We recently connected with Jalissa Tauscher and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Jalissa, thanks for joining us today. What’s been the best thing you’ve ever seen (or done yourself) to show a customer that you appreciate them?

When a client places a product order from me, I always send a handwritten thank you with it. I think it’s personal and a kind gesture to show my appreciation for them! When I place an order with a small company, I love to see a personal hand written note and from the years of supporting small businesses, that is one small piece I took away from them. To some it may seem old school, but to me it’s a bit more personal and shows that I care. I think it shows the customers that I care and took the time to do something small but meaningful.

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.

I’m Jalissa! I’m located in the Rochester, MN area and work my photography job part time. Aside from being a photographer- I am a wife, a mom to a busy toddler, a full time administrative assistant, a daughter, a sister, and friend! I have always loved photography growing up and decided to pursue my dreams and go to college for Photography. I went to Dakota County Technical College in Rosemount, MN and graduated in 2011 with an AAS degree in Photography. After college I moved back to my hometown area and started my business part time while working elsewhere full time.
I offer seniors, babies, families, engagements, children, and small events. I was born and raised in Minnesota so I love the beautiful parks we have and the different seasons we offer, so all of my sessions are outdoor or on-location.

I’m most proud of the business I’ve built and the work I do. I volunteer my services several times a year, I donate gift certificates to many local benefits, and I’ve served under-privilege families and worked with them on payment issues/plans. I think that makes me stand out from other photographers because I don’t see many other photographers giving back to their community as often as I try to do. I volunteer my time and talent to give the community photos to have as a keepsake that they’ll love. It’s a value of mine and important for my community to know that I’m here, I support other small businesses in town the best I can, I’m trustworthy, and I’m honored to help out whomever I can.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

When the Covid-19 shutdown happened, photographers also got shut down. Although this wasn’t my full time income, it was part of my income for my family. Once we were allowed to do so, I offered “porch portraits” for my clients. How this worked was I would show up at their house, keep my distance, wear a mask if they preferred, and took portraits of their family on their front porch/in front of their homes. That was a huge pivot in trying to make a small income during an especially unknown and scary time in our lives. Two of the destinations I traveled all the way to were the Twin Cities & over by Winona.

We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?

To anyone struggling to build up their social media, I would say just keep posting. Share, share, share and post, post, post. Keep sharing our story or your art on social media. If you don’t understand how to use a platform of social media, watch some Youtube videos or Google how to do something. In order to build up my following on Facebook, I invited friends and family to ‘Like’ my page and I post photos from every session if the client allows.    

Contact Info:

• Website: www.jrnyphotography.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/jrny.photography
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/JRNYphotography

Image Credits
Photography by Jalissa Tauscher, JRNY Photography