A Note from Amici Photography

Lots of time, effort and thought has gone into the development of Iris Works.  And not just from the founder of Iris, but from many other photographers who have contributed to the development of features.  One of those individuals is Giovanna Mandel of Amici Photography.  Giovanna is an extremely talented family and senior photographer who photographs not only in Indiana but also Arizona – and wherever her travels may take her!  We asked her to blog about why she’s looking forward to Iris Works and how it will improve her photography business and her life.  Here’s what she had to say.

 

Back in 2008 when my portrait business began there were so many things that I loved about running my own business. In my previous life I was an elementary school teacher for eighteen years and my entire existence was about planning. I created lesson plans for my students, I planned meetings with my fellow teachers and parents, I planned field trips and silly adventures for my grade level. I was great at planning and executing.

In the first few years of my portrait business, planning for profit was easy. I had a minimal number of clients and I could easily manage the day to day needs of keeping things organized. I had a really nifty filing system that seemed to keep me on track and moving forward. As each year marched on, and my business grew exponentially, I was having the same conversation with my accountant each year. It went something like this:

 

ACCOUNTANT LADY:   You’re doing great. I appreciate how organized everything is.

ME: I’m glad, I spent 17 hours in the past two days getting things organized.

ACCOUNTANT LADY: Why so much time? Haven’t you started using software yet to help organize your business?

ME: (with agitated voice) “I had planned to, but I can’t seem to find one that has everything I need and I don’t have time to figure one out.”

ACCOUNTANT LADY: Well you better find one soon or you won’t continue to see your business grow.

ME:(now close to tears) This year, I promise.

 

And so it went each and every year.

I met Meredith, the founder of Iris Works, and she shared her frustrations about not finding software that met her needs as a portrait photographer. She mentioned a few things she was planning to incorporate into a new program being designed and ask me to be part of a focus group. Within the first few minutes of the Iris Works presentation, I knew that this was for me.

Keeping client information current and accurate and also having a workflow that is easily navigated is most important to me. These two items would allow me to do away with my nifty filing system and keep my clients moving forward in the process. Besides those key items, IRIS will also include areas to keep my client documents, a list of favorite locations, an office To-do list, calendar and invoicing. The difference between this software and others that I have done a trial run with is that the person designing it completely understands my needs as a photographer. The only drawback for me is that Meredith didn’t design IRIS seven years ago when I first started my business. She could have saved me a lot of painful conversations with my accountant. I’ll forgive her.

 

Follow Giovanna & Amici Photography on Facebook & Twitter to see what she’s up to!  And stay tuned for more insider knowledge about Iris Works from professional photographers like you.

And of course, be sure to follow Iris Works on Facebook for new information and previews of our features!