When I first began my business I was super naive and clueless in many areas of business. I was just a teenager in love with photographing people and wanting to create a living off of it. It didn’t take long for me to realize that owning a business is SO MUCH MORE than just having an eye for good photos. Not only do you need the passion, but you need the drive to make things happen! You need the tools and to learn marketing, and numbers, and don’t even get me started with taxes (god bless accountants).

But as my business grew, so did my bank account. And no this is not a brag about the money I make, but with a growing bank account I was able to begin investing in parts of business I may not have been able to afford beforehand. I invested in multiple education based opportunities, new lenses, camera bags and so on. I invested almost all of my money I made directly back in to my business for the first two years. BUT with all of that said there were two very distinct purchases that I saw major growth from. And if you clicked on today’s post then you are probably here to see which two!

Branding

If you would have asked me in the beginning of 2015 what branding was, I would not have had an answer for you! When it came to this I was clueless. BUT i knew that in my business I wanted to find a way to connect with my clients and to have my personality shine through. I knew there had to be something I was missing and that when I figured it out my ideal clients would be knocking at my door. I later learned all of those things fell under the category of branding!

Branding was my answer to tying my personality into my business. It was also the answer to attracting my ideal client and so much more in my business. It truly was a game changer! But I also have Krista Jones of the palm shop to thank for educating me throughout the process! I believe that I decided to create a brand and work one-on-one with Krista on that at the perfect timing in my business. I feel like through the branding process and becoming more educated on what a brand is I slowly discovered a direction for my business and created long term plans for where I wanted to be headed. It seems crazy and probably totally cliche, but it’s true!

Website

When it comes to my website I have always been a DIYer. I picked a platform, chose a template, plugged in all the good stuff (which I learned this year is called copy) and hit publish. For me it was never about having the prettiest or perfect platform, but just having a platform in general. The need to have a home base to refer clients to and to showcase a portfolio that would be worth booking me. When I was first launching my business this was at the top of my to do list because as a young entrepreneur I knew this would just be an additional way to establish legitimacy within my business.

As my business grew I felt a need to no longer be a DIYer. I believe I am good at photography, but know I am not so great at other things. And that’s ok! Because there are plenty of others out there worth paying for who are good at the exact things I am not! I

So as I am sure you are aware, this post is two sided! With letting you in on what I believe to be my top two most rewarding investments I am also letting you know that a BRAND NEW brand refresh and website will be launching next month! There isn’t an official launch date, but between Krista of The Palm Shop Co & Courtney of Broad & Main, there will be a whole new platform for Brooke Michelle Photography! And I can assure you that you’ll be the first to know! As you can see in this post is a small peek into the the brand refresh and platform that the new site will be based off of!

Last week I received a mock up of the new site from Courtney and I can not even express my excitement for this project (hence why I had to announce it so early)! I have never met Courtney in person before but somehow in the short month we have worked together she has figured me and my personality out better than I have in the last 23 years! It’s insane! Just a sign that I chose the perfect babe to design the new platform for Brooke Michelle Photography! With this launch will come fun giveaways, new educational content and so much more! Stay tuned for an upcoming release date and thank you for your on going support!

Brand & Brand Refresh by The Palm Shop Co

New Site by Broad & Main