Small business is anything but small in our economy.  Small businesses represent over 99 percent of firms with employees.  They generate almost half of the total private payroll in the United States and have generated sixty to eighty percent of all new jobs per year for the last ten years.  It is also interesting to note that fifty-three percent of small businesses in the U. S. are home based.

These businesses need photography, particularly in this age of the internet.  Even if a business does not yet have a web site, it soon will.  It is rapidly becoming, if it isn’t already a stark necessity.  Over the next ten years it has been predicted that there will be over 15 billion more web sites.  That is a lot of photography!

Conceptual stock photos, or descriptive stock photos?

There are two basic different types of stock photos that will be needed, conceptual and descriptive.  Conceptual shots are useful for businesses that deal with such hard to illustrate themes such as financial services, insurance, banking and various non-product oriented businesses.  Realistically, most business can use both.  For example, if you run a dry cleaning business and you want to print out a flyer you might use a picture of a shirt on a hanger…or maybe something like a two people rolling out a red carpet…to indicate the service orientation of your business. 

If you shoot pictures of shirts on hangars to fulfill those needs you might license a lot of them to dry cleaners.  If you shoot people rolling out a red carpet your market suddenly becomes dry cleaners, bed and breakfast inns, even auto repair shops.  A picture of a red carpet representing superior service can work for large, medium and small businesses alike.  The market for your stock pictures becomes that much larger.  When the stock photo in question reads quickly as a small thumbnail, you dramatically enhance your chance of the image being chosen. 

You can shoot a shirt on a hangar for little cost.  To shoot two people rolling out a red carpet is probably going to cost more and take more time.  It will also be more difficult to shoot really well, and may need a lot more post.

Shoot the concept, shoot the story

A good way to approach this whole problem of what and how to shoot would be to shoot a shirt on a hangar (descriptive shot), a suit of clothes spread out on a bed (illustrating preparation), a model fixing his tie (again, preparation), similar shots with a woman model.  Perhaps even the two asleep in bed, waking up, turning off the alarm clock, getting ready in the morning, fixing breakfast, washing dishes, a close up of dirty dishes in the sink, and, eventually, rolling out the red carpet.  In other words, set up a shoot around a concept, and when appropriate, work through a story with your photographs.

Have a shot list, stick to it

To prepare for your photo shoot visualize each shot, each step.  What props will you need?  What wardrobe? How will you need to light it?  Allow plenty of time for each shot, for the transitions between shots, and for wardrobe changes.  Wardrobe changes can dramatically increase the number of selects you can get.  But such changes can slow you down too.  I always print out my shot list and check each one off as I complete it.  If there is a clothing change I stop and review my list.  I always have enough extra shots built in that if one shot just isn’t working, I can move on to the next.

Get the shot, but don’t over shoot

There is a fine line between moving on too soon, and not shooting enough.  The trick is to know when you have your shot and it is time to move on.  I have improved the efficiency of my shoots tremendously by slowing down and paying more attention to each shot rather than just firing away and then firing away some more because I haven’t paid enough attention to really know if I gotten what I wanted.

Take time to check your work

At least two or three times during a shoot, if at all possible, I will stop what I am doing and check a few shots on my laptop to make sure that my photos are in focus and the details are looking right.  I’d rather find out problems during the shoot than after the models have gone home!

Slowing down yields more

Take the time to plan your shoot, create a comprehensive shot list, visualize the process of each shot, plan carefully for props and wardrobe, take your time, review your work, and reap the rewards. You will be glad you took the time and whether they know it or not, the small business that needs your work will be glad too.



E Law Blog

As an entrepreneur and owner of 3 companies (Payroll Associates, Sparkle Pool Service and CompanyMileage.com) I have invested in both my own businesses and the stock market.

The reality is those of us in small businesses are able to cut cost quickly..as my father taught me early on in business “you can’t control your revenue but you can control your costs”. In my 13 years of owning Payroll Associates we dealt only with small businesses and learned how they were able to adapt to changes in more ways than just layoffs. With my new venture, CompanyMileage.com we are selling a cost cutting services called MileageTracker to larger organizations, and there is a huge learning curve.

