Scaling Out Loud

Catalina Bloch
  • 5.0 (6)
  • ENTREPRENEURSHIP
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

Scaling Out Loud The Photo Booth Business Podcast for 6-Figure Founders Ready to Break the 7-Figure Ceiling If you’re a 6-figure photo booth business owner stuck in the "Chief Everything Officer" role, juggling bookings, managing tech headaches, and feeling crushed under your own success, this podcast is for you. Hosted by Catalina Bloch, founder of MDRN Activations, MDRN Photobooth Co., and creator of Photo Booth Mastery, Scaling Out Loud pulls back the curtain on what it actually takes to grow from six to seven figures without burning out in the process. Catalina’s not just talking theory. She’s actively running a 7-figure booth brand while helping hundreds of founders do the same. Each episode is packed with strategy, real-world insights, and unfiltered lessons that speak directly to photo booth entrepreneurs. Inside, you’ll learn how to: • Systemize your business and step out of the weeds • Attract and close high-ticket corporate and wedding clients • Raise your prices confidently and profitably • Build a team you can actually trust • Turn hustle into strategy without losing your edge No recycled advice from other industries. No vague "just work harder" mindset. Just real talk from someone who's built what you’re building and isn’t afraid to say what needs to be said. If you're ready to trade chaos for clarity and bookings for bigger opportunities, hit subscribe and follow Catalina on Instagram @photoboothmastery. Your next level doesn’t start with more work. It starts with listening.

  1. 14H AGO

    More Events isn't the Goal. Profit Is.

    In 2022, we ran over 500 events, crossed seven figures in revenue, and I sat in my kitchen at the end of that year looking at the numbers, looking at the calendar, and wondering how my body got this tired. I had built something I was proud of. And the cost of running it that hard was catching up with all of us. That year changed how I think about growth. Because somewhere along the way, I had convinced myself that a packed calendar was proof the business was working. It took almost breaking my team to realize it wasn't. This episode is about the math, the mindset shift, and the actual moves I made after that. In 2025, we ran 100 fewer events than we did in 2023, and made 25% more revenue. That's not a lucky season. That's a decision. And in this episode, I walk through exactly how it works and what it takes to get there. If your calendar is full but something still feels off, this one's for you. What you'll learn in this episode: Why event count is a vanity metric and what number actually tells you how your business is doing The three questions to ask about every event on last year's calendar What cutting the bottom 20% of your business actually means and how to do it without panicking Why a price increase is a campaign, not an email — and the exact phases of how to run one What moving up the market looks like in a real photo booth business, for both weddings and corporate The emotional side of doing less — and why the fear that shows up isn't telling you the truth Three specific things to do this week to start shifting the trajectory Resources mentioned: Free profit calculator: https://photoboothmastery.catalinabloch.com/2026-profit-calc Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/photoboothmastery Your Next Steps: Work with Me: https://bit.ly/POD-Site2 Join Photo Booth Mastery Hub: https://bit.ly/POD-Hub Connect on Social: https://www.instagram.com/photoboothmastery

    15 min

  2. APR 30

    The One Activation at Coachella Already Sending Us Phone Calls

    Do you know what your clients are going to be asking for six months from now?   I do. And it started with me sending my friend Zach to run around Coachella with one job: grab samples from every photo and video activation he could find.   Here's why this matters. Whatever big brands are spending their experiential marketing budgets on at festivals like Coachella is exactly what's going to show up in your clients' requests next year. Every time. And this year had some genuinely impressive stuff, some head-scratchers, and one activation that is already generating phone calls to my business right now.   In this episode I'm walking through every activation Zach captured, breaking down what worked, what missed, and what you need to start paying attention to. From overhead look-down booths to lenticular prints to branded key chain stations, this is your trend report for the year ahead.   What you'll learn in this episode: Why Coca-Cola had the most underwhelming activation at Coachella and what it teaches you about output quality How two brands used the exact same look-down booth concept and got completely different results What made White Claw's enclosed overhead booth one of the best executions of the day The one activation already generating real phone calls for my business (and why your existing equipment can probably do it) Why lenticular prints are not slowing down and how Pinterest used them at their activation How Miniverse built a set that made people feel like they were stepping into a miniature world Why tangible outputs are where the photo booth industry is heading How your DSLR booth can offer far more than you think without buying anything new Why corporate is the next massive wave for photo booth businesses and why now is the time to get ready   Resources Mentioned: LA Photo Party (for lenticular printing): https://www.laphotobooth.com Photo Booth Mastery Hub: https://bit.ly/POD-Hub   Your Next Steps: Work with Me: https://bit.ly/POD-Site2 Join Photo Booth Mastery Hub: https://bit.ly/POD-Hub Connect on Social: https://www.instagram.com/photoboothmastery

