There are numerous photography studio management programs available today, and all offer pretty much the same thing; organization of your photography business.  When I first started my business 2 years ago, the last thing I was worried about was getting organized.   Besides, what’s to organize when you have no clients? In the beginning all your really worried about is building a client database, and getting paid…naturally.   If I had it to do over again, I would have started from day one.

I really cannot imagine how we went for so long without some way of keeping track of sales, leads, appointments, and most importanly our clients.  It took me showing up at the wrong location for a Life Session to finally do something about it.  I’m writing this right now hoping that you will avoid the mistakes that I have made.

In my quest for ultimate organization, I came across several management systems that all had their pro’s and con’s.  Successware just wasn’t an option because of the price.  Tave looked appealing, but wasn’t pretty enough.  Shoot Q probably would have gotten me, but I could’nt wait 6 months for them to start accepting new clients.  I need something that day.  I then came across Studiocloud.  Now this…this is pretty!  I’m a very visual person, and Studiocloud blows me away.  It runs on Adobe Air, and can be ran as a desktop application, or in a web browser.  Everything about the software is customizeable, from backgrounds to the logo’s on invoices.

Most importantly, it keeps you organized.  A contact form can be generated to place on your web server, so that when new clients submit an inquiry, it automatically make them a “prospective lead,” in the software.  Any furter messages sent to your email address, will attach itself to the appropriate client. When you click on a client, it shows all the email correspondence.  That feature right there was one of the biggest things that caught my attention.  Along with keeping track of leads, the calendar function is pretty sweet.  You can schedule, create an invoice, and email the client all within 1 step.  Studioclouds workflow aspect of the software is pretty amazing.  It keeps me on track with exactly where I am at with each client.

More features include generating reports on exactly who owes you money, and can be exported to pdf and printed on the spot.  Whole client lists can be printed with addresses which is helpful when sending out mass mailings. It also keeps track of expenses, sales, products, and services. It’s also really helpful to know in one click how much you owe Uncle Sam. Other cool things are the ability to have your clients update their own information, and to be able to log in to a mobile version for those who are constantly on the go.

All in all, it’s been a few weeks since I’ve been with Studiocloud, and I really cannot reccommend them enough. For $25 a month, you really cannot go wrong.

*Bonus* – Use coupon code haskins101 and get $5 off your first month!