We were lucky to catch up with Angelina Ong recently and have shared our conversation below.
Angelina, appreciate you joining us today. So, let’s start with trends – what are some of the largest or more impactful trends you are seeing in the industry?
Content is EVERYTHING. Whether it be product or service-based businesses, you need to create consistent content and I don’t see that trend going away anytime soon.
Angelina, 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?
My name is Angelina and I am a commercial photographer and videographer based in San Diego, CA.
Like many during the pandemic, I realized that I wasn’t very happy with my current career in social work and decided to dive into my creative side. I’ve always produced videos as a side hobby and decided to lean on that when deciding my career shift. Through many months of trying out different genres of photography/videography (wedding, real estate, newborn, etc.) I was really drawn into visual marketing and commercial photography/videography. The thought that I can produce content to assist brands and businesses was motivating for me.
In June 2020, I officially launched my business and never looked back. As a business, it continues to grow each and everyday and I am grateful that I invested in myself.
It feels great knowing that I can help a fellow entrepreneur attract their ideal client through visual marketing because let’s face it, visual content sells and telling a story through photo/video demands attention. I’ve also worked with plenty of non-profit organizations that schedule promotional videos to spread the message about their cause.
Currently, the services we provide are:
– Content Creation
– Product Photography
– Product Video
– Branding Shoot
– Promotional Videos
– Event Coverage
A brand is as good as their content in this day and age of social media marketing, let us help you with that!
Can you open up about how you funded your business?
That’s the thing about business right? They always say you need to invest money to make money. For me, I knew that in order to start charging for my services I should invest in quality camera gear and editing software. I initially invested in the following:
1. Camera + Lens ($5k)
2. Professional editing software ($25/monthly)
3. Official website ($14/monthly)
4. Laptop that can handle my workload ($1,200)
Overall investment: about $6k
At the time, I was still working my previous job and knew that this investment would be my first step towards taking myself and my business seriously. So it was a mixture of charging my equipment on a credit card and paying it off with my current job until I quit 2 months later after I paid it off.
Depending on your situation and circumstances, get creative and resourceful.
What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?
Honestly, the best source of new clients have been the power of social media and word of mouth! There are countless of times where I get new clients based off of referral. I have also acquired plenty of new clients from Instagram and TikTok, you have to look at social media as a marketing platform and be smart about what you’re posting.
Image Credits
Sugaskincare and Plume Science
Contact Info:
- Website: sqvlinamedia.co
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sqvlina_media/
Image Credits
Brands: – Plume Science – Giovanni – California Pure Naturals – Thread & Bloom – Malibu-C