Issue #002: How to handle difficult clients
PLUS news summaries re: advertising crack-downs for influencers, Pinterest 2024 trends, & TikTok updates.
EDITOR’S NOTE <3
Welcome to the new subscribers! To those in the US, hope you enjoyed your Memorial Day weekend AKA the unofficial start to summer. I’m writing to you from a lakefront cabin in Canada. I know, I’m a traitor. PS If you are new, you can learn more about my business story by clicking here.
👀 WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT FROM THIS WEEKLY NEWSLETTER »
Extra, extra, read all about it! The ScrollSavvy Newsletter features the latest in business, law & the creator economy… pulling back the curtains showing BTS of my business… sharing savvy tips to help you not get screwed… & creating community thru common personal interests.
🎧 PLAYLIST THIS WEEK »
Curated just for you :) Click here or preview below.
💭 MOOD THIS WEEK »
Life lessons from a souvenir shop in Long Beach, NY.
She sees sea shells on the sea shore. (Collecting shells for my dad’s garden on Long Island).
Your daily reminder to take oxytocin breaks.
Currently contemplating whether I prefer lake life or beach life… how about you?
HEADLINES »
Just the tip… (of the iceberg, get your head out of the gutter)
💸 IN BUSINESS »
Bumble acquires Geneva, as reported by TechCrunch.
Geneva is a cool app that is essentially akin to Slack for friend groups & clubs. It’s great for membership sites, like my (neglected) ScrollSavvy Creators community. I’m optimistic about this acquisition, because I’m hoping it gives Geneva more of the recognition that it deserves; part of the reason I don’t make the most of hosting a Geneva group is because it’s still a relatively unknown app.
The thing I’m worried about, however, is that it may no longer be free to use. Existing groups are still supported in the stand-alone Geneva app, but new groups will be created via Bumble’s integration.
The Geneva app is currently invite-only, so check out my group here to see what it’s like while you can still access Geneva for free.
Legal protections for photographers, videographers, media teams
I’m teaming up with expert industry experts Jackie Sterna (@jackiesterna) & Chey Franke (@cheyfranke) to host a FREE legal workshop for photographers, videographers, & media teams. The workshop will take place live on June 3rd at 8pm EST / 5pm PST. You can learn more info & register for free here.
📜 IN LAW »
Limits on buying foreign debt.
NY bill seeks to limit how much a wealthy investors can “buy” foreign debt. Apparently over half of the international sovereign bonds are traded via NYC financial institutions & are governed by NYS contract law, according to the Times Union. Not surprisingly, investment firms that purchase the debts / claims of developing countries do so with the sole intent to sue & make a bigger profit. They bet on the fact the countries will default. Then again, these tend to be risky investments, often due to political instability.
The widespread consequences of such a proposed limit are unknown… do you think it will benefit those nations, or make the inequality worse as it may discourage lenders? I don’t know enough to form a full opinion yet.
UK Crackdown on Founder/Influencer Advertising
If you were doing Kayla Itsines’ BBG workouts in 2016, you probably remember Grace Beverley, one of the first “fitness influencers” (who gained popularity by sharing her BBG program progress). One degree from Oxford, a handful of business ventures, & many years later, Grace has established herself as a savvy influencer-turned-entrepreneur.
Grace started her own apparel brand, Tala, & often wears her own clothes in her videos. However, the British influencer was called out by the UK’s advertising complaint board, The Advertising Standards Authority (notably NOT a gov agency, but rather a “self-regulating agency” comprised of advertising industry professionals & formally recognized by the gov to handle complaints) for not properly labeling her content as a “partnership.”
This means regulators are cracking down on the broad definition of “partnership:” Similar to FTC rules in US, you need to CLEARLY disclose “material” connections you have to brand you promote, like ownership interest in the company, receipt of gifts / free product, etc.
The ASA said it’s not enough to share your brand story across many posts, tag the company in your bio, or assume your social media followers know that you are the founder of the company, to make it clear a post is an advertisement. They reason that “social media users who didn’t follow Grace & saw her videos would likely be unaware offer connection to the brand.”