A great example is a division of a Fortune 1000 company that by utilizing our MileageTracker solution is going to save them over 1.5 million dollars a year..Great news for us right? Not really, the sales cycle to earn their business even during these trying times is over 6 months.

It is not the fault of the decision makers, it is the system. It is time for large organizations to act like small businesses, and cut all costs before layoffs vs. the other way around.

• Layoffs damage a company’s foundation and slow their ability to grow when the economy turns around (which it will).

• Layoffs create a disloyal environment

• Layoffs create a fear in the workplace

How to fix? Well let’s get big businesses to quickly react the way those of us in the small business community. My ideas are simple.

• Each team submits fast tract cost cutting measures with cost / benefit analysis

• Each division prioritizes these cost cutting measures

• Financial team prioritizes and implements

• Any cost cutting measures that are that are below a certain threshold can be implemented directly by a team

• Bonuses paid to creators and owners of the measures

• Set a short time frames

Though our service may only cut 1.5 million (its a lot to most of us, but a rounding error for large organizations)..What if there were 20 measures like this that all took a year to implement.

This company could cut 30 million in a year (or prevent 600 layoffs).

By the way at our pool company we (easily) cut over 50K in expenses and continue to be fully staffed and ready for the upcoming summer..In my 13 years at the payroll company we never once had a layoff.

Helpful links

CNNMoney.com – Layoffs aren’t the answerhttp://money.cnn.com/2009/01/27/markets/thebuzz/

NYTimes – More Companies Are Cutting Labor Costs Without Layoffs

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/22/business/22layoffs.html



Giga Flux

Every street corner you turn shows the marks of many small business developments.  I believe if we don’t support these businesses, then America’s streets will be like ghost town, and this can economically scarry to people that depend on them.  This is why we need small businesses to exist.  Did you know in 2005 about 587,592 jobs were outsourced to foeirgn countries?  These jobs were outsourced by big companies not small companies.  small companies are loya to Americans employees.  I think companies that keep shipping jobs over seas, and causing too many jobs should not get tax break from the government.  I know some people will say but it’s too expensive and there too many overheads for these companies in the U.S. but they forget to know that it cost lot to reestablish to in a foreign country as well.  These companies must also understand that the consumers buying power in these countries is not as strong as the American consumers. 

 

  Countries like India and China are reaoing the rewards of outsourcing why this country is falling apart economically.  50% of workers are hored by small businesses.  This is very important for the government to understand now, and no more waiting.  The government should provide, not just loans but grants to people small businesses that need them the mosti f banks don’t.  Big are being bailout, it’s for small businesses get a bail as well.  By the way you must understand that most of big companies today started as small businesses.  You never know what small businesses can do in the future.  It’s time that taxpayers dollars work for small businesses as well. 

 

  Outsourcing kills Americans jobs.  Many lose their jobs.  we can’t keep encouraging people to get degree, and can’t find a job after that.  This make no sense at all.  I believe outsourcing is one of the reasons why we’re in this mess today.  We keep bailingout big companies and they keep failing.  It’s time some real leadership.  People that manage small businesses have better management skills because they keep thriving, why the big keep failing.  we have to work with one voice and and support small businesses before it’s too late.  we have to jeep fighting for what we want.  Never give in to the recession pressure.  For those seeking opportunities and financial freedom visit my resource box at www.mlmeducationblog.com email: prince@unlimited-wealth-online.com  phone: 612-306-4920



E Law Blog

Jd Stratis asked:


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As in any business endeavour, doing isn’t planning…doing is doing! This easily translates to the difficulty one has to undergo during the execution of his or her email marketing efforts. Stop thinking and start doing. It’s a good thing that numerous methods, usually inexpensive, abound to speed and facilitate the building up of one’s small business marketing opt in database.

Maintaining proper records of your small business marketing opt in database can pose a problem to some.Opt-in Technology and quality sources should be employed in making this function of your marketing more controllable. The best quality groups of opt-ins with the greatest results should be taken noted of.



Wallpaper Union