“Work-life balance…HAH!” scoffs the photographer as they, once again, head back into the editing cave, not to be heard from again for many long hours. But wait! Could it be…could these business tools for photographers make the work-life balance ~*~dream~*~ a reality?
The truth is that not everyone is aware of the amount of work that goes into running a photography business. Because you’re reading this, you’re probably aware of all the stuff that happens behind the scenes—and we’re not just talking about editing a fuckload of photos.
Communicating with clients, uploading and organizing photos, sending (and sometimes re-sending) invoices, crunching numbers, running a website, marketing a small business…phew. Photographers are freaking BUSY. We know because we’ve been there.
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Luckily, there are business tools for photographers out there that can help you work more efficiently, appear more professional, AND save a shitload of time. Win-win-win.
We love that all these digital tools were made by creative entrepreneurs, for creative entrepreneurs (and often specifically by photographers, for photographers). We also love that we’re able to hook you up with some seriously sick digital business tool discounts!
Here are seven rad business tools for photographers chasing that elusive dream of work-life balance.
Image Salon: Outsource Photo Editing
Image Salon is a Canadian company that offers photo-editing services with a personal touch. At Image Salon, they understand that photo editing is a huge part of a photographer’s process, and they don’t take that lightly. They work with photographers to save them time without sacrificing their creative flair or unique style.
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From helping photographers nail down an editing style, to photo culling, to editing, this outsourced photo-editing company does it all. And while we call this a business tool for photographers, don’t get it twisted—these are real people you’re dealing with, not robots.
We know it can be tough to trust someone else with part of your creative process, but we’re here to say there’s absolutely no shame in needing help and that Image Salon is a great place to get personalized backup from real photographers.
Since you learned about it here, you can get 50% off your first order with Image Salon.
Photobug Community: Marketing Courses for Photographers
You know what they say—give a man a fish, and he eats for a day. But teach a photographer some badass, basic marketing techniques, and they’ll slay the game forever.
Okay that might not actually be how it goes. But what we’re trying to say is that if you’re hoping to make moolah off your photography services, and want to take some of the business stuff into your own hands, there are some great resources out there for you.
One fantastic educational resource for wedding photographers is Photobug Community.
Photobug Community was created by the same awesome folks behind Junebug Weddings. Created specifically for wedding photographers, Photobug Community is a great place to turn to when you need inspiration or support.
They offer online courses for wedding photographers and, right now, there are three courses available:
- Pinterest for Wedding Photographers
- SEO for Wedding Photographers
- Instagram for Wedding Photographers
Sign up at the links above for 15% off. Woop!
Narrative: Photo Blogging Tool for Photographers
Blogging is a fan-freaking-tastic way to showcase your work, reach your target audience, and boost your website rankings (if you do it right).
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Narrative is a popular business tool for photographers who are all about that photo blog game. This blogging tool makes it easy to select and optimize photos, create a nice layout, add text, and optimize for SEO.
Because you found it here, you can get a 15% discount on a Narrative plan of your choice. Awww yeah.
Sprout Studio: Studio Management Suite Tool for Photographers
If you haven’t heard of Sprout Studio yet, you’re freaking welcome.
What can Sprout Studio help you with? The better question is what can’t it help you with?
Client management, galleries, albums, contracts, email marketing, invoices, scheduling, online booking, design proofs, virtual IPS (in-person sales), automation, workflow, bookkeeping, analytics, (BIG DEEP BREATH) and so much friggin’ more!
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This is one of those business tools for photographers that was created by photographers who saw the dreaded burnout looming, and thought there must be a better way.
We actually spoke with the creator of Sprout Studio on the PepperCast, and it’s a good one. Tune in to the full episode of the PepperCast with guest Bryan Caporicci where he and Stacey (Pepper’s CEO) chat about the impact of 2020 on photography businesses, the importance of business sense and marketing for photographers, and other interesting and cool shit.
