Low-Hanging Fruit: the art of prioritising

Running a small business feels like we are on a never-ending hamster wheel of ‘to dos’.  Posting on instagram, managing client admin, editing, newsletters, accounts, website updates, headshots, boosted posts, upskilling, systems set ups… it’s a lot.

And when it gets overwhelming, a lot of people get paralysed.  Like a deer in the headlights, they just freeze, unable to move forward or back. 

I’m not immune to that feeling.  And while I know that each of our brains is a uniquely wonderful creature, the key to becoming unstuck is working out how to prioritise in a way that works best for YOU.

For me, it means just doing something.  Anything.  

Completing the smallest, easiest, least important task on my list is better for me than staring at a screen paralysed.  Usually, if I abandon the hard task and focus on something easy, I will get into a flow and everything will be manageable after that.  

Another way is to focus on the things that are going to have the biggest impact for the smallest amount of effort.  Look for the biggest return on investment.    

This graph is from a study, done by some corporate big-wigs, which looked into what elements of customer service are important to clients and – most fascinatingly, in my opinion – whether they are actually worth paying for.

If you’re a visual person, this should help you.  The things in the top right corner are essential for a successful business; while those in the lower left are the nice to haves. 

This graph unlocks the secret to great customer service – and it’s really very simple.  It’s efficient, convenient, knowledgeable, friendly, and easy.

There are some smaller, more nuanced things I think are super interesting about this graph:

1. Investing in efficiency is the biggest return on investment in your business.  It matters to your clients AND they’ll pay more for an efficient process.  It’s the first thing any business should work on improving.  But the thing I love most about this is that it also benefits you!  Find efficiencies in your biz, and your clients will love you for it, spend more, and you’ll end up with more time to move on to all those other things on the list.  It’s a no-brainer.

2.  Personalisation + human interaction are both significantly less important and less valuable to your clients than an efficient, easy and convenient process.  The number one objection I hear to systemising workflows within a photography business is a fear that it’ll lead to a lack of personalisation.  Efficiency and personalisation are actually not mutually exclusive – but even if they were, the former is far more valuable to your clients.  So focus on the systems which make your life easier and your clients’ experience better – and sprinkle the personalisation over the top once you have enough breathing room to rediscover your magic.

3. Tasks which photographers typically spend a disproportionate amount of time on – aesthetic tasks – are pretty low down on both counts.  How many hours have you spent mucking around in Canva, or obsessing over your instagram grid pattern this week?!  Brand image and design are an important part of the overall picture, but they aren’t make or break for clients, and they’re not going to boost your bottom line.  So next time you think a rebrand is going to solve all your problems, pause.  Step away from the shiny new logo, and consider where you could use your time to give more value to your clients than a new colour palette and font pairing.

4. Automation is really low down this chart – which, as a systems expert, made me a bit sad for a minute there.  The truth is, it doesn’t really matter to your client whether things are automated or not.  As long as it’s efficient and convenient, they don’t mind. However, automation does have a huge impact on the sustainability of your business.  For most photographers, who are juggling the mental load at work and at home, automating parts of your process is the only way they can consistently deliver their client experience to the standard you want (and the standard that clients need).  And, of course, that creates a convenient, efficient and easy process for our clients – which we know they love – and will pay for. 

The key take away, really, is that while everything on the graph is important, we cannot do everything at once. We have to prioritise, otherwise we will get nowhere.   Reach for the low-hanging fruit.  The simple tasks that you can do quickly, or bigger tasks which are going to have great return on investment.

“People who can focus, get things done.  But people who prioritise get the right things done.”

I want you to grab a pen and paper, and write down the ONE thing that you need to level up or improve in your business right now. (Seriously, ONE). What is going to move the needle most for you? Where are you finding the most friction in your process?  Is it your offer/pricing, lead generation, conversions, or systems? 

Then, list THREE practical things that you could do to move yourself towards that goal.  They should be defined, actionable tasks.  For example, watch a training module, redraft your website home page, update your pricing, set up gallery automations, draft some template emails, overhaul your contact form, boost an instagram post… 

Finally, set a sensible deadline for those tasks.  It’s a marathon, not a sprint – just stay focussed along the way!