Montana Diaries Creative Business Blog
creative business resources, Shownotes, extra media, and links from the pod!
Building a brand that has NO competition ft. Eden Strader!
Eden Strader is a six figure photographer turned business coach who inspires creative entrepreneurs, artists, and makers to build a life of artistic growth, wealth, and personal power with carefully curated strategies in marketing, mindset, sales strategy, and self care through excavating her client's unique brand of magic. Everything Eden Strader is based on the concept that we should be building our dream businesses in order to have our dream lives - not stopping at the business as the final destination.
calling all photographers!
join me for my FREE masterclass: HOW TO UPLEVEL YOUR PHOTOGRAPHY BUSINESS USING VIDEO
EVERYTHING you need to know about integrating video into your photography biz without buying new equipment, getting super techy, or wasting your precious time!
WHAT YOU’LL LEARN…
1. Why video is KING online, AKA why YOU should incorporate video into your business strategy
2. The leg up that hybrid shooters have in the photo + video industries and why it IS possible to learn with your existing equipment
3. Action steps you can take RIGHT NOW toward incorporating video content!
HOW TO BUILD A BRAND THAT HAS NO COMPETITION
psssttt…
join us in the Facebook group, your space for talking all things creativity + business!
MEET EDEN STRADER
Eden Strader is a six figure photographer turned business coach who inspires creative entrepreneurs, artists, and makers to build a life of artistic growth, wealth, and personal power with carefully curated strategies in marketing, mindset, sales strategy, and self care through excavating her client's unique brand of magic. Everything Eden Strader is based on the concept that we should be building our dream businesses in order to have our dream lives - not stopping at the business as the final destination.
Build a brand that has NO competition!
Welcomeeee back to the pod — I’m so stoked to present this conversation with the lovely Eden Strader. Eden and I align so much on our values in business, it’s honestly insane. We both believe in building businesses that enable your dream LIFE. In this candid conversation, we chatted all about the evolution Eden’s business + brand andddd how she found her voice in the industry AND her life. This is a MUST listen.
A chat w/ Eden Strader:
We chat about Eden’s progression from good-girl mormon/Utah wifey to openly queer NYC badass creative
Finding your unique voice
Showing up online + being polarizing
Vanity metrics vs. bookings
Soooo much in between.
hey, photog friend!
If you’ve been wanting to learn videography with the gear you already own, I have a free guide just for you!
A copywriter's take on business, branding, and collaboration ft. Sydney Ludden
A copywriter's take on business, branding, and collaboration ft. Sydney Ludden
calling all photogs + videographers for a free online class — INSIDE LOOK: Our exact strategy for year-round elopement and destination wedding bookings
EVERYTHING you need to know to get fully booked year round by diversifying your portfolio, up leveling your customer experience, networking with purpose, and building a business that supports your dream life
HERE’S JUST SOME OF WHAT YOU’LL LEARN IN THIS FREE CLASS:
Booking high ticket ($10,000+) destination weddings and elopements (yes, even during a recession)
Portfolio building w/ purpose: how to build a portfolio that helps you book dream weddings
Nurturing vendor relationships, collaborating, and growing w/ your community
Getting the max return on investments in your business: making the most of every dollar you spend to grow your biz
A copywriter's take on business, branding, and collaboration ft. Sydney Ludden
psssttt…
join us in the Facebook group, your space for talking all things creativity + business!
MEET SYDNEY LUDDEN!
“I’m a corporate dropout and former brand director with over a decade of experience working in social media, public relations, brand management, and advertising. In 2019, I started my own creative company, Back Label Branding, to help women entrepreneurs launch and scale their marketing efforts. Because of my background, I bring a holistic approach to the picture and love offering advice on marketing strategy. As a copywriter and content creator, I often find myself collaborating with other creatives and it's something I'm deeply passionate about. This is what ultimately led me to also co-found Alinea Collective, a full-service branding agency built on the value of collaboration.”
