I'd like to propose perhaps the single most important part of forging client and project relationships: choosing the right ones to begin with. If you've done diligence, and put effort into choosing the clients and projects you work on, it generally becomes MUCH easier to finish them both on time, and on budget so everyone ends up happy. The truth is that everyone has the luxury of choosing who and what projects you take... in fact it is a right and a privilege afforded by living in this free market.

Smaller, newer companies are often prime targets for bait and switch type deals, promising big dividends for only a 'little bit of free work' or speculative work. There are plenty of red flag phrases that serve as warning that this might be the wrong project. Probably the most common (and most dangerous one) is "We don't have money now, but this idea will pay for itself and we'll pay you later", which often means "We haven't even written a full paragraph in our business plan yet".

Once upon a time, I thought it was bad business practice to ask the question "what is your budget for this project?" because it seemed to me at the time that I was coming across too pushy, trying to scrape every cent available from the client. However, I have since learned that this should essentially the first question that is asked. A project or client without a budget, or at least a budget range, is a client without a plan or a strategy. The exception here, is when a client knows exactly what they want, and are looking for a price. However, the role here is primarily vendor, not consultant. This is a key separation to be aware of.

No one goes shopping for a home without first visiting the bank to determine what they can afford. No one who is looking to purchase a new vehicle does so without first knowing approximately what the are able to afford. This budget will determine whether your new vehicle is a Pinto or a Maserati Spider. The same is true with creative. Will this shiny new website be a full fledged interactive online social marketplace backed by a national advertisement campaign, or a WordPress template blog with $5 / month in facebook advertising? Will this photo shoot be an hour in the local park to be used as a facebook profile picture, or a team of 50 models, producers, assistants and 13 shipping containers full of equipment traveling to Patagonia to market a worldwide sports chain?

The key here is to know what you are getting into. Learn the clients history and the back-story of the project. Be sure that there is a financial plan and a strategy to back up the big ideas. A little wisdom and foresight here can go a long ways. Learn to recognize the 'red-flag' hooks that might be tossed your way. Always operate on a fair, transparent contract, and never undersell yourself for the promise of future success. Free cheese burgers won't get you anywhere, instead, focus on consistent, good work at the right price to pay the real long term dividends for your business.

Relationship is #1. Easy to say right? I'm sure everyone already agrees with this statement with regards to business in general - but what does this actually mean for those of us in the business world, specifically the creative industry? Whether we realize it or not, we form and maintain relationships almost every moment of every day. Every phone call, email, meeting, facebook or twitter update, tip given to a waitress, middle finger flashed in the rear view mirror... these are all facets of our day to day relationship building (or destruction). How are we presenting ourselves? Who are we presenting ourselves too?

There are really 3 key internal and external relationships that are critical to our success in business: clients, vendors, and internal team members. My next post will deal with vendors and team members, however today i will be focusing mostly on clients... clearly, you can't really call it a business unless there is a client, someone actually purchasing the service or product.

There is a key phrase I have been repeating almost relentlessly over the last few months: 'do good work, do it consistently, and eventually the right person will notice'. This simple statement really is the foundation for the success of any business. The problem is that without relationship, no one will ever notice your excellent work. There are thousands of individuals and agencies out there who are more than capable of creating absolutely top notch work on a variety of mediums, but many are unable to find anyone that is interested in their work to give them a call. So how do we find these people? On the scale of our local community, Calgary, marketing and advertising can be both diverse and competitive. How can we find a way to fit into the nationwide picture?

The answer, which i'm sure you've already guessed, is relationship... with who? Well, everyone! Although the scale of this concept differs with the scale of your company, the foundation is still the same. Everyone you meet or talk to is your client. The practical side of this is that you yourself are your company. You're best representation of the quality of your work, and the quality of your service is quite simply how you interact with everyone you meet on a day to day basis.

The slippery slope of success is a difficult place to navigate, especially early on. The truth is that you never know where your next referral will come from, and who. This is critical: treat everyone you meet with the same extreme level of professionalism and quality. As a growing company, many of our biggest contracts and clients have developed out of the smallest and most insignificant projects. These projects and clients that some may write off as irrelevant may be the one opportunity that you did not expect that turns into that big break. In the heat of a competitive market such as the city of Calgary marketing, advertising and relationships on even the most insignificant level must literally radiate quality and excellence.

Maybe instead of just 'doing' good work consistently, we need to live our good work right on our sleeve. Live professionalism, do it consistently, and eventually the right person will notice.

Part two: Vendor relationships. Stay tuned!

There is a fine line can separates over-catering to actually profiting as a company or individual. In every industry, there is always a minority that assumes that licensing something is the same as purchasing. It often becomes commonplace to assume that paying money for something automatically includes the rights to re-purpose it, or at the extreme, reselling it all together. To make matters worse for photographers specifically, many have become accustomed to utilizing sites such as flickr.com as free stock photography sites, many have come across their images on all manner of web and print advertising. This has helped create sort of an un-spoken atmosphere of 'everything digital is free'. Even in chats with friends and partners in the Calgary marketing and advertising scene, it is amazing sometimes how even established communities of professionals can cut corners and publish unlicensed intellectual property.

