Thursday, October 25, 2007

Find Small Ways To Develop Revenue

SeattlePI:

Q: I am a young photographer trying to start my own business. I have so
much gear that I still need to buy, and I am overwhelmed by my startup marketing
costs. I am concerned that if I don’t show more revenue or more of a profit
within the next few years that I will be seen as a failure in the business
world. Right now I’m working 70-hour weeks.

A: Here’s a fun quote to think about. Andy Warhol once said, “Making money is art and working is art and good business is the best art.”

As an emerging photographer, artist and businesswoman, the perspective you bring to your work each day, I believe, influences outcomes. Through your lens today, you see more problems than possibility. From my lens, I see a hard-working business owner who may be too focused on tasks that don’t produce a positive return on each invested hour. For freelance entrepreneurs like you, the secret to developing a
sustainable, lucrative business is not just working more hours. The trick is
developing revenue- producing assets within your business that can produce
income in addition to your portrait work.

As a brainstorming exercise, I’d like you to think creatively of all the ways you might be able to earn income but not physically have to be there to do the work every time. These initiatives can include generating royalties from Internet photo sales or developing a series of salable photography-based products, posters and greeting cards like Anne Geddes’ well-known baby photos.

Read more at this source

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