Category Archives: Small Business Chat

Welcome to Saturday business chat. This weekend’s chat is with Charles Davis of Professional Photography.  I met Charles at a local networking event and he is generous at introducing people to each other if he thinks they can help each other at such events, which is very encouraging to new people. He’s also happy to share tips and encouragement with other people about their photography and is generous with re-tweets, etc., in social media circles. Charles has brought his wealth of business and communication experience into his career as a photographer: as well as being good with the camera, a successful photographer must be able to engage with people. Like me, he’s not missing the politics and conflicting priorities that often arise as part of working for a large corporation, instead enjoying being his own boss! And giving back through voluntary work is also important to Charles: in his case this has resulted in new opportunities, too.

Let’s meet Charles and find out about his interesting background and widening portfolio …

What’s your business called? When did you set it up?
My business is Professional Photography, and although I have produced professional quality photography for friends and family all my life, it was formally set up in 2010.

What made you decide to set up your own business?

After successfully growing both responsibilities, my Post as Fundraising & Communications Director for a large Charity was split into two roles for Fundraising & Communications.  I therefore decided to take the redundancy package offered instead of taking one of either of the roles. However, as I felt I had successfully completed my work with the organization and I’m always looking for opportunities, I saw this as a perfect time to start my own business and do something I love.

What made you decide to go into this particular business area?

My father ensured I had a camera in my hands at a very early age and since then I’ve never stopped trying to improve my skills as a photographer.  This, together with my love of beautiful images and state-of-the-art technology, makes for an exciting combination as a 21st century photographer.

Had you run your own business before?

My first career was in the Police Service, where I specialised in the protection of Royalty and VIPs as part of the Special Escort Group, and I further went on to become a Tactical Advisor & Team Leader in Firearms Operations, although the only thing I shoot nowadays is a camera!  Yes, I’ve run a number of different operations, training and consultancy, advanced motorcycling and testing, a national association plus multi-million pound fundraising and communications teams for two high profile charities.

How did you do it? Did you launch full-time, start off with a part-time or full-time job to keep you going … ?

Full-time.  The decision had to be full-time to be able to give the commitment, time and effort to give the business a good chance of succeeding.  Building a client base is a slow but sure process and, as they say in sales, “you’re only as good as your last sale.”  Well, in photography you’re only as good as your last few shoots.

What do you wish someone had told you before you started?

My previous experience prepared me for many challenges in business although I was surprised how many prospect clients are prepared to put up with a low quality or average quality of service from their existing provider and sometimes appear to be too lazy to want to make the effort to change to a new supplier.  Essentially you need to make it as quick and simple for them as possible to make the change, whilst of course providing excellent images.

What would you go back and tell your newly entrepreneurial self?

“I should have done this years ago!”  It’s the truth: I’m totally enjoying myself, doing something that I love with no one pulling you in different directions in terms of objectives, and essentially I don’t have to play the politics that are so often there in large organizations.

What do you wish you’d done differently?

The success of our new website, launched in October 2011, has exceeded my expectations, and looking back, when I started the business in 2010, I should have built a much better website from the start.

What are you glad you did?

Made the decision to do something I love and for myself!  The satisfaction and lovely, lovely comments you receive from clients on completion of an assignment are a great reward as photographer.  It’s not often in life you get to do something you love!

What’s your top business tip?

Network, Network, Network!  As a big fan of social media and face-to-face networking groups, it’s essential to get you and your business out there!  Time-consuming, I would agree, but with relatively no costs but your time, you need to meet new people on a regular basis and have state-of-the-art joined-up social networks.

Also try to give something back: it doesn’t have immediate benefits but long-term you will be surprised at the opportunities that arise.  I’m part of a number of membership based associations, and in particular MIPAA, the Motor Industry Public Affairs Association.  When I started my business, I also put myself forward to join the Operating Committee of MIPAA and its Executive Team.  Since that time, numerous opportunities have arisen from my voluntary work.  This also applies to local charities and new start-up businesses, where I offer to do the occasional photo-shoot to help them with an event or to get their marketing campaigns started.

How has it gone since you started? Have you grown, diversified or stayed the same?
My portfolio of work is broad, and strategically so.  I’m just as happy shooting a Cherish the Dress, Wedding or fashion shoot as I am on a commercial shoot for a product.  Producing the best images possible, with a little editing, can really exceed a client’s expectations, and is so, so rewarding.

