Working with other women and all of our personalities, and you know, it's just been a really, really cool place. And for me, too, like I learned from you guys, so much. Um, it's just I love the community aspect of and I hope you guys have loved that too. Um, so let's switch gears just a little bit and talk, since you mentioned this, and I know it's tough for you because you got four little ones, right? And how has focusing on your business, getting those systems set up? How has that impacted your work life balance?
Amanda 14:45
It has definitely helped. I'm going to be honest, I haven't implemented everything right away. Actually, that was something else I was gonna say when I started Studio Secrets. I printed everything off. I had my binder. I loved working through everything, but I started feeling a little bit, I don't want to say depressed because that's not the word, but I was a little bit disappointed like, towards the end, it went into my actual booking season like when I started working and I got a little off track towards the end and I was like, I'm not even keeping up and I paid for this and I thought, Wait a second, all the informations here, I still have Jena, I still have the group like, I actually took a step back and I thought what I have done is enough for now. And I had to be happy with myself and like, you know what? I'm okay with this. I'm not gonna let myself get into this, uh, well, I just ruined everything. And now I'm just gonna go back to normal. I did not because I know people do that. And that is my one encouragement, do not get discouraged if you don't, if you skip something, or can't even go back, like you have all this information. Next year, I'm gonna just backtrack and be like, okay, I missed this, this and this, and I'm gonna re implement it now this year, because I have this what I did learn firm, and I'm good this year now next year, I'll just try it, you know, pick up the pieces.
Jena 15:55
Yeah. And it's not something that you're going to just change overnight.
Amanda 16:00
Right? Yes, you can’t get discouraged. It’s a lot. I will say that. It was a lot. It was awesome. But it's a lot. It's like, ground up. And that's one I haven't seen another, I guess. I don't know. But I have never personally done another course that was literally the ground up. Like we start here and we get to here as like your entire business. That's a lot to change and take in.
Jena 16:23
Yeah, so going from the very foundational pieces to I'm a CEO. That takes time. You know, building a team and outsourcing and all the things. So yeah, you just make the changes as you can, right? I'm gonna improve the areas that I'm working on right now. Get those in place. And the next season I'm gonna get this in place.
Amanda 16:50
Yes, exactly what I would say outsourcing now that you said that, I would say that and I have outsourced before because I did weddings and seniors. I outsource my weddings. But I wouldn't do my seniors because I was like, I can do those. It's not that much. It's not that big of a deal. And now I'm like, outsource that. Heck, like I am not doing that. Like it pays. And so I have been outsourcing this year, everything. Like I'm not, I do my final touches, like I'll go over them and look because I'm, you know, I like to do some stuff, but like skin touching and all that I'm not doing any of that. I don't want to do that.
Jena 17:23
Yeah, save yourself, save your family time.
Amanda 17:26
You can shoot more, I can actually shoot more if I wanted to by outsourcing. I can actually spend some more time with my kids like I've had to actually, it was kind of a mental thing for me, actually. And I'm not all there yet. It'll take time because I've done this for years. But I've actually had to stop and I have said no, actually my last sales session yesterday. They wanted so much. And they wanted to change, and do this and this. And I sat here and I almost, I was like this close. I was like I want to. I'm a people pleaser. And I want to make people happy. And I was like, Wait a second. No, no, no, because I have this in place, it's gonna mess up the whole train is gonna wreck if I mess this up and start adding stuff. I'm going to be upset because I'm going to be working way more than I was supposed to for way less. And I got nothing out of this. And I sat here and I was like, No, you keep your mouth shut. And you say no, and this is what we can do. But it costs this much. Like if you want your braces removed, it's gonna cost this much. I'm not gonna sit there for hours and hours doing this because I feel bad. And I used to. I would have done that. And now I can sit in the living room. And I'm like, I can actually like play a video game with my kids. I can go on a walk. I can go horseback riding and I before, it was like, I gotta work. I gotta work. I gotta work. Well, I gotta finish this and I never finished it. I never caught up.
Jena 18:38
No, the list never ends, right?
Amanda 18:40
Never.
Jena 18:42
Well, the fact that you can go I know how much my time is worth and I can pay some money and the fact you can raise your prices, you get money for it. Yeah. All have that confidence. Confidence builds off of each other. Right?
Amanda 18:58
Yeah.
Jena 18:59
And the fact that you're able to say no, and
Amanda 19:02
Oh it almost kills me.
