We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Vanessa Serrato a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Vanessa thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Getting that first client is always an exciting milestone. Can you talk to us about how you got your first customer who wasn’t a friend, family, or acquaintance?

My huge breakthrough in my photography business was Christmas minis in 2020. It was the first dollar my business earned, officially, and my expectations in my delivery for the final product were high despite my customers being new. Like any time you get your first job, I was also very excited to create something memorable with my customer. I created my own outdoor set up with the help of my mom and husband, and it was a huge hit! Even though it was my first time doing mini sessions, the experience helped me gain a lot of confidence in the potential success of my business and my future customers.

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?

My name is Vanessa Serrato, and I am 24 years old. I am a portrait photographer based here in Houston, Texas. My journey as a photographer began when my mom decided to purchase a Canon camera to take pictures for my sister’s college graduation. My mom loved having pictures taken of her and would always make me take them for her. As I continued to take more and more pictures, I began to really love the process of capturing these special moments for other people. In 2022, I decided to take a risk and quit my full time job as a dental assistant to start my very own photography business with the help of my mother and brother. It wasn’t easy, but I created an Instagram and Facebook page, reached out to people, and focused on being as creative as possible to really give people a reason to come to me for their photos! My very first Christmas minis was a success, and soon after that, I began to grow on my social media platforms and book more people. I love what I do as it allows me to really step out of my comfort zone by creating new backgrounds from scratch, finding the best possible poses for my clients to use, and getting the right angles to create the perfect pictures. This is only the beginning as I look forward to expanding my business even more.

We’d love to hear the story of how you turned a side-hustle into a something much bigger.

After becoming a mom, I realized that I needed a job that could provide me a perfect work-life balance to be with my son, and so I started doing small mini sessions. Photography provided me an outlet to turn a hobby I loved into a business while raising my son. As my business has grown, I’ve began to expand the services I provide by including full sessions such as graduation and maternity photoshoots along with seasonal mini-sessions like for Valentine’s Day and Christmas.

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

My most effective strategy for growing my clientele has been predominantly social media, but also customer retention, and customer referral.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://book.usesession.com/i/7gEOI9IcP
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/serrato_photography20?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/VanessaSerrato20?mibextid=LQQJ4d

Image Credits
Main photo sandratakesphotos