Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Angie Erway. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Angie, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What do you think it takes to be successful?

First and foremost, in order to talk about what it takes to be successful, you have to decide what success looks like for you and your own business. Is it all based on the financial aspect of your business? Is it based on your clients happiness and likeliness to be a repeat client? Is it based on your own well being and ability to manage your work and home life balance? Or, is your success based on a culmination of all of these aspects working together?

Personally, I believe success is subjective and, therefore, what it takes to be successful is also subjective. I think that it looks different from one business to the next and from one business owner to the next. From my experience, you and your business can appear successful on paper and actually be far from successful in your day to day life. For me, this was the case, due to lack of balance in my own personal work and home life. I allowed myself to experience a great deal of burn-out and, ultimately, considered throwing in the towel due to the unsustainable conditions and expectations I placed on myself. Financially, business was doing fantastic and clients were more than satisfied with the services I’d provided. However, personally, I was drowning and I was fully aware that my business was on the verge of suffering if I continued along that path.

With that knowledge gained from personal experience, I learned that doing my research and ensuring I set solid boundaries within my business and home lives was essential to maintaining success in both areas. To summarize, in my own personal life and business, success looks like balance and respectfully enforcing the boundaries you’ve created to protect your business, as well as, your own health and well being.

Angie, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Hi, I’m Angie. I am the face behind A Cup of Grace Photography LLC! I am a lifestyle portrait, senior, & boudoir photographer that occasionally throws a family or 2 in there as well. I’m a proud momma to 2 crazy kiddos (with another one on the way) and wife to my best friend and other half, Caleb. Meeting as strangers, parting as friends is what I strive for with every one of my clients. Documenting moments that are uniquely and authentically you is my goal with each and every session. Stiff poses with forced smiles is what I try to avoid, even with my most reserved clients. My objective is, to capture real, genuine reactions and interactions throughout each session. Whether it be with a joke, a prompt, sarcasm, or just me being my clumsy, awkward self, authentic emotion (joy, passion, happiness, laughter, etc) is the intention!

As for me, I am a lover of tea (Chai specifically), cookies, and all things cozy. Fall is my absolute favorite season and I shamelessly believe it should be that way for all human kind. I really enjoy spending time with other people, listening to their stories, and just loving on them. I feel like that needs to happen more these days, just loving on people. I’m a hot mess 80% of the time, and spending time with others who are familiar with the hot mess express is my jam. In our house, we do Bluey, lots of praying, and spreading the the love of Jesus to others.

I picked up my first camera when I was about 5 years old (think actual film, not digital) and have been fascinated with them ever since. There is something about freezing a moment in time forever that is just truly fulfilling. Having the privilege of capturing your moments to share for generations warms and excites my heart all at the same time! The goal for each session to have fun and make memories as we go along. I firmly believe that as a client looks at the images from our session, it should immediately take them to the happiest of places and fill them with so much joy!

Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?

There are many different aspects that can play a part in the growing of your client base. As a photographer, those things can include the presentation of your work, staying current on social media platforms, your price point, etc. One of the main sources of growing my own client base has truly been word of mouth. My happy clients posting pictures from our sessions and tagging my business page, displaying prints of their favorites in their homes or on their desks at work, handing out my business cards to those around them that ask about their session and photographer, etc. Additionally, recommending me to their friends and family, neighbors, and co-workers in person and online has opened many doors for me to market to them with my own social media posts. Word of mouth recommendations have certainly been very instrumental in booking clients that I may have never reached on my own.

We’d love to hear about how you keep in touch with clients.

Fortunately and unfortunately, my family has been more nomadic than ideal over the last few years. I say fortunately because it has allowed me to meet many wonderful new people and see many beautiful areas along the way. Unfortunately, it has also meant uprooting my business each time we relocate. As fun as it is to experience new places, it does put a certain level of strain on a small business.

Over the years, I’ve managed to meet some amazing clients and foster a lifetime photographer/client bond. They will travel to me or I will travel to them for all the sessions they need, which is amazing! Regrettably, that’s not possible with every client I get to work with in each place. That said, with the time I have to build my clientele, I do my best to make each experience fun for the clients. The goal is to make their session with me stand out as a whole. Of course, I absolutely want them to love their final images, but I also want them to love and remember the entire experience as a pleasant one. I try to be laid back in order to put even the most nervous client at ease. We joke around, we laugh, and I treat them as if we’ve been friends for years. I also try to be as available and transparent with them as possible, so they aren’t left wondering what the next steps are in the process.

I’ve found, over the years, that not every photographer and client will be a great match, and that’s ok. However, if you put in the little bit of work to make them feel like they aren’t just another client, it goes a long way in having them come back to your as a return client.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.acupofgracephotography.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/acupofgracephotography
• Facebook: facebook.com/acupofgracephotography