A chat w/ Sydney Ludden
Hellooooo and welcome back to the Montana Diaries podcast, I’m Shayna and I’m so stoked you’re here as always — today’s episode is features a chat with Sydney Ludden. Sydney is a copywriter and the owner of Backlabel Branding, as well as the co-founder of Alinea Collective. Be sure to let us know what you think of the pod, and scroll down to get allll of the links discussed in this episode!
hey, photog friend!
If you’ve been wanting to learn videography with the gear you already own, I have a free guide just for you!
The fastest way to grow an elopement photography and videography business in 2023
The fastest way to grow an elopement photography and videography business in 2023
Hellooooo and welcome back to the Montana Diaries podcast, I’m Shayna and I’m so stoked you’re here as always — today’s episode is features a chat with my dear friend Devin of Backcountry Bohemians. Devin and I are obsessed w/ what we do andddd we’re hosting a content retreat in New Mexico this June! In this conversation, we go over the obstacles that are holding our fellow elopement photographers + videographers back from growing their businesses and finding the sucess they so desperately want…and that we want for them!
calling all photogs + videographers for a free online class — INSIDE LOOK: Our exact strategy for year-round elopement and destination wedding bookings
EVERYTHING you need to know to get fully booked year round by diversifying your portfolio, up leveling your customer experience, networking with purpose, and building a business that supports your dream life
Join Devin + Shay Thursday April 20th at 8PM Mountain / 7PM Pacific to blow upppp your elopement photography/videography business.
HERE’S JUST SOME OF WHAT YOU’LL LEARN IN THIS FREE CLASS:
Booking high ticket ($10,000+) destination weddings and elopements (yes, even during a recession)
Portfolio building w/ purpose: how to build a portfolio that helps you book dream weddings
Nurturing vendor relationships, collaborating, and growing w/ your community
Getting the max return on investments in your business: making the most of every dollar you spend to grow your biz
The fastest way to grow an elopement photography and videography business in 2023
psssttt…
join us in the Facebook group, your space for talking all things creativity + business!
TWO FULL TIME ELOPEMENT PHOTOGRAPHERS/VIDEOGRAPHERS GET REAL
In this episode of the Montana Diaries Podcast, I chat with Devin allll about investing in growing our businesses, money fears, client experience, values, and finding community.
The fastest way to grow an elopement photography and videography business in 2023
Hellooooo and welcome back to the Montana Diaries podcast, I’m Shayna and I’m so stoked you’re here as always — today’s episode is features a chat with my dear friend Devin of Backcountry Bohemians. Devin and I are obsessed w/ what we do andddd we’re hosting a content retreat in New Mexico this June! In this conversation, we go over the obstacles that are holding our fellow elopement photographers + videographers back from growing their businesses and finding the sucess they so desperately want…and that we want for them!
Andddd we want to continue this conversation in our free class, and in our New Mexico content retreat! I hope to see you at both!
hey, photog friend!
If you’ve been wanting to learn videography with the gear you already own, I have a free guide just for you!
Perfectionism is literally ruining your life and business lol
2023 Content Marketing Strategy for Creative Business — Hellooooo and welcome back to the Montana Diaries podcast, I’m Shayna and I’m so stoked you’re here as always — today’s episode is on literally my favoirte topic in the universe when it comes to creative business, which is creative business content creation strategy— I really just want to dive deeepppp on content in 2023, and I want to go hard on quantity and on service, so truly helping people on the photo/video side of my business and the business education side — I am such a huge believer in content marketing and I think brands will win when they go hard on content — can you tell I’m deep into Gary V’s universe!? I’m so bought in though, and if I can get you to buy in just a little I really really really think we can majorly impact the success of your business.
calling all photographers!
join me for my FREE masterclass: HOW TO UPLEVEL YOUR PHOTOGRAPHY BUSINESS USING VIDEO
EVERYTHING you need to know about integrating video into your photography biz without buying new equipment, getting super techy, or wasting your precious time!