Jena 19:03
Make I know, I know. I totally understand. But make the business woman decision.
Amanda 19:09
Yep. Yes.
Jena 19:11
The people pleaser decision. You made smart choices there. So good job. That's awesome.
Amanda 19:17
I always think of you. I'm always like, Jena would kill me if I said that. Jena will kill me if I do that. Like, no, we do not do this anymore.
Jena 19:25
Am I sitting on your shoulder?
Amanda 19:28
Yup, You're my little angel on my shoulder. Like Don't do that. Don't do that.
Jena 19:31
I wouldn't be the angel side, not the devil side.
Amanda 19:34
Nope. You're the angel side.
Jena 19:37
I love it. So let's switch gears just a little bit and talk about mindset. And I know how you feel about this. But um, but do you believe that mindset does play a role in your business?
Amanda 19:52
100% I actually have always been that person. My husband just rolls his eyes at me because I'm the person, like if I say it's happening, like no one is going to stop me from anything. Like, if I want to do it, I can do it. I know that. Like if I say it, if I write it down, this is what's going to happen, it will happen. Like it will. If you get in that I can't I can't I can't, you actually won't. Like you never will. You actually are stopping yourself from actually doing it.
Jena 20:17
Yeah, when you have those excuses, and when you tell yourself lies, when you’re negative, yeah, it really affects us.
Amanda 20:26
And I actually am somebody, I have little sticky notes. I have posters, I have on my screen, my screen on my phone I have well, you saw that little thing I did to book clients with little stickies.
Jena 20:37
Yeah, everyone loves it.
Amanda 20:37
I'm the person that I have it all over so I see it. Yes, I'm like this is, it helps me remember, oh, yeah, I got this, like, this is what's happening. This is what's gonna happen.
Jena 20:47
You gotta do your computer screen saver. So every time I walk into my office, and I know this is off topic, but every time I walk into my office now, my screensaver is on and it has like, mindset stuff, positive affirmations, money mindset, you know, I can do this. And it has some pictures of trips that I want to take. It has, um, has the silos at, um, oh, help me out here. Um, Fixer Upper in Waco. It has those on there. It has pictures of Santorini, Greece. I love it. It’s just like 6, 7, 8 images that just rotate. And when I walk into my office, I remember like, what I’m working towards.
Amanda 21:42
That's a good idea.
Jena 21:43
So yeah, I love doing that, too. You might like that. So do you find it helpful, that, um, that you've set up systems and habits and routines that keep your life, life and your work, work?
Amanda 22:01
Yes, definitely. And I will say, and that's another thing that I think that people sometimes get hung up on is thinking that the way that you run your work, and your life balance is the way they have to do it. And it's not. There just needs to be a difference between your work and your life. And that actually took me a little bit because when I went through the course I was like, okay, but it's supposed to be you know, shoot on Tuesdays and Wednesdays and do this and that, and I was like, wait, wait, wait. That's how I do things, though. Like my life here. Jena lives, you know, over there in town. And I live out in the middle of nowhere in the country. Like my Walmart is an hour away. It's a whole different lifestyle. And so I actually just had to realize, no, I'm gonna figure out what works for me when I want to shoot and when I want to have, but I have definitely separated like I only shoot on these days. My IPS sessions are only at certain times. And I've had people wanting to switch them. I can't tell you how many times I would do Sundays all the time. And that was one of my things. I was like that it's not fair anymore. I'm not going to do this anymore. And even if we would get to church, we would come back home in the afternoon and I had sales sessions all afternoon and evening. And it's like, I didn't even have a Sunday. And that's been one thing I kind of put my foot down. I was like, No, you know, I have to have time off too. Everybody else gets a weekend. Everybody else has time off from their job. This is a real job.
Jena 23:23
100%. I don't call my dentist in on a Sunday.
Amanda 23:27
Exactly.
Jena 23:28
Right. I take time off of my work and go during their business hours. Yeah, so I love that you run your business, instead of letting your clients run your business.
Amanda 23:41
Yeah, it always ran me. It always did. Yeah, I was by their schedule, but well, because we have this and we have you know, dance and we have sports and we have this and it's like well, okay, and I would do it. And now I'm like, Well I have stuff to like you know, I understand and I will work with you as much as I can on the days that I can. But I've been pretty firm like you know what, guys? I'm really busy. I'm booked and I think it's almost caused, it took it, like well look I only have two days left. And it's almost this, like oh wow, she's like really busy. She's like, we better book this lady cuz she's famous. I think it actually helped people like give them a kick like, oh, like she doesn't have like all the time in the world. Like she actually doesn't.
