In this episode of Workflows, Scott Wyden Kivowitz sits down with photographer Heather Larkin to uncover the secrets of keeping a photography business running smoothly while on the road.
Heather Larkin is a Sigma America Ambassador and portrait photographer located in Athens, Georgia. Heather has been shooting professionally since 2003 and is internationally known for creating colorful, authentic images for clients around the world. Her business, Fairyography, has been featured on The Today Show, Sigma USA, Professional Photographer Magazine, Canon Cameras, Clickin Moms, Scary Mommy, Online Athens, Southern Distinction Magazine, and more.
Why You Should Listen
- Learn how to keep your photography business running seamlessly while traveling, and understand the significance of carrying your entire business setup with you.
- Gain valuable insights into leveraging technology for workflow management and client communication, including the use of Calendly for scheduling and reminder texts for clients.
- Discover a clever system for managing memory cards while on the road, ensuring data security and organization.
- Get inspired by Heather’s approach of maintaining consistency in work processes, whether at home or on the road and understand the importance of being adaptable and self-sufficient as a solo photographer.
Tune in to the Workflows podcast to gain valuable insights into maintaining a photography business while on the road and leveraging technology for efficient workflow management.
Show transcription
Heather Larkin: [00:00:00] I need to like jump around in the
back of the room
Scott Wyden Kivowitz: blooper of Heather jumping it around.
Heather Larkin: I feel like a
Turkey, you know the, the Turkey sound. Have you ever, have you ever gone to like a, a barn full of turkeys?
Scott Wyden Kivowitz: No. I've seen turkeys and barns, but not a barn full of turkeys.
Heather Larkin: So like, apparently if you actually make the Turkey sound at the turkeys, they make it back to you. And so if you stand in the barn and go blah, they will go the whole barn full of turkeys all at once.
It is hilarious.
Scott Wyden Kivowitz: Welcome to the Workflows Photography Podcast. I'm your host, Scott Wyden Kivowitz, and today we're talking about how to keep your photography business running smoothly. While you're on the road, discover essential workflows, systems, and automations to ensure your business stays on track no matter where you are in the world.
[00:01:00] Let's dive in and make your photography business road ready. Welcome to the special episode of Workflows on the Road.
Scott Wyden Kivowitz: So we are currently in Louisville, Kentucky, and, we're here at ImagingUSA and you've got a fully functioning photography business. you're not from here, you've traveled here. So what kind of workflow systems, automations do you have in place to keep your business running while you're on the road?
Heather Larkin: Actually. Oddly enough, I don't, because I bring the entire business with me. I prefer, I, I don't have any assistants and I prefer to stay connected. And so mostly what I do is I bring my external hard drive, I bring my [00:02:00] laptop, and all of the, the functions that I need to run my business from the hotel room
also.
Scott Wyden Kivowitz: Are you relying on any special email apps or any special, scheduling systems or anything that does help with like certain parts of it?
even though you're not automating everything, is there, is there certain, certain areas where you do rely on assistance from technology?
Heather Larkin: So I think the only thing that I run. Assistance wise is actually Imagen because I can let it run while I'm in the hotel or, you know, going someplace else and doing something else and let it call and let it run through my Imageners without me having to babysit it.
But I don't have any other technology assistance because I just haven't found anything that I really like as much as I like Imagen. Well,
Scott Wyden Kivowitz: let me ask you this is, is your, your email system, is it just like a Google workspace? Type of thing. It sure is. Yeah. So are you using any of like the AI [00:03:00] suggested replies that Google offers now?
I
Heather Larkin: don't. No. Interesting. No, I sure don't. I didn't, I have seen them, but they don't sound like me. Right. I, and I, I wanted to do ChatGPT and get it sounding like me and, and have some automated replies, but so far they don't sound like the way I would reply and so I haven't, haven't done it yet.
Scott Wyden Kivowitz: Interesting. So then when you're, let's say you get a, you get a lead while you're, while you're traveling. You have a bunch of email back and forth, and now it's time to schedule. Now you're. On the road. Mm-Hmm. You're not home. Mm-Hmm. but the job is back at home. Mm-Hmm. Are you using a scheduling tool to help with that or are you doing that manually as well?
Heather Larkin: Actually, I use Calendly. Okay. So I really enjoy Calendly. It's very easy for them to, get a link check out when I'm available, book that immediately. And now Calendly has a thing where you can actually pay on actual at the end when they check out. And so it's super easy for them to get it all done in one place.