Because we’re pretty tight with these rad folks, we have a 20% discount on Sprout Studio for ya!
Dubsado: CRM for Photographers
When it comes to running your own creative business, client relationship management is key. However, managing your client relationships can be a heck of a lot easier said than done.
Thank the heavens for Dubsado—a CRM made specifically for creative entrepreneurs. Manage your clients, customize and automate your communications, receive detailed reporting to gain helpful insight into your photography business, and schedule appointments and reminders with a few clicks.
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You can also easily integrate Dubsado with tons of other business tools that you may already be using, like Stripe, WordPress, Mailchimp, Trello, Slack, G-Suite, email, and plenty of others.
For many photographers, this is the hard stuff. We are here to tell you it doesn’t have to be so hard.
The best part is that you can get 20% off Dubsado for a month or a year when you use the code Pepper.
FloDesk: Email Marketing for Photographers
Email marketing is a rad way to stay in touch with your clients, send traffic to your website, and create bangin’ sales funnels. And—even better—the cool kids over at Backlinko predict it’s going to make a mega comeback in 2021!
But first, you need an email marketing platform that makes it easy to create appealing, on-brand emails that also get the job done. Enter FloDesk.
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Seriously, when it comes to email marketing, FloDesk is your friend. They’re probably some of the purdiest newsletters around, and they make it easy to create automations and track your insights. It’s intuitive, and because it’s a BETA software, FloDesk is always taking suggestions and working to improve its user experience.
Plus, it’s super affordable. AND it’s even more affordable when you sign up here to get a 50% discount on a FloDesk subscription.
Archipelago Presets
Cutting down on your editing time while also creating gosh-dang-beautiful images—that’s what we’re talking about.
Photography presets can honestly be life changing for photographers. Archipelago Presets is one company offering gaw-geous presets, and we definitely recommend checking them out if you’re interested in making your photo editing workflow a little (or a lot) more efficient!
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With a variety of styles to choose from, you can purchase the presets that suit you best and voila! You magically have more free time to spend honing your photography skills, hanging out with your fave peeps, or drinking wine in a bubble bath.
Alright, that’s all folks—NOT! Hah! You think we’d forget about offering you 20% off Archipelago Presets? Heck nah! Use the code PEPPER at checkout, ya filthy animal.
More Business Tools for Photographers
Looking for more help with your photography business? We got you. Here are a few resources we offer right here at Pepper:
Pepper’s Marketing Course for Photographers
Pepper’s Marketing Course for Photographers is full of marketing knowledge, tips, and tutorials to help you take your photography biz to the next level! Learn at your own pace with in-depth yet easy-to-follow lessons in a variety of subjects, and hop onto invaluable monthly group calls with the Pepper team for a whole year!
Pepper One-on-one Training Calls
Want to learn more about a certain aspect of marketing for your photography business? Book a one-on-one virtual mentorship hang with a Pepper who specializes in that topic! From Pinterest, to SEO, to Google My Business, to business strategy, to social media insights, to email marketing—we’ve got you covered.
PepperCast Podcast for Photographers
Need a little somethin’ somethin’ to help you get inspired? The PepperCast is a podcast series hosted by Pepper’s badass CEO, Stacey Owen. On the PepperCast, Stacey has real chats with kickass photographers and creative entrepreneurs about work, life, and everything in between. Warning: you may hear a few F-bombs (as if you’d expect anything else from us).
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Photographer Resources on the PepperBlog
On the PepperBlog, you’ll find some nifty resources for photographers. Make sure to check back regularly as we’re always adding new, awesome content for you.
We hope this list helps you refine your photography business processes and find mega success! Don’t forget to follow Pepper on Instagram and sign up for our newsletter below for more badass tips and inspo. Booyah! Now go kick some ass!
Kayleigh Zinger
Rockstar Content Creator
Pepper – Your Badass Business BFF Inc. 