Jena 24:23
Yeah, when you're available all the time, your time is not valuable.
Amanda 24:27
Exactly.
Jena 24:28
So when they see that you guard it and that it's and it's limited. It becomes . . . that’s my dog . . .
Amanda 24:34
Well actually a funny story on that. Early, I think it was like June or July ish, I actually had a mom call and she's like I was on your calendar, but well she inquired, and I sent her the link to my calendar, whatever and she picked a day. I think it was her fault and you know, whatever and sent me them and I was like, okay, you know, great, whatever. And I went and looked and I was like, wait, I'm booked that day. I looked on my phone account and I'm like, I'm already booked. How in the world did that honeybook calendar book, because it's synced to my Google and I was like, How did this happen? And I like start to have this mini panic attack. And so I started to text her. I'm like, it kind of looks like that day is already booked. And she's like, oh, it showed available, you know, whatever. And I'm looking and I realized it's 2023, next fall. Oh, I was like, is your daughter graduating? Is she like, 10th grade or 11th grade? No, no, she's not graduating till 2023. So it's for next year. She said, I had a friend book a session with you. And when she seen your calendar availability, she called and told me if you want to book her for your daughter, I would do it now. I legit got on because she knew. I don't have that many dates. If you want in for next fall, I would pick now. And she did. And she paid and they're locked in and she's happy.
Jena 25:46
That's amazing. Yeah. It’s working.
Amanda 25:51
Yeah, that was nice.
Jena 25:53
Right? I love that. I love that. So, um, would you say and I know it might be hard to pinpoint. But would would you say there was like this magic moment, or this moment when you realize that, you know, this side hustle, this little business that you had built, um, could really be something that turned into into a support system for your family that actually could pay you can help you save for retirement, that sort of thing?
Amanda 26:27
Um, yeah, I would definitely say it has. Because I shot like I said before weddings and seniors I was so I was also shooting about 20 - 25 weddings a year. So I was, I am a big supporter of the family. I've always the last five years, this business has definitely supported and paid. We couldn't do without it. Like it's figured in. But I wanted to get away from weddings. It was too much with my kids. And my seniors. Well, you know, I have a studio out here on our farm. So people come to me, to my place. I walk across the driveway to my studio, a couple hours and I'm back in the house with my kids. And so for that, I didn't realize that I could do seniors only and get rid of the weddings, not that I don't like weddings. It was like why though? I can do that when, you know, my boys are 15 and they don't care about me anymore. I can go back to weddings if I want to. It's not like I have to say goodbye forever. I can actually make that income by changing some things in seniors and not even have to stress about weddings and stay right here at home all the time. Yes, that's the part I was like, well, I could actually do this. Like if I get this in place. I don't even have to do weddings anymore. And I'm going to be at the same amount or more than what I was doing before.
Jena 27:36
Working less.
Amanda 27:37
Working like a dog. Like literally scraping up money.
Jena 27:41
Weddings are so time consuming.
Amanda 27:44
All my time, all night long editing, tired, grouchy at my kids, not not even meaning to be, just because I'm so exhausted and tired and physically like you're just mentally in a space that you can't handle life in general. And then I started to feel horrible, like, why am I doing this? Like I'm not enjoying my family. I'm horrible to my kids. Like I'm always on edge. And that's not the life I want. That's not worth it to me.
Jena 28:09
And so going back to that dream business. You decided, yeah, I don't want to do this. You set the course. And you’re building the business that you wanted for the season of life that you’re in.
Amanda 28:21
My dreams. Yes, exactly.
Jena 28:24
You're working at home. Who doesn't want that dream studio on their own property? A beautiful location to shoot, you walk out of your house and there's your studio,
Amanda 28:34
Yeah, and when I'm done, I'm done. It takes me two seconds to walk across the driveway. I don't even have to drive anywhere. I don't have to. I don't have to go, I mean with weddings, I was driving an hour at least to Bismarck. I was driving an hour there and an hour back plus shooting the wedding. Plus the engagement session plus then meeting with them. It was just, I was constantly gone. And now it's like, in the evening I walk out, I shoot and I come back in and I'm done. Like that's it.
Jena 28:57
And mom's home.
Amanda 28:58
Yes.