Of course, this certainly isn't the case. Copyright law is very clear in both the US and Canada that unless transferred in writing, copyright and ownership always remains the property of the creator.. for the purposes of this blog, the photographer. There are of course certain exceptions (mainly with regards to work for hire), however, it is important to be clear that the only thing that is ever purchased, is a license to use an image, for a specific purpose, for only a specified amount of time.

So what can we as service providers do? Well, for starters, here are a few things that I have developed as my own personal policy as I have developed my business over the last few years:

1) Remain professional. Above all things, remain professional. This includes having the proper documentation (contracts, licensing, image releases, model releases) for your business, and using them. Be clear on what they mean, and don't leave anything to guesswork. Also, be as clear and open as possible with regards to your timelines. We all get busy, however it is important to maintain open communication with everyone. That way, no one needs to make assumptions, which is never in anyone's best interest.

2) Educating clients and partners. Many companies that hire photographers often don't fully understand copyright law, licensing, or what it actually means to hire a photographer. It is our job as photographers and intellectual property creators to educate our clients and customers.. Often this is simply sitting down in those initial meetings to discuss licensing and terms up front. This won't just help you and your client, it will help out all those photographers down the road who may work with the same client. Of course, all of this talk won't mean a whole lot unless all this is put in writing, which brings me to:

3) Contracts and releases. This is the single most underestimated and yet by far the most important aspect of any business, let alone photography. To protect yourself, your clients, and your fellow photographers, always write a comprehensive contract and get it signed with a witness. This contract will serve as a guideline and scope for both the work and the deliverables and timeline for the project. It is crucial at this point that licensing is clearly stated, so that there are no surprises down the road.

4) Educating our peers. Part of my own personal mandate with this blog is to emphasize the importance of helping each other and giving back. Many photographers undersell themselves simply from a lack of industry knowledge and business sense in general. It is hard on the individual photographers, and it is hard on the industry as a whole, and in some cases does lead to a devaluation of intellectual property.

5) Stand your ground. Although we always need to be sure to go the extra mile for the client, it is crucial that intellectual property creators everywhere stand firm on their rights. Really, this is just a reiteration of point 4 regarding contracts and licensing. If you don't have a signed document, you often don't have a foot to stand on, thus opening the door to trouble and potentially a bad name. In a city like Calgary, marketing and advertising can be pretty competitive and word travels fast. Having a bad reputation can follow a company or individual around for years.

For some further reading on the subject, I certainly recommend that you visit a few of the following resources that have helped me with my own business development over the past few years:

Photoshelter - Perhaps the most valuable resource available to photographers to date. A great blog, hundreds of informative PDF's, and a powerful back end system for photo licensing and sales.

Chase Jarvis vs. K2 - A recent lawsuit involving a large, multinational corporation, and a commercial photographer. An excellent lesson in licensing and business, and an excellent precedent set by Chase.

Smashing Magazine - A fantastic resource for any freelancer, designer, or photographer. Plenty of articles and info relating to the business side of things, as well as more practical stuff.

Photo.net - A great forum and resource for photographers. The forum is a good place to ask questions, and the "learn" tab is home to hundreds of articles ranging from business to technique.

There are many more as well, feel free to post some other useful links in the comments.

What I am talking about is two things: Personal work, and projects for people with influence. Personal work is a no brainer.... it might be helping your buddy shoot a skateboard video, or doing a photo series on a subject that means something to you personally. I have a variety of projects that I am currently working on that have helped me gain both exposure, and skill. The beauty of personal work is (as www.chasejarvis.com swears by) that you get a chance to shoot what you love, and what you want to shoot. Naturally, when you are doing work that you love, you are going to put heart and soul into it. This is the kind of work that you will want people to remember you for because it is the kind of work that you WANT to do. Honestly, visit chasejarvis.com for a much better writeup on this subject.

Doing 'charity' or opportunistic work for 'people of influence' is really the subject i want to put out there. I recently had an opportunity to do a quick photoshoot with a professional athlete who is also a good friend of mine. What started as a simple photo shoot ended up being a connection with a professional trainer looking for website work/photography, and the phone number and a handshake with the media relations manager with the team the fellow worked for.

Did i make any money on this project? No. But I wasn't intending to. It was simply a favor for a friend, that was returned without any effort on my friend's part. So, who is a person of influence? A person of influence is, quite simply, someone who you trust who isn't just abusing the opportunity for free work. Anyone with any ability to read people at all can tell the difference. A person of influence doesn't have to be famous, rich, popular.... a person of influence can be anyone at all...Influence is merely potential, because you never know who you might meet in the process. This is why I started this blog with the statement "never turn down anything". The value of such a project will never be realized until you do it.... simply by putting yourself out there. It's amazing how much potential work i've gotten simply by going out and doing simple projects for friends. Almost every time I step out my door i end up with a business card, or a phone number and a handshake for someone looking for a freelancer.

Have you ever done something for free that ultimately earned you another job? Did you discover some unforeseen influence that helped you gain exposure or a new project?