WHAT YOU’LL LEARN…
1. Why video is KING online, AKA why YOU should incorporate video into your business strategy
2. The leg up that hybrid shooters have in the photo + video industries and why it IS possible to learn with your existing equipment
3. Action steps you can take RIGHT NOW toward incorporating video content!
PERFECTIONISM: TASTE VS. TALENT, PROCRASTINATION AND FEAR, MESSY ACTION, AND MORE!
psssttt…
join us in the Facebook group, your space for talking all things creativity + business!
PERFECTIONISM IS LITERALLY RUINING YOUR LIFE LOL
In this episode of the Montana Diaries Podcast, I share multiple stories revolving around perfectionism in creativity and business, why I’m so passionate about “messy action,” and other creatives’ perspectives on perfection.
Perfectionism is literally ruining your life lol
Hellooooo and welcome back to the Montana Diaries podcast, I’m Shayna and I’m so stoked you’re here as always — today’s episode is centered around one core principle that I know in my bones is true and I hope you can internalize: perfectionism will literally ruin your life and business. Fun!
A CONVERSATION ON PERFECTION:
Real stories from my life + business centering on perfection
Taste vs. Talent
Ira Glass on “The Gap”
Messy action
Liz Gilbert: “Done is better than good.”
Okay, friends, that’s really what I have for you for this episode — I really really really hope you’ll leave this episode with a new perspective on perfectionism and you’ll, like…knock it off and just take some sort of messy action today, just make something, literally anything.
hey, photog friend!
If you’ve been wanting to learn videography with the gear you already own, I have a free guide just for you!
In-Depth Q/A Business Coaching Call w/ Videographer Alexandra
Alex is a beautiful soul + a new videographer on the scene — she attended my very first content day last fall and she’s always had the most thoughtful questions on business, client relations, and creativity, so I knew she’d be the PERFECT first live coaching call on the Montana Diaries podcast. Alexandra serves the Missoula, MT area + beyond and you can follow along with her work + business journey at the links below!
calling all photographers!
join me for my FREE masterclass: HOW TO UPLEVEL YOUR PHOTOGRAPHY BUSINESS USING VIDEO
EVERYTHING you need to know about integrating video into your photography biz without buying new equipment, getting super techy, or wasting your precious time!
WHAT YOU’LL LEARN…
1. Why video is KING online, AKA why YOU should incorporate video into your business strategy
2. The leg up that hybrid shooters have in the photo + video industries and why it IS possible to learn with your existing equipment
3. Action steps you can take RIGHT NOW toward incorporating video content!
LIVE COACHING CALL w/ ALEXANDRA: ACTION ITEMS TO DO EACH DAY/FIGURING OUT A SCHEDULE, WHAT TO DO IN THE FIRST TWO YEARS OF BUSINESS, OVERCOMING PERFECTIONISM AND EGO, WORKING FOR FREE, AND SO MUCH MORE
psssttt…
join us in the Facebook group, your space for talking all things creativity + business!
MEET ALEXANDRA DONALDSON
Alex is a beautiful soul + a new videographer on the scene — she attended my very first content day last fall and she’s always had the most thoughtful questions on business, client relations, and creativity, so I knew she’d be the PERFECT first live coaching call on the Montana Diaries podcast. Alexandra serves the Missoula, MT area + beyond and you can follow along with her work + business journey at the links below!
In-Depth Q/A Business Coaching Call w/ Videographer Alexandra
Helloooo and welcome back to the Montana Diaries Podcast, I’m Shayna and I’m so stoked you’re here today because we have my very first live coaching call on the podcast with a really beautiful soul + up and coming videographer Alexandra Donaldson. Alex attended my very first content day last fall and she’s always had the most thoughtful questions on business, client relations, and creativity, so I knew she’d be the PERFECT first live coaching call on the Montana Diaries podcast. Alexandra serves the Missoula, MT area + beyond and it’s been such a pleasure to follow her growth as an artist and business owner so far, I know there’s so many amazing things coming her way because honestly this girl just works her ass off and implements like no other.
