Choosing a Business: October 2007 Archives

Today I'm interviewing Olivia Romero of Albuquerque, New Mexico about her home based video production company. I met Olivia during the August 2007 30 Day Challenge (an online marketing course) and we have remained in touch.

What kind of home based business do you have?
I have an independent video production company, specializing in training, education and promotional projects. Recently I also published a “do-it-yourself” wedding video production ebook.

So you make videos, and you also teach other people how to make their own videos?
Yes, I wrote an ebook called Wedding Video Secrets: A Professional’s Guide for Doing It Yourself, in collaboration with Tony Jones. We'd worked together on lots of video projects over the years. I got the idea of the "do-it-yourself" ebook after hearing Tony talk so many times about the simple, but devastating mistakes people make during the shooting of a wedding. He found it sad that so many times newlywed couples hired him to fix wedding video disasters shot by well-intentioned friends or relatives.

Had either of you ever written a book before?
No, but Tony was a natural for a project like this. In recent years he has conducted video production classes for teens in Santa Fe, New Mexico. This was just a logical “next step.” I must admit though, I had to talk Tony into it!

Getting back to the video production, when did you start doing that?
I started my company, I.M.M. of New Mexico, in 1993. The plan was to go into business with my brother. But since I was female, and a minority, we decided there were definite business advantages to establishing the business in my name.

What did you do before starting your business?
I had received an M.A. in human resources development and left school with the usual idealism and “I’m going to change the world” spirit most graduates have. Unfortunately, most businesses in this area at the time had never heard of human recourses management. So even though I was able to get a job with the title, I ended up being a glorified personnel clerk. I was miserable.

Do you work on your business full-time, part-time? Do you have another job? Or can you make enough from your business?
I work full time when I have a video project. I write, produce, direct and edit (I don’t shoot). When I don’t have a project I subcontract my services to other video producers. I also work on my website which promotes my Wedding Video Secrets ebook. All combined, I do ok. But I know I can do better.

What do you like most about your business?
My freedom. I just can’t put a price on how important my freedom is to me. I love being my own boss. I also LOVE the other freelancers I work with. They are the most wonderful, fun, creative group of professionals that I’ve had the honor to work with.