With today’s fast moving technology, people are using the internet to find everything. And I mean EVERYTHING! We are people who are after something, have a purpose and want instant gratification for what we are doing. If your website is to be a success, you cannot fail to give people what it is they are after. Think of it in these terms: If you don’t give them what they are after, someone else will!

Alongside your gallery and your “about me” section on your website, include a “details” or “information” link in your navigation. This is the instant “light bulb going off” feeling that your website visitors are after. They know if they click on this link, they will receive what it is they have been after: information!

Put yourself in the shoes of a potential customer and ask yourself “What do I want to know about this photographer and what he (or she) can do for me?” and then do the right thing and answer it! A F.A.Q. section in your website is a great way to answer questions. Simply list a selection of questions with your well written responses below them. If F.A.Q.’s are a little too formal for you, then simply answer the questions in a more “dialog” type conversation on your website.

What about price? I’m sure everyone’s mouth just gaped wide open waiting in response to this one. As photographers, we are taught by the major marketing guru’s in photography that we do not give out our price list. I’ve heard it over and over again: never give price out of context. There is some logic to this theory and I must admit that I’ve been a believer of this philosophy as well. While I do not condone listing out your price list as a grid of “product = $xx” on your website, I have found it very beneficial to give a price range of your products and services. Yes, people on your website may still be slightly irritated that they can’t just print out a list of your print sizes and prices, but they can get an idea of what they can plan on spending with your business. This is probably the only type of information that should be slightly held back so that you are given an opportunity to show them exactly why you charge what you charge, yet still get an idea of their budget and ability to afford working with you.

If you aren’t sure on what information to fill your website with check out my E-Book and Business Forms entitled “Business Practices for Successful Photographers”. All the informational pages designed for customers are available for you as a starting point to design your own informational content.

It would seem like a safe bet to assume that most photographers probably have a website already. You’ve seen them haven’t you? The flash based twirly whirly over the top designs that you have to have a lightning fast internet connection to really enjoy, the ones with absolutely no marketing behind them and simply rely on the work to “sell them” and the ones that don’t even say to the person viewing it “hey, why don’t you contact me”. Of course you know the ones I’m talking about. They are template based and all pretty much look the same as everyone else’s. I’ve got one question for you…WHY?

I’ve never been able to grasp the concept behind why a photographer who talks about being “unique” or “artistic” is ok with being one of the many who have been herded into a standard template based website with just a couple of customizations. Well, ok there is the money aspect, it’s fairly cheap. They are also pretty user friendly to be able to edit them yourself. But is that enough? Is it enough to completely ignore the fact that there isn’t even a call to action, offer or a strong marketing message to them? Most of the ones I have come across are simply glorified galleries with a contact page. BLEH!

Over the next few blogs posts, I will be presenting to you a series of articles with my own theories behind GOOD web site design. No, nothing I say will suggest that you go with one of these companies who provide a cheap template based system. In my opinion, they look nice but are completely worthless as a marketing tool. I’m going to talk to you more about web design techniques to implement, marketing methods to include in your design, where to find a good quality web designer and not just a template and how to actually use your website to the best of your ability and really make it work for you!

For this first series, let’s focus on the visual aspect of the design. The really great websites out there are more than just a pretty palette of color and pictures to look at. Great websites actually lead your user around the screen in a flowing manner that you intend for them to view it in, are easy to read and most importantly, easy to navigate. This is more than just providing a bar of navigation across the top of the screen or giving them a wall of text to read. Guiding your user to view the website in the way you intend means using all design elements available to you to the fullest advantage. What design elements are we talking about here?

Consistent Theme – Just like your real world marketing efforts, your online marketing efforts (your website) should all be consistent throughout the entire website design. Your website designer will most likely use something called a style sheet that will allow them to define every element of your website on one page and have it apply to your entire website very easily. Stick to all the same fonts, colors, image styles, etc.

Navigation – Your navigation should be obvious in placement, easy to follow and tell the user where they will end up if they click one of the options.

