To stand out in the photography business, you really need to find your niche and make your business something special.  Sarah of Portraits to the People has created an amazing business and package where she and her wife help entrepreneurs get their not-so-corporate head shots.  See how Sarah found her niche and markets her stellar photography business in a city full of artists.

Do you mind telling us a little bit about yourself and your business?

My name is Sarah Deragon and I run a small business called Portraits To The People, with my wife, Natalie. I started this business in August of 2012, so we’re coming up on our one-year anniversary and it has been so much fun and challenging.

I’m guessing word of mouth is your #1 way of getting clients.  Do you do anything specific to encourage people to share your work?

Word of mouth and Yelp are the top two ways that I get clients. I think that each time I interact with a client I try to turn them into an evangelist for my business. An evangelist posts about their experience with me on FB, Twitter and links back to my business on their webpage, etc. I also try to spread the love by doing a post about their business as well. Linking to one another’s business on social media is an incredibly powerful way to find new audiences for your business.

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Your degree is definitely not in photography (but what’s cooler than a Master’s degree in Post-Colonial Social & Cultural Anthropology?).  Did you ever imagine you would be a portrait photographer to some of the coolest people in the Bay Area?

I had NO idea that my business would take off so quickly. My best friend always told me that I should try to be a photographer, but in the back of my mind I heard this little voice telling me that no one would ever pay me to be an artist. How yucky is that? I pushed through the doubt and learned how to trust myself. With enough drive and a passion to do your best at what you love to do, anything is possible!

What advice would you give someone looking to have their portrait taken for their business?

Do your research and make sure that you can trust your photographer. Sure, someone can take a good photo of you, but will they take the time to get to know you, will they find out all of the various places you want this photo to appear, will they really be able to capture your true essence? I make sure that through my intake process and interview questions when we meet that I really ‘get’ who my clients are before photographing them. And I also think NOW is the time to up your game with your ‘about me’ photo. There’s no more excuses to have a crappy photo of yourself out there online because for most of us – we are the face of our businesses.

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Since you started your business, it’s grown in leaps in bounds.  Has there ever been a timed where you feared it would fail?  How did you overcome that fear?

Well, this business supports my partner and myself now, so sure there are days when I’m freaked out about it, but I push through. There’s no other options for us, but to have this business be successful, so I’m willing to work my ass off to make it happen. Having your hobby turn into your profession really changes your relationship to it as an art form, so I try to do things outside of the business to keep me inspired and motivated. I also work 6 days a week, so working that hard you’ve got to make progress!

You can find more of Sarah’s work on her website and if you live in the San Francisco area, you’ll definitely want to get in touch and have Sarah help you get stellar photographs for your business.