If you listen to this episode and you love it then apply to be on an episode like this yourself to ask alllll of your burning creative biz questions — just DM me at @shayna_lloyd or email me at shayna@montanadiaries.com to apply
APPLY FOR 1x1 COACHING WITH SHAY: montanadiaries.com/coaching to apply; My coaching clients can expect personalized PDFs recapping what we go over in our calls after each session, complete with super specific, actionable homework to help you get closer to your goals. I’m a business coach for action takers — no over-researching or learning as a form of procrastination. If that sounds like your thing, then go to montanadiaries.com/coaching
Alsoooo if you want to get on the wait list to be the first to know about my in-person education and content days, aka how I met Alex, then info on that can be found at montanadiaries.com/content-days — Everyone who signs up to that list also gets a free educational PDF called Portfolio Building with Purpose…anndddd, ya know, it’s exactly what it sounds like. I teach you how to build your portfolio with strategy in mind.
AN-DEPTH Q/A W/ AN UP-AND-COMING VIDEOGRAPHER
ACTION ITEMS TO DO EACH DAY/FIGURING OUT A SCHEDULE
WHAT TO DO IN THE FIRST TWO YEARS OF BUSINESS
OVERCOMING PERFECTIONISM AND EGO
WORKING FOR FREE
WHAT DOES “IDEAL CLIENT” EVEN MEAN??
Anndddd that was a live Q/A with videographer Alexandra Donaldson— how amazing is she!? I really do love how thoughtful and intentional this woman is, and I encourage you to go give her a follow on IG to follow along with her business journey. I expect great things from her! Remember to email me to be on a live coaching episode, applying for real intensive 1x1 business coaching with me complete with actionable homework, getting on board with an in-person education event, you know…all the things. Links are below!
hey, photog friend!
If you’ve been wanting to learn videography with the gear you already own, I have a free guide just for you!
2023 Content Marketing Strategy for Creative Business
2023 Content Marketing Strategy for Creative Business — Hellooooo and welcome back to the Montana Diaries podcast, I’m Shayna and I’m so stoked you’re here as always — today’s episode is on literally my favoirte topic in the universe when it comes to creative business, which is creative business content creation strategy— I really just want to dive deeepppp on content in 2023, and I want to go hard on quantity and on service, so truly helping people on the photo/video side of my business and the business education side — I am such a huge believer in content marketing and I think brands will win when they go hard on content — can you tell I’m deep into Gary V’s universe!? I’m so bought in though, and if I can get you to buy in just a little I really really really think we can majorly impact the success of your business.
calling all photographers!
join me for my FREE masterclass: HOW TO UPLEVEL YOUR PHOTOGRAPHY BUSINESS USING VIDEO
EVERYTHING you need to know about integrating video into your photography biz without buying new equipment, getting super techy, or wasting your precious time!
WHAT YOU’LL LEARN…
1. Why video is KING online, AKA why YOU should incorporate video into your business strategy
2. The leg up that hybrid shooters have in the photo + video industries and why it IS possible to learn with your existing equipment
3. Action steps you can take RIGHT NOW toward incorporating video content!
2023 CONTENT MARKETING STRATEGY FOR CREATIVE BUSINESS: Defining your marketing goals, crafting consistent value-packed long form content, focusing on quantity for short form content
psssttt…
join us in the Facebook group, your space for talking all things creativity + business!
2023 Content Marketing Strategy for Creative Business
Hellooooo and welcome back to the Montana Diaries podcast, I’m Shayna and I’m so stoked you’re here as always — today’s episode is on literally my favoirte topic in the universe when it comes to creative business, which is creative business content creation strategy— I really just want to dive deeepppp on content in 2023, and I want to go hard on quantity and on service, so truly helping people on the photo/video side of my business and the business education side — I am such a huge believer in content marketing and I think brands will win when they go hard on content — can you tell I’m deep into Gary V’s universe!? I’m so bought in though, and if I can get you to buy in just a little I really really really think we can majorly impact the success of your business.
