From 40 shoots/month to $4k Sessions with Kalina

Want to connect with Kalina? Follow her on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/kalinadenault/

Summary

Kalina Deneau shares her transformative journey from shooting 40 sessions a month to building a sustainable, high-value full-service photography business that prioritizes client relationships and personal well-being.

Key Topics

• Transition from shoot-and-burn to full service
• Increasing average sale per client
• Work-life balance and boundaries
• Scaling business with a team
• Client relationship and retention strategies

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Transcript

Christa (00:01.23)
I am here with one of my favorite students today, Kalina Deneau. Did I say it right? Close it up. And we'll link her in the show notes. It's a French name. It's beautiful. But Kalina Deneau Photography, and she's in the family motherhood space. Y'all, she's in Canada. I was just telling her, like, us in the States, we're like, that is so cool. She's in the Winnipeg, Manitoba area. And I've had the joy of coaching her the last few months and invited her here to share her story. Welcome, Kalina.

Kalina (00:07.734)
Yes. You did.

Kalina (00:30.008)
Thanks for having me, I'm so excited to be here.

Christa (00:32.642)
Yes, we are pumped. would you mind just sharing for our listeners who are growing photographers, wanting to their averages or clients, all those things. Tell us a bit about your journey and how you've gotten to where you're at.

Kalina (00:44.59)
Yeah, this is great. So I've been doing photography for a decade now and last year, so year nine, I just hit a wall essentially where I was shooting, I was telling Chris this, I was shooting like 40 sessions a month, like it was outrageous. yeah, yeah, per month. Yeah, 20 to 42 per month. Yeah. And I was burning out majorly and...

Christa (00:58.712)
That was per month, not per year, right? 40 shoots in one month. Girl.

Kalina (01:10.282)
I had been a part of another coaching program and they were saying, you know, what if you just raised your average per session? And I was like, that's so interesting because I've never really thought of that. So that's actually what led me to you, Chris. I don't think I told you that, but that's what led me here because they suggested that. And I was like, I'm going to run with this. And I had seen you on Instagram and I didn't know really what full service was because where I'm from, there's not too many photographers who do that. So my average before was about $600 per

client. And so yeah, burning out majorly and then I found you and realize, okay, what if I could serve each single client better, get to know them better, build a better long term relationship with them because the lifetime value of a client is so important and I want to serve them like forever and ever if I can. Because I'm sure anyone who's listening here, they know that if you get those repeat clients, you just build that relationship every single year and it just gets better and better. And so

Yeah, I met you and decided to go all in on full service. And I am someone who's like usually zero to 100. When I joined your program, I was like in the thick of the trenches of kind of swapping out of like a fall season of shoot and burn, which I was dying. And so it took me a little bit to get going. And like it is a lot of work to switch over from being shoot and burn, having that high volume of clientele to doing what I do. But I know that no matter

If I was this busy or if I had 10 sessions a month, regardless, this is so much better than being shoot and burn and it's better for your family life. Like have two small kids. have a two year old and a four year old. And I was just, my husband was basically a single dad in the summer because that was my busy season. In Canada here, we get like so much snow. It's like minus 50. So it really is, you know, May to October is our crazy season. And I was just.

Christa (02:57.37)
Yeah.

Kalina (03:06.606)
because I was shooting so much. Obviously that's such a blessing because I have so many clients, but I knew I couldn't do that for much longer. And so once I went into the full service aspect of my business, it really shifted everything. And I was able to have, we were just talking about this, like a $5,000 sale, $4,000 sale, $3,000 sale. And now I'm averaging about like $18,000, $1900 per sale, which I didn't even, I shared this with you before. Like I was like driving to daycare one day was crying. I was like, I didn't even know that was possible.

And my husband was even saying that he's like, haven't really been shooting that much. I'm like, I know I'm like, is all thing that Krista teaches is like, you don't have to as much. can shoot less, make more per session, but server client better. And at first, which I think a lot of people are like feeling icky about like selling more, know, it's like thousands of dollars sale, right? So you feel icky about selling that, but it's not like you're selling them poison as another coach told me once. And you're so right. Like you're selling them.

Christa (03:41.146)
I

Christa (04:05.274)
Yeah.

Kalina (04:05.678)
something beautiful for their wall, something beautiful to hold, you know, whether it be an album or some prints or something like that. Like they're walking with digital still, which I know is a hangup for a lot of people. And I was hung up on that too. I'm like, how in the world can I switch to less digital? And you'd be so surprised at how many people actually don't mind that when you share the value of what are you doing with 80 images? What are you doing with a hundred images? Like they're not doing anything. I actually had a client came back to me. I shot her wedding like seven years ago.

