311 - Your Marketing Credit Score - This Can't Be That Hard

Summary

Podcast Summary: "This Can't Be That Hard" – Episode 311: Your Marketing Credit Score

Release Date: April 8, 2025

Host: Annemie Tonken
Title: This Can't Be That Hard
Episode: 311 - Your Marketing Credit Score

In Episode 311 of This Can't Be That Hard, host Annemie Tonken delves into the intricate parallels between building a credit score and developing a robust marketing presence for photographers. Utilizing her expertise, Annemie breaks down how seemingly minor factors can significantly influence both financial trustworthiness and business reputation. This comprehensive exploration offers photographers actionable strategies to enhance their marketing efforts, ensuring their businesses are both profitable and sustainable.

1. Introduction: Drawing the Parallel Between Credit Scores and Marketing

Annemie kicks off the episode by introducing the concept of a credit score and its profound impact on various aspects of life, from borrowing money to renting apartments. She states:

“[00:00] Annemie Tonken: ... this can help you understand why someone may or may not be excited to hire us.”

This analogy serves as the foundation for the episode, setting the stage for an in-depth comparison between credit management and marketing strategies.

2. Understanding Credit Scores: The Foundation for the Analogy

Annemie provides a succinct overview of credit scores, emphasizing their role in determining trustworthiness and financial reliability. She explains that credit scores range from 300 to 850, with higher scores indicating better credit health. The primary components influencing a credit score include:

Payment History (35%): Timely bill payments are crucial.
Amount Owed: The proportion of available credit being utilized.
Length of Credit History: Longevity and consistency in credit usage.
Credit Mix: Diversity in credit types, such as loans and credit cards.
New Credit: Frequency of opening new credit accounts.

She meticulously details each component, laying the groundwork for how these factors translate into marketing for photographers.

3. Mapping Credit Score Factors to Marketing Strategies

a. Payment History ↔ Consistent Client Interactions

Just as timely payments enhance a credit score, consistent and reliable interactions with clients build trust in a photography business. Annemie emphasizes the importance of delivering on promises and maintaining regular communication to foster strong client relationships.

b. Amount Owed ↔ Brand Utilization and Positioning

In credit terms, maintaining a low credit utilization ratio signifies financial prudence. Similarly, in marketing, Annemie advises photographers to manage their brand messaging and positioning carefully. Overextending in marketing efforts or diluting the brand can be likened to high credit utilization, potentially harming the business's perceived reliability.

“...if you have a $10,000 limit on your credit card, and you have a $3,000 average credit card bill, that's a good amount of credit utilization versus if you are spending all the way to $10,000 each month.”
— Annemie Tonken [00:05]

c. Length of Credit History ↔ Business Longevity and Trust

A lengthy credit history demonstrates reliability. For new photographers, building a marketing presence requires intentionality and consistency to establish credibility. Annemie suggests showcasing portfolios, maintaining active social media profiles, and accumulating client reviews to mirror the benefits of a long credit history.

“...clients want to feel like you are grounded and steady, someone that they can invest in with confidence.”
— Annemie Tonken [00:15]

d. Credit Mix ↔ Diverse Marketing Channels and Services

A varied credit mix can enhance a credit score by showing the ability to manage different types of credit responsibly. In marketing, Annemie advises photographers to diversify their offerings and marketing channels. This could include a combination of social media, email marketing, blogging, and showcasing a range of photography styles to appeal to a broader client base.

“Clients want to know that you can adapt when needed... demonstrate flexibility and skills that run the gamut.”
— Annemie Tonken [00:25]

e. New Credit ↔ Stability in Branding and Offerings

Frequent changes in credit accounts can signal instability. Similarly, Annemie warns against constantly altering branding elements, pricing structures, or service offerings. Maintaining a consistent brand image and stable offerings helps project reliability and reduces perceptions of desperation.

“...constant launching new offers, if you are constantly switching up your branding or your colors...creates this perception of desperation.”
— Annemie Tonken [00:35]

4. The Importance of Consistency in Marketing

Annemie reinforces that, much like maintaining a good credit score, building a strong marketing presence requires consistent effort. She highlights that every post, email, blog, and client interaction contributes to the overall reputation and trustworthiness of the business.

“Marketing is exactly the same. You are not just trying to get seen right. You are truly trying to build equity in your business.”
— Annemie Tonken [00:45]

Consistency not only enhances visibility but also builds a sense of reliability and professionalism that attracts clients naturally over time.

5. Introducing the Consistency Club: A Solution for Sustainable Marketing

To assist photographers in maintaining a consistent marketing strategy, Annemie introduces the Consistency Club. This monthly marketing membership offers:

Done-for-You Templates: Streamlined resources to simplify content creation.
Monthly Strategies: Actionable plans to keep marketing efforts aligned with business goals.
Support Systems: Guidance and community support to sustain consistent marketing activities.