DON’T FORGET TO SNAG THE FREE PDF GUIDE THAT GOES ALONG WITH THIS EPISODE!
CONTENT MARKETING STRATEGY FOR CREATIVE BUSINESS
CREATIVE BUSINESS CONTENT CREATION
What is your goal? What do you ultimately want people to buy/do?
How can you serve your audience related to what you want them to buy/do? What questions do they have? What problems? What do they need to know?
Craft 1 piece of long form content each week related to the above
Break it up into a tonnnn of content for short-term marketing platforms like IG, TikTok, etc.
Email bby
Download the guide above to follow along with the episode!
hey, photog friend!
If you’ve been wanting to learn videography with the gear you already own, I have a free guide just for you!
Tracking the health of your creative business in 2023
Tracking the health of your creative business in 2023: A biz + life update from Shay, all about process oriented vs. product oriented tasks, KPIs, and more!
calling all photographers!
join me for my FREE masterclass: HOW TO UPLEVEL YOUR PHOTOGRAPHY BUSINESS USING VIDEO
EVERYTHING you need to know about integrating video into your photography biz without buying new equipment, getting super techy, or wasting your precious time!
WHAT YOU’LL LEARN…
1. Why video is KING online, AKA why YOU should incorporate video into your business strategy
2. The leg up that hybrid shooters have in the photo + video industries and why it IS possible to learn with your existing equipment
3. Action steps you can take RIGHT NOW toward incorporating video content!
Tracking the health of your creative business in 2023: A biz + life update from Shay, all about process oriented vs. product oriented tasks, KPIs, and more!
psssttt…
join us in the Facebook group, your space for talking all things creativity + business!
TRACKING THE HEALTH OF YOUR CREATIVE BUSINESS IN 2023
I’m so stoked to present this episode allllll about tracking the health of your creative business in 2023 — join me as I pull back the curtain on my life + business in 2022, my big plans for 2023, how I plan to track all of my goals, and how YOU can implement a strategy for doing the same in a way that aligns with your unique business.
BE SURE TO DOWNLOAD THE FREE GUIDE THAT GOES ALONG WITH THIS EPISODE:
TRACKING THE HEALTH OF YOUR CREATIVE BUSINESS
TRACKING THE HEALTH OF YOUR CREATIVE BIZ:
I get v personal w/ pulling back the curtain of my life + biz in 2022
Process oriented vs. Product oriented
KPIs — Key Performance Indicators
Don’t forget to snag the free guide above and follow along!
hey, photog friend!
If you’ve been wanting to learn videography with the gear you already own, I have a free guide just for you!
TikTok Queenie Kelly LaVallie on aging, beauty, communication, and business!
In her day job, Kelly LaVallie, CPA helps women navigate the financial implications of divorce from understanding the family finances to negotiating and structuring the financial settlement. In her book, Untying the Knot, Kelly shows you how to manage your thoughts and feelings so you can untangle your finances with a clear head and calm heart. Kelly also brings her professional and personal experience to her candid sharing about life, from money to fitness, to aging on her social media platform.
calling all photographers!
join me for my FREE masterclass: HOW TO UPLEVEL YOUR PHOTOGRAPHY BUSINESS USING VIDEO
EVERYTHING you need to know about integrating video into your photography biz without buying new equipment, getting super techy, or wasting your precious time!
WHAT YOU’LL LEARN…
1. Why video is KING online, AKA why YOU should incorporate video into your business strategy
2. The leg up that hybrid shooters have in the photo + video industries and why it IS possible to learn with your existing equipment
3. Action steps you can take RIGHT NOW toward incorporating video content!
TikTok Queenie Kelly LaVallie on aging, beauty, communication, and business!
psssttt…
join us in the Facebook group, your space for talking all things creativity + business!
