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

Meg, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.

My photography journey is a bit different than others! I graduated from college in 2020, also known as covid year with a degree in Hospitality and Tourism Management with an emphasis on meeting and events. I thought I wanted to be a wedding planner but man was I wrong. Once covid hit we all know what happened and my industry kind of just shut down. There was really no traveling or weddings happening so I was at a loss for what to do. I decided to nanny for awhile until I figured out what I wanted to do. Three years went by and my nanny kids were getting older so I knew it couldn’t be a forever career as much as I love nannying and love my family. As I started to question what I wanted to do my mom and my boyfriend at the time on (now my husband) urged me to buy a camera. I have always loved photos but to be truthful I loved being in the photos so I wasn’t quite sure how I would feel about taking photos of other people.

I bought my camera in April 0f 2022 and booked my first wedding in June of 2022. I was SO scared and had no idea if this would become a business but fell in love with photographing love. There is something so unique and special about capturing people during the best days of their lives. I had finally found what I loved doing and can truthfully say I am working my dream job. I decided to go full time in 2023 and have never looked back!

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.

Hey everyone I am Meg the owner of Imagery by Meg! A West Michigan based wedding photographer who specializes in capturing the raw and pure joy of my couples during their happiest moments! I got into the photography industry in 2022 and went full time in 2023. My niches are weddings, engagements, couples and seniors/grads! I love being able to get to know my couples from their engagement, through all of the wedding planning process, on the wedding day, and beyond!

One thing that sets me apart from others in the industry is that I have a degree in Wedding planning so when they are hiring me to photograph their wedding they also get my help with planning if they need! I also have worked in every aspect of the wedding world besides catering. I worked at a bridal salon for a few years, I have worked at a wedding venue in Grand Rapids, I have planned weddings, I make calligraphy signs for weddings and now I get to photograph weddings! I love being in the wedding industry and knew it was were I wanted to be it just took some time to narrow down what industry I loved the most.

I am so proud of what I have created with Imagery by Meg in the past two years. Going into this I had no prior photography experience or business experience! I had taken one marketing class in college and that is it. To now be running my own company is so surreal and sometimes I want to pinch myself to make sure its real!

I have always been a people person and thrive in an atmosphere surrounded by people aka weddings. I always tell my couples that I will be their biggest hype women and the best third wheel they could ever ask for! I give my all to each and every one of my couples and will go above and beyond for them. I could not ask for a better career and cannot wait for what is ahead for Imagery by Meg!

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

I want to start off by saying that growing your business is not easy On or off social media) and can be extremely slow at times so be patient and keep working!!

I am in no way a social media influencer and still have a lot to learn but have been able to steadily grow my social media audience over the last year! I don’t have a crazy story about growing my audience or anything. In order to build my audience I have prioritized consistency. I post on my story multiple times a day, post on my feed 2-3 times a week and I try to make 2 reels a week! I also have facebook and tik tok accounts that I have slowly been using to gain more of an audience!

My biggest piece of advice is to keep working!!! Social media feels like a game that you have to try to win. Figuring out the algorithm has been one of my biggest struggles and I can’t say I have it all figured out yet! I also set social media goals for myself each year to help keep me accountable for posting and being present on social media! I am a very goal oriented person so if you are as well this has been extremely helpful! Remember that if it was easy everyone would do it!

I also want to take a second to talk about mental health and social media. Social media has so many perks but can also be so detrimental to our mental health. Constantly comparing yourself and your work to others becomes 10x easier when you have instagram, facebook, tik tok, etc. Always remember that your mental health comes first!!!

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

Brand loyalty is extremely important to me and something that I prioritize in my business. I do not take on clients lightly and always make sure that I think my clients will be a good fit for me as well as me a good fit for them. I am the kind of person who wants to be friends with my clients and help them through the entire planning process of their wedding. Part of this may be because I have a degree in wedding planning so it is something special I like to offer my clients but I love helping with timelines, bridesmaids dresses, flowers, vendors, etc!

This may be personal preference but I love staying in touch with my clients even after their wedding day has passed. I do offer an add on of an anniversary session for a year after your wedding so we can see each other again, but I also love seeing my couples outside of the photo environment!

I believe that brand loyalty is one of the most important parts of your company. Keeping your clients happy will keep you happy!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.imagerybymeg.com/
• Instagram: Imagery by Meg
• Facebook: Meg Elizabeth

Image Credits
Imagery By Meg