“PhotoBiz has been an integral part of growing my business and fueling my passion for helping others grow theirs too,” says Erin Raduazo of Erin Rose Photography.
“My business focuses mostly on family, from maternity and newborn, to extended families here in Charleston, South Carolina. I'm passionate about recording family history, something that I know will be cherished for so many generations to come,” says Erin. She enjoys meeting so many different people from many different places, “... from the local growing families of Charleston to those that vacation here in the summer.”
Erin believes she is best known in Charleston for her beach work. She’s even been called the “Beach Queen'' because “that's really where my business took off and still thrives to this day. I take sessions at sunrise and sunset for over 100 beach clients each year, creating portraits against a beautiful sky and scenic ocean.” Erin says summer days can last from 4:00 AM until 9:30 PM, with the early sunrises and late sunsets. She’s working on ways to balance it all.
“I love the quiet and calmness of the beach itself, the sounds of the waves are so relaxing to me, especially when they're rather empty at sunrise and sunset. Obviously the colors of the sky at those times are unbeatable, but once you put a family in there it creates this masterpiece that I visualize hanging on their walls at home,” says Erin. “I love expressions of kids running through the waves, searching for shells, and chasing seagulls. I can get SO much variety in a single session typically only lasting about 30 minutes.”
Erin says her love for photography started in high school and she pursued it in college. “I don't think I had a clue what I wanted to do with my college degree, but after receiving my BFA in photography I tried my hand working for a portrait studio and wedding photographer up north. I learned so much, I just never saw that sticking as a full time career for me so I drifted for a while.” Once she moved to Charleston, “living in such a beautiful place with so much variety really inspired me to take the leap to start my own business, and it's been flourishing ever since!”
Erin says she continually works to learn the business side of photography, and also occasionally takes photography classes. She shared, “I've found that learning more about the business side has really sharpened me overall.” She spends her time learning about finances, SEO, and the client experience. Erin says the continued education has made her a better photographer and business person. “I think to be sharp and successful you have to know your weaknesses and do everything you can to improve those,” she says.
Erin has used PhotoBiz for more than a decade (thank you!). “From the get-go I found the customer service to be the best I'd ever experienced, so that was comforting since it was all very overwhelming at first.” She says PhotoBiz has helped improve her SEO, workflow, and customer experience. “I have been able to utilize my contacts section for everything from marketing emails, reminder emails, prep guides, and getting questionnaires filled out. That has greatly improved my client experience because they feel cared for and prepared for a successful session with me. And from the SEO side, the easy-to-customize keywords and metadata have been a game changer for getting my page at the top of Google searches. I don't even advertise anymore, my website is so beautiful and functional that people find me via Google and book right after submitting their inquiry!”
Erin has updated her website with PhotoBiz many times, and says the biggest help has been our how-to videos and blogs explaining how best to utilize all of the PhotoBiz tools.
“Breaking it down like that actually makes the process of creating and customizing so easy! And if I was ever stuck I knew I could rely on the team of experts. I actually remember getting one-on-one help over the phone when I needed to [update] my site.” Erin shared how the support team has always gone above and beyond to answer her questions. “I now tweak my website on a quarterly basis, and I get compliments on it constantly from clients!”
Erin says that as her business has grown, she has begun helping other photographers navigate their businesses. “When you devote your life to becoming an expert in your industry, I feel like naturally you want to pass that along to others to make their lives easier,” she says. Erin thinks at some point, she would like to mentor other family photographers and create educational resources for those starting out.
Her advice to aspiring photographers is “Hone YOUR craft, brand, and product based on the clients you'd like to serve and then go above and beyond to treat those clients like gold. Great customer service and consistency is the key to client retention and word of mouth referrals!”
Give us a call at 866.463.7620 to talk about how we can support your photography business and try out our easy-to-use platform! We want to support your business.
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