Jena 28:59
Awesome.
Amanda 28:59
Yes. Yep. And my clients love it. It's actually the business. I can't even tell you actually how happy it makes me. I am a people person too. And so I love my clients. They are a part of my life. Like they get me. One of my brand words is genuine, like I am who I am. Yeah, they come out here and there's horses running around the yard and my kids probably running through without his pants on the playset. And they love it. Because those kind of clients are attracted to me and they come out here and they get to meet my boys and they meet my family because they're here at my place and they see where we live and who we are. And they love it. They enjoy it.
Jena 29:33
That's the kind of clients that you attract, though, when you put that out in a brand that you've built. You're very family oriented, storytelling. I love that. Let me ask you this. Before Studio Secrets, do you think you would have made that decision to stop weddings?
Amanda 29:54
No, I wouldn't. I even considered it for probably the last two years and I tried to scale back. Instead of 25, I did like 15. And then I tried 10, then I kind of freaked out because I didn't make enough money. And then I was trying to book, book, book, book again. And after this, I was like, No, if I change this and raise my prices and put in new systems and outsource, actually, I can even shoot more seniors, get my website working so I get more inquiries in without scraping and trying, and you know what I mean, that I actually could let go of weddings and I shot this year, I actually only booked five weddings. And I have none on the books for next year. And I'm completely, from what I see, I should be totally fine.
Jena 30:36
You're free.
Amanda 30:40
Yep. And if you I cannot tell you how good it feels, how good. I'm just like, I can't wait, like I'm actually excited. Like, I can just do seniors and you don't have to jump either between like my wedding clients and my senior clients. And everything's different for brides and seniors. And that was really difficult for me too, because it's like, well, I'm talking to a bride now. But then I have a 17 year old girl over here chatting on Instagram. And it's like, it was kind of difficult to switch that mindset and the way you talk and communicate and everything. Oh, yeah. I'm in my mode. And I'm good.
Jena 31:07
Yeah, you know that’s a big part of Studio Secrets, finding your niche. I mean, we're about seniors, right? So yeah, getting that one client, because when you have that one client, you can talk to them. And all of your marketing is around them. All of your email communication is around them. Your website is around them. Everything is so simplified, and it gets rid of all the noise.
Amanda 31:34
Yes.
Jena 31:35
And it’s so focused. When your attention is split in so many different areas, it’s so hard. And it's exhausting mentally, physically, in every way. And when you can finally trust yourself enough to go in one direction and then you get known for something. That’s huge.
Amanda 31:55
Hmm, well, and even for the weddings, like the systems are different. So like, you know, weddings, I'm saying six to eight weeks before you get your pictures. Seniors, I'm saying like two weeks. And just to keep track of like, well, this What? Oh my gosh, I can't tell you how many papers and scratching it down. I write it all the time, this person is due and then I'm like, nope, gotta change it, throw that away. And then this person is due this day, this time, and I scratch it and write all over it and do it again. It was exhausting. It was horrible. Now I have Honeybook. It's my seniors, and it pops up and tells me what to do. And I just do that. And I'm done. That keeps me on track.
Jena 32:27
Yeah. That's awesome Amanda, I love it. I love simplifying systems. So let's switch gears one more time. You've been doing this for a long time. I've been doing this for a long time, if you can remember those, and I know you still have them, because we all do. But those long days, and those long nights of the hard work, putting in those hours. How does a new photographer or just a photographer in general, maybe somebody has been doing this for a while, because even you've been doing this for a while. You just needed that extra little push, right?
Amanda 33:10
Well, that's honestly why I almost didn't do it. Because I felt I already had a business and I was making, actually my other goal was to get over that six figure income. And I've been at that edge for years and I've never gone over that. And that was my I'm like other people are doing it. I would tell my husband, somehow I'm doing something just barely wrong, because I'm this close. And I know I can do it. So even if there's photographers out there that have been doing this for a while, and I'm talking making a good income $60,000 - $80,000 income, you can get past that and have a better business, more streamlined with less work. I know that sounds crazy. It sounds crazy. But you can.
Jena 33:47
Yeah, that sounds crazy.
Amanda 33:48
You can. It's for real. It's for real.
Jena 33:52
It is. Well, what would you say to those photographers who need that extra motivation, that extra bump to dig deep on those long nights? Like it's tough, isn't it?
Amanda 34:11
Yeah.
