This Can't Be That Hard

If you’ve ever scrolled Instagram and found yourself gazing longingly at someone else’s perfect-looking life, wondering why you don’t have your ish together like they do, this episode is for you. Given that I’m always talking about systems and streamlining and automating, I don’t doubt that some people might imagine that I’ve got it all figured out, particularly when it comes to business. Well - spoiler alert - I don’t... And I really don’t want you to think I do. We all live messy lives, and some seasons are messier than others. Today I’m giving you a peek at the chaos behind the curtain. Join me!

Watch the Simple Sales Masterclass

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-focused private Facebook group. Go to facebook.com/groups/thiscantbethathard to request access.
• Long-time listener? Leave a review!

For years, you’ve heard people talk about the two main choices you had for running a photography business: in-person sales and all-inclusive sales. Both of those models can be successful if they’re managed right, but both also have some pretty significant drawbacks - all-inclusive photographers are leaving (big) money on the table and giving their clients a less complete experience, and IPS photographers spend A LOT of time and energy on the sale part of every session, limiting their ability to take on more work (or have a life outside of work). In the last two years, a new system has been gaining momentum, and today I’m sharing how the new system combines the best features of both old systems while avoiding the big pitfalls.

Simple Sales Masterclass

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-focused private Facebook group. Go to facebook.com/groups/thiscantbethathard to request access.
• Long-time listener? Leave a review!

You’ve heard me talk about Bluebird clients before - those ideal clients who love your work, happily pay your prices, let you do your thing artistically, then sing your praises all over town. You may also have heard me talk about snake clients - the ones who drain your time and energy, complain about your prices, micromanage your work, then top it all off with bad reviews. This week on the podcast, my guest Aisling O’Brien is introducing a brilliant new mascot to the lineup - the Possum Client. Aisling came up with this addition, and it perfectly describes those clients who seem like Bluebirds (and may return as bluebirds!), but in the meantime, roll over and play dead when the time comes for them to place their order. We all have to deal with possum clients every once in awhile, so in today’s episode, we’ll talk about who they are, and how we can coax them back to life.

LINKS:

Aisling O’Brien’s Website
Simple Sales Masterclass

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-focused private Facebook group. Go to facebook.com/groups/thiscantbethathard to request access.
• Long-time listener? Leave a review!

Websites can be so much work: updating our photos, writing copy, figuring out layout and structure, trying to understand and work on SEO... and the list goes on. Given all that work, is really even necessary for photographers to have a website in this day and age? Carolina Guzik from The Tog Republic joins me on the podcast this week to share her insights on why the answer to that question is a resounding YES. We talk about what the necessary components of a website are, and how a website is never truly "finished," no matter how long you've been in business.
Carolina's Photography Website
Carolina's Education Website

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-focused private Facebook group. Go to facebook.com/groups/thiscantbethathard to request access.
• Long-time listener? Leave a review!

As a solopreneur, it’s easy to forget that the money our clients pay us isn’t what we ultimately make - that number gets whittled down by business expenses. And too many solopreneurs just take whatever’s leftover at the end of the month or year and call it a day. But I think you should set a target salary and build it into your pricing (it’s IMPORTANT to make money in your business! That’s why we work!!!), so today on the podcast, I’m talking about how you should go about deciding what to pay yourself.

Simple Sales Masterclass

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-focused private Facebook group. Go to facebook.com/groups/thiscantbethathard to request access.
• Long-time listener? Leave a review!

Here are some of my favorite moments from this past year, including spotlights from some of my guests who came on and shared their real world stories, their struggles, and their insights and how those things have impacted their careers as photographers.

LINKS:

Simple Sales Blueprint Masterclass
Episode 80 with Sabrina Gebhardt
Episode 92 with Amy Sanusi
Episode 125 with Elke Van den Ende
Episode 127 with Mary Otanez
Episode 129 with Colie James
Episode 131 with Melissa Arlena
Episode 133 with Kami Vanous

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-focused private Facebook group. Go to facebook.com/groups/thiscantbethathard to request access.
• Long-time listener? Leave a review!

When I put podcast episodes together, my goal is always give you something valuable and actionable that you can use in your business. What I love about interview episodes is that new voices and perspectives bring valuable insights to ME as well! After 68 episodes in 2021, I figured we could all use a refresher - a best of the best, if you will - so I put together a quick tour of some of the highlights from my interviews in 2021. Whether you’re a brand new listener or have been around since the beginning, I think you’ll enjoy revisiting some of the best strategies and ideas we’ve talked about this year!

LINKS:

Sign up for January Jumpstart
Episode 72 with Erica Benson
Episode 88 with Sarah Landa
Episode 96 with Vicki & Eddie
Episode 104 with LaShawn Wiltz
Episode 108 with Rebecca Rice
Episode 111 with Natasha Samuel
Episode 114 with Sobrina Pies Crawford
Episode 118 with Ben Hartley
Episode 135 with Julie Christie

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-focused private Facebook group. Go to facebook.com/groups/thiscantbethathard to request access.
• Long-time listener? Leave a review!

With the new year right around the corner (can you believe it?), it’s the perfect time to start thinking about your goals for 2022.  But if you’re like most people, yearly goals can get lost in the flotsam and jetsam of day to day life.  So today I want to talk to you about six ways you can identify what goals you’d like to achieve for next year and the best way to do it.

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-focused private Facebook group. Go to facebook.com/groups/thiscantbethathard to request access.
• Long-time listener? Leave a review!

In order to create a successful path forward, sometimes we must first look back and take stock on our past.  And this is the perfect time of year for that introspective exercise.  In this episode I share with you the 6 areas of business I examine every year; because I’ve learned even the tiniest bit of insight, when harnessed, can snowball into big wins for the next year.

Register here for January Jumpstart

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-focused private Facebook group. Go to facebook.com/groups/thiscantbethathard to request access.
• Long-time listener? Leave a review!

Henry Ford once said “If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said ‘faster horses.’” I hear a lot of photographers who feel stuck doing or NOT doing, selling or NOT selling certain things in their businesses based largely on what their clients tell them they want or what they see other photographers around them doing. And as much as I know that it’s important to keep an eye on the market and to listen to what your clients tell you, today I want to talk about how the key to your success (and your happiness!) may well be to periodically ignore all that and think BIGGER.

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-focused private Facebook group. Go to facebook.com/groups/thiscantbethathard to request access.
• Long-time listener? Leave a review!