MEET KELLY LAVALLIE
In her day job, Kelly LaVallie, CPA helps women navigate the financial implications of divorce from understanding the family finances to negotiating and structuring the financial settlement. In her book, Untying the Knot, Kelly shows you how to manage your thoughts and feelings so you can untangle your finances with a clear head and calm heart. Kelly also brings her professional and personal experience to her candid sharing about life, from money to fitness, to aging on her social media platform.
KELLY LAVALLIE
Welcome to my life coaching session w/ TikTok sensation Kelly LaVallie haha! We riff on this a bit at the beginning of the pod, but I seriously just reached out to Kelly and told her I could really use a conversation with her and she graciously accepted. Kelly is exceptionally wise, funny, and beautiful -- all of this is just to say that I appreciate her perspective on life and I figured you would too! I hope you love listening to this episode as much as I loved recording it.
A chat w/ Kelly LaVallie, CPA + TikTok Creator
I don’t even know how to introduce today’s conversation with Kelly Lavallie except to say that I deeply admire her eloquence, perspective on life, and her grace, intention, and consistency around content creation — I found her on TiKTok and I just wanted to TALK to her, plain and simple, and I also wanted you to hear what she has to say on vitality, aging, beauty, communication, and her career. Here’s what we covered:
Kelly speaks to her philosophy on saying YES
Aging as a woman: the exterior package, mindset, and attention from men!
How to not be an “old fucker”
Judgement vs. Discernment
Being a CPA specializing in divorce
hey, photog friend!
If you’ve been wanting to learn videography with the gear you already own, I have a free guide just for you!
35: DEEP dive with expert social media marketer Katie Love
KATIE LOVE
Helloooo and welcome back to the Montana Diaries Podcast, I’m Shayna and I’m so freaking stoked you’re here because today we have an incredible guest, Katie Love! Katie is an expert social media strategist. She’s helped numerous businesses turn followers into real sales and leads. Katie has a decade of social media experience under her belt! She loves creating engaging content and branding for each of her clients.
Katie worked for TV stations across the country and as a news reporter, she learned to brand herself through social media. Now, she loves telling business owners' stories with engaging content, video and graphics. We had an incredible conversation about her journey from news caster to social media strategist.
calling all photographers!
join me for my FREE masterclass: HOW TO UPLEVEL YOUR PHOTOGRAPHY BUSINESS USING VIDEO
EVERYTHING you need to know about integrating video into your photography biz without buying new equipment, getting super techy, or wasting your precious time!
WHAT YOU’LL LEARN…
1. Why video is KING online, AKA why YOU should incorporate video into your business strategy
2. The leg up that hybrid shooters have in the photo + video industries and why it IS possible to learn with your existing equipment
3. Action steps you can take RIGHT NOW toward incorporating video content!
KATIE LOVE: DEEP dive into pitching, social media marketing, scaling, and creative business
psssttt…
join us in the Facebook group, your space for talking all things creativity + business!
MEET KATIE LOVE
Katie got her start in the news industry, from stations all across the country to the Today Show and The White House. While covering the news wasn’t her true calling, it did develop a strong storytelling talent and a desire to connect people.
Katie understood the power social media was gaining and wanted to use it to help female-led businesses thrive—while also easing the pressure and stress that comes with running a business.
So, with a strong support system and a leap of faith, she started Love Social Media.
These days, Katie enjoys helping her clients take social media off their plates and loves managing her talented, family-like team.
KATIE LOVE
Helloooo and welcome back to the Montana Diaries Podcast, I’m Shayna and I’m so freaking stoked you’re here because today we have an incredible guest, Katie Love! Katie is an expert social media strategist. She’s helped numerous businesses turn followers into real sales and leads. Katie has a decade of social media experience under her belt! She loves creating engaging content and branding for each of her clients.