Size and scale – Obviously, the larger something is the more it will stand out. Sometimes, depending on exactly what you are going for, you can even draw attention to the smaller things by simply scaling it.

Contrast and Color – Bold colors or high contrast areas will often times lead the user to the location you want them to be.

Position – How you place the elements on your page, for example, the order in which they appear will determine how your user views your website.

White Space – Empty space is not necessarily wasted space. Line spacing, white empty padding around objects and even plain white space around text can actually enhance and focus on certain areas by giving balance and contrast to your website.

Font Usage – You may have a great font that you love and it works perfectly in Photoshop but keep in mind, fonts are only usable if the person viewing the website has them on their machine. Most people will not have special fonts so stick to basic fonts that everyone has likes Times, Arial, Verdana, etc.

Once you have chosen your designer and are working on the blueprint for your website, keep all of these design elements in mind when deciding on the final layout and you can’t go wrong. Watch for the next part in this series where we will focus on the marketing aspects of your website design.

If you are still facing obstacles that are keeping you from achieving your dream, keep reading. We may have some direction for you.

“I have no money to start a business with.”

Well, I can’t throw money at your feet but it’s important to realize two things. First, there aren’t many businesses that can thrive without having at least some form of investment. And second, keep in mind that while it may take some money to get things going, if you are smart and use your money wiseley you can stretch the little money you have available to put into your business, much farther than you ever thought possible.

Take your marketing money for example. Sure, you could go drop $1000 on a magazine ad in a local parenting journal…or…you could do some leg work and networking to mingle with other parent sin your community and get direct face to face contact with them. How about where your children go to school, attend ballet or play sports. There are a million places you can go that can give you a more personal relationship with other parents. And hey…a magazine ad will not keep your target’s attention for an entire 5th inning of a baseball game like you can!

“My spouse doesn’t think I will have enough time for family and run a business.”

If you have a significant other in your life, and especially kids, you have to get everyone on the same page with you if your business is to succeed. Not seeing things eye to eye or having constant disagreements is going to cause nothing but stress and that is not something you need to be dealing with when starting a new business. Hold a “family meeting”, let everyone communicate their concerns and address them with your solution. Try to be as understanding of their concerns as possible but assure them that with the right plan in place, nobody will be left out, neglected or forgotten about. Devise “family nights” or play dates that are promised times with your family. Always remember that your family is your number one priority and should never be put after your business and you will find that this will keep calm and peace in your household.

“I am just plain scared.”

What if the sales don’t come in? What if I am a terrible photographer and nobody has just had the guts to tell me? What if I can take decent photographs but I have no sales techniques? What if I get rejected?

It’s a very emotional thing, this thing we call “Fear”. Fear keeps most of us from doing a lot of things. But you don’t have to let it. It’s time to put on your “big girl pants” (or “big boy pants”) and take some risks. No, I don’t mean financial risks or doing anything crazy. I am talking about an emotional risk. Put yourself out there. Have the confidence to know you are good! Do your homework to understand the type of risk you are taking: calculated or foolish and obviously don’t take foolish risks. Nothing worth anything comes to us easy. Be brave, strong and proud of yourself!

“I have too many distractions to focus on a photography business.”

Don’t we all? I’m not going to lie: running your own home based photography business is going to take a large amount of self discipline, scheduling and control on your part. You are going to have your kids running around, TV blaring in the living room, a spouse asking you to come and watch a movie with them, neighbors coming over just to chat and all sorts of other every day distractions. Realize that you are not going to escape those completely. This is your home and unless you kicked everyone out, it’s going to happen. However, you can take steps to minimize these distractions or at least find ways to put them off until your “non-working” hours. Set a schedule of when you are working and ask your family to respect that time as your time and must be made available to you so you can focus on growing your business. Tell your friends and neighbors, that you are working a job (and you really are) and can’t be pulled away unless it’s an emergency until after 4pm during the week. It will take time to get everyone on the same page but eventually it will come.

“The thought of tracking sales and book-keeping sounds boring.”

