Beyond the Shoot: Sales, AI, and Scaling with Alex Coombs

In this episode of the PropMedia podcast, hosts Matty and Moses, co-founders of Pixlmob and PropMedia, interview Alex Coombs, who owns a large real estate photography and videography business in Hamilton, Canada. Alex's business, Northern Spruce Media, started in the real estate space but has expanded into social content and is experimenting with AI.Alex shares the origin story of her business, which started "by fluke" while she was selling hats. She is now the face of Northern Spruce Media, focusing on sales and growth, and has a team of 15 full-time employees and several part-timers. Alex discusses her decision to step away from shooting and focus on sales, and how she gained business knowledge by immersing herself in the world of real estate agents.She explains that the hardest phase of growth was going from one to five employees, as it required "letting go of control" and trusting others with the service. Northern Spruce Media serves Hamilton, which has over half a million people, and is expanding into Niagara Falls. Alex's ultimate goal is to build a sustainable business large enough to sell.Alex also shares her biggest hiring mistake: hiring for talent over attitude. The hardest role to fill, she notes, is a dedicated administrator or office manager who handles client care and bookings. She discusses how she and her team use AI, such as the tool Higgsfield, to try new creative ideas. She shares how they charge for AI services—categorizing them as small, moderate, or hard—based on factors like time, cost, and complexity.**Chapter Markers:**0:00 - Introduction0:42 - How Alex Coombs got into Real Estate Media1:32 - Alex's current business: Northern Spruce Media3:36 - Stepping away from shooting to focus on growth6:02 - Drawing inspiration from real estate coaching7:08 - The journey from hats to a large media company8:51 - The hardest stages of business growth9:35 - Northern Spruce Media's geographic reach and future goals11:58 - The ultimate goal: building a business to sell12:03 - Commercial break13:06 - Biggest mistake in hiring15:02 - The hardest role to hire18:56 - Scratching the creative itch20:55 - Selling the creative vision to agents23:45 - Investing in the company24:34 - System for testing new technologies27:17 - Fun with AI video editing28:47 - Social media engagement with AI content31:09 - The trend cycle of creative content32:48 - The value of "behind-the-scenes" content34:46 - Tips for experimenting with AI36:42 - Pricing AI video services38:50 - Shooting differently for AI41:04 - Educating clients on AI costs44:23 - Concerns about realtors underestimating the work involved in AI46:34 - Opportunities for the future48:08 - Where to follow Alex and Northern Spruce Media