running a business is hard!! especially when you are doing it by yourself. there are so many amazing ways to get help with your business when you are feeling overwhelmed here are my top three suggestions for getting help when you are feeling overwhelmed with your wedding photography business!
but when is the right time to get help?
if you are feeling overwhelmed like you’re drowning in editing or can’t take on more weddings because of your availability it might be time to look for an associate! are you falling behind on business tasks? if there is a long list of things you knowww you need to be doing to help your business, but you just don’t have time you might be on track to hire a virtual assistant! or maybe you are lacking direction. you have big goals of going full-time, but you aren’t sure how to make the transition. if that sounds like you, a mentor could help you make the jump to full-time!
“that all sounds great jules!” you might be thinking, “but idk what they even do or how they could really help me…”
scroll on down! i’ll tell ya!
1 – WORK WITH AN ASSOCIATE
sometimes the struggle is not being able to keep up with going to weddings or availability. for me a solution to this has been having associate photographers! sometimes i can’t make it to a wedding, but the couple wants to hire me for my editing style. you can hire one of my associate photographers for a little less cost and they still have images with my style! the associate photographer will go to the wedding and take the photos and i will go through all of them and edit. this has allowed me to take on more weddings than i could have done on my own!
2 – HIRE A VIRTUAL ASSISTANT
fun fact! i have had a virtual assistant for a year and a half! (hello friends! it’s me! jules’ VA, editing this blog!) and she does a lot of different tasks for me! when you are buried deep in editing weddings there are so many other tasks that can be pushed to the side that still need to be done, here are some of the tasks my VA does for me:
- writing + editing blogs
- creating instagram graphics
- scheduling instagram content
- building out my welcome guide pdf for clients
- creating pinterest pins
- scheduling pins on pinterest (or using tailwinds!)
- drafting email templates
if you are struggling to keep up with posting weddings on your blog and pinterest you could hire a pinterest specialist to help you. if it is a struggle to get content up on social media you could hire a social media manager. my biggest piece of advice when hiring a VA, SMM or pinterest specialist is to make sure you go over their work before it gets posted so you make sure it sounds like you!
as a photographer they aren’t just hiring you for your editing style, it is about who you are as a person too! you don’t want to lose that by having someone write as you – buttttt it doesn’t sound like you! and it’s okay if you try someone out and they aren’t the right fit! you want to make sure if you are paying someone they are a good fit for you!
3 – FIND A MENTOR
i think that the best thing you can do for your business is to invest in your business! working with a business coach or mentor gives you the chance to easily level up without having to learn everything the hard way!
not hiring a business coach / mentor sooner is one of my biggest regrets! i ended up wasting a tooooonnn of time making mistakes that i could have avoided if i had a mentor guiding me through the process. on top of that – google can only answer so many questions.
there are some things that only other people who have been in your shoes can truly understand and having someone who can look over what you are doing and point out things that you might not have even noticed were issues on your own! the best part of hiring a mentor is that you can write it off on your taxes!
did you know that my mentor program just opened back up??
check out the link here to learn more about my mentor program options and the top three things to focus on to build your confidence and give you the tools to take your business from part-time to full-time in a year!
