How To Make Money In a Crisis as a Photographer or Videographer

Securing an income in a crisis situation is not easy, but it’s possible.

The Coronavirus pandemic has posed a short term threat to a lot of industries and Creatives — ranging from photographers to videographers to designers — are also affected.

Many are the projects getting canceled or postponed and soon the income sources start becoming scarce.

So we have talked to some of our Cherrydeck members and gathered a collection of tips and ideas on how to secure an income during crisis mode and how to make sure costs are controllable.

Here is a list of things you can do to make money or save money in a crisis

Sell your work on Stock platforms

If a project has been cancelled, now it’s a good time to upload some of your work to a stock photo platform. Stock photo platforms such as Adobe Stock, iStock or Getty are a source of income for content creators worldwide. Successful users on those platforms upload considerable amounts of content that is relevant for businesses purposes.

Pitch to clients in non-affected industries

Not all companies are having difficulties in the market. There are industries that are benefiting from the trends of home-office, for example online conferencing tools or team management software companies. But also consumer goods companies and online-first fashion stores are experiencing above-average interest.

Pitch to clients in less affected areas

Not all areas are impacted equally in a crisis. In the current Coronavirus crisis, there are some nations that are less affected. As of today (March 16th, 2020), the following countries have big or moderately big economies and either very little detected cases or the disease under better control, when compared to the rest of the world:

• Canada
• Turkey
• Mexico
• Brazil
• Russia
• Ukraine
• United Arab Emirates
• India
• Australia
• Taiwan

Give discounts

Discounts are never a long term solution, but pitching clients a discount to secure a deal that is uncertain might tip the scale in your favour — especially at a time when companies are keeping their money tight, due to the unknown economic outlook.

Work on your website SEO to generate future traffic

Organic traffic can be a great source of new clients. Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is a tool to help you show up in Google (or Bing or Yahoo) results. If you are currently not working on a project, it might be a great timing to sit down and improve your website and portfolio.

Sell work to magazines

You probably have tons of work saved on your disk. It might be a good time to start looking through your photos and think about which ones you could sell to publishers or magazines directly. This is a game of statistics — magazines always need content and the more people you’ll be writing to, the higher the chances of getting a new client.

Sell unused equipment

Do you really need all of your equipment? If not, this might be a good moment to sell your excess gear on market places like eBay, mpb.com, or even in a local store.

Claim your image rights

Have you ever wondered if other people are using your content for their business, without you knowing? There are numerous platforms out there who will check and claim your rights for you.

One of our partners, Pixsy — named the “Best Online Image Protection Platform” in the 2019 Technology Elite Awards — is the best example. All you have to do is upload your photos, let their engine check who is using them online, and then tell them which ones you have actually authorised. Afterwards, you can lean back and let their lawyers do the rest.

Sell to friends and family

Although friends and family might not be your #1 target group, they are less likely to have a formal budget freeze. Approach them privately and ask them if they are thinking about a redecoration or an upgrade of their home — with a little content customisation, it is not unlikely they will buy some of your work.

File your tax statement

This is a non-work related life hack. Did you know, that most people do not file their tax statements? Governments save billions of dollar each year, because their citizens are not filing their statements. With a lot of smart online tools available today, a tax statement can be done in under one hour – potentially giving you a nice cash injection, especially if you are on a lower income range.

Government Grants

In critical economic situations, governments may give out grants for small businesses. In Bavaria (Germany) for example, freelancers can file for a free € 5.000 grant super fast and easily, with money flowing a week later. If you need more than that, there are credit programs for larger amounts. Check your local government websites for more information.

If you have tips or other ideas on how to make money in a crisis as a photographer or videographer, share them with us in the comments below.

Let’s help each other making sure the creative community stays as vibrant as we know it during these difficult times. ?

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