photo: Mark Shaw
FALLIN’ IN (AND OUT OF) LOVE WITH YOUR BUSINESS?
Let’s play True or False to find out…
1: Just the thought of marketing yourself and your business makes you throw up in your mouth a little bit: TRUE or FALSE?
2: You dream of a specific team of collaborators but don’t quite know how to connect with them: TRUE or FALSE?
3: When you look at your digital galleries, it’s a bit all over the place and even you aren’t sure what you’re selling: TRUE or FALSE?
4: You used to want to buy your clients a drink…now want to throw one in their face: TRUE or FALSE?
5: There’s a disconnect between how you envision your brand and how others see it: TRUE or FALSE?
If you answered “True”
to any of those questions, it’s time to
work through a few things.
Don’t sweat it; we all go through some emotional downs in our business (sometimes that leads to a side-hustle affair). Lucky for you, Editor’s Edge is a great relationship therapist. So just lay back (on our imaginary leather couch), read up and start fallin’ back in love with your brand.
WARD OFF NAUSEA: Authentic content is like ginger ale to ward off marketing queasiness. Create content that really connects with your ideal client and you’ll never have to bust out the barf bag again.
PLAY THE FIELD (PROFESSIONALLY): Is there a special someone arranging flowers you have an Insta-crush on; or do you keep pinning images by the same art director? Reach out! Gush over how awesome they are (everyone loves a compliment) and propose a collaboration. It could be a match made in industry-heaven.
GET A (DIGITAL) FACELIFT: What you show is what you get. Sit down with Dr. 90210 to curate your perfect aesthetic. Giving your work a nip/tuck will make sure you’re keeping up with the (young) competition.
EMBRACE EVOLVING RELATIONSHIPS: Your business isn’t as young as it used to be, you’ve outgrown a few things...like those clients who want everything to stay the same – including your rates! They say people come into your life for a reason, and you’re grateful for the support from your long-time clients, but you’ve got to keep moving forward. Be clear in communicating who your brand is and the type of work you're (currently) accepting; we bet they'll start taking you out for drinks.
SEE YOURSELF MORE CLEARLY: Mirror, mirror on the wall…we all know how that tale ends. There’s no magic apple for this one, only honest feedback will wake you up and get you on the right path. Soon enough everyone will be seeing eye to eye with your brand clearly.
It’s about falling back in love with your work. From embracing a new (leaner) look to finding your tribe, being true to your brand will take a sad song and make it better. Soon enough you'll be singing it from the rooftops!
Still wondering, “where is the love?”