“The Consistency Club is our monthly marketing membership that we built for photographers who want to show up regularly in social media and in email in a way that's aligned with their brand...”
— Annemie Tonken [00:50]

By leveraging these tools, photographers can effectively manage their marketing without feeling overwhelmed, ensuring steady growth and sustained client trust.

6. Conclusion: Building Trust Through Intentional and Consistent Marketing

Annemie concludes by reiterating the importance of intentionality and consistency in both credit management and marketing. She draws a final parallel:

“...you have to be intentional. You have to be consistent. And when you are, even though that process can feel like it takes a long time, it really does pay off.”
— Annemie Tonken [00:55]

By committing to consistent marketing practices, photographers can build a strong reputation, attract loyal clients, and create a thriving business that aligns with their values and aspirations.

Key Takeaways:

Understand the Components: Just as credit scores are influenced by various factors, a marketing presence is shaped by multiple elements that require attention and management.
Build Trust Consistently: Reliable and consistent interactions with clients are paramount in establishing and maintaining trust.
Diversify and Stabilize: A balanced mix of marketing channels and stable branding strategies can enhance the perceived reliability and professionalism of a photography business.
Leverage Support Systems: Utilizing resources like the Consistency Club can help maintain steady marketing efforts without burnout.

By adopting these strategies, photographers can enhance their marketing "credit score," leading to increased trust, better client relationships, and a more successful and sustainable business.

For more resources and to join the Consistency Club, visit thiscan'tbethard.com/club. Leave a review on iTunes or Spotify to support the show and help other photographers discover these valuable insights.

Transcript

Annami Tonkin (0:00)