Oh, well, if the thought of raking in $2000 in a single portrait sale is boring to you, then maybe this is the wrong career for you. Alright, I admit it. Business can be boring. Keeping records, managing session IDs, organizing your paperwork is not the ideal form of fun we would all choose. But it is the evil necessity of running a business. However, one trick I have learned is to try and keep the “boring” stuff limited to just a specific day each week. Handle your bookkeeping first thing on a Monday morning for the previous work is a way to get the boring stuff for the week out of the way immediately and not have to think of it again until next week.

Business Practices for Successful Photographers

This is my one and only e-book filled with some useful tips and strategies for running your own successful photography business. Now, I will be the first to tell you, I am not a professional writer. But I don’t think you are here for my writing skills. The information, tips, marketing strategies and more are what you will LOVE about this e-book.

Running Your Business
Getting Started
Get Professional Help
Use Professional Documents and Forms
Equipment Considerations
Work with Great Suppliers
Work with Great Customers
Customer Service When Things Aren’t So Great
Pricing For Profit
Studio Policies and Procedures
Goals: Why Bother?
Sales Explained
Presentation Is Everything
Merchant Accounts 101
Suggestive Selling
Close the Sale
Take Care of Customers After the Sale
Marketing and Promoting Your Business
Build Your Brand Identity
Marketing Calendars
Referral Marketing
Public Relations and You
Press Releases
Collateral Materials
Websites and the Internet
You Do Blog Don’t You?
Business Sponsorships
Newsletters and Communication
Displays
Co-Op Advertising
Mobile Advertising
Expo’s and Tradeshows
Direct Mail
Holiday Sales Tactics
Limited Editions
Donations Give Warm and Fuzzies…and Publicity

Forms and Agreements

BabysFirstYear.doc
The Baby’s First Year portrait agreement is the contract we use when one of our clients enrolls in our one year of photography baby program to include 3 sessions for their baby. Can be modified to fit your own program.

BelliesNBabiesPlanAgreement.doc
The Bellies N Babies agreement is the contract we use when one of our clients enrolls in our portrait program to include the maternity and newborn portrait session. Can be modified to fit your own program.

ClientWorkflowCheckList.doc
Attach one of these sheets to every new session to ensure you follow your own workflow and complete each step. These steps can all be modified for your own workflow and procedures.

CreditApplication.doc
Increase your sales and regulate your cash flow by offering a payment plan to your customers. Our credit agreement is a 3 page document that covers repayment plans, defaults, rules, etc. You can modify this agreement to fit your own re-payment schedule by simply replacing numbers.

DishonoredCheckNotice.doc
A simple letter to send to any clients if you happen to receive a bounced check notice from your bank. You can modify this notice to fit your own fees by simply replacing numbers.

MonthlyMarketingCalendarWorksheet.doc
We use this form for each month of the year to track our marketing campaigns, tasks, deadlines and responsibilities.

NewCustomerForm.doc
This form collects some basic contact information to be put in with the customer file. Included is basic contact information along with names and birthdays of all members of the family.

PhotographicBusinessDisplayAgreement.doc
This agreement is used when you are displaying your work on loan to another business.

PortfolioBuildingModelRelease.doc
This agreement is used when you are building your portfolio and just need a general model release.

PortraitAgreement.doc
Clients sign the portrait agreement at each session. The agreement explains what is covered with their session fee, acknowledges receipt of studio policies and includes a model release for each session. We include one in the folder for them to sign and bring back to their session, but if they forget we have clients sign one at the start of the session.

PortraitDeliveryAcceptance.doc
Clients are required to sign this delivery acceptance form as their approval for completion, correctness and quality.

PortraitInvestmentGuide.doc
This is a great form to help guide your sales presentation in the right direction. It allows for a 3-step image selection to include: wall portraits and wall groupings, albums and gift portrait selections. Clients will love having a place to designate who gets what prints when they are ordered.

PortraitOrderForm.doc
A well organized order form is critical to a smooth flowing sales appointment with your clients. Our order form notes pose numbers, sizes, quantities, finish, mounting option, price, credit card, cash and credit agreement options and cancellation policy. Be sure to charge your cancellation policy to your own terms.

