Secrets to Building a Successful Photography Business (with Kendra Swalls)

ℹ️ Introduction

On this episode of Frugalpreneur, we dive into the world of business strategy with our guest, Kendra. Kendra emphasizes the importance of avoiding distractions and unnecessary tools in business. Instead, she believes in focusing on the basic foundations of successful business. One of the foundations she highlights is email marketing, which she views as a cost-effective way to reach a large audience and build relationships. Kendra argues that email marketing is more effective than fighting with algorithms or trying to be flashy. In fact, she mentions that successful businesses all have email lists and see it as a strong marketing strategy.

To help our listeners get started with email marketing, Kendra shares that there is a free email marketing starter kit available. This kit provides guidance on how to start and grow an email list. The first part focuses on the technical setup, while the second part explains how to attract people to join the list using a lead magnet. The third part dives into building connections and creating effective email sequences. Kendra believes that this free guide can help establish an email marketing foundation for any business.

But how did Kendra become an entrepreneur in the first place? Surprisingly, she did not initially intend to start her own business. She followed the traditional path of becoming a teacher after graduating college. However, after experiencing burnout and restlessness, Kendra started exploring photography as a hobby, which eventually turned into a side business. She fell in love with building a business, marketing, and seeing the puzzle pieces fall into place.

While growing her business, Kendra found creative ways to make things work without spending a lot of money. She built connections with a videographer and collaborated on various projects, offering her services in exchange for a video trailer to advertise her business. She emphasized the importance of building connections in various industries and helping each other out. She even worked with local businesses, sometimes offering discounts or favors due to friendships, just to make things happen.

Throughout her journey, Kendra developed a mindset of determination and finding a way instead of making excuses. She viewed failures as opportunities for learning and did not consider them as true failures. This attitude fueled her success in both teaching and entrepreneurship. Kendra shared her experiences and advice on managing finances, avoiding distractions, and staying focused on goals when resources are limited. She emphasized the need to stay on track, even when social media tempts us with other people's success stories and product offerings.

When reflecting on her own business journey, Kendra realized that her biggest failure was not investing in the education side of her business quickly enough. She regretted spending money on things that didn't actually help her business and wished she had started earlier to see growth sooner. However, her biggest success came when she started investing in learning and education, knowing that it would greatly benefit her business.

Join us on this episode of Frugalpreneur as Kendra shares her insights on building a business on a budget, the importance of knowing your numbers, and the power of staying focused on your goals. Whether you're a budding entrepreneur or looking to take your business to the next level, Kendra's story will inspire and motivate you to embrace a frugal yet determined mindset.

❇️ Key topics and bullets

- Importance of avoiding distractions and unnecessary tools in business

- Focusing on the basic foundations of successful business

- Email marketing as a cost-effective way to reach a large audience and build relationships

- More effective than fighting with algorithms or trying to be flashy

- Successful businesses have email lists as a strong marketing strategy

- Free email marketing starter kit available

- Free email marketing starter kit

- Part 1: Technical setup of an email list

- Part 2: Attracting people to join the email list using a lead magnet

- Part 3: Building connections and creating email sequences

- Speaker's journey from being a teacher to becoming an entrepreneur

- Reinvesting money back into the business

- Finding creative ways to make things work without spending a lot of money

- Building collaborations and connections in various industries

- View on failures as opportunities for learning and growth

- Determination to find a way instead of making excuses

- Transition from teaching to photography as a side business

- Love for building a business, marketing, and the puzzle pieces falling into place

- Requests to teach others how to grow their business

- Combining passions for building a business and teaching

- Mindset of reinvesting money back into the business

- Building the business while working a 9 to 5 job

- Successful investment that allowed leaving the 9-to-5 job

- Importance of managing finances when every penny matters

- Avoiding distractions and staying focused on goals

- Not getting sidetracked by others' success stories or product offerings

- Knowing your numbers and staying focused on your goals

- Learning from failures and investing in education for the business

- Regret of not investing in education sooner

- Knowledge and know-how are equally important as equipment in creative fields

- Every failure as a learning opportunity

- Success in investing in learning and education to advance the business

❓ Questions

1. How do distractions and unnecessary tools hinder success in business? Do you agree with the speaker's emphasis on focusing on the basics?

2. Email marketing is highlighted as a cost-effective way to reach a large audience and build relationships. Do you think email marketing is more effective than other marketing strategies like social media or paid advertising? Why or why not?

3. What are some ways you can attract people to join your email list? Have you ever used a lead magnet? If so, what was your experience with it?

4. The speaker mentions the importance of building connections and collaborating with others. How have you utilized networking and collaborations to grow your business? Share any success stories or challenges you've faced.

5. The speaker describes their determination to find a way instead of making excuses. Do you resonate with this mindset? Can you share a time when you had to find a creative solution to a business challenge?

6. How do you view failures in your business journey? Do you see them as learning opportunities or as true failures? Share a failure you've experienced and what you learned from it.

7. The speaker transitioned from a teaching career to building their own business. Have you ever considered transitioning from your current profession to entrepreneurship? What are some challenges or fears you have about making that leap?

8. The speaker reinvested any money they made back into their business. How do you currently manage your finances in your business? Do you have a habit or system in place for monitoring your financial health?

9. How do you avoid distractions in your business, especially when resources are limited? Share any strategies or techniques you've found helpful in staying focused on your goals.

10. The speaker reflects on their regret of not investing in the education side of their business sooner. How important do you think continuous learning and education are in entrepreneurship? What steps have you taken to invest in your own learning and development?

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