If they have to click thru your profile, it’s not enough: Individual ads need to be labeled clearly as partnerships or advertisements with a connection to the brand.
🤳🏽 IN SOCIAL MEDIA »
Pinterest 2024 Trends
Pinterest released its 2024 Summer Trend Report this week.
Some of the key findings that I could predict: charm necklaces / chunky jewelry, bag charms, bold colors, leopard print bikinis…
Some that surprise me: 120% search increase for “Y2K duck nails” (I feel like 99.99% of this traffic is thanks to my girl Maria on TikTok getting a ton of haters for never abandoning the baby duck nails); thigh jewelry (if summer 2023 was the year of belly chains, this is the year of hand & leg chains with over 850% more searches), calico hair (+6500%), 2000s chunky highlights (+5400%) & heavy highlights on dark hair (+2840%)
Btw, if you want to see their travel trends report from last month, there are some stats on “trending destinations.”
TikTok Announcements
Tiktok announced TikTok One, it’s in house creator market place & content studio, coming later this year. You’ll be able to connect with creators or production partners on the app, view their insights & access creation tools (including new AI features) in one place.
AI & automated creation tools for brands: “Advertisers will be able to input the necessary assets, budget, and goals and TikTok's predictive automation solutions will select the best creative asset, choose the right audience, and put the best ad in front of the right customer at the right time, based on the advertiser's objectives.”
FEATURE »
📸 HOW TO HANDLE DIFFICULT CLIENTS »
One of the most highly requested topics that I’m often asked to speak about is how to handle working with difficult clients.
As you may know by now, I am teaming up with creative geniuses Jackie Sterna (@jackiesterna) & Chey Franke (@cheyfranke) to host a FREE legal workshop for photographers, videographers, & media teams. As part of the marketing campaign, we’ve been co-creating lots of content re: contract tips for creative entrepreneurs.
Although these tips were created with photographers, videographers, creative directors & media teams in mind, they are still useful regardless of your industry as a service provider or agency.
👀 ISSUE #1 » CLIENT DOESN’T TRUST YOUR ZONE OF GENIUS
I’m sure every business owner has experienced something like this: a client wants to hire you, but then challenges your advice or work product every step of the way.
In a photography or videography service, this could look like the client challenging your creative direction, or even insisting that they use their own creative director / someone outside your company. While this is sometimes typical for industries like fashion brands etc., it requires a lot of trust, communication & clear delegation / division of responsibilities.
So what happens when a client’s CD ghosts or doesn’t do their job? »
This can make it more difficult for you, the photographer, to do your job (AKA take photos on shoot day) if you need to take time to style props, help with posing, etc.
This can result in the client getting less options if less photos are taken.
This can lead to breach of confidentiality, if the creative director copies your moodboards, replicates your pre-shoot planning process, or steals your ideas.
How you can handle this issue, ~respectfully ~ »
Consider charging an “admin fee” for coordination with an external CD (if you offer this service as part of your process & they opt out, it can create more work for you / pose a risk to your work product, so this is justifiable).
Require CD presence on set to help on shoot day (if not, reserve the right to charge additional fee for day-of-shoot art direction roles, as it creates additional work for you outside the original scope of work & distracts from what you were originally paid to do).
Include confidentiality clause & IP protections in your client contract re: your processes (it’s your livelihood as a photographer planning a shoot).
Prevent the problem by selling templates for your moodboards, shot lists, etc. to clients with in-house CDs, so at least they compensate you for something.
👀 ISSUE #2 » CLIENT GHOSTS ON YOU AFTER SIGNING THE CONTRACT
If you are currently onboarding projects for the future, you’ve probably encountered a situation like this…
A client signs a contract & makes a deposit.
But then, they don’t attend any calls... and they miss important deadlines (like submitting feedback on concept / moodboard ideas) that are needed for you to stay on track.