Katie worked for TV stations across the country and as a news reporter, she learned to brand herself through social media. Now, she loves telling business owners' stories with engaging content, video and graphics. We had an incredible conversation about her journey from news caster to social media strategist, but Before we jump into the interview with Katie, here’s a kind review of my signature course Videography for Photographers by a past guest on the pod and in incredible Pinterest manager Teresa Dietrich:
“Social media analytics have told us over and over again that video is the thing that is doing well. This course not only goes through how to actually film video and hybrid shoot, but it also goes over why it NEEDS to be in every photographer’s marketing strategy and business plan! Adding videography will not only add value to your client’s experience but will also uplevel your marketing strategy! Videography for Photographers is the perfect place to learn and start video!”
Teresa, thank you so much for your kind words. If you would like a shout out of your own, then write a review of the podcast on the Apple Podcasts app — it takes less than two minutes and it helps the pod grow! If you’ve everrrrr enjoyed or learned from the free content on this podcast, please please please review it and leave your IG handle so I can say thank you! Now onto the interview with Katie Love.
A chat w/ Katie Love — the “why” behind social media marketing and whether or not you should outsource it
Katie started off by telling us about her first career as a journalist — her beat was missing children, and figured out the power of social media through sharing about these children on her social media accounts. Her transition out of her career was a winding path, including recovering from a serious injury and learning how to rely on others’ help as she healed.
The early portion of her business included a ton of pitching to small businesses to try to gain social media marketing clients without having experience to offer. Katie chats about the hard transition between offering free + cheap labor, to then trying to charge after proving results. This is an excellent conversation for every business owner struggling with pitching and communicating value!
We chatted all about systemizing the approach to social media, which became especially necessary for Katie once she reached 15 clients on her roster. She gave behind the scenes insight on hiring in her business in order to scale, and how she created a system for onboarding clients, creating content calendars for her clients, and reviewing the analytics as they carried out their strategy.
As Katie’s business grew, she recognized the need to create time and communication boundaries with her clients. It became a huge priority to ensure her team avoided burnout and overworking — and today, that is the biggest pride point of Katie’s career, that the women who work with her feel safe and empowered and taken care of in the workplace.
“When you realize something isn’t being done and needs to be, and that thing isn’t your zone of genius, if you don’t enjoy it...that’s the best time to outsource ANYTHING. You can be more productive doing what you love. ”
Katie recognizes that there are different phases of creative business — her business, Love Social Media, offers different tiers and services depending on the phase of business clients are in.
I highly, highly, highly recommend this podcast episode for EVERY creative entrepreneur no matter what phase of business you’re in. I went in thinking it would be all about social media strategy, and it ended up being one of the most heart-centered and REAL chats about entrepreneurship and marketing I’ve had on the pod. I can’t wait to hear what you think!
hey, photog friend!
If you’ve been wanting to learn videography with the gear you already own, I have a free guide just for you!
26: 5 steps to systemizing your content strategy!
5 steps to systemizing your content strategy! We’re talking alllll about batching, friend.
“Instagram is no longer a photo sharing app.”
When head of Instagram Adam Mosseri said that via an IGTV video this summer, I watched as photographers freaked the eff out on photography Facebook groups, on their stories, and yepppp my DMs.
Sooo… I wrote a free guide for YOU, photog friend. This guide is a DEEP DIVE into video marketing for photographers — not only do I provide tangible, actionable strategy for batching video content for YouTube, IGTV, Facebook, TikTok, and Reels, but I take the time to discuss the WHY of it all. Aannndddd this isn’t one of those guides where I throw up information on you that you have no hope of implementing during your busy photo season — I’m a working videographer and photographer, so I freaking get the struggle to implement a content creation strategy. As always, I’m here to meet you where you’re at with what you have
5 steps to systemizing your content strategy!
psssttt…
join us in the Facebook group, your space for talking all things creativity + business!
Let’s talk batching.
