“Now that it’s a new year, you should change your business name”. This was the statement made to me by my husband two years ago. My response was, “Eh, I’ll think about it.” And the conversation ended. However, six months ago, I began to change my mind. My business was approaching its 10 year milestone and I started to truly reflect on where I wanted to take my business over the next 10 years. I found that I had outgrown the “Captured Moments” brand. My work was different, my vision was different, and how I wanted to run my business needed some major changes. I was not the photographer I was ten years ago.

 In June, I decided that I would launch the new business name October 1st of this year. Here is the process I went through to make Captured Moments Photography become Francescon Portraiture.

The New Name

Not only has my work improved on the technical side; but even more so, my vision and the stories that I’m trying to capture. I felt that my name needed to be just as unique. I have a long last name; but decided that it should be part of the business name. So I came up with two or three different options and then shared my ideas with good clients, family, friends, teachers and mentors. What evolved was Francescon Portraiture. And even though the name is long, it truly reflects where I am and where I am going.  

Legal and Money Changes

In Rock Island County, it is a requirement to register your new business, and then have the business name published in the local newspaper for three weeks. I also contacted the state of Illinois tax department to get the name changed. My next step was to head to the bank to get my new name on the accounts.

The New Look

Now that I had the name, it was time to change the look. For the old business, I used a pallet of brown shades. This was not going to work with the new vision for the company. I wanted strong but a simple color scheme. I chose three colors, redesigned the logo and the proceeded to make changes on the following:

• Website
• Business Cards
• Gift Certificates
• Pricing guides
• Studio information cards
• Packaging
• Stickers
• Pens

The New Pricing/Systems and Products

Since this another whole blog post, I will just mention these changes briefly. Yes, my prices increased on October 1st. I also implemented a number of systems to make my workflow more smoothly. Finally, I visited the products that I was offering and made changes that reflected my work and matched my vision for the business.

A New Look in the Studio

My studio is in my home and that needed some changes too. All of the wall portraits and samples have been updated and replaced. Although it’s not quite done, the rooms that my clients see are in the process of being repainted.

A New Look For Me

For sales sessions, I’ve always dressed up a little more than when I’m shooting in the studio or outdoors. My wardrobe has also had a change and I now wear outfits when I am shooting that reflect the business. The rebranding of my business took a lot more work than I originally thought; but even after a couple of weeks, I’m already starting to see the hard work paying off. I’m truly excited about where the next ten years will take Francescon Portraiture.