Why Kit?

It’s great when we find our people.

As a photographer in the modern world, you end up working with a variety of companies and services. Some are photography peers in your local area, some will be complementary vendors, and others will be online services you use to manage part of your business.

Sometimes these relationships are just business and as a customer you’re a commodity to them. They have no particular interest in what you do or how you do it, and their business goals may or may not be in alignment with yours. They serve everyone and, well, you’re everyone.

But other times… you find a vendor who gets you. You find someone who can be great partner because your goals are in alignment, and whose values align with yours.

This is why I use and recommend Kit (formerly known as ConvertKit). I’ve been a paying customer since 2015, and I’ve had several experiences in that time that have reinforced that I’ve made the right choice in a partner for a significant piece of my online ventures.

Disclaimer: I’m an affiliate partner of Kit. If you sign up for Kit through links in this article, you’ll get a great deal and I get a small commission.

Kit is for Creators

MailChimp wants to be the Facebook of the online marketing world by attempting to serve everyone with everything (social media advertising, email, CRM, and more). ActiveCampaign has shifted it focus to bigger businesses. Substack offers easy email services, but they’re also willing to enable and make money from Nazis, and that’s not a community I want to be part of.

None of those sound like a great fit for me as a photographer.

Kit is for creators. It’s for photographers, writers, podcasters, YouTubers, and educators. It’s for people that make things. At KIt’s Craft + Commerce conference a couple years ago, I met quite a few folks for whom photography is all (or a significant part of) their ventures. These photographers spanned various genres including weddings, portraits, events, and commercial work.

Every Kit employee has a plaque on their desk that says “We exist to help creators earn a living.”

Kit is Powerful Yet Accessible

Kit’s tools for email marketing are such that it’s easy to get started, and easy to advance.

• If you’re new to email marketing, it’s straightforward to create simple forms to add folks to your list and to send out newsletters or basic messages.
• If you’re ready to grow your email marketing, Kit makes it straightforward to start using tags to start to segment your list or to set up email sequences for basic automation.
• If you’re wanting advanced email marketing, Kit offers more powerful automation either within their platform, or by using their API¹ to link your Kit marketing efforts into other web services.

I’ve personally moved through these various stages over the last few years… starting fairly basic, and then adding more advanced features to my marketing and workflows as I needed them.

But you don’t have to do that. Most photographers who are selling their services and sharing their work don’t need to worry about the advanced stuff. You can get quite a bit done with the features built into Kit without need to worry about APIs or such.

Kit Does Good

While not directly related to the services they offer me as a customer, I also appreciate that Kit is putting its money and energy to do good in the world. At Craft + Commerce we got an update on their service. They’ve partnered with organizations are are currently helping the world in three ways:

• They’re funding construction of 3D-printed houses in locations such as Haiti.
• They’re funding new wells through Charity:Water.
• They’re funding the construction of a medical clinic in Burma for an area without adequate services.

I can get behind a company that is out to improve the world.

Get Started and Get Free Coaching

Much like your photo lab, your camera store, or your web hosting company, Kit can be a valuable partner in your photography success. Social networks come and go, and

Get Started with Kit using my referral and I’ll spend an hour with you (via a video call) to talk through how your an best leverage email for your photography ventures. Regardless of where you’re currently at, we’ll talk about what your next steps should be. Once you’ve signed up and paid for your account, email me and we’ll set it up.

Questions? Leave a comment or drop me an email.

Have a few minutes? Watch Kit Founder Nathan Barry:

1. API: Application Programming Interface. It’s a way for computers to talk to other computers. In this case, Kit talking to another online service like Zapier or a beefed-up optin form system like Bloom. ↩