And I just did her mini session. said, what did you do? And this is when I joined your program. This was end of fall. I said, what did you do with your, you know, 1500 photos I sent you from your wedding? Like absolutely outrageous amount. And she's like, I don't, they didn't really do anything with them. Like I have like my favorite, like five to 10 in my home. And then I don't even think she did like an album because I didn't offer that at the time. And I'm like, you're kidding me. So I spent all that time editing these thousands of images for you and you were overwhelmed truly and didn't even do anything with them.

So being more intentional with guiding a client through what they can actually do with their photos has been life changing.

Christa (05:08.578)
love that so much. thought you were like, we're not selling anything bad. And Colleen, I think the thing that a lot of photographers miss is even if you're not sitting down meeting with clients, you're still in sales. Often it's hiding behind a fancy PDF or an email. You still get ghosted. You still get told, no, it just doesn't hit as hard if you're not sitting down with them, but like you're still in sales selling yourself. This just makes it more intentional and you've just completely embraced that.

I want to talk to you and have you share a bit about maybe there's a photographer, Kleena, that's out there and they're like, holy cow, if I could get 40 shoots a month, I have reached the holy grail, the mothership. Like that is where it's at. Even if I'm averaging a low amount, like knowing how to book is everything, which you and I both know you need to know how to get leads in. But I'm just curious if you could just break that down a little bit more for us.

Kalina (05:58.927)
Yeah, so that ultimately is not the goal. I don't

Christa (06:03.972)
You're like that, you're like so. You're the old mother seeing the young mom in a store that comes around and says, I know it's hard now, honey, but like, stay with it. Yes.

Kalina (06:10.198)
Yes. Yeah, push through. But no, it is not. I realize this summer like that is not the goal. The goal is, I mean, ultimately think about like what? Why are you running your business? And like, why do you want to make all this money? That was my brain. I'm like, why am I? Why am I striving to shoot so many sessions? And it was to provide this life for my family. And I'm like, wait, if I'm making this money, but I'm not even around my family, it makes no sense to

Christa (06:23.384)
Hmm.

Kalina (06:37.384)
have a business that operates that way. I'm burning out. I'm, you know, working 60 hours a week till like 1 2 a.m. Sometimes, you know, the kids are swimming in the pool and I'm like, gotta go to work like absolutely not like I'm okay with doing that like one maybe two nights a week now but like no more than that. Like I have set so many boundaries and so to the person who thinks that that is their goal. I promise you that when you get there you're going to be so burnt out and think what am I doing with my life? There's got to be something better than this and that's where I was at really. I was like

there has got to be a better way where I can serve these clients more, offer them more through my experience, because they're going to get something framed somewhere else, or they're going to make an album on their own, and it's taking them three years, and they don't know how to do it properly. And so through this whole thing, I realized, you know, having a mass amount of shoots per month is not where it's at. What's I mean, ultimately, again, it boils back to what are what is the reason why you're doing this and mine was my family and I don't want to be away from them.

if that's what it's going to be to shoot 40 sessions a month. I'd rather shoot, you know, eight sessions a month at a $2,000 average versus, you know, I don't know how many 40 was a month, but probably around the same amount. Like it was probably very similar and it is not worth it. It's not, not worth it.

Christa (07:52.857)
Yeah.

I Kalina, I've even coached, there was a girl that I coached who she, there was a year in a row that she made the same amount of money. And we sat down and looked at it she was like, Krista, to me, this is still a win. I shot so many less sessions. Like I'm great with it. And I think even then she's graduated and still kind of hovers around that mount. She knows what her family needs. She's good with that and intentionally has been doing like less of the things that eat her time. And I think as photographers, I love how you said it. You need to know why you're running your business. Why did you start it in the first place?

Kalina (08:24.152)
Yeah.

Christa (08:26.186)
And on the flip side, Kalina, I've coached photographers really getting going and they're seeing these numbers and they're like, Krista, this looks a little scary. And I bring it back to like, you don't want to build up a business to be known for a model. You don't want to keep going towards like the sooner I would. Yeah.

Kalina (08:40.909)
But that's what's known. That's really all that is known. So that's what everyone thinks that they should do. So your method in full service, well, it seems like a little bit foreign for probably many of us. It's actually so much more sustainable and people want it like rather you're starting out or not or like 10 years almost into it like I was. It doesn't matter if you have two sessions a month or 40 like I you can serve those clients so well and they'll still tell your friends and then you'll eventually build up that clientele because now I'm having to switch over.

So I don't really know what's better, because I'm having to switch over and I'm losing a lot of clients that I had in the past, but I'm like, it is so okay if you want XYZ because I don't provide that anymore, but there's so many other photographers out there that can provide you that amazing service, but I want to serve my clients above and beyond, so.