And then that just comes through my email and says, you've booked your, your session or whatever. Yeah.
Scott Wyden Kivowitz: Yeah. It's really, really [00:04:00] convenient to do that. There's so many tools out there like that. A lot of CRMs are starting to integrate those systems in into their platforms as well. But, like for, for the podcast for example, I use ZCal, which is same exact thing, as Calendly.
There's so many out there. I think Tidy Cal. Another one.
Heather Larkin: I've heard of that one. Yeah.
Scott Wyden Kivowitz: that's another one. that again, does the same exact thing. And it's, I think it in these cases, more of what fits the photographer's pricing structure more, what is either integrated or not integrated into whatever systems they use already and also what interface they like the best because.
Calendly and ZCal look very similar to each other, where a tidy cal looks a little different, but at the end of the day, they all do the same exact
thing.
Heather Larkin: Yeah. I picked Calendly because they send reminder texts to my clients. Mm-Hmm. And that is huge. Yeah. For me, all of my previous CRM software does not text my clients, and it's gigantic for reminding people and also just ease of communication.
Scott Wyden Kivowitz: Yeah. [00:05:00] Zcal doesn't do text messaging.
That's interesting.
Heather Larkin: Calendly's pretty fabulous about that. Yeah, it's been, it's been nice.
I feel like I'm
selling Calendly and and
Scott Wyden Kivowitz: that's just.. It's, you know, it, it's one of the things that we're all about is, is figuring out how we can help photographers discover solutions for whatever their problem might be.
one of these workflows on the roads that I just recorded, the photographer, Was also a, a solo photographer and didn't use anything that was automated and he was interested
it in like a CRM to help with it, but he couldn't find one that fit his exact needs and had it as a sign up, give me, give your name, give your your logo, and fill in all the rest for him. Mm-Hmm. So that's why he hasn't jumped onto one 'cause he can't find one that makes it easy for him to get on board yet.
Right. So I think, no matter who the photographer is, and this is what I said when I was talking to him as well, I think whoever, no matter what, who the photographer is, what they do, if the solution doesn't exist. [00:06:00] One probably should because there's probably thousands of others that are in the same exact boat.
Definitely. So, well, thanks for sharing what you do or don't do. while you're on the road, it's, you know, sometimes the simpler, simplest solution is the best solution for some people,
Heather Larkin: so definitely I prefer to work the same in my house as I am working on the road, and so just taking it with me is my easy solution.
Scott Wyden Kivowitz: And your laptop and iPad or just laptop? What do you do? Laptop
Heather Larkin: only, and that's actually my main computer. I edit on that laptop, so I'm literally bringing every tool with me at all times. And.
Scott Wyden Kivowitz: Wow. Okay. So your Storage is on an external SSD mm-Hmm. Nice. Okay.
Heather Larkin: Yep. That's good. So I've got my external drive, I've got the laptop.
I'm always on the, everything that I've ever taken photo wise is backed up on a cloud, and it's on the, the external drive that I have with me currently. Mm-Hmm. So I have access to all of my Imageners for the last 20 [00:07:00] years with me at all times
Scott Wyden Kivowitz: on the, yeah. Yeah. That's, that's good. That's good. And do you, If when you're traveling, and let's say you're doing, you're, you're, you're in Kentucky, you're you're shooting, right? You got a job, you're putting onto that SSD, are you then cloning that to another SSD like then, or are you just going right to the cloud or are you waiting to get back home to, until you back that up?
So,
Heather Larkin: I have it backed up to the cloud while I'm here, but also I keep the memory cards that I've shot un. Like, I don't reuse them. Mm-Hmm. I actually have like a, a, a red light, green light, pair of card wallets, green. I can reuse red. I put it if it's, if it's filled, I put it in the red bag and I don't touch it until those images are delivered to the client.
And so this, this red light, green light thing kind of works
Scott Wyden Kivowitz: for me. That's a good system. See you. You didn't think. You didn't think you're gonna have a system to share but you Right. Then you, you had a good system to share. That's keeping it organized and very [00:08:00] clear and relatable of, of, you know, do not format this card.
I need this data until I am a hundred percent sure it's backed up. Is a good system to have in place, especially when you're on the road.
Heather Larkin: Exactly. Definitely.
Scott Wyden Kivowitz: Awesome. Thanks.
Heather Larkin: Thanks.