Where do you see yourself and your business in a year’s time?

I’ve recently been lucky enough to pick up interest from a number of up-and-coming fashion designers and been asked to become their official photographer, which is flattering to say the least.  Whether reportage, still life, or traditional, using a variety of photographic styles is still key for me when telling the story. My photographic work  offers a visual representation of my unique perspective, exploring the depths of beauty and style, whilst hopefully still portraying elements of the classical. I feel my work retains relevance to 21st century client, and I plan to keep it that way!

It’s amazing that you can meet someone a number of times, have in-depth conversations with them, and never know they have guarded royalty and VIPs! I wish Charles the best of luck with his new and expanding work areas, and look forward to hearing how he gets on over the next year.

Find Charles at his website www.professionalphotography.me.uk, email him, or phone him on 07824 444 487.

If you’ve enjoyed this interview, please click here for more freelancer chat, or here for information on how you can have your business featured.

Welcome to Saturday Business/Freelancer Chat. And it’s with … well, me! I realised that I should have interviewed myself, plus this will be published on Christmas Eve and it didn’t seem fair to give anyone else a slot when not many people were looking at the internet; this way there will be 50 interviewees, plus me, plus a rest on New Year’s Eve! I run a company called Libro through which I do proofreading, copyediting, writing, transcriptions and localisation for companies and individuals around the world. I have some great regular customers and then do one-off jobs for people too. I’ve launched my business the way that felt comfortable to me as I went along – a “soft launch” which involved me still being supported financially while building the business. Now it’s a whole new chapter for Libro, which is very exciting!

So, I’ve been running Libro for a couple of years now, I went full-time with the business recently, and I’m enjoying that (and writing a blog about it). Here are my answers to my own questions …

What is your business called? When did you set it up?

My business is called Libro. I set it up in August 2009 when a colleague at the library where I worked at the time mentioned he had some students who needed help with dissertation proofreading. It’s blossomed from there!

What made you decide to set up your own business?

I had done writing and editing work in a lot of my previous job roles, and done (unpaid) proofreading and editing for novels and journals in the past. When I discovered a need for my services, and close at hand, I decided to go for it and register my business with the Inland Revenue, etc.

What made you decide to go into this particular business area?

I knew I was good at the work and could provide a good service. As I’ve gone along, I’ve added more services to my portfolio, mainly in response to demand, but knowing they were skills I could cover. I started off working with students, as I used to type up dissertations for people back in my own student days, and I had access to the client base via colleagues, many of whom were post-graduate students who could put up posters for me in their departments or recommend me to their friends.

Had you run your own business before?

No! And anyone who knew me before I launched would be very surprised – I am an unlikely entrepreneur!  Just because I’ve always been in the background, doing admin, setting up systems and helping people, rather than being out at the front promoting myself! I have done a lot of different jobs in several different companies, and those have come in handy.

How did you do it? Did you launch full-time, start off with a part-time or full-time job to keep you going … ?

I worked full-time at my library job from when I launched in August 2009. I went to 4 days a week at the library in January 2011, 3 days a week in May, and officially leave the library completely at the end of December 2011, although holiday owed to me and university general holidays mean that I’ve actually been full-time since December 12.

What do you wish someone had told you before you started?

That I could do it, and that I should have faith in myself.

What would you go back and tell your newly entrepreneurial self?

Go part-time – or more part-time, earlier! Enjoy the process and start a blog!

What do you wish you’d done differently?

I do wish that I’d taken the opportunity to go more part-time earlier. I could have dropped two days at the library from January 2011 but I lost my nerve at the last moment. I then had a very hectic time of it as Libro expanded to fill the space!

What are you glad you did?

Went on the HMRC “becoming self-employed” course. Started my blog – hits on my website increased hugely when I started blogging, and I really enjoy it, too! I listed Libro on a few free ads sites and joined a professional translators’ website which has brought in lots of jobs and a great return on investment. I’m also glad I’ve done it, full stop: I’m really quite proud of what I’ve achieved!

What’s your top business tip?

Trust your gut instinct. Put good systems in place including strong terms and conditions. Treat every mistake and mishap as a learning experience – you’ll get a blog post out of it, at least! And give something back, too. Sharing advice and doing bits and pieces for people I’ve met at the Entrepreneur Meetup and helping out at the Social Media Surgery has helped me stay true to who I am. Oh – and be honest – with your clients, setting expectations – and with your peers. Allow yourself to be vulnerable and seek support from those you can trust.

