We were lucky to catch up with Bonnie Heath recently and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Bonnie, thanks for joining us today. What was it like going from idea to execution? Can you share some of the backstory and some of the major steps or milestones?
I’ve been a professional photographer since the mid 90s. I worked as a photojournalist for many years, and like most newspaper photographers, I also shot freelance assignments. After I left the newspaper industry, it was a challenge to figure out how to get leads for paying clients. In the early 2010s, Yelp was a big deal. I asked several happy clients to write reviews for me there. That got the ball rolling for my business. Years later, Yelp’s influence (in the photography arena) has dropped and Google has become far more important. I took a business class that taught me how important it is to claim your Google business profile and officially set that up. I also learned how much search engine optimization influences searches. I polished up my website, focused on headshots and portraiture and started blogging more often to boost my site’s SEO. I also bought studio management software to streamline studio workflows, allowing my clients to sign contracts and pay online.
Bonnie, 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?
I discovered a love of photography through my dad. He was a skilled amateur photographer, and he gifted me with my first Nikon SLR. While in college, I took a black and white film photography class and dove further into the medium. I worked for the school newspaper and year book. I went to grad school to study photojournalism, and then worked for many years as a newspaper photographer.
I bring a lot of experience and skill to business headshot and branding sessions. I provide lighting, style consulting, scheduling hair and makeup stylists, and I work with a very skilled professional retoucher to finish the photos.
I have worked exclusively within the business photography field for the past five years and my process is designed to make it easy for clients with online booking and quick delivery times. I bring the same attention to detail when photographing one person or 50 people.
Have you ever had to pivot?
When I first got started in my photography business, I would take any assignment. I would shoot weddings, family sessions, corporate gigs, boudoir sessions… whatever a client would inquire about, I would take it the assignment. About 5 years ago, I noticed a lot more people asking for headshots for their business careers. LinkedIn became a bigger player and a lot of businesses needed photos of their employees for email signatures and team pages. Many small businesses needed images for their websites and social media feeds. I pivoted to specializing in headshots and branding portraits. Specializing in one area of photography been a huge help for my marketing and for honing my skills.
How did you build your audience on social media?
It’s a good idea to decide what your goals are for social media. Are you trying to generate sales? Find new clients? My goal is to use social media as a place to show some of my newest work to my clients. It’s like a secondary portfolio. I recommend using a tool to plan posts in advance. I use Planoly, but there are a lot of similar programs out there. Not only can you make all of your social media posts for the week or even month, but it’s also faster to add hashtags. I try post 3-4 times week, in the mornings. That’s when my posts seem to get the most engagement. I think a lot of photographers either rely too much on social media to get business or they get overwhelmed and ignore it. Try to find a middle ground that doesn’t take too much time and be consistent.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.bonniejheath.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bonniejheath/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bonniejheathphotography
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bonnie-heath-atlanta-headshot-photographer/
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/bonnie-j-heath-photography-atlanta
Image Credits
All photos by Bonnie J Heath, except the first image of me, which is by Mimi Leake.