Let’s face it: most photographers didn’t start with an MBA before deciding to open a photography business. In fact, it’s often quite the opposite. Many of us know little about business, yet we forge ahead by attending the latest photography seminars, investing in the newest gear, and continually striving to stay ahead of the curve in the photography world. However, the belief that improving photography skills alone will automatically enhance your business is a misconception.

School and sports portraits are longstanding traditions, providing high-volume photographers with a stable market where demand remains relatively constant. A well-managed, high-volume photography business often has greater staying power compared to a traditional portrait studio. It’s much easier to skip the family portrait during tough times, and contrary to what one would think, that makes the parents more inclined to purchase the more affordable school or sports portraits of their children.

Whether your goal is to expand an existing high-volume business or to venture into this lucrative segment of the photography industry, remember that you cannot build a great company on a flawed foundation. If you’re losing a penny on every transaction, increasing volume won’t compensate for the loss. It’s crucial to establish well-defined processes, principles, and practices. These elements should work together to optimize every aspect of your high-volume photography operations.

The average Snapizzi user reclaims dozens of hours per month. This significant time saving is a testament to the power of streamlining and optimizing your workflow with the right tools and strategies.

You’re doing a disservice to your business if you only look at the bottom line number and don’t understand how you arrived there. Think of your business as a race car. Your mission is to make it faster by shaving every possible thousandth of a second off each lap. Focusing solely on your photography skills is like having a race car and only paying attention to the paint job. It may have a world-class paint job, but you’ll never win a race with the engine leaking oil and bald tires.

“Validated learning” is a term widely used in the Startup community, but it can — and should be — applied to every business. Validated learning is simply the act of making decisions about your business based on data that you collect. By consistently monitoring Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) in all areas of your business, you can make informed decisions and accurately measure the impact of all the changes you make. These metrics will allow you to identify inefficiencies in your business — and fix them. It’s a Build-Measure-Learn feedback loop that allows you to continually improve. If you can measure it, you can improve it.

Do you know what your average sale price is per customer? Per league, school, or sport? Do you know your profit margins? What about staffing costs? What is the most profitable product you sell? The least? Do you know where your customers are coming from? Do you know the open rates on your marketing e-mails?

Decide what KPIs are important to you and start tracking your performance.

The most important thing to know is what is driving the numbers you see when you assess the health of your business. We use Geckoboard to aggregate all of our data into one dashboard that allows us to constantly monitor our growth and performance. You can even start with just a simple spreadsheet — but the point is to start!

Nothing illustrates this principle better than the documentary “Hitting the Apex“, narrated by Brad Pitt. It offers a remarkable look into the world of MotoGP racing, a realm that one doesn’t need to be a part of to appreciate — and be inspired by — the relentless pursuit of excellence that these teams and riders embody. It’s this unyielding drive to be the BEST that captivates and motivates.

Grand Prix motorcycles are purpose-built racing machines. Races are won, and records fall, by thousandths of a second! Everything matters.

How great do you want your business to be?

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