Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Rachel Bell. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Hi Rachel, thanks for joining us today. How did you scale up? What were the strategies, tactics, meaningful moments, twists/turns, obstacles, mistakes along the way? We’d love to hear the backstory the illustrates how you grew your brand.
My photography business began as a hobby. Photography was always something that I loved but I always felt as though the market was saturated and as though it was “too late” for me to jump in. I had a career and intended to move forward doing what I had always done. After an illness in October 2020 that left me mostly sedentary for 7 months, I decided to use my time productively and offer product photography services to small businesses for free just to see what could come of it. I felt comfortable with that start because of the safety blanket that, if the client didn’t love their images, they weren’t out anything because they had nothing invested in the project. I shot my first product images in what has now become my home based studio and sent off the gallery. Shortly after, I received a message from the business owner telling me that she cried when she received the gallery and that she could not stop scrolling through her images. This gave me the confidence to keep going!
After offering two free shoots, I began charging for my work. I advertised myself in Facebook entrepreneur groups and started an Instagram account. I was astounded that people were willing to pay for an amateur to create imagery for their business but I was excited by the opportunity and worked on my business a little each day in order to build a website I was proud of and improve the client experience.
Word of mouth became my best advertiser and by August 2021 I was busy to the point that I had no free time between my career and my photography business. By November 2021, I had booked two on-location shoots with big local brands. I got to the point that I was booked out months in advance and had been able to raise my rates to the point that my husband and I decided that it was time to take the leap and see what I could do if I took my photography business full time. This was the best decision and I am so grateful that he is so supportive of my dreams.
My advice for start ups is to believe in yourself. Ignore the doubters. Work on your business every day- even if it is just something small- to move the needle forward. Before you know it, big changes will happen and you’ll be appreciative of the time that you invested when it didn’t feel like you were doing much.
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 began learning photography as a hobby over 10 years ago and continued to build my skills over the years to document our travel and our children. I have been a Registered Nurse for 16 years, the last 8 of which I have been a Nurse Practitioner. I began offering Product Photography in October 2020 and then expanded to offering Branding Photography, as well. In Spring 2021, in response to the growth of video on social media platforms, I began offering Stop Motion Animations for my Product Photography clients.
There are several aspects of my business that set me apart from other photographers in the DFW area:
– Both my product and branding clients are offered an elevated client experience through pre-booking (no strings attached!) Discovery Calls via Zoom to talk through their product/brand and ideas that I have for how I can showcase their business in a creative way.
– After booking, clients are offered a 45-minute Strategy Call to nail down all of the details. This allows me to capture the aesthetic that my clients are looking for to ensure they are in love with their final images.
– Once the gallery is completed, clients receive a complimentary Content Planner to help them understand how to talk about their business without always selling and how to navigate hashtags specific to their business for better visibility.
– Branding clients have access to my branding guide (“Elevate Your Brand: The Complete Guide to Growing Your Business in the Digital Marketplace”) which is 80+ pages that guide you through everything you need to know to grow your brand online! I cover creating a brand identity and how to create custom content, how to talk about your business without constantly selling, concepts of social media marketing, writing captions that convert, SEO for images, algorithms and social media analytics, discovering your ideal client and how to talk to them and MORE!
What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?
The mission of my business is to help my clients grow their businesses with images that they know how to use strategically rather than to hand over a bunch of beautiful pictures that they don’t know what to do with. When my clients’ businesses grow, I consider it a win!
What’s been the most effective strategy for growing your clientele?
The majority of my clients come to me either through a Google search for local commercial photographers or word of mouth. I believe that the most effective strategy that I use to continue those word of mouth referrals is to create an unmatchable client experience. It’s true that the photography market is saturated. Taking beautiful images is not rocket science. However, when people work with me, they get a high touch experience, white glove service and significantly more value than just the images that they purchase. That is what my clients love about me and my business and why they feel confident referring their friends to me.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.rachelbellcreative.com
- Instagram: @rachelbellcreative