How has it gone since you started? Have you grown, diversified or stayed the same?
I’ve grown and diversified as I went along. I started off proofreading student dissertations, then was asked to write something; well, I’ve written plenty of procedures and newsletters so went for that. Transcription – well, it’s just audio typing! And being on the translators’ site has brought me localisation work where I can bring my experience working for a US company to bear on helping “translate” text from US to UK English. I’ve basically done anything to do with words, even copy typing. I think it’s important to have a range of services to offer. And I have clients all over the UK and in America, Canada, across Europe, India and China!

Where do you see yourself and your business in a year’s time?

Well, I’ll have been full-time with Libro for a year. Hopefully I’ll be earning enough to support myself, I’ll have taken a holiday or two, and have a good solid roster of regular clients to keep me going.

Exciting times, then, for me, and a good, if different, year ahead! Where was I in a year’s time? Here!

You’re on my website already. You can email me – and you can also find me on Twitter  and Facebook.

If you’ve enjoyed this interview, please click here for more freelancer chat, or here for information on how you can have your business featured.

Welcome to the newest freelance chat interview – and this one’s with someone I’ve known for years!  I met Zoe Austin back in 2005 or 6 when we were both working at the University Library. We met via BookCrossing (she had some books to donate to the library’s BookCrossing Zone) and bonded over that and the lovely earrings she made to sell for the library charity. We kept in touch when Zoe moved away to Cambridgeshire to study Music Therapy, and I’ve been interested and proud to see her set up this creative and helpful business. As well as teaching standard music lessons, Zoe is expanding into using her qualification to provide professional Music Therapy sessions to people in her area.

Personally, I find it very interesting to see what people in the creative sector have to say about business – there are many ways the more traditional of us can learn from this and use their ideas in our own lives and businesses. So let’s say hello to Zoe!

What’s your business called? When did you set it up?

I registered my name as ‘Zoe Austin Music & Therapy’ but at the moment I am marketing it as ‘Zoe Austin Music’. It will probably change again soon!  I began teaching music privately whilst at Exeter University in 2001-2002 to make a bit of extra cash, but took it up again properly in 2009.

What made you decide to set up your own business?

I qualified as a Music Therapist in 2008 from Anglian Ruskin University with the plan to establish a part-time private practice whilst working in a related field for my day job, looking for other Music Therapy work for an agency like the NHS in the meantime. Well, the Music Therapy has not quite appeared yet in the way I had hoped (watch this space!) but I have been able to continue with what I call ‘standard’ music lessons and ‘therapeutic’ lessons/sessions in which I have taught, for example, a client with mental health difficulties and another with Down’s Syndrome.

Since September 2010, I have been teaching on a Saturday with the Cambridgeshire Music Fenland area academy, teaching and conducting young people. I have found this to be immensely rewarding and it has further cemented my lifelong love of music and the fact that, when I am sharing music in this way, I am living my authentic creative life. This is the reason why I am now expanding my business: so I can make music my livelihood as well as my life’s work.

What made you decide to go into this particular business area?

 If you’ve enjoyed this interview, please click here for more freelancer chat.

After a brief hiatus, the Libro blog is back with the next in our series of Saturday freelancer interviews. It’s been a difficult time for businesses and society over the past week, but one way we can pick ourselves up and drive the recovery forward is to get on with business as usual, ensuring we’re making money to put back into our local economies.

So, my next subject is Andrew Donnelly, who set up a mobile apps and websites development company that’s been running for just a year.  Andrew’s followed yet another path as he started his business, continuing to work as a contractor to bring in the money (so a bit like soft-launchers like me, who are still employed part-time, but a little bit more independent).  Andrew’s another 4N member and he talks about the value of networking – but in his case, being in the right place at the right time and embracing the opportunities offered by new technologies have kickstarted his new career.

What’s your business called? When did you set it up?

My business is called iphonemobileapp and has been set up for 1 year now. We specialise in the development of Apps and Websites to run on mobile devices.

What made you decide to set up your own business?

Having always been interested in mobile development, it was becoming frustrating working on mobile IT only in short bursts when the work came in, rather than full-time.

What made you decide to go into this particular business area?

It’s always been a big area of interest of mine; even before iPhones were launched I was interested in development on phones. When the iPhone came out, it was the perfect opportunity for me.

Had you run your own business before?

I had contracted for 7 years previously.