So let's talk about credit scores for just a second. You probably know the basics of a credit score, right? You pay your bills on time, you don't max out your credit cards. You keep your accounts open for a reasonably long period of time, right? What's wild, though, is how many little factors end up going into this three digit number and how one small slip, like one late payment on a credit card or a hospital bill or something can have this huge outsized effect on your ability to borrow money, rent a new apartment, all kinds of different things. I got an email this weekend from a credit monitoring agency that I signed up with that basically is just a free service that every month sends me my updated credit score and lets me know if anything major has changed. And I try to keep an eye on that just because I don't want something happening behind the scenes that I'm not paying attention to. And then all of a sudden, the next time that I need to get a loan or anything like that, it causes me a big problem. But this month when I got my email, I was reading through it and it kind of got me thinking. This is really a lot like what it's like to build trust in your business through your marketing, right? There are so many little factors that add to or take away from the confidence that someone has when they hire you. Some of which we have control over, some of which we don't, but all of which we need to monitor, kind of like a credit score to make sure that we understand why someone may or may not be excited to hire us. So in this episode, I want to walk you through how building your marketing presence is a lot like building a credit score over time, and how understanding this can help you approach your business with more clarity, more strategy, and more confidence. Welcome to this Can't Be that Hard. My name is Annami Tonkin and I help photographers run profitable, sustainable businesses that they love. Each week on the podcast, I cover simple, actionable strategies and systems that photographers at every level of experience can use to earn more money in a more sustainable way. Running a photography business doesn't have to be that hard. You can do it and I can show you how. So here is a basic breakdown for anyone who needs a refresher on kind of how credit scores work. Your credit score is a three digit number. It ranges between 300 and 850, where 850 is like perfect credit score and 300 would mean you are not a trustworthy person to lend money to or give any sort of credit to. That number is just A basic grade that tells lenders how risky it is to, to lend you money to give you credit. So again, high score equals more trust and ultimately means better rates on things like loans and, and it means that you get easier access to money. So your score is made up of five main factors. Number one is your payment history. So do you make your credit payments on time? And I believe that they weigh that at around 35% of your overall number. The second factor is the amount that you owe. So it's not just the number itself, like how much you owe, but what percentage of your overall credit you are utilizing. So if you have $10,000 as your limit on your credit card, and you have, you know, a $3,000 average credit card bill, that's a good amount of credit utilization versus if you are spending all the way to $10,000 each month. Even if you're paying on time every time, that is seen as a riskier usage of credit. So the amount owed and the percentage of your credit that you're using. The third factor in your credit score is the length of your credit history. And this one's frustrating for newer credit users. It's also frustrating for newer business owners because there's only one way to build up history in your credit or your business and that is to take time and keep showing up, keep doing what you're supposed to be doing. However, it doesn't necessarily mean that you can't have good credit as a new credit user and it doesn't mean that you automatically have good credit as a long term credit user. Right? Same thing is true in your business and with your marketing. If you are brand new, you can still establish a sense of permanence, a sense of trustworthiness by giving people plenty to go on, even if it's not time tracked. This is a portfolio that demonstrates broad, you know, experience. It is blog posts that demonstrate this expertise. As much social proof as you can put together, client reviews, even just a consistent presence online with your social media, your email marketing, those kinds of things really do build your credit history when it comes to your business. So if someone can go into your Instagram feed and scroll back and see that you've been doing this for a while, they do start to relax. You are not brand new. You're not a one hit wonder. You are someone who is committed and experienced. All right, item number four on your credit score is that credit mix. So if you go to apply for a car loan and the only bill that you have ever paid, the only thing that's ever really shown up on your credit score before is, let's say a student loan that has been, you know, the same payment for a long time, whatever, and it's a pretty low payment that doesn't necessarily inspire a ton of confidence for the car dealership that you are going to make all 60 payments on your car loan. Right. On the other hand, if they go in there and they see you're paying a mortgage and a credit card bill and a student loan and a different car payment or whatever, and all of those bills are being paid on time and all that, then they feel very confident that you are taking on an amount of credit that you can handle. Same thing goes when someone shows up on your website or on your social media and of course they're looking to hire you for their particular situation, whatever specific type of photography work they need, whatever the specifics are for their family or their, you know, the people that they need you to photograph, the location that you're going to be working in for them or with them. When they look at your portfolio, they want to see some indication that you are going to be able to do what it is that they want you to do. Now, clients don't need you to be a generalist and I will all day long talk about the importance of showcasing a particular kind of work. If you on your website are everywhere and doing all the things that's actually going to go back to, you know, the, the capacity and focus that we were talking about in the second piece of the credit puzzle. But I do think that it is important to demonstrate that you can handle those different scenarios that you may find yourself in. Right. Clients want to know that you can adapt when needed. Whether it's because you need to be able to edit for a particular skin tone or you are demonstrate the fact that you can work outside and inside in hard light or soft light, all these different things it are helpful. Now you're going to guide them as to what the best time of day is and locations and all that sort of thing. But I think that, you know, if you are thinking about the range of clients that you would like to hire you, you should be showcasing work within that that demonstrates flexibility and skills that sort of run the gambit. And then the final piece of your credit score is how much of your credit is new. Right. So what that's speaking to is your stability as a credit consumer. And when things are stable, then lenders are more likely to believe that you're doing fine. Adding another bill isn't going to break you versus if they see that you have all new lines of credit and you've just taken out loans on this, that and the other. That speaks to a certain amount of desperation. And desperation is a negative no matter which credit score we're talking about. Right? So if you are constantly launching new offers, if you are constantly switching up your branding or your colors, if you are regularly changing your pricing, if you are changing what you offer every other month, that kind of movement can feel very unstable, especially to someone who's just discovering you. We all know it's a journey. You're making these decisions, even if they seem fast to somebody who's new. They may be taking you a while. The thing is, we have to project that stability for someone who is coming and making a really quick judgment about who we are and how trustworthy we are. So think of that like applying for five credit cards in a month. Right? Even if there's a good reason behind the scenes, it creates this perception of desperation. Clients want to feel like you are grounded and steady, someone that they can invest in with confidence. Now, if you're listening to all this and thinking, yeah, this all makes sense, how do I actually keep up with it all? How do I continue to show up and create this consistent look and feel to my brand? I do want to remind you that that is really the reason that we created the Consistency Club. Right? The Consistency Club is our monthly marketing membership that we built for photographers who want to show up regularly in social media and in email in a way that's aligned with their brand so that they can build trust with their audience without feeling like they're constantly on this content treadmill. Inside the club, you get done for you templates, you get monthly strategies, and you get support that helps you show up like the confident, trustworthy business owner that you are, so that your pricing, your marketing, and your client experience all match up beautifully. If that is something that you need, you can check it out at this can't bethard.com club. We would love to have you inside, but yeah, this whole idea for this episode came when I was looking at my own credit score and thinking about how you can't fake your way or buy your way into a good credit score. Right? You have to be intentional. You have to be consistent. And when you are, even though that process can feel like it takes a long time, it really does pay off. Not just in terms of your numbers, but in your confidence and your trust and the ease with which you do business. Marketing is exactly the same. You are not just trying to get seen right. You are truly trying to build equity in your business. And every post, every email, every blog that you write, every referral that you get, all of those things are adding to your reputation. And eventually, just like with a high credit score, your business starts to feel easier, clients start coming to you. You start to get better results with less effort. So that's the message this week. Stick with it, trust the process and keep showing up like someone that people can trust because you absolutely are. That's it for this week's episode of this can't be that hard. I'll be back same time, same place next week. If you like the show, be sure to check out thiscan'tbethard.com to explore all the resources we have for photographers. And of course, it would mean the world to me if you would leave a review of the show on itunes or Spotify. As always, thanks so much for joining me. I hope you have a fantastic week.