Hey friend! Today I’m gonna start to walk through a question I get asked all the time: “HOW DO YOU DO IT ALL?”
The truth is, I don’t. However, I’m proud to say that it’s because I’ve learned the importance of outsourcing and have gotten so much better at it over the last couple of years.
And let me just say, outsourcing is HARD! It’s giving up control and income, but it’s gaining me more sanity, more freedom AND blessing others around me as well and that is what perfectly aligns with our family’s visions.
P.S. this blog post first made an appearance to my email list! If you want to be the first to receive these fun emails and get updates on any KHP announcements, sign up for my email list here!
So, in this blog post, I want to bring you behind the scenes and introduce you to some of the great people I’ve hired to help me and my awesome wedding photography team!
Here’s what I outsource in my wedding photography business:
#1 Styling by Amy B. Stargel
First up, my favorite stylist, Amy Stargel, owner of Styled by Amy B. Stargel.
I depend on Amy for all of my own styling AND all of my clients’ styling. I always get asked, by my fabulous clients “What do you suggest I wear?” I have since directed my clients to Amy and she takes care of everything. Even down to the shoes and accessories!
I never knew how much I needed Amy and now I can’t live without her! She is a text away, and the first person I reach out to with any events or projects I have coming up (like when she styled our entire team for a photoshoot last fall, pictured at the top of the blog!).
She perfectly executes all of the needs for clothing that I NEVER have time to find and stays within my budget, AND I love that she dresses for the body…not for the label.
My clients who have trusted her to style them look FABULOUS, just like Vivian and Jack did for their engagement session shown above.
You can learn more about working with Amy here!
#2 Blogging by Skylar Rain
Next, Skylar is a photographer herself, and also does blogging for wedding photographers as a division of her business.
How many times have we heard to get back to
BLOGGING
and work on content that we
OWN
Well, if you haven’t, you are hearing it from the woman who lost ALL her social media at the end of last year.
The fact that I had divinely thought to finally do what I have heard so much about for so long and BLOG again was so insane! It was so much less of a blow in losing all the social media I had worked so hard on. I connected with Skylar a little over a year ago and had her start blogging all the INSANE weddings I have been able to shoot and NEVER have had the time or capacity to really show off.
She pulls the content, she writes the copy and even pins to Pinterest! She is so good at SEO and all the things I never have the time to truly understand. She has been my saving grace and honestly was the reason I didn’t want to jump off a bridge when all my Instagram was deleted.
You can learn more about working with Skylar here!
#3 Submitting to Publications with OFD Consulting
Next up is Meghan and the amazing ladies at OFD Consulting!
The time it takes to pull together publication submissions and have them approved, or sometimes denied was my worst nightmare. Especially when a submission got denied and I had to pull it all together again for another submission! It truly began to be the main reason I never got anything published.
Handing over the reins to OFD has saved my time and sanity! They pull all of the submissions together, use their incredible connections and submit/resubmit, if needed. They keep track of everything for me and even allow me the opportunity to get small submissions and PR leads in places I never would have known about otherwise.
They are my gateway to the rest of the world these days and we have so many upcoming publications all because of them! Learn more about working with OFD consulting here!
#4 ShootQ: The Best CRM!
ShootQ is the CRM software I can’t live without!
I’ve been using this platform for several years and can’t imagine doing business without it. It is designed for photographers and has all the features I want and need!
We use the New System for things like:
-Lead tracking and management
-Pre- and post-wedding workflows
-Tracked emails all housed in one place
-Important client notes
-Personalize client portals
-Sending proposals and contracts for electronic signature
-Sending invoices and tracking payments and financials
-Team scheduling and calendar syncing
-Questionnaires
-Sending current and past clients fun birthday & anniversary emails
If you would like to try it out, you can click HERE to try it free for 30 days!
#5 Editing with Janelle Joy!
Working with Janelle Joy to outsource my editing has been a lifesaver!
I have been working with Janelle and Heather for almost a year now, and it has been one of the best decisions I’ve ever made! The quality of their work is amazing and absolutely what I always want to deliver to our clients. The amount of time they save me is incredible – such a weight off my shoulders!
They are currently taking a limited number of new clients (photographers who have 15+ weddings per year), and you are one of the FIRST to know about it!!
If you’re interested in learning more about their services, email Janelle at janelle@janellejoy.com or click here to visit their site!
#6 Travel Planning by Niki Edwards
And last but absolutely not least, y’all know I LOVE to travel…meet Niki Edwards, Owner of TH Travel Designs:
Niki is planning our Spring Break ski trip to Park City, and we couldn’t be more excited! She has made the entire process so easy and seamless, even booking dining reservations ahead of time and reserving lift tickets and equipment. All we’ll have to do is show up!
She is a self-proclaimed homebody who just loves to travel and to help other people create memories through amazing trips to everywhere you can imagine. She’s on Instagram as @thetravelinghomebodyal and plans everything from honeymoons and anniversaries to retirement and graduation trips, and family vacations. She is even doing her 2nd group trip this summer to London!
Learn more about working with Niki for all your travel planning needs here!
The bottom line is outsourcing is how I’m able to get a lot done! I hire great people to help me and I’m so incredibly thankful for each of them!
When I find amazing people and things that make my life easier and my business run smoothly, I love to share them!! So I hope you’ll find something (or someone) useful in this behind-the-scenes blog to make your life a little easier too.
xoxo,
Kelly & the KHP Team
