Author: Chris Darbonne
Publisher: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
Date: March 25, 2013
About The Author
Chris Darbonne quit her job working for an automotive company to open a photography studio. Her honest and conversational writing style may give you some insight into a retail photography studio. Learn what she did wrong, and also all the things she did right. Chris discusses things to be prepared for as well as techniques that worked.
What Went Wrong?
Some research states that up to 50% of all small businesses fail. Chris Darbonne shares her experience of opening a retail photography studio that no longer exists. This book details the lessons that she learned.
The author is very candid about the mistakes that she made in her business. The first chapter tells about an aggressive saleswoman who sold Ms. Darbonne an advertisement at a movie theater. The price of the ad was thirteen thousand dollars for the ad to run for eight months. YIKES! The author learned that it was not wise to make hasty decisions when it comes to purchasing advertising. Ditto for aggressive Yellow Pages sales reps.
Ms. Dabonne also shares "What I Did Right" in her business. One decision that was "right" was hiring two photographers from the College of Creative Studies. These assistants were very helpful in building the business and offering a wide variety of products. However, the author regrets the fact that she did not do a better job training the assistants to handle telephone inquiries about her services and pricing.
Would Ms. Darbonne do it again? Her answer is YES! She is happy having gone on this adventure and is OK with where she is now.
My Thoughts
I have read quite a few books about how to succeed in business. I enjoyed reading this honest appraisal of mistakes that led to the closing of this business.
The author is very upbeat about the lessons she learned in this adventure. I think this book would be an interesting read for any aspiring photographer AND anyone thinking about starting a small business.
The lessons is this book are very clear. HAVE A PLAN AND PROCEED SLOWLY. The author states that she is no longer taking pictures. That is a shame. I hope she will eventually regroup and start again...a little older and a little wiser.
My Rating: 4 Stars Out Of 5
FYI ~ I ordered a digital copy of this ebook from Amazon.Com during a free promotion. Please check the current price before ordering.
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