Jena 34:11
What do you tell yourself when you're tired? Or when you have a goal that you want to meet? And you're just like, ugh.
Amanda 34:20
Um, for me, I have kids, so it's easier for me. I look at my kids and my husband. And I remember when we got married, we lived here on his family farm. And we have taken that over now. We have cows and sheep. We don't farm. Actually, he hates farming. But anyways, the lifestyle we wanted was to, I'm a traveler. I love to travel. And I wanted to be able to have the freedom to go when I wanted to and not be tied to a job. I wanted to be able to say, you know what, this week we're going to go camping, and that's what we're going to do and I'm going to take my kids and they're going to see all the national parks and we're going to drive around and we're going to camp and we're going to fish and we're going to hunt and we're gonna do whatever we want. And with the ranching and farming, it's difficult obviously because we have animals, but there are seasons where we can actually get away for a month, you know, he has months at a time where it's like, you know, he does stuff, but he can actually leave the farm. And so I wanted to find something that would support our lifestyle and still be able to do what we wanted. And so on those days, I sit here, it's like, I get so frustrated sometimes. And I'm like, Wait a second, though. This is what we wanted. This is the lifestyle. I can, I can stop whenever I want to. I can quit right now if I want to. I can keep going if I want to. I can do whatever I want. Because I'm in charge of my business, I can slow down for a season. I can pick back up for a season. It's not like if you have to slow down your life is over. Or if you have to change that's another thing. I'll say, I've been pregnant and shooting and babies and nursing and packing kids. It is okay to step back, not do IPS, let's say you just deliver digitals, you can do that. That is okay to do for a season.
Jena 35:53
For a season. If you have to do that, then yeah.
Amanda 35:55
You have seasons. It is okay to take a season and before I was like, Well, I'm just a failure. Like if I quit doing this now. I just ruined everything. And you don't. You make sure it's a season and have your goals set. And you can start back up again. It is not the end of the world. You can if you need to adjust it for your family. And so when it gets like that, sometimes I have to stop and think okay, Amanda, am I doing this for me? Am I trying to be all Oh, I want to be the best photographer and popular like is that what I'm doing this for? Or if I'm doing this for money? Is that really what's important? Or is it important for my family to make enough to stay with my kids at home and spend time with them? And so that's I guess what I stopped and I remember and I have always prayed to God, like, if you want me to continue this, like them bless me, bless my business. If you don't, I will stop. And I sit there and I literally will cry. And I'm like, I get so tired, frustrated, like, but He's bringing me the clients. Yeah, I have to keep going because this is what He wants. Sometimes we're just tired. And you know what, that's okay, I'll get through it. And then there'll be a better day.
Jena 37:00
But you're impacting so many lives. And they’re obviously being sent to you for a reason, right? I love that.
Amanda 37:08
Yes. Oh, to be with the family, I love it because I get to touch so many families and just visit and learn and the girls, I have girls that still messaged me from three years ago because they just think I'm awesome. I don't know why, but they messaged me, and they're like, Oh, I saw you at the movie theater in town. I’m home from college. I was like, Well, why don't you say or they seem to run into me at the fair and they're always hugging me and messaging me and I love that. I don't have any girls, I have four boys. No girls. So this is my girl time. I don't get girl time. It's so special to me to have girls. And I will tell the moms that thank you for letting me borrow your daughter because that was one thing that has hurt. I didn't have little girls. I didn't get that time. It really, I mean, that's fine. I love my boys to death. I wouldn't change it for anything. But sometimes there are sad moments and it's like I don't get any girl time. I don't get hair and makeup and dresses and I don't get that. And so when the girls come out, I love that. I love that.
Jena 38:02
I think that's a big thing for me too. But I love too, that I can, I know how to work with guys because I raised little boys.
Amanda 38:09
Oh heck yeah.
Jena 38:12
But I also love that and yeah, remembering why you're doing something, remembering that you have freedom. Those long nights, those long days they bring you freedom, right? Oh, that's huge reminders for everybody. Thank you for sharing that. So I'm going to end with this and I'm going to ask you a very bold question. Your eyes just got really big. Haha! Would you recommend Studio Secrets to another photographer? And if you were going to do that, describe that kind of person that is like the perfect fit for this.
Amanda 38:54
Oh, I definitely would 100%. If you remember, I drug Charity.
Jena 39:00
Not drug, like as in drugged her. No, pulled her.
