Showit United is an event our team here at Showit looks forward to every year. Hosted by Showit, United is an opportunity for professional photographers and creatives to connect, grow and recharge. For almost all of the country summertime is a busy time for pro-photogs. Wedding season is in full effect and back-to-school is just around the corner. And in the Fall when the leaves have fallen from the trees and the air has become brisk (everywhere but Arizona) I think we all need some time to focus on falling in love with our businesses again… and United is such a great place to do that.

As we get excited for United (I love that it rhymes), we're going to introduce you to some of the speakers that will be joining us in Tempe this November.

Today I want to share with you a little about one of my favorite photographers and mentors who will be speaking at United, Melissa Jill. Melissa is based in Phoenix, Arizona and is not only an amazingly talented photographer, she is truly one of the best photography educators I've ever had the opportunity to learn from. I attended Melissa's MJ 2-Day workshop about four years ago and then met with her for several mentoring meetings and it was instrumental to the success of my business. She was able to help me with pricing, contracts and client interaction in a way that made sense to me and made me fall in love with the business of photography.

Melissa has been in business for 13 years, and if you asked her she'd tell you she still loves every part of her business. From shooting film to expanding her expertise in digital marketing, she truly loves the business of her business. But just because she loves all the varying aspects, doesn't mean she tries to do it all on her own. She's found that outsourcing plays a huge part in her success and she recently wrote a great blog post listing the 20 Things she outsources in her business and life.

One of the most influential parts of Melissa's business is her blog. For years she blogged on an almost daily basis, and it became a very important marketing funnel for both wedding photography clients and photography education clients. Blogging regularly takes discipline but your efforts can make a big impact on your business… which is why starting a blog is one of Melissa's biggest pieces of advice for new photographers.

She also suggests investing time reading business books. Melissa credits reading books about business as being pivotal to her success. See her top 10 recommended business books for every Wedding Photographer.

Clearly Melissa loves business, because in addition to her wedding photography business that includes multiple associate photographers, Melissa also is the owner and founder of Align Album Design, an album design company that handles all aspects of album design so you can get back to doing what you love. Her third business and newest venture Redzezbooth, launched earlier this summer and is a mobile photo booth based in Phoenix, Arizona.

To learn more about Melissa check out her website at melissajill.com and follow her on Instagram at instagram.com/melissajill.

Elizabeth Langford

Elizabeth handles Community Relations for Showit. As part of the Showit Marketing & Community team she plans and creates events and experiences for Showit users, who are lovingly referred to as Showiteers. Elizabeth was a professional photographer specializing in engagements and weddings for six years. She loves to golf, read, camp and delights in being a wife and mom.