StudioWorkProductionTimeSheet.doc
If you want to track each of your clients and your workflow and even know how you and your employees are spending their time, this is a great way to track it!

TelephoneQuestionnaireGuide.doc
With each client that calls, you can track your success rate. Our telephone questionnaire worksheet is used for every incoming call to the studio and is used to keep notes on clients needs and helps the conversation progress smoothly. We file this in our new client folders.

Lifetime Portrait Club

Lifetime Portrait Club Membership Forms:

Our Lifetime Portrait Club program is a huge hit with our clients. The club gives clients discounts, special offers and complimentary birthday sessions. This program establishes a strong relationship with each family enrolled and brings forth customer loyalty unlike anything else available. Our clients love this program! The forms included are the New Member Survey, Rules and Regulations form, Welcome to the program letter and Photoshop template for front and back sides of membership card.

When a new customer enrolls in the Lifetime Portrait Club we include all of the following forms in a new member welcome packet. We use black glossy folders purchased from Office Max that have the cutout for a business card on one side, however, we place their membership card in that cutout. The Welcome letter is placed on the left side of the folder as the first thing they see along with a gift certificate for their complimentary portrait. On the right side we place the Rules and Regulations of the portrait club and on top of that we place the New Member Survey along with a Self Addressed Stamped Envelope. We also include a copy of our latest brochure with our business card attached.

LifetimePortraitClub-CustomerSurvey.doc
This form is included in the new membership packet. When a client signs up they fill out this form with basic contact information, birthdays (so we can send birthday cards of course!) and pets.

LifetimePortraitClub-FreeSession.doc
This form is included in the new membership packet. When a client signs up they receive on free session and this is the certificate we print for them to redeem.

LifetimePortraitClub-RulesandRegulations.doc
Basic rules and regulations that clients must follow when enrolled in the portrait club membership. This is a handout included in the packet for them to keep.

LifetimePortraitClub-WelcomeLetter.doc
The welcome letter and the first thing they see when they open the new member packet.

lmpc-membercard-front.psdand lmpc-membercard-back.psd
These files are our PhotoShop templates that we use to order our member cards. We order the member cards through OvernightPrints.com and these templates match the correct size. We order them in the UV coating for the extra durability and because it gives a nice fresh look.

Misc

ExecPortrait_rates.doc
This is a general sales/pricing letter we include with all of our sales materials to sell executive portraits to business people.

GiftCertificateLetter.doc
This form letter is a general introduction letter that your clients can give to go along with a gift certificate.

Holiday_Gift_Certificate.psd
A great Photoshop PSD file with a holiday design for a gift certificate. We had these custom printed as $50 and $100 increments from our lab and sell them around the holidays.

LifetimePortraitClub-B&W-Ad.psd
A sample ad in black and white promoting the Lifetime Portrait Club program through our studio.

NegativePrintingReleaseLetter.doc
This is a form letter printed on your company letterhead extending permission to your clients to have the images you release on a CD to be printed by any lab.

NewsPaperAd-LongHorizontal.psd
A sample horizontal ad for children’s photography used in a local city magazine year round.

PortraitCareNotice.doc
Our portrait care notice is included with every order that our clients pickup. It includes a small tip sheet to help them in handling and caring for their portraits. The certificate of authenticity mentioned in the portrait care form is a simple certificate purchased from OfficeMax that just certifies that the portrait (wall portraits only) is a certified Misty Woodward portrait, along with the purchase date, size and medium that the portrait is printed on.

PortraitClothingandPreparationSuggestions.doc
Our clothing guide and preparation guide is delivered to each of our clients during the pre-portrait consultation. The guide gives tips and suggestions for pregnancy, newborn, children and families.

PortraitDeliveryBooklet.doc
This booklet goes into each order upon delivery. Along with featuring one of their images on the cover, it includes information about copyright, portrait care and a referral program. There is also space to insert referral wallet cards attached to a clear bag inside.

SalesLetters-DayCare.doc
Sample sales letter you can use to land your own day care portrait accounts.

