Today we’d like to introduce you to Andrew Tran.
Hi Andrew, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I had been working in a corporate job for almost 6 years and on paper, it was the American Dream. It paid well, offered great insurance, was steady even through COVID, and the retirement was set up so well that I could have lived a very good life in retirement.
But despite how good the job was, I felt miserable there every single day. Every day I felt like I was wasting my days, and I had this burning desire to do more. But I never did anything for 6 years because I was so scared of what that would look like. My wife and I had 2 baby boys, so the decision was risky not just for me, but for my family. I wasn’t ready to throw away the steady paycheck and comfortable life that we had built.
So I dove into side gigs, trying so hard to find a way out of the rat race. And I tried a lot of things from real estate, fix and flips, driving DoorDash, and becoming an influencer. I remember my latest side hustle goal was to become a YouTube star, so I bought a really nice camera to start my YouTube channel. And I made a few videos and found out very quickly that it’s harder than it looks and takes a lot of time. The camera was expensive and I was in a rush to pay it off, so I started thinking of other ways to make money with my camera, so I dove into photography.
I tried family and graduation portraits at first, and while that was fun, it didn’t take off the way I would’ve liked. I had always been interested in Real Estate Photography ever since I did real estate as a side gig. So I researched as much as I could and learned everything about it, and then I leveraged my real estate network to get started. And while the beginning was rough, because there’s quite a learning curve to it, a part of me knew this was what I needed to commit to. So I went all-in on it.
I was working after my 9-5 and doing weekend shoots, and that was tough. Some days I didn’t get home until nighttime, and that was really hard for me to not be able to see my kids and wife. I was juggling 3 jobs: my corporate job, my photography business, and being a father/husband. It took quite a toll on me, but it was paying off. Just as a side hustle, the photography business was already close to matching what I was making at my corporate job.
I knew it was time to leave my job when my performance was starting to deteriorate. Before it felt like I was wasting my time, but as my photography business grew, I KNEW I was wasting my time there and it showed in my work. It was noticeable too, like my managers saw a dip in my performance. They all knew I wasn’t in it anymore, that I was just going through the motions. We had a good heart-to-heart conversation, and before I knew it I was already putting in my resignation.
I remember that being the scariest moment of my life. I had never been more terrified before. I was giving up a steady paycheck, the insurances, and all the good things that came with the job to bet on myself. Lucky for me, my wife was on my side. She saw the business being built, how it grew, and how much it was making. She knew I was going to be able to figure it out, and her confidence in me helped me make the decision when I didn’t have the confidence in myself.
Fast forward to today, the business generates in revenue more than I made at my corporate job. I’ve already hired a team of assistants, and hired my first photographer last month. I have a list of amazing clients and have started building a reputation in the real estate world. I know there’s still so much more to learn and I’m excited to see how far I can really take this thing.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It was not smooth. It took a lot of trial and error to get to where I am today.
One memory I remember very vividly is that I did a photoshoot for a realtor for one of her condo listings, and instead of using my photos she ended up using photos from her iPhone. She said my photos were unprofessional and unusable. That stung a lot, and it really hurt my pride. And I wanted to blame her. I wanted to just say she was wrong, she didn’t know what she was doing, and that I was right.
But I didn’t. I knew she felt that way for a reason and I needed to take her feedback seriously if I never wanted to feel that way again. Looking back on it now, she was absolutely right. My photos were not good at all, and I’m glad I made it a point to improve them.
In this market, there’s no shortage of real estate photographers so it can be a very hard market to break into. I had to figure out a way to create a portfolio that stood out, how to build a reputation that realtors trust, and how to be a business owner all at the same time. It can be a lot to juggle.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I specialize in Real Estate Media, which includes a lot of different things. Photography, videography, aerial/drone footage, floor plans, 3D tours, and a lot of different editing services.
Right now I’m known for my attention to detail in my photos and videos. Photos sound easy on paper, but when it comes to composition, angles, camera heights, and exposure there is a balance that needs to be just right. I pay attention to the small details that make a photo great. We hide items that stand out like a bright tissue box, or remotes and small clutter items like that. The regular person looking at our photos would never notice, but they would definitely say something like “this photo is great, I just can’t put my finger on why it is.”
This attention to detail is what sets us apart. It takes extra effort and time, but it’s worth it.
My proudest moments are when I take photos or videos for a listing and the realtor tells me they’ve sold their house in a week or less. As much as I like my camera work, I like helping realtors grow their business more. This industry is 100% a team game. I don’t have a business if the realtor isn’t successful, and I know that. That’s why whenever I get hired, I’m not just a photographer. I’m their biggest cheerleader!
What would you say have been one of the most important lessons you’ve learned?
You can never communicate enough. You have to spell everything out, down to the tiniest detail. Not just to the realtors, but also to your employees. Things that may seem like common sense to you may not be common sense to others.
I told my photographer on day one that he ever stole anything from a home or badmouthed a client, he would be immediately fired. That’s common sense, but there’s something about saying it out loud that hits differently versus never saying it at all.
Same thing with my clients. I always over communicate dates and times. Instead of saying “I’ll be there in a couple days!” I will always say the day, time, and date. So I would instead say “I’ll be there on Thursday 4/9 at 12:00pm!”
Communicating expectations is also important. Sometimes when I do a video of a home, I’ll skip unimportant rooms like the laundry room or half bathrooms. There’s just not enough time in the video to show everything sometimes. But I’ll let the realtor know upfront that I’m skipping those rooms and most of the times they’re okay with it. But it’s always better to set that expectation upfront rather than after the fact and the realtor is asking where is this room?
Contact Info:
- Website: https://book.andrewtranvisuals.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/andrewtranvisuals/
