Follow the links for "the story so far" in our series on the recession... Yes, times will be tough for a while but you shouldn't assume the sky is falling. It makes no sense to sacrifice your business and market reputation to survive the short term challenge. Instead you may need to pull your horns in and find ways to prosper while others decline. A good place to start is by analysing your budget and business model, and we have a spreadsheet to help with that. Most people react to the threat of declining sales by saying, "I've gotta cut my costs". Everyone needs to work out their own figures, but your own personal income is probably your biggest "cost" by far. Do you want to cut that? Go figure. Your actual job costs (eg albums and printing) are likely to be less than a quarter of sales. Cutting them may really mean short-changing your clients, a dangerous strategy. And your asset replacement and overhead costs are probably just as significant. Take a lesson from farmers, who know that bad years are a reality. They put their cheque books away until the good times return, but meantime they take care of the farm! If you are your own biggest cost, it follows that your time is your biggest asset. What could you do with it? Maybe get out from behind your computers, look for stuff you're doing for little or no return and become a marketer instead. The good news is that most reactions are knee-jerk. Most of your competitors won't be thinking about adding value – they'll focus instead on slashing their prices and/or their costs. So, how can you add value (for your clients) and profit (for yourself)? A good place to start is with the realities of the wedding and portrait market. One thing the recession hasn't changed is that professional photography is totally open, with inexhaustible supplies of new competitors. The Weekend Warriors and the Art School Graduates, all with fancy cameras, many with the ability to use them. What's worse, these enthusiasts may be offering prices a tenth of yours. And as fast as they go out of business, a new lot take their place, coming over the horizon like the enemy in an old John Wayne movie. It's got a bit tougher, but the challenge is the same: how do you make a decent living in a totally free market like this? Here's a clue. In thirty years I've personally come across only one up-market wedding photographer, with a long-term career, who didn't depend on albums to showcase his wedding photography. The other thing I've noticed is that many studios use albums because everyone else does, but they don't understand why. So how does it work? How can albums increase your profits? Please email Nigel for the password, then click here to read on. Cheers, Ian PS Queensberry's logical album-based marketing strategies have been used successfully by our clients for many years. Whether you're new to professional photography or just want a reality check, we'd love to hear from you.