SalesLetters-ExecutivePortraits.doc
Sample sales letter you can use as part of a package to sell executive portraits.

StudioPolicies.doc
Alleviate many of the common questions that new clients have by offering a studio policy form to each client. We have addressed many of the common questions and issues; however, you may wish to adjust them to your own policies.

ThankYouForWorkingWithUs.doc
A simple “Thank you for working with us” makes a great first impression with your clients. This is given to customers as part of the packet of information they receive at the pre-portrait consultation and welcomes them to our studio and explains some of the forms included in the packet.

TravelBrochureAd.psd
A sample template ad used in a “city” travel magazine viewed by visitors and tourists.

PLUS….As an added bonus you will
receive the following bonus material!

All of this as ONE single package is available for just $89.

Why is it bothering me so much? Well, if you look up the word “shoe string budget” in Google one of the first results that explain the definition is wisegeek.com and they claim it is “a very limited or small amount of money to spend on something.” What I want to know is who gets to call the amount of money you spend on advertising small or limited? Is shoe string $100? $500? $1000? I can guarantee you that to most people, the amount they spend advertising their photography business doesn’t feel very small to them. And why isn’t the time you spend doing the work for advertising your business factored into that “budget”?

Did you know that it is considered “normal” for most businesses to invest 10% back into their business for marketing and advertising purposes? That means, if you want to have revenue of $100,000 this year, you should be dropping $10,000 back into your marketing budget. Does $10,000 feel like a shoe string to you? Assuming you are following along with those numbers, it sure doesn’t feel like it to me. Even if you aren’t putting in the full 10% back, isn’t your time worth something to your business?

It’s time to start rethinking the advertising and marketing budget for your business. You have to stop thinking that you are small potatoes and realize you can be the cream of the crop! To do that you have to be aggressive and creative in your marketing strategies and realize that there is NOTHING shoe string about your marketing efforts.

“But Misty…I really am on a shoe string budget; I don’t have much to invest back into my marketing”. Absolutely false! You have TONS to invest back into your marketing. You have YOU! The best part of that is that nobody else has YOU…except you! How’s that for being unique? We can spend pages upon pages going over how to setup a marketing budget, how to decide what money to spend and how to allocate it to the marketing efforts that work (and we will do that), but for now…I want to focus on those of you who feel you are working on a shoe string budget or worse: NO budget at all. I want to show you how investing some of your own time and effort can yield you great marketing and advertising returns without breaking the bank.

Check out my top 10 ways to invest yourself back into the marketing of your business all at no cost to you except your time and energy. You may not feel like you are on such a “shoe string” after following some of these:

