Ep 26: Why Most Creatives Hate Marketing (and What To Do Instead) with Tania Barbieri
“I realized that once I reached that point of being booked, that was it. I couldn't earn any more money.”
Tania Barbieri
If you’ve ever looked at your service business and thought, “I love this… but also… I cannot keep doing this forever,” this episode is going to hit you right in the gut in the best way. Today I’m sitting down with Tania from Soulful Story Co, and we deep dive into the messy, nonlinear, beautifully human journey of starting as a photographer, adding digital products, building a membership, burning out on in-person work, and ultimately pivoting into copywriting.
And we’re not talking about a fluffy overnight pivot. We’re talking about the real thing. The “holy hell, I’m booked out but my ceiling is capped” moment. The “everyone says digital products are so easy but that’s a damn lie” moment. The “I love the business side more than the craft” moment. The nuanced, honest version so many service providers are living through but rarely say out loud.
If you’re a service provider feeling that tension between what you’re great at and what you actually want to keep doing long term, this conversation gives you permission to explore, experiment, pivot gently, pivot boldly, and build something that fits you.
What You’ll Hear in This Episode
How Tania went from rural family photographer to digital product creator to full-time copywriter
Why being fully booked isn’t the dream if it caps your income and drains your time
The truth about digital products and why they’re not a magically scalable business model
What actually sells low-ticket offers (hint: audiences matter more than vibes)
Why most creatives hate marketing and why that’s a problem if you run a business
How referrals, relationships, and repeat clients actually scale a service business
What photographers taught us about visibility, follow-up, and client experience
How to gently pivot when your identity is wrapped up in your first business
Why email marketing is Tania’s 2026 obsession and why she’s building a new product around it
The Beginning: A Photography Business Built in a Small Country Town
Tania started her business in 2017 as a family photographer in a small rural area. And when she says small, she means tiny. No bustling downtown. No endless client pool. Her husband worked away during the week, so she only had weekends to shoot. And despite all of that, she was fully booked. That’s when she realized the truth most one-to-one service providers eventually hit:
There’s only one of you.
There are only so many weekends.
And “fully booked” is a revenue ceiling disguised as a dream.
Instead of trying to cram more clients into the same limited container, she asked herself the smarter question:
How do I increase revenue without increasing time?
Adding Digital Products: The First Expansion
In 2020 she expanded into digital products—templates, emails, workflows—for other photographers. And that part matters. She wasn’t creating something random. She was creating resources for the people living the exact same pain points she was living.
She loved the business side.
She loved systems.
She loved marketing.
So the education layer felt natural.
Then she launched a membership in 2021, offering business and marketing support for photographers who just wanted someone to tell them what the hell to do. It worked. It helped people. It also created a whole second audience and a whole second business model.
And here’s where her story mirrors the journey so many service providers go through:
When you start serving multiple audiences, the business gets complicated fast.
She eventually had to split the brands—photography on one side, digital products on the other—because moms booking family photos do not need sales page copy tips.
Digital Products Aren’t the Easy Path People Pretend They Are
We had a moment in the interview where we bonded HARD over how predatory digital-product marketing can be.
The “anyone can make six figures from a tiny offer” lie.
The “just build a course!” lie.
The “you already have the knowledge, so just scale it!” lie.
Tania was honest about the fact that her lowest-priced product—the one that finally took off—succeeded because she ran Facebook ads with a mentor and got actual visibility traction.
Not because passive income magically works.
Not because digital products are easy.
Not because the online business girlies hype them up.
It worked because she had a smart strategy, tight messaging, a niche audience, and data.
I wish more service providers heard that truth early on.
The Shift Away From Photography
By 2023, the photography side was slowing down.
Not because she wasn’t good. She was booked and loved.
But because in-person service work is physically and energetically demanding.
She didn’t want to lug gear.
Didn’t want to shoot weekends forever.
Didn’t want the pressure of once-in-a-lifetime moments.
Didn’t want the anxiety that comes with in-person sessions.
And she realized something I think many service providers eventually learn:
You can love your craft.
And still outgrow the version of the business built on that craft.
Copywriting: The Pivot That Made Sense All Along
Tania had always loved writing.
Her captions sold.
Her emails landed.
Her sales pages converted.
Helping photographers write? Total ease.
Helping them with websites? Just as natural.
So she took a beta program with Dirty Copy, sharpened the skill, built confidence, and gently pivoted her brand.
At first she wrote only for photographers—but slowly expanded into writing for all service providers.
Her current offers:
Website copy
Sales pages
Copy audits
Email marketing strategy (coming in 2026)
And she’s not guessing her niche. She’s building on years of real marketing experience, not bro-marketing theory.
The Lessons Photographers Taught Both of Us
We spent half the episode agreeing that photographers are some of the best (and most stressed) service providers to learn from, because the business requires:
strong client experience
fast follow-up
visible personality
consistent marketing
community building
referrals
repetition
relationship management
And here’s the truth:
Those same skills make any service business sustainable.
Most creatives want to “just do the craft.”
But if you run a business, the business side matters.
As I said in the episode:
If you can’t name a single person who might hire you, or refer you, or connect you with someone… we’re not operating in reality. You already know the people who will get your next 5–10 clients. Always.
What’s Coming Up for Tania in 2026
She’s continuing with:
website copy
sales pages
audits
And she’s adding something brand new:
an email marketing digital product for service providers who want to stop relying on glitchy, unpredictable social media.
Because email isn’t sexy.
But it’s reliable.
And she’s obsessed with writing emails anyway.
It’s such a smart move.
Chapters
00:00 intro + time zones
00:37 juggling early-morning interviews
01:19 holiday chaos talk
02:17 getting into photography
03:27 adding digital products
04:38 the limits of a fully booked service business
06:07 splitting brands
07:27 shutting down photography
08:29 revenue mix from digital vs service
09:24 the truth about digital products
10:53 loving the marketing game
12:13 how much marketing service providers actually need
14:18 the cozy marketing conversation
16:40 intentional hustle
17:33 visibility + trust in photography
18:52 follow-up + customer service
21:06 the business side matters more than the craft
22:55 pricing, quality, and differentiation
24:19 referrals and retention
27:38 why clients come back
29:07 finding the first “spark” client
31:20 creative pivots as skill-building
41:53 transitioning into copywriting
46:26 the mindset shift of online work
49:16 editing jars of salsa (yes, really)
53:37 what’s next for Tania
About the Guest: Tania
Tania is the founder of Soulful Story Co. and helps service providers with website copywriting that’s full of personality + strategy driven.
Connect with Tania
Interested in Being on the Show or Working with Emylee?
Are you a service provider with a bold perspective to share? Apply to be a guest.
Ready to transform your service into a productized, scalable offer? Apply for Sold Out Services.
If you’d like to see a library of all published episodes in a gallery with easy-to-find links to all listening platforms be sure to check out the Sell The Damn Service Episode Library.
