We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Carla Garcia a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Carla, thanks for joining us today. One of the things we most admire about small businesses is their ability to diverge from the corporate/industry standard. Is there something that you or your brand do that differs from the industry standard? We’d love to hear about it as well as any stories you might have that illustrate how or why this difference matters.

I am very much different than most photographers in my area. I work with my clients to create large, beautiful artwork they can use to decorate their home.

Carla, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I have always loved photography. When I was a teen, I used to decorate my bedroom walls with photographs I had taken of my friends. I would just staple them to make a collage! I continued to capture my good times throughout my 20s and somewhere along the way, I stopped printing images thanks to quick social media uploading. In my early 30s, I took up a random stranger on the opportunity to learn sports photography. He quickly taught me how to manually capture sports action during a high school football playoff game. I loved football and understood the game, so I quickly picked up on where to stand for the best action shots. That day I also met J.J. Watt on the sidelines as he was there cheering on Pearland H.S. Needless to say, I was instantly hooked on sports media! I had quickly bought a camera and made a dreamer’s list of photography equipment. I went on to continue capturing high school football games, college bowl games played at NRG stadium, and even Houston’s Dynamo team and some CONCACAF play off games. Throughout the years, I taught myself how to take family and senior portraits. I eventually lost my sports media contact, which is ultimately a “Me Too” story. I still have hopes of photographing sports and creatively capturing professional athletes. Until then, I do enjoy capturing families and teens. After many years of providing digitals like most photographers, I decided to change the game. I now focus on creating big, beautiful artwork my clients can use to decorate their homes. It is a celebration of love between the family. And I have found that people underestimate the feelings they will experience when they see their child(ren) celebrated in the form of a large artwork piece to hang in their home. Tears will be shed! Happy tears though.

How do you keep in touch with clients and foster brand loyalty?

I keep in touch with clients by sending them handwritten cards. I learned this from my business coach. She calls the cards Notes of Joy. I use my images to create a folding card. I will send them out to clients, family and/or business friends with handwritten notes thanking them for their business, or congratulating them when they are celebrating something special.

Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?

I love books. Some of the most influential books in my life have been Who Moved My Cheese? by Spencer Johnson, How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie, and The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership by John C. Maxwell.

Contact Info:

• Website: carlagarciaphotography.com
• Instagram: @carlitajet

Image Credits
Photos taken by Hosanna Rull with iRull Designs and Raymond Sauceda with RS Photography LLC.