1. The media is always on the lookout for new and exciting things, especially when they can support local businesses. Sending out press releases on a regular basis to a media list is a great way to build solid relationships, show your longevity and get some free publicity should they choose to write up a story about you.
2. Create a fan based Facebook that will drive your competition nuts! Be active in it, provide useful information, share session images, and show just how professional you can be. Facebook pages spread like wildfire once people start “friending” or “liking” something. Check out other resources for Facebook creation to get the most out of this incredible marketing effort.
3. You probably already have a website and that website probably has some sort of “contact us” link right? What is that really doing for you? Is it simply emailing you their contact information? Do you respond within minutes? Hours? Days? Unless you want to risk the possibility of that potential client who is looking for information about your business going elsewhere set up an auto responder to all email inquiries so that they receive a message back from you instantly! Include basic information that you may not include on your main website and assure them that you will be calling them to follow up very soon. This is a very powerful marketing tool for new customer retention and starts that client relationship building process.
4. Become an authority and teach a class for free to your community. Teach others how to take better pictures of their family. Not only will they appreciate you for the information but it is a great reason to send out a press release, shows you care about others pictures (even ones you aren’t taking yourself) and places you in the role of an authority on the subject.
5. If you are trying to build up a list of names for future mailings you may have thought about purchasing a mailing list. Save your money and instead network with other local businesses and arrange to place a “drawing box” in their place of business. Offer a prize each month for the winner and share the list of names with the business to put on their own mailing list. It’s a win-win situation for you and the other business.
6. Turn your clients into evangelists for your business. Offer an awesome referral program and give them the tools to make it rock!!! You can do this completely FREE if you make the referral gift a service rather than a product. If you really must make th item product based keep it to a minimum fee such as print.
7. Most local newspapers have a business section where they announce news about their business and even promotions and new hires. Send out letters of congratulations to these people and don’t forget to let them know they may need a new executive portrait for their new business cards while they are at it.
8. Get involved in the “welcome wagon” for your city. Contact the people who run that program and ask if you can make a donation to the welcome basket they give out to new residents. Most people who are coming to a new town may be ready for a new family portrait and what a great way to introduce yourself to them!
9. Hold contests that your whole community can be involved in. Remember, these contests can be promoted easily through press releases, facebook, blogs, etc. What kind of contests am I talking about here? Anything goes! For example, during the Father’s and Mother’s Day holidays, host a write in contest through your blog to have your clients or prospective clients write in and tell you why their mom or dad or wife or husband should be crowned mother or father of the year. This will generate extra traffic on your blog and will most likely yield new clients as well.
10. Give something away for free! Offer a “Free Report” through your website on “How to choose the right photographer”. As you write the report, show the advantages of choosing your studio. This will help you gain credibility with your clients (and prospective clients) and will also help you build your mailing list if you require them to signup via email to receive it.

So why do people hesitate to work for themselves? Fear of failure? Fear of not having medical insurance? Fear of not getting large orders? My advice to you is to kick fear in the ass! Take risks and think about the benefits of what could happen if you do succeed! Of course, you want a plan in place, you don’t want to leave your family without your much needed income, but take life by the reigns and make it happen! Imagine what life could be like if you took that plunge and started living life the way you wanted to. Can’t imagine it for yourself? Keep on reading because I’ve got 9 reasons to share with you on why you should own your own home based photography business.

1.       You determine your level of income. In your regular 9-5 salaried job you go in for a set number of hours and you get paid a set dollar amount. Working harder doesn’t get you any more money in most cases. You can’t even say to yourself, I want to make $xxx and I’m not going to stop until I get there. If you own a home based photography business, you set that magic number! How much do you want to make? What is enough to make you and your family satisfied with your level of living? Of course, it will take work to get to whatever you want to achieve, but there is no limit! The more you work for yourself and more you try to attain your goal, the more success you will have. Don’t work for “the man” all of your life and let him decide how much food you put on your table. Work for yourself and set your own salary!

2.       You get to set your own schedule. When you work for someone else, they decide what your schedule is. Can you call into your job today and say “I think I’m going to come in around noon and take off by about 3”? Of course not! They own your schedule, not you. When you own your business, you decide what hours you want to work. You decide how often and how for how long you want to work. If you want to take Fridays off, you set that up for yourself and you take Fridays off! Working for yourself means you can work when you want and take all of that “off” time and spend it doing what you want to do most.

3.       You can work in your pajamas! Show up in your favorite Tweety Bird pajama’s at your current job and report back to me what happens. Do you even dare? Well, try working from your own home based business and you can wear whatever you want! Alright, if you are going to see a client, I would suggest perhaps a pair of jeans and a sweater, but that is completely up to you. But sitting at home, editing your latest session, you can sip on a cup of hot chocolate, chill out in your sweats and sport your favorite toe socks. The sky is the limit when you own your own business.

4.       You can beat up your boss and not get fired. That’s right, you really can. There are days when I get so mad at my boss I just want to choke her out. There are also days when I have to kick her butt out of bed and yell at her for staying up too late the night before. Many times I will look my boss in the mirror and tell her to stop being lazy, stop letting customers walk all over her and get on track to being more productive. But I love my boss; we do everything together, so I try not to beat her too often. Can you say the same for your regular 9-5 boss?