Christa (09:29.146)
And it's kind of like the theory of like less is more. We're like, don't need 40 shoots a month anymore. You actually don't want all of your past clients to rebook you because that's not going to work long-term. that is incredible that you got to that point and that you're making these shifts. So what do you think is next for you? You had a good solid last year, even halfway making this shift. Where do you want to go?

Kalina (09:34.711)
No.

Kalina (09:54.133)
I think I want to build out a team like you and I had kind of talked about. I want to have someone come and join me. And I do want, I just want to scale my business so that I can have it somewhat running for me. I still want to be, I want to do a lot more shooting versus, you know, the backend stuff. And there's someone out there that would love to do that. Whereas I'm not that good at that. I'm very creative. I think a lot of photographers have operated like that too. Like,

Christa (09:59.96)
Yeah. Girl.

Kalina (10:22.956)
We're more on the creative side. So I want to be doing what I like to do, which is talking to people and photographing and building on a team. And then maybe one day, like diving back into coaching, because I used to coach photographers. that is, I think that's like where I'm at right now. And obviously this, whole byproduct of this is spending more time with my family because I don't have to work near as much. That is the biggest blessing of all through this whole thing.

Christa (10:46.264)
It's incredible to me that you've gotten to where you're at without like having a team behind you. Like you really were doing a lot. Yeah. So for the photographer, you may be closer to cleanest point of like you have something sustainable to scale. you know, you really have to look at like, what are the things that don't have to be me? And the easiest things to do are things not client front-facing. You can get rid of those. It's just, it's just a little bit harder to like find that right fit and train them in everything. And so.

Kalina (10:51.617)
yeah. Yeah.

Kalina (10:57.262)
Mm-hmm.

Christa (11:09.69)
We're gonna do it and like blast it to the moon. But Kalina, if someone's listening to your story and they're listening to this today, they're resonating with you as a mom or where they're at in business. And they're like, gosh, I just don't know if I can like do this. And they just want to applaud you for coming on and thanking you. Where can they reach out to you and connect with you?

Kalina (11:17.134)
Okay.

Kalina (11:28.45)
They can find me on Instagram at Cleana DeNoe, and then my website's the exact same.

Christa (11:33.858)
Awesome. I will link that in the show notes, but Kleena, do you have any, just like last words of advice for the photographer that is seeing the math ain't mathing or the burnout or for me to double my income, I can't be doubling the shoots. Like, I'm just afraid this can't work for me. Like, what would you say to that photographer?

Kalina (11:52.639)
I would say to them that it's not necessarily easy, but I don't think running your business is easy in any capacity. Like we've talked about in, you your coaching group is there's gonna be highs, there's gonna be lows, there's gonna be middle points where you're just kind of coasting along. And I would say if you work hard at this to just get it off the ground, cause that is just your foundation. Like once you get it off the ground, you're good. You're just having fun, you're learning.

Like I would say, maybe you would say like you get your reps in, like you got to practice, practice, practice. And sales is practicing. And so if you're afraid of that, because I know a lot of people are afraid to sell, which I'm not necessarily afraid to sell, but I know a lot of people struggle with that is just do it, work hard just to get it off the ground. And no two photographers, in my opinion, are going to do it the same way. So you're going to have your own little tweaks and ways that you do it. I don't

I mean, we didn't talk about this really, but some people do in-person sales. I do online. So basically via zoom. So you don't have to be with your clients. If you don't have a space, you can do it on zoom. I do all my calls on zoom. You know, like I just said before, like I've had a $5,000, $4,000 sale from right here. You don't have to have everything. I mean, when I had those sales, I had zero samples. I had no samples. I had nothing. I know we didn't talk about that either, but I didn't have no samples. So you don't need all these fancy things.

you can simply just be so confident in you have to first of all you have to believe it you have to believe that the thing that you're doing is the right thing and again you're not selling poison because they will feel it if you're like you know maybe maybe maybe that is it's kind of good like and that's where i at the very start and my clients were like huh and so like no once you get through like a couple of those you're gonna realize no it's actually such a

a good thing. And when you really that confidence and the excitement you have to bring the excitement to that's when your sales are getting better and clients start realizing how cool this is because again, many people don't do this and they don't offer the next step. They just offer digital and walk away peace out see you never and so I would just say work really hard at this. It is going to be a little bit of work at the start, but really it does pay off because you're going to be able to live the life that you want to live without burning out.

Christa (14:13.966)
Wise, wise words from sweet Kalina. I love this girl if you can't tell we have a lot of fun working together, but clean up. This was so wonderful. I just appreciate your time coming on and sharing all of this. I enjoy having you like in our corner in our inner circle and y'all definitely reach out to her. We'll drop her Instagram and the show notes if you're just interested in learning more about her slide into her DMS thanking her. If you enjoyed this episode. Thank you so much Kalina.

Kalina (14:15.852)
Mic drop.

Kalina (14:39.513)
Thanks for having me, this is so fun.