We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Maurice Smith. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Maurice below.
Hi Maurice, thanks for joining us today. What do you think it takes to be successful?
It is very important to remember that success is measured by the person setting the goal and not everyone else. There are so many so called standards of success that have been established by others. Those measures of success usually come with a pathway that has been predetermined. The problem with these measures and pathways is that they don’t take into consideration the individual, the individuals resources or access to resources or the skill sets that already exist. To often people are trying to obtain a measure of success that they don’t even want. True success is when you have a clear mind about what you want, how you want to meet that goal or objective, and blazing the pathways or finding the pathways that work best for you to obtain those things. Success could be coming up with a name for your business or just deciding the type of services you want to provide. I learned that there is no one success, but many successes that you can have along the journey to establishing your creative business. What it takes to be successful is to be true to yourself in every aspect of the work you do. If you don’t have the energy that day, honor yourself and get some rest. When something isn’t working and others have offered feedback, honor that and re-evaluate what your processes might be. When you have done something great and no one else knows but you, celebrate anyway! These are the things that will make you successful!
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I have been doing photography and design work for about 17 years. It all started back in college at Loyola University New Orleans as a design major. My faculty members were really big about making your own images versus taking them from the internet. So most of my design work came from photographs of things that I had taken. Because I wanted to best images I had to refine my abilities and knowledge about cameras and how they work. One day a friend asked me to take their senior graduation pictures and said “I will pay you!” Of course I took his pictures and this was around the time when Facebook was getting really popular so we posted them online. Within a few weeks other friends ask me to do the same and some of their friends from other local colleges and so the business was born.
In the beginning I focused on portrait photography and making fliers for events. As I got better with my craft, I started doing fashion shows and marketing materials for products. Around 2011 I made a leap into wedding photography , engagement pictures, and family photography. In 2017, I did a rebrand to what the business is today, The OX (Ocular Xchange) Studio. My focus these days are around special occasion photography, event photography , children & family photography, logo design , campaign designs, t-shirt design and small branding materials.
There are so many types of cameras on the market that make it easy for anyone to pick one up and say they are a photographer and there are plenty of YouTube videos one can follow and then proclaim to be a designer. I provide reasonable & affordable services to the every day person. I don’t try and break the bank and it helps to establish repeat customers. Specifically with my photography I work with clients of color. Believe or not there is so much more to taking a picture of person of color than just turning on the flash and pressing a button. I work very hard to make every session memorable and capture moments that they will want to share with everyone. My flexibility in scheduling and timeliness in turn around of the product/s sets me apart from the mega creatives as well as the care and attention given to each clients needs.
What’s been the best source of new clients for you?
The best source of new clients for me has always been old clients. Doing the small things like sending my clients preview pictures from their shoot that are social media ready with a logo on them. I often ask clients to tag my social media in their post with a few hashtags and they never mind doing so. Their friends and family comment on those pictures and come to my social media and check out other pictures. I will typically get about 5-7 DM’s about doing business or about my rates and availability within 1 hour of a client posting pictures and tagging me on social media.
Some clients, they have had their friends come along to their session to help them with make-up and getting dressed. Because of the way I treat my client and how I make sure things look really good and am able to motivate the clients to give their best, I am typically being asked for a business card or setting up another appointment with the friends who came before the session is over.
The level of care you show in how you handle business but also remembering to treat people while doing business will create pathways to new clients.
How do you keep in touch with clients and foster brand loyalty?
Shortly after a session I send the client sneak peaks of the photo session to build the anticipation. I try and turnaround a product within a two week time period. After clients have received their pictures or graphic work , I will follow up with them in a months time to make sure all is still good and to make sure they were able to successfully download all of their products. During certain times of year, especially around holidays I will reach and offer mini sessions for clients I have worked with in the past six months to a year with a small discount. Because of this I have become the family photographer for many of my clients. Because of my consistency in communication and product, many clients have recommended me to multiple family and friends who continue to book sessions year round.
At least twice a month I will do a TBT (Throw Back Thursday) on my social media of previous clients and sessions. They really enjoy seeing their pictures pop up on their feed. It’s my way of treating them like a celebrity for the day. This often gets me multiple re-post and retweets for the days following as well as bookings.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.theOXstudio.com
- Instagram: @theOxStudio
Image Credits
Maurice L Smith