(Photo by Brandon Erlinger-Ford on Unsplash)
Be over prepared... to not only fulfill your postponed jobs, but also to pick up on jobs that other companies are unable to fulfil when the ‘bounce back’ comes.
We have certainly seen dramatic changes in our lives over the past weeks and we can certainly expect more changes to come. The decisions you make right now will have a massive bearing on how your company performs when BAU returns.
Schools and clubs may be shut down anywhere between weeks to months and even then, don't expect to start your jobs right away, it’s an unknown factor, out of our control. The only thing we can do is to plan and think differently about how our businesses can survive and operate in the future. I have put together some of my thoughts here below.
1. Language
What is the language you are using with your contacts - Don’t mention the 'C' word (CANCEL) ! Use Postpone, or Reschedule instead. Be careful if you decide to approach your contacts as you (your business) are the last thing on their mind right now!
2. Time to plan
Take the time to develop a strategic business plan, now that you have ‘down time’, use it to 'bounce back'. Planning should involve, cash flow outlook, reducing manual labour, competitive advantages, marketing, scale and growth - This should be done every year!
3. Creating revenue while not photographing - Put your marketing ‘cap’ on!
The most valuable asset of your business is your database. Use your data from previous years to market directly to parents through your online store - Perhaps you have a special new template/product/price that you can put out to your database.
Have you heard about ‘The Lipstick Effect’ - Read here: (https://www.investopedia.com/terms/l/lipstick-effect.asp)
You may want to assess your marketing so you are not ‘exploiting’ the current situation - Be authentic in your approach.
If you have old jobs and data that you have not transferred to online, you will benefit for the short and long term
4. Opportunity - Be prepared for the ‘Bounce Back’
The most important thing that you can do right now is to plan and be prepared for when schools and clubs resume. When life returns to ’normal’ there will be a huge demand on photography operators to ’fulfill’’ as many jobs before the end of the year/season as possible.
Your limiting factor in this scenario is your capacity. Your capacity to photograph schools and clubs is limited by your workflow, staff and hardware (cameras etc) . How are you prepared for this opportunity?
Be over prepared - to not only fulfill your postponed jobs, but also to pick up on jobs that other companies are unable to fulfil when the ‘bounce back’ comes. Those that are ready will succeed.