We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Chrissy Winchester. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Chrissy below.

Chrissy , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. One of the most important things we can do as business owners is ensure that our customers feel appreciated. What’s something you’ve done or seen a business owner do to help a customer feel valued?

I think the best thing you can do for your client is to serve them well. I don’t know any person that doesn’t like to feel like they just had the BEST experience. We offer many touch-points throughout our time with our clients, and honestly, many become friends. I think a lot of what we offer in this industry is ourselves. Client’s not only hire us for what we offer as a service, but because of who we are. I think making them feel welcome, comfortable and special is invaluable. It’s important that we serve our clients well by educating them, making sure their needs are met, and also by doing small, unexpected things. That is why we make it a point to send lots of snail mail and special gifts for clients and their kiddos. If we see something while out shopping for ourselves that reminds us of a client, we may pick it up and mail it to them with a note that it made us think of them. I think those little details are important.

Chrissy , 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 have always loved being creative. I took a film class in high school and loved it. I would have gone to college for something creative (interior design, art teacher, architect), but my dad suggested I go with a “safer” job. I highly value his opinion, so that’s what I did. Four years later I was graduating from nursing school.

Wanting a creative outlet, I started an Etsy shop and quickly learned having amazing photos was necessary. So, I purchased a Canon Rebel T1i and got to teaching myself. I was told I had an “eye” for capturing people in photos and thoroughly enjoyed the process. About a year after purchasing my camera, I decided to pursue it as a career.

I believe what makes us unique is our full-service model. We want our clients to just have to “show up” to their session and everything to have been taken care of for them. We want them to feel loved and special as soon as they inquire with us. This is why we set up an initial call to make sure we’re aligned with their vision and they’re getting exactly what they want. Soon after booking, they also receive a beautiful welcome box full of items mostly geared toward mom, but also tailored to their specific session.

So many clients gush about how “human” they feel after being pampered by our hair and make-up team and putting on a beautiful dress. We offer a studio wardrobe, so when you’re in that post baby phase, you have something beautiful that fits. This is also a great perk, because usually those pieces are only worn once and it’s an investment the client doesn’t have to make. We also have wardrobe for dad, baby and kids.

We also offer professional hair and make-up, as well as design services to help decide how to display your photos. Our goal is to really take as much off of my client’s plate as possible. We really are here to serve them.

Any resources you can share with us that might be helpful to other creatives?

I wish I had invested in valuable coaching more early in my career. Just starting out very part-time, I understandably didn’t want to spend “big money” to invest in the “business” side of my business. I, of course, invested in technical education, as I am self-taught. However, the business side just didn’t seem as important at the time. So, I invested lots of little chunks of money here and there to learn more about running a business, that wasn’t as scary as a 4-figure number. However, adding up all that I spent on these smaller resources, I’ve really ended up wasting a lot of money. The best money I have spent on my business is taking the Leveraging to Luxury Mentorship program with Brittany Elise Photography. My only regret is I wish I had done it sooner.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

I had been in business since 2012. I had done coaching, programs, etc with at least half a dozen different individuals. I still was not making nearly enough money to be sustainable. I wasn’t in the red, but it also made it seem like all of my time and effort was for naught. I had been invited by Brittany Elise Photography to be part of the first round of Leveraging to Luxury, her coaching program. At the time, I had a very difficult baby who was just starting to grow out of his very hard stage. I was toying around with the idea of shifting my career from portrait photographer to brand photographer and I just felt like I wasn’t getting anywhere. I watched the alumni of Brittany’s coaching program over the next year and saw the massive strides they were taking. I decided to finally take the leap and cannot tell you how well it has served me, but also my clients.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.chrissywinchester.com
• Instagram: @chrissy.winchester.photography

Image Credits
The first image of myself holding the camera credit goes to: Katheryn Jeanne Photography