One of my favorite client experiences started as a problem that turned out to be a beautiful solution and holds a lesson we can all gain from.
I remember the day that Kathy, one of my fabulous coworkers called. When I picked up the phone and said hello, I could feel she was stressed before she even began to talk.
I asked her what was up.
She told me how she had pitched one of Web Marketing Therapy’s clients, a brilliant wellness coach, to be featured in an article in a luxury online magazine. The magazine needed health experts to share infused water recipes. We had perfect recipes to share, already organized and on our client’s blog (ah, the power of content marketing!) so Kathy pitched her, and the journalist wanted to feature her.
Great! And the problem was what…..? I wondered.
The magazine would only use her recipes if we had high-resolution images of the recipes… which we didn’t have.
While we had a “problem”, I instantly kicked into solution-mode.
We really wanted our client to get this media opportunity. I asked Kathy to confirm with the journalist when she needed the photos and in the meantime, I’d see what I could do.
We hung up.
I instantly thought of one of my neighbors, a recent Emory graduate, who had been living down the street with his parents temporarily (now he lives in France). He had been posting beautiful nature photography photos that he had shot for fun on his Facebook page. And they were AMAZING.
I had a hunch he would likely be up for some side hustle work. I had never worked with him, but my intuition about people is strong. And, my teammate had a marketing problem and my feeling that this guy might be the key to our solution was intense. I sent him a Facebook message and texted him (I hit him two ways to expedite things) asking if he’d be open to doing a fast turnaround freelance job to help my agency. He got back to me very quickly and said he was in.
We found out that we had until Monday to get the photos submitted. It was a Friday afternoon, so that gave us enough time to buy the ingredients and get the shots done over the weekend.
I went through my kitchen cabinets and dusted off glassware, a pitcher (that I bought 15 years ago for my friend and coworker Anne’s baby shower!) and sent the hubs out to buy a bunch of fresh produce that the infused water recipe photos called for.
I delivered the goods, including a beautiful bouquet of tulips (It’s all about texture!), took a deep breath, crossed my fingers, and wished for the best.
The outdoor spot he chose to use for the shot that had the right lighting was rained out on Saturday. He said he couldn’t shoot until Sunday. Ugh! One day lost. Sunday, the skies were clear. Whoo! He worked all day shooting and photo editing. At 11:34pm, the images came in. I opened his email, then the photo file, and hoped for the best.
BEAUTIFUL! And this is just one of the recipes!
Not only did we make the media deadline, but our beautiful client also ended up with an arsenal of gorgeous photos for her blog and social media AND I made a great new photographer alliance!
ANNNNND, I have added making infused water to my daily ritual. I find when I add beauty to mundane tasks like drinking more water, I actually do it!
“If everything was perfect, you would never learn and you would never grow.”
-Beyonce Knowles
In this process, I was reminded of many lessons, including to remember the beauty in the work we do. I LOVE solving problems, I LOVE the creative process and I LOVE a good challenge.
I also was reminded of how much I love beauty in my life. Why wait for a photo shoot to have fresh flowers in the house? Why wait for a party to make infused water? Do it daily!
“Beauty is how you feel on the inside and it reflects in your eyes.”
-Sophia Loren
What can you be adding to your life and work to make it more beautiful?
What can you do for yourself to exude more beauty?