Amanda 39:06
I did. I told her, you're paying. You're paying this and you're doing this because you have to. Like it's, I know, we're gonna get something out of this. I already did a call. I, seriously, I was like, I did the consult with Jena. She's like the coolest person, like instant friend. Like you have to do this. And so yes, I would recommend it to anybody and everybody. Honestly, I think that even if you're a beginner, I will say this if you're a beginner, and you're ready to make this legit for real. If you're somebody that is not, you know, you may get overwhelmed because it is a lot. It's how to build your business from the ground up. Right? So if you're just starting out, it's absolutely perfect for you because you're going to start out exactly right on track. And if you're somebody like me, that's done it for years and just there's these few things that just don't click, they don't connect. I learned, I can't even tell you how much I learned and I've been doing this for years. That was my concern actually like I've done this for years. Already know a lot of stuff. You know, I've already been down this road. I've done a million classes and I was kind of like, and I can't tell you that at so much in that course that I didn't even expect. It was so detailed that some things I'm like, how did I miss that? How did I miss that? Like, so I don't care who you are, you can get something out of this course period. It is worth the money. It is so worth the money.
Jena 39:45
That's awesome. Thank you. That’s great, and I have loved having you in there. You're such an encouragement to the other girls in the group and you push them. And I just, I love that, that part of it, that we've all become close friends. So it’s like, we’re not just business owners. We've gotten to be close friends, and I know that like, if I have a problem like yeah, it's like my course and my group, but like if I'm struggling with something because hello, I'm a real person. I have real clients. I can do the same thing and y'all are like, no, you can do this, or we got your back or, you know, all the things you remember, what would you tell yourself right now? I love that. Well, I'm excited to keep moving forward with you. I'm excited to continue to watch your business grow. I think you're going to be at an even bigger level this time next year.
Amanda 41:35
I'm excited. I'm excited. Just so satisfying about the whole course to me was at the end. When I felt like Jena was gone, like, oh, I don't have Jena. I like, I have to see her every month. Like I just have to. Yes, it just became like a thing, and then like the last one, I was like, I don't, how? I so looked forward to it.
Jena 41:35
On the last one. And we were all like boo-hooing crying, right? Like who turned on the faucet for everybody?
Amanda 41:40
Yeah the community was great.
Jena 41:45
Yeah, that's awesome. Well, this was so much fun. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you for spending a very precious hour of your day with me. I know you have a very busy week because you have lots of sessions. You've already told me this week, and I know it's a big full week. So thank you very much and I will see you back in our group.
Amanda 42:15
Okay, sounds good. Thanks Jena.
Jena 42:25
Thank you Amanda!
Amanda 42:30
Okay, bye-bye.
Ok, this lady is amazing. I’m so inspired by her story and the fact that she has molded her business into what she wants it to look like. From 25 weddings a year to zero weddings and seniors only. And now she has so much more time for her little boys. I’ll tell you this. You can do exactly what Amanda did. If you want to massively change your business or just tweak it a little here and there to get you more streamlined, it’s possible. And I’d love to help you get there.
The doors to Studio Secrets open tomorrow and we are ready to welcome you in. If you want a live tour of what’s actually inside this 6 month program, sign up for one of the upcoming webinars. And if you need to talk to me one on one, set up a clarity call, so that we can make sure you’re a good fit. You can do that at seniorstudiosuccess.com/studiosecrets.
Ok guys. I hope you enjoyed that. If you know Amanda personally (I know some of you who listen definitely do) reach out & give her a virtual high five. She deserves it! I’ll see you over in the Senior Studio Success FB Group or on Insta! Have a great rest of your week y’all!
*** DON’T MISS THIS! ***
If you need somebody to come along beside you and help you do business the right way so that you can bring home a paycheck, spend more time with your family and save for retirement then you need Studio Secrets.
The doors open November 4th for something very special for a handful of photographers who are ready to get laser focused on their businesses.
Studio Secrets is a 6 month business coaching intensive where we dive deep into your business together. It’s not a DIY course on one or two topics. This is EVERYTHING you could ever need to know (and all the tools & resources) to run a senior photography business - branding, messaging, websites, pricing, sales, marketing, social media, senior model teams, systems, workflow, automation and SO MUCH MORE! And bonus - you get me to lead you through it in our hot seat calls and a private community to bounce ideas around with.
If you’re ready to turn your expensive hobby into a thriving business be sure you are on the waitlist.
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Success is found in the simplicity of a system.
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