This transcript was generated from the episode audio and may contain minor errors.
[Music]
Hey there, what's up? Welcome back to another episode of "Sidistle School," where every day we have a story of someone who starts an income-generating project without quitting their day job. And usually they're doing so by using the skills they already have, which is critical. And the "Sidistle" model is very much about taking those skills and learning to use them in a different way. Now, sometimes when you learn to do this, you can get paid a lot more or you can create more freedom for yourself, another very important goal of a lot of listeners, or you can do both.
Well, today's story is about someone who did both. This is a Texas-based designer turned photographer who creates a multiple six-figure income by specializing in vintage lifestyle photography. And of course, it all started as a side hustle. That story in just a moment. Centrally located between Austin, Dallas, and Houston, Aaron Shepherd's Lone Star Pin-Up Studio in Temple, Texas provides vintage photography experiences.
Now, when I say pin-up, or more precisely when she uses the word pin-up, Aaron is referring to a specific style of 1920s to 1960s photography. And at the time that style was considered a little racy, but most people these days would look at it and just think of it as classic. Aaron describes the photography session she does as recreations. Her clients can book a makeover and photo session and be transformed into a Hollywood glamour starlet or a great Gatsby style flapper. Aaron was working as a graphic designer when she started this side hustle.
Her first sitting fee was just $90 and she mostly did it for fun. She thought this would be a very small photography niche, but thanks in part to a popular Facebook page, it quickly took off. Women from all walks of life have been fascinated by the classic beauty of retro styles and are eager to recreate them. Because Aaron specializes exclusively in these styles and does them well, she feels it sets her apart from other photographers. And it wasn't long before she decided to go all in.
Once she had raised her prices, more on that in a moment, and began to see a profit with the photography business, the fear of letting go of her regular job and giving up freelance clients became a lot easier to come to terms with. For Aaron and many others like her, being excited about something you love to do and getting paid for it really is the best feeling. And to know that people value what you make is very fulfilling. Now let's talk about the pricing. I wanna focus on this a bit because this is how she was able to go from moderately successful side hustle to very successful, very profitable.
This kind of photography experience, it really is special and it should be priced accordingly. So Aaron deliberately priced in a mid to high range to attract the kind of client she wanted. And instead of selecting a one-time fee, she chose a series of packages. I believe that almost every service provider should include package options, not just one price. And when you do this, it will increase your income immediately.
Aaron's packages include a basic session for $450, a deluxe session for $650, and an ultimate session for $850. There's also something called a calendar session for $2,200. Now I could be wrong, but my theory about that one is that most people book one of the other sessions, but having that high-end one listed there may help them feel more comfortable selecting the deluxe session or the ultimate session. Now on top of that, there are all kinds of add-ons, digital images, additional prints, rush orders, multiple costume changes you can include, gift certificates. So most women actually walk out of a session spending about $3,500 in total.
But because of the a la carte pricing, what they spend is entirely up to them. Now I asked Aaron how she arrived at this pricing, and she said that it's evolved drastically over the years. After that very first sitting fee of $90, she realized it was nothing near what she would need to run a sustainable business in the long term. And eventually she got so busy that she just had to raise her prices out of necessity since she was overworking herself and losing joy in the process, which was the whole point in the first place. All along the way, she continued to invest in the business, purchasing better lighting, more outfits and props, eventually even moving to a new home with a better studio space.
And because of that attention to detail, the quality of the work, and the word of mouth recommendation she received, she's made more money every year since starting. And last year it brought in a profit of more than $200,000. Aaron says as well that when she started, her whole goal was just making a little extra money. But when she began hearing women's stories of how doing a photo shoot actually changed their lives, it reframed her entire thinking. She points out that some women will dedicate their entire lives to their families and never do anything for themselves.
And this kind of photo shoot, having this experience, this recreation, and then being able to take a physical or digital memory from it is something special for themselves. And to hear that you've affected a person's confidence in such a way is truly an honor. Aaron plans to continue investing in the business. She has no plans to stop. She feels fortunate, she loves doing it.
And she's really glad that she began to explore what she thought would be a very small niche. [Music]
As I was writing this, I was thinking back to episode 119, which was about a photographer named Daniel Grove. And the title of that episode, if you wanna go listen to it again, is the cosplay photographer who earns $47,000 from epic Star Wars portraits. And in that episode, Daniel also chose to specialize in something, maybe even something that you'd think is a small market, but it's a very active market. People who are fans of cosplay, of Star Wars, Harry Potter, some of the other themes that he worked with, they're willing to spend money on it.
And in this episode, the concept of vintage photography, 1920s pinup, it's also very specific. She doesn't do regular portraits, she doesn't do weddings. And by specializing, she wasn't limiting herself, she was actually setting herself up to succeed. So just like Daniel, Aaron found that this market, even though it might be small, it was more like small-ish, and it was an active market willing to spend money. And on the point of money, let's talk about that pricing.
I mentioned that if you're a service provider or you're thinking of creating any kind of service, I would highly recommend you have more than one price. And it doesn't need to be super complicated. The easy way to create a very simple pricing structure using price tiers is to have three options. And you've got your middle option, which is pretty much what you would plan to provide. And then you have a budget or bare bones version that has a little bit less, as well as a deluxe or premium version that has a little bit more.
Now, customers really like this. It makes them feel like they have some more agency in the decision. You don't wanna give them too many choices, but it is good to give them one or two choices. And what tends to happen here is that most people are gonna gravitate toward the middle or the higher package. There will be some people who want the most affordable option, and that's fine.
But you also have people who want the most deluxe or premium option. And then you have maybe a majority of people, depending on how it's positioned and what's in the tiers, who say, "Well, I can't afford," or, "I don't want the highest priced version." But you know, this middle one, that looks good. That looks good to me. So if you do it right, you almost always make more money right from the outset with pricing tiers. That's a little practical tip for you today.
As always, remember, inspiration is good, but inspiration combined with action is so much better. I want you to hear these stories and get to work on your own story, your own adaptation or transformation story, something that you're gonna create for yourself. If you'd like to see the show notes for today's episode, they are at sidehustleschool.com/147. You can learn about the Lone Star pinup studio, learn about the flappers of the great Gatsby age. There is much more to come.
We are advancing toward the fall when September, the "Side Hustle" book comes out. I'm really excited about this. I'll tell you more as it gets closer. But just know for now, there's so much more to come. And wherever you are in the world, I'm so glad that you're part of this shared story.
My name is Chris Guillebeau. This is "Side Hustle School." I'll be back tomorrow. [Music]
