We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Evan Zavitz. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Evan below.
Hi Evan, thanks for joining us today. Would you say you are more focused on growing revenue or cutting costs? We’d love to hear how you think about these two critical drivers.
When it comes to serving clients and managing the cash flow of my business, I always focus on my client’s needs first. I’ve experienced in business and in life that when you prioritize others over yourself and aim to be an excellent servant, you will usually be rewarded. So, when I’m looking at decisions relating to the expenses of my business and the dynamic of cutting costs or increasing revenue, I opt for increased growth whenever possible.
I want my client’s to know that I put the needs of their project first so, I never haggle over small things. I just focus on giving them an exceptional product and stress free experience. This initiative typically comes through and often leads to great satisfaction on the part of my clients – as well as repeat business and referrals.
More broadly, this orientation is more just about activating a growth mindset and allowing creative solutions to present themselves.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
My name is Evan and I own a media company that specializes in helping businesses reach their goals with impactful marketing and storytelling initiatives. I provide a range of services including photography, videography and drone imaging that allow me to craft high quality assets that help my clients communicate their value and drive customer action.
My services are a unique benefit to my clients because I offer technical expertise in media production as well as an in depth understanding of business strategy. I have a BS in Marketing & Entrepreneurship and am well versed in the needs and problems that business owners face. Tapping into this knowledge allows me to speak the same language as my clients, quickly identify opportunities and create actionable media solutions quickly.
Above all, I focus on creating a personalized experience that serves my clients as I would like to be served. I approach every project with care and attention because its not just my reputation on the line but, theirs as well.
What else should we know about how you took your side hustle and scaled it up into what it is today?
My current business did start off as just a side hustle/passion project. I can remember very clearly the day I finally submitted my incorporation documents to the state while sitting in my college apartment. That was really the day that solidified in my mind that this was a business and I was committed to it.
However, it took a few years for me to become aware of how to structure my business and really even consider it as a viable initiative.
My story really starts much earlier in my life – with a deep fascination for film and cameras. I was always very curious and imaginative as a kid and loved playing with cameras. I wasn’t good at all but, for a kid who wasn’t naturally gifted with other artistic mediums like painting, drawing or performing, I found allure in the synthesis of technology and art that is found in a camera.
It wasn’t until college that I decided to take photography more seriously. I had saved up a few thousand dollars after working for more than a year at Chipotle and decided to dive headfirst during a trip to Miami and Cuba. A couple of days before the trip, I went to Best Buy and basically told the rep, “I don’t know what I need but, I’m serious and I want a camera that gives me room to grow.” He pointed me toward a pretty hefty investment – a Nikon D750 with a 24-120mm kit lens.
I pulled the trigger and was off from there. It took me a few years to really develop my eye and technical expertise but, I quickly found that the camera was a way for me to interact with the world in a purposeful and captivating way. Even if I wasn’t shooting for a paid gig, I would just take my camera out for photo walks – capturing unique scenes that I came across in my college town of Tucson, AZ.
Well, when you walk around with a camera everywhere, you start to develop a reputation. I started to get a few people asking me if I could take their portrait or shoot their grad photos and it really took off for me from there. Once the realization set in that people would actually pay me for this skill, I was hooked.
From there, I developed a range of other skills and services to keep up with the changing needs of clients and the developing trends in technology and content creation.
Looking back, I’d say that some key milestones for my business really came from my belief in myself and my networking abilities. Finding people that resonate with your energy and are excited to collaborate and create together opens doors to opportunities that you could never even imagine.
We’d love to hear about how you keep in touch with clients.
Fostering and maintaining connection with clients can require different tactics or tools based on the size of your business and nature of your relationship. I try to focus on real, personal connections that add value to my life and my business. In my experience, being a genuinely caring person who always lends an ear, or an encouraging word pays huge dividends.
It’s really simple, just focus on people. Get to know your clients, what motivates them, the things they care about and just show that you are paying attention to those things. People want to feel seen and understood so, if you take the time to learn about someone else and interact with genuine interest, the lines between business and friendship blur quickly. I always prefer working with people who I know and trust – those types of relationships aren’t built in a day or through a squeeze page on the internet.
Take the time, be genuine and you will be rewarded.
Contact Info:
- Website: lifeinrapture.com
- Instagram: life.in.rapture
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/evanzavitz/