Preparing for a successful year is a top priority. This is especially true if you’re one of the many sports, wedding, portrait, and other photographers who have recently entered the volume/school photography space!
With this in mind, SPOA is putting together the Volume Photography Boot Camp, a full training program to help YOU build and secure your company’s place in the industry. This hybrid training (held both virtually and in-person) will cover the full scope of growing a successful volume photography or yearbook business – whether from scratch or scaling up from a dozen schools to a hundred. We are so excited about this opportunity that we are offering it to our conference-attending members for free!
SPOA spends significant time and resources to ensure that, when we bring training, resources, and assets to our membership, they have been fully reviewed for your safety and the safety of your companies and this industry. We will be bringing in both outside experts and experienced industry professionals to cover topics like:
Setting up your business (legal)
Proper filings (state)
Website
Logo
Email
Cyber security
SEO
Business offerings
Service offerings
Programs
Sales training
Bid/RFP training
Lab selection
Software selection
Yearbook supplier selection
Industry partner selection
CRMs
Photography training (schools, sports, groups)
Picture day scheduling
Rebooking
Relationship management
HR management
Copyright
Student data privacy
And so much more
The National Photographic Competition
We will soon be launching the National Photographic Competition for 2023. We’re excited to see all the talent that will be brought to the table!
The competition will have systems and safeguards in place to ensure the integrity of the entries for the competition, as you would expect from any national competition. In addition, we have more than 14 judges with rules that prohibit and mitigate any bias in scoring. Please see the details on our rules and regulations when the contest rolls out in two weeks. During the last week of February, we will host a live Q&A webinar where you can ask the judges and staff all your questions.
Our Website
You should be seeing some significant alterations in our website and its organization. Much has already changed, and it will continue to change over the next several weeks. If you have ideas or suggestions, never hesitate to tell us. Reach out at any time. With the thousands of site visits we are seeing per month – and a significant portion of these being from schools, districts, and other organizations – we want to make sure we are providing the best possible experience.
Closing
Lastly, I want to remind all of you SPOA has a sole focus and that is to educate, advocate, promote, protect, and preserve the great traditions of school photography and yearbooks. We have a board and a set of bylaws that is our compass and ensures an unbiased approach to supporting the industry.
In fact, a few days ago someone asked me sarcastically, "Why are you all losing so many board members?" and I simply referred to our bylaws and status as a US national trade association. We are excited about having new board members and the possibility of some re-running for their current or new positions. I want to remind you all that our bylaws state that all Executive Board and At-Large Governing Board seats come up for election by our membership every two years. This is an incredible opportunity for new and established school photography companies, yearbook companies, and industry suppliers to serve the greater good of the industry in a leading role. We are moving mountains in the industry and that is because of our members and those who have volunteered to serve. If you have ever wanted to do something for the industry but there has not been an opportunity for you, well, there is here at SPOA. So, join us today and have your voice heard!
David Crandall
Executive Director
School Photographers of America (SPOA)