How to Get out of Your Comfort Zone and Build Your Photography Business

The master entertainer P.T. Barnum once said, "Without promotion, something terrible happens... nothing!" As creatives, we want our work to speak for itself. We've been told if our work is good it will find an audience. As we shoot new work, we hope business will take care of itself. Unfortunately, in the hyper-competitive world of commercial photography, leaving new business generation to chance is a strategy that is doomed to fail. Although it's more comfortable behind the camera than pitching ourselves over the phone or in person, it is important we take action to develop the confidence we need to generate new clients and build our businesses.

In a new workshop presented by APA Chicago, we'll share proven new business tactics to help you break out of your comfort zone and achieve your business development goals. We’ll discuss how establishing a consistent workflow can give you the confidence to complete difficult business-building tasks. We'll spend time breaking down overwhelmingly big concepts (ex. “How do I grow my business this year?”) into small, digestible tasks to add to your calendar so that they get completed on time.

What you will learn:

• The 2 traits all successful commercial photographers possess.
• Find out how to bootstrap an effective new business plan on a small budget.
• How to develop a targeted prospect list in just 3 hours a week.
• Why a targeted marketing approach yields better results.
• Discover the power of niche.
• How to use key information to build relationships with prospexcts.

Who should attend this event:

• Emerging photographers who think big but have a difficult time completing key tasks. 
• Emerging photographers looking to create a new business/marketing plan for the year.
• Emerging photographers who have a website, a printed portfolio and produce samples on a consistent basis.
• Assistants looking to transition into shooting full time.

This is a hands-on small group workshop (space is limited) and is free to APA members.

About the Speaker:
Steven Brooks has been the chapter director for APA Chicago since 2012. He got his start in the agency business as a media planner because he was good in math. As a media planner, selling media plans to agency clients was central to his job description and he quickly learned, “An idea you didn’t sell is no better than one you didn’t create.” From there he teamed up with Rick Conrad to co-found the creative agency Spy Advertising, where they developed campaigns for Berghoff Beer, Donlen Corporation, Areawide Cellular, Interstate Bank and America’s Tire & Battery,  among other clients. Spy Advertising had some successes and some failures and after seven years of operation Steve and Rick moved on to exciting new opportunities, with Steve becoming an artist representative, managing photographers such as Robert Randall, Anthony Arciero, Andy Goodwin, and Brandon Sullivan. As chapter director for APA Chicago, he enjoys developing business tools that help photographers become smarter, more creative, and more profitable.