5.       You can spend more time with your family. Back in 2002, before I become a photographer, I was a mother of three and worked at a very large corporation in a 9-5 job. My three small children rarely saw me. I would get home at around 6 and they would be in bed by 8. Is two hours a day really all the time I wanted to spend with my children? Of course not! I wanted to be there so badly to see my oldest get off the bus from 1^st grade, or to watch my toddler try to eat her cheerios every morning at breakfast. Owning your own business means you can spend as much time with your family as you want. You will never have to miss an important or even an unimportant event again.

6.       Pay day can be every day. With regular jobs, we all look forward to every other Friday when we get our paychecks. But imagine owning your business and having the possibility of making sales every single day and it’s all yours. Rake in that $2500 portrait sale and should you choose, you don’t have to wait until next Friday to take advantage of that sale. Take a bit of that profit and bring your family out to dinner to celebrate it!

7.       You will no longer slowly lose your soul from fluorescent lights. Alright, take a laugh. But for those who are working in offices with large fluorescent lights keeping things alive (or dead depending on how you view those things) the ability to work at home by window light or even a regular household lamp is a huge advantage!

8.       You get to think outside the box. No, this isn’t a form of creative writing for coming up with unique ideas. I mean this literally! Get the heck out of that box you work in! Cubicles are like cages. Cages are for animals, not humans. Run, don’t walk, away from the box and into your living room and get your business going!

9.       You can do whatever it is that you want. That’s right. It’s your business. You own it. You control it and set the rules. If it’s the middle of the day and want to grab the kids to head out for an impromptu lunch with mom or dad, you can do it! If you feel like taking a day off and going bungee jumping, suit up baby because you don’t need vacation time or a boss’s approval. This is your business, your life and you can do whatever you want with it!

E-Myth Mastery: The Seven Essential Disciplines for Building a World Class Company

Hit the Deck: Create a Business Plan in Half the Time, With Twice the Impact

The Referral Engine: Teaching Your Business to Market Itself

Marketing in a Web 2.0 World Using Social Media, Webinars, Blogs, and More to Boost Your Small Business on a Budget (Sales Marketing)

Home Business Tax Deductions: Keep What You Earn

Time Tactics of Very Successful People

Guerrilla Marketing, 4th edition: Easy and Inexpensive Strategies for Making Big Profits from Your Small Business

I always recommend using an accountant to handle your taxes and you should probably consult with one to get you started, but that doesn’t mean that your accountant is actually going to enter all of your data in for you or keep your receipts organized for you. Well, ok, they might, but they are going to charge a whole lot more for it! Your best bet is to send your accountant monthly bank statements as well as balance sheets, expense reports, and anything else they request.

To do that, you will need some way to track everything. There are so many ways to do this from cheap paper tracking to very expensive accounting software. When I first started my business I used Microsoft Excel and made a new worksheet for each month. Within each worksheet I had columns for receipt date, amount, how paid, who it was paid to, what it was and what expense category it fit under. This way I could send just that month’s worksheet to my accountant.

Then I moved up to QuickBooks which was a relatively inexpensive software solution under $200 and that was perfect for my business. I could manage my customers with the “Customer Management” add on product and track all of my expenses. I could send either reports or just the whole QuickBooks file to my accountant each month. This is probably what I would call the ideal and inexpensive solution.

If you are the least bit intimidated about QuickBooks when you get it home don’t worry. I think everyone is confused with it at first. When I got my copy, I called my accountant who came over to my studio and spent about 2 hours there with me importing all of my customers, showed me how to add my products, how to add orders, how to invoice, etc. This was a priceless lesson that cost me about $200 to learn from my accountant. And it was the best way I think to learn the essentials. Those manuals are crammed with all sorts of things and some doesn’t apply to me. So why bother with it? Trust your accountant to lead you in the right direction.

So why get the business forms now?

Right now you can buy the business forms package at http://www.photographybusinessforms.com for $59. I can’t release the price on the new e-book coming out (not until Janyary 10th) but because it is such a large package, it will be considerably more. But…anyone who has purchased the business forms since January 1 of this year and through the end of the year, will receive the new e-book FREE. So if you don’t have the business forms package, get it now before the price goes up!