Weeks go by & you haven’t heard from them, even after attempting to follow-up.
They stop paying.
So, what can you do?
Always take a non-refundable deposit upon signing the contract.
Put timelines for your process in the contract (even if you don’t have exact dates) & include penalties / fees / other consequences for missing them (ie. you move on with the process without their feedback, you instill a $75 fee for missed deadlines, you include late fees for missed payments, you prioritize other clients & move them to the bottom of the list due to “opportunity cost”).
If you want more tips about what to include in your contracts to protect you, join the FREE workshop on June 3rd. There will be time at the end for a Q&A!
GOSSIP COLUMN <3
… AKA personal updates. Sit down with your favorite morning cup cuz I’ve got some tea ☕️
I live my life by the Pareto principle: 80% of my stress often comes from 20% of causes… and 80% of my success usually comes from 20% of my actions. So, I reflect on this principle - as well as the notion that “you are the sum of the 5 people you spend the most time with” - when I weigh whether I should spend more or less time with someone. It’s worked so far: this spring has been filled with laughter. Between a week-long visit with my friend Lindsey in San Diego, to a spontaneous beach day in NY with my friend Michelle, & a night out on the town with my bff Craig, I’ve had so many unplanned ab workouts from all the laughter. Choose who you spend time with wisely, & when you are with them, do your best to be pleasant & present.
Aside from a few items purchased here & there, I haven’t done a wardrobe revamp in years. The last time I purchased anything other than beach apparel was probably in 2017. So, I’ve been on a revamp rampage this week, purchasing new items for my European adventure. I’ve tried to avoid impulse purchases by creating a Pinterest moodboard, taking advantage of MDW sales, & weighing my options before buying. I think I did a good job at avoiding frivolous purchases, but I still feel guilty about buying new clothes. Here are a few highlights from my shopping spree:
These Ugg sandals that are all the rage this summer, because they are waterproof & super comfy to walk around in
A capsule set of washable silk items from Quince, like this midi skirt, mini skirt, & v-neck cami to dress up or down.
These tailored shorts from Abercrombie & Fitch, on sale. I wanted the linen blend version, but as you can see, they are super popular AKA sold out.
This duffle from Calpak, to match my carry-on suitcase. I have been using their carry-on & checked-size luggage, as well as this large backpack for over a year. I’m obsessed. I’ve usually been able to travel carry-on only with the Hue suitcase & Terra backpack as a personal item…but with the strict size & weight requirements in Europe, I am not about to push my luck, so I ordered the Luka duffle after many months of consideration.
This is just a friendly reminder to text your friends / coworkers / family / anyone like a judge would read it one day. Last year, I posted this TikTok. Little did I know that exactly a year later, I’d be asked to provide screenshots & accounts of conversations with someone due to a lawsuit they are involved in. They had spoken to me about a certain event, & it directly contradicts what they had alleged in the complaint. So, even though I am not a party to the lawsuit, I have potential “evidence” to provide & have to cooperate with lawyers. I’ll let my words in the video speak for itself.
OBITUARY »
We are no longer tolerating:
sloppy business practices
unused subscription fees
sugar (I’ve been eating wayy too many pull n peel Twizzlers & Sweet Loren’s cookies)
negative self-talk about our bodies during our luteal phases (IYKYK)
CLASSIFIEDS »
Check back next week!
PS… Got an opportunity you want to share? An event coming up? Looking to hire someone? Send a description & if it’s a fit for my audience, I will post it here in the classifieds section.
BRAIN FOREPLAY »
🍳 WEEKLY WORD SCRAMBLE »
RACRY
DECHCKE
CNPIKAG
EOGVAY
SRNGAO
What’s the one thing these all have in common? Answers next week.
Last week’s answers: Scramble, Sunny, Carton, Boiled, Whisk. Theme = Eggs lol
THAT’S IT FOR THIS WEEK <3 THANK YOU FOR READING!
See you next week!
xx Nina