How did you do it? Did you launch full-time, start off with a part-time or full-time job to keep you going … ?

In between freelance work, I have taken contracts to keep the money coming in to pay the bills. When I have downtime, I’m still working, but on my skills, aiming to improve them more and more.

What do you wish someone had told you before you started?

That I could do it. Like everyone taking that big leap, it can be really scary at first. One year down the line, my confidence is high and the timing seems right for what I have done.

What would you go back and tell your newly entrepreneurial self?

Plan, Plan, Plan and more Plans; it’s all well and good having an idea, but as time went on, putting a business plan together helped me stay focused and gave me goals to achieve.

What do you wish you’d done differently?

Networked a lot more in the early days. Having just discovered networking, it’s a breath of fresh air to me and my business. Not so much in sales, but in terms of contacts and opportunities.

What are you glad you did?

Worked hard – it’s not a 9-5 job, it’s a 24/7 365 days a year thing. You have just got to keep at it.

What’s your top business tip? 

Trust your gut feeling a lot more than you do. It’s generally 99% right.

How has it gone since you started? Have you grown, diversified or stayed the same?

Still the same size, but now I have access to a lot of contacts to help me out.

Where do you see yourself and your business in a year’s time?

Hopefully on a much more solid footing, with a good client base. (Find out what he’s doing a year on!)

If you’re interested in knowing more, Andrew’s website is down at the moment for contractual reasons, but his phone number is 07795 511 083 and you can Tweet him.

Thank you for being my first app developer interviewee, Andrew! Click here for more freelancer chat.

Welcome to my second interview with a fellow freelancer.  These are running every Saturday, and are aimed at sharing our experiences in setting up and running our own businesses.  This does gives people a chance to showcase their businesses, but the main aim is to share and encourage.  Each interview includes the same questions, and I’ll be revisiting my interviewees a year after their original interview is published, to see how things are going.

Today we’re going to meet Carl Nixon; I first came across Carl on the 4Networking forums and he’s also on Twitter.  Carl is based in Wales and his business, Excel Expert, has been going for 2 years, so it’s about the same age as Libro.

What’s your business called? When did you set it up?

It is called Excel Expert and we are just coming up to our 2^nd birthday.

What made you decide to set up your own business?

Mainly being bored of my job. I worked for Admiral Insurance for 10 years setting up and maintain their systems and procedures for the elephant.co.uk brand. Once all the bugs were worked out there was very little challenge left so I found myself just turning up for work at 9, wasting my day and going home at 5.  I should have left years before but it was a genuinely good place to work and I was a part of a great team

What made you decide to go into this particular business area?

I’ve been a geek and a lover of all things maths all my life so it was almost a no-brainer. I could have equally gone down the database route rather than the spreadsheet route, but I chose spreadsheets because there was less competition. It’s really strange, because databases are becoming our main focus.

Had you run your own business before?

Prior to working for Admiral I ran businesses for other people but never my own.

How did you do it? Did you launch full-time, start off with a part-time or full-time job to keep you going … ?

I started out with the aim of starting part-time and going full-time when I hit a certain turnover. However I was never going to hit that threshold because I never had the time to produce that much turnover. So I just bit the bullet and went for it.

What do you wish someone had told you before you started?

Expect to spend several times more money and time on marketing than you plan to.

What would you go back and tell your newly entrepreneurial self?

Spend more time on marketing and concentrate earlier on eliminating the marketing, working,  marketing, working cycle.

What do you wish you’d done differently?

Not left it until I was 40 to start up a business

What are you glad you did?

Making the leap from part-time to full-time. It is a big leap of faith but it just makes it so much easier to get your business really going.

What’s your top business tip?

Has to be fail fast – As soon as you see something not working or going wrong, get right on it. Either fix it or bin it.

How has it gone since you started? Have you grown, diversified or stayed the same?

We tried to diversify but it was a nightmare. By offering more core services you dilute your marketing message and as a result it becomes weak and doesn’t have so much reach and impact.

Where do you see yourself and your business in a year’s time?

Hopefully employing people so I can take on more work.

Carl’s website is here and you can call him on 029 2125 1450

Thank you for joining in with the interviews, Carl!  The information on going full-time from part-time was particularly interesting for me, and I’ll be interested to see how things are going in a year’s time, as we’re in fairly similar lines of business but with different expansion plans. Here’s how Carl is doing two years down the line …

Click here for more freelancer chat.