Rethinking Your Business Model
[by Jay Kinghorn]
Recently, I gave a presentation to students in the photojournalism program at the Missouri School of Journalism. Understandably, they’re a little daunted by their job prospects after graduation. Traditionally, students pursued an internship while in school, then moved into a full-time position at a newspaper after they graduated. Today, many of those positions have vanished.
However, the need to tell stories, report the news and inform an audience using pictures hasn’t. I encouraged them to rethink the boundaries of how and where they tell their stories; to critically examine what it is they provide their clients and the general public (insight, information, context, entertainment), then seek out clients who will pay for those qualities.
Photographers of all stripes need to go through the same exercise, however tough it may seem. The editorial, advertising and corporate assignments that were once the bread and butter for our industry have disappeared, become commoditized or pay so little they make it virtually impossible for a professional to make a living.
But the need for photography remains. In fact, the uses of photography have exploded. To me, this is a sign that there is tremendous opportunity for photographers willing to ask hard questions to identify the value you provide clients, how this serves their bottom line, and how you can position your business and your photographs to meet these needs.
In the span of eleven years in business, Jay Kinghorn has reshaped his business three times. The current incarnation, Kinghorn Visual, Inc., looks at the Web as a tool for telling visual stories and seeks to find companies who need their stories told.