When I batch content, that means I’m aware of what I’m trying to DO with my content during the time period I’m batching for. I know exactly when I’m posting it and why I’m posting it. It’s brainless and emotionless by the time I actually post — soooo this helps me be process oriented rather than product oriented. When you’re process oriented, you’re carrying out the system without worrying about the result. If I were to create and post in real time every day, I might get discouraged by video views or other vanity metrics and not post the next day because my brain would say, what’s the point? Butttt since everything is done, I’m removed from emotions about the product and I’ll instead just focus on the process of carrying out the system. The content is batched and done — I just need to finish the process by posting.
WHY I BELIEVE IN BATCH CREATING CONTENT
So, to begin this episode on batch creating content I want to start by explaining a bit about WHY I believe so strongly in batching. I’ve tried it both ways, friend — I’ve flown by the seed of my pants with my business and I’ve batched and planned like a crazy person, and the second method is how things freaking get done.
I lack focus, I get really emotionally attached to results, and my mental health goes in wavessss and all of these things are a freaking recipe for disaster if there aren’t systems in place. Sooo what does it mean to have batching a part of your system? Batching is the process of grouping like tasks together and just getting them all done at once — so when it comes to batching content, this means producing a tonnnn of content all at once and having a plan for when it gets put out and what the purpose of the content is.
When I batch content, that means I’m aware of what I’m trying to DO with my content during the time period I’m batching for. I know exactly when I’m posting it and why I’m posting it. It’s brainless and emotionless by the time I actually post — soooo this helps me be process oriented rather than product oriented. When you’re process oriented, you’re carrying out the system without worrying about the result. If I were to create and post in real time every day, I might get discouraged by video views or other vanity metrics and not post the next day because my brain would say, what’s the point? Butttt since everything is done, I’m removed from emotions about the product and I’ll instead just focus on the process of carrying out the system. The content is batched and done — I just need to finish the process by posting.
So, productivity and systems and efficiency wise, batching is great because it’s a better use of my time. Mental health wise, batching is great because it removes emotion from the result and doesn’t require much energy when it comes time to actually post.
Next, we’ll get into the actual steps to batching content, and that’s also where we’ll talk about another benefit of batching — which is being super focused and strategy driven with the actual content you’re batching.
STEPS TO BATCHING CONTENT
I’m adopting a strategy that I’m adapting from one of my mentors in business, Amy Porterfield — she teaches to make 1 piece of original content per week, and I’ve found this serves me really well when it comes to serving my audience.
Define the time period you’re batching for — start monthly, it’ll feel more manageable — you can work up to quarterly later if monthly batching feels easy. So, basically, if you’re sitting down to write a month of content — that’s one per week, so about four pieces of amazing original content. That’s not too bad, right!?
Reverse engineering what we’re trying to sell — so basically defining our money makers and promotions that will be going on during the time period we’re batching for. Like, in July, I don’t think I’ll be trying to push my course much for wedding photographers because they’ll be in the middle of their busy season — it wouldn’t make much sense to target them, they’re too busy for a course. Instead, I might write content aimed at branding photographers.
Brain dumping ways to serve customers and potential customers — this goes hand in hand with the above point, obviously, but goes a little deeper into brainstorming ways you can SERVE the people you ARE talking to. If we go with the first example, I want to create content that serves brand photographers? Well, I could talk about ways brand photographers could be upselling video, how video helps their clients and would be attractive, ways to do it that won’t be much extra work, how they can position themselves as the expert for THEIR clients, etc. I would make a big list like that and you know what? A lot of the ideas won’t be good, but my page won’t be empty anymore and the rest of the process will be much easier.
Big piece of content > aim for 1 per week
Brain dump what goes into that piece of content — I’m working on having frameworks for mine, which I’ll get into later
Set a timer and write poorly!
Set another timer to edit
Have a system for repurposing those big, juicy pieces of content across platforms. That’s right — noooo more content made just for social media. Your piece of original content for that week can easilllyyyy be made into social media posts for the week that will work everywhere, with a little bit of tuning up.
hey, photog friend!
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