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Articles By Chris P. Jones
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Chris P. Jones | While you're practicing the habits for streamlining your edit workflow shared in this column over the last year, and while you are feeling the weight of your backlog lighten, you still must make one additional change to your business model to keep backlog from returning with a vengeance. You've come this far, so it's time to finish off backlog once and for all. Are you ready? OK, here we go. Here's what you need do ... stop editing.
Chris P. Jones | How much can packing a lunch to the studio every day benefit you, when you add up the cost savings, the travel time savings, the editing focus you retain from not breaking up the day to eat out, and the energy boost you get from eating healthier than you might at Fuddruckers or the Waffle House? Jones does the math.
Chris P. Jones | By 'templatizing' as much of your editing process as possible, you will reduce your backlog and your delivery time, and this will make your clients happier than if you were to commission Danny Elfman to compose an original score.
Chris P. Jones | As business owners, we must treat our studios as if they are a 9-to-5 job. I know, that must really sound like a drag. After all, one of the reasons that many of us started our businesses was to escape corporate structure. We wanted to fire our bosses, set our own hours, and pursue something we were passionate about.
Chris P. Jones | In the same way that purchasing the latest camera does not guarantee that business will show up at your doorstep, having a step-by-step editing workflow alone does not guarantee that you will get your projects out the door any faster. You must maintain control over your services, or your services will control you. In this article, I will touch on three business decisions that you can make in order to help maintain control over your time, freeing up time to eliminate your backlog.
Chris P. Jones | Underpromising and overdelivering is a hallmark of excellent customer service.
Chris P. Jones | Presenting a range of delivery dates allows the client to develop his or her own idea about when the film will be completed. You do not want your clients feeling anything but anticipation and excitement, and allowing them a preventable possibility of being disappointed, no matter how slight, can begin to undermine your brand experience.
Chris P. Jones | The sooner you put something before the client, the happier she will be and the more it will benefit you. If you're working hard to deliver at 3 months but cannot imagine executing SDEs, then you aren't fully capitalizing upon the power of your work. The law of diminishing returns applies.
Chris P. Jones | The longer we delay delivery on our wedding films, the more time is being taken away from us. There are a few reasons for this outcome, but let us first look at what is going on behind the scenes with our clients after the wedding.
Chris P. Jones | When it comes to maintaining satisfied clients, clients who will sing your praises and refer you to the ends of the earth, your contracted deadlines do not matter! You can argue with them until you are blue in the face, pointing out that their satisfaction should rest upon you holding up your commitments, but it's futile. You have to strike while the iron is hot.
Chris P. Jones | Three-time EventDV 25 honoree and IN[FOCUS] co-founder Chris P. Jones spells out his revolutionary beat-the-backlog workflow and his groundbreaking approach to managing your video business designed to help you reclaim your life and your place in your clients' good graces.
Chris P. Jones | PART 1 WITH 31 FILMS NOW ON EVENTDV-TV!
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