We were lucky to catch up with Raemi Ruue recently and have shared our conversation below.
Raemi, appreciate you joining us today. It’s easy to look at a business or industry as an outsider and assume it’s super profitable – but we’ve seen over and over again in our conversation with folks that most industries have factors that make profitability a challenge. What’s biggest challenge to profitability in your industry?
For the last 13 years, I’ve maintained a consistent client base, gaining new business every year. But the last few months have been different. Drastically. With the rise of Gen Z, incredible smart phone technology paired with social media, there are new and unique challenges that I’ve seen. One of the biggest challenges I’m faced with today is the democratization of photography. With the proliferation of smartphones and social media, everyone can now take photos and share them online. This has created a situation where people are less willing to pay for professional photography services, as they can often have their young staff do it while on shift.
In the recent months these challenges have come to the surface more than ever. My ongoing challenge now is to offer unique and creative services that cannot be replicated by smartphones and day to day posting.
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 am a Colorado native and grew up in Castle Rock. We had a darkroom in the house where my mom would develop and print film for her own photography clients. With both of my parents running their own business, I learned the behind the scenes of business early on.
I went to school for fine art photography and metalsmithing. I thought I wanted to be a jeweler. I loved the classes but photography was a stronger calling.
At 22 years old, I was bartending and flying Cessna airplanes to get my pilot’s license. Then, my instructor died in a plane crash over Grand Lake and I decided to take a permanent break and find a new passion.
I’ve been photographing professionally since 2009 and has been nationally published for her product and lifestyle editorial work. I can’t think of anything I’d rather be doing than making people smile and helping improve visual content for local business.
Can you share your view on NFTs? (Note: this is for education/entertainment purposes only, readers should not construe this as advice)
I can’t. I know this is supposedly going to be the next big thing, but there are so many ‘next big things’ right now that I have to weed some out. At least for now.
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
This might sound stupid but honestly, I just be a good person. I call people back promptly. I do what I said I would do when I said I would do it. And if there is a delay or a hiccup, I communicate what the issue is and make a new promise. People know they can count on me, and when I make mistakes, I clean them up promptly with communication. Integrity is a simple idea that I see business owners fail at all the time. Having it builds trust.
Contact Info:
- Website: http://www.raemirue.com
- Instagram: @raemirue
- Facebook: @Raemiruephotography
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/raemiruephotography