    17 min

  3. APR 23

    How Free Events Can Grow Your Photo Booth Business Fast

    You've been thinking about free events all wrong. What if I told you that one single free event,  one where you spent maybe $500-$1500 on setup and staff, could bring you millions of dollars in revenue over the next decade? Because that's exactly what happened to me. If you're stuck on marketing, struggling to find consistent leads, trying to raise your prices, or desperately wanting to break into corporate but have no idea where to start, this episode is going to flip the script on everything you think you know about "working for free." This episode is a recording of a live keynote talk I gave at at PBX (Photo Booth Expo), where I walked attendees through my entire Photo Booth Lead Generation Blueprint framework, the same strategy my team has used for 10 years across both of my brands, MDRN Activations and MDRN Photobooth Co. Spoiler: it's not about giving your services away. It's about paying your best marketer, yourself, to get in front of exactly the right people, at exactly the right events. The first event I ever did using this method was a local networking lunch called Ladies Who Lunch. One booth. One afternoon. And from that single event, we landed two of our biggest corporate clients. Clients who have collectively brought us millions of dollars in revenue over 10 years. And we still work with them today. That's the power of this system when you do it right.   What you'll learn in this episode: Why "free events" aren't really free, and the exact mindset shift that changes everything How to define your target market so specifically that your marketing basically writes itself The key questions I ask before agreeing to sponsor ANY event Why ticket price is one of the most important filters when evaluating an event, and the number I never go below The difference between targeting wedding planners, venues, and direct couples, and why the sales conversation is completely different for each How to structure your offer so it feels mutually beneficial but clearly positions YOUR value Why showing up with your B-game to a free event is worse than not showing up at all The art of the follow-up, and why most people quit way too early The "three choices" psychology trick that increases your booking rate What I'd do differently if I were just starting out today   Mentioned Resources: Photobooth Supply Co. NACE (National Association for Catering and Events)  Meeting Professionals International   Your Next Steps: Work with Me: https://bit.ly/POD-Site2 Join Photo Booth Mastery Hub: https://bit.ly/POD-Hub Connect on Social: https://www.instagram.com/photoboothmastery

    29 min

  4. APR 16

    Your Prices Aren’t the Problem. Your Money Blocks Are

    I'm going to tell you something I've never said quite this directly before. I didn't think a photo booth business could make a million dollars. Not mine. Not anyone's. I thought there was a ceiling on this industry, that you could do well, make decent money, have a good little business. But seven figures? From photo booths? That felt like it was reserved for other kinds of businesses. More "legitimate" ones. That belief was quietly running everything. My pricing. My vision. The size of the goals I let myself set. Because why build something big if you don't actually believe big is on the table? And then I found today's guest. I was pacing back and forth in my backyard, earbuds in, listening to her audiobook, and something cracked open in me that I didn't know was closed. I made a decision right there on that grass: this business could be a million dollar business. I was going to move into my dream house. I was going to stop letting a belief I'd never even examined out loud put a cap on what I was building. I'm recording this from that dream house. I've since built multiple 7-figure brands in this industry. The one I once thought had a ceiling. That's why this episode is personal. Today I'm sitting down with Denise Duffield-Thomas, Hay House author, money mindset coach, and the woman behind two books that are now permanently on my recommendation list: Get Rich, Lucky Bitch and Chill and Prosper. She's helped over 10,000 entrepreneurs through her Money Bootcamp, and she has a way of holding up a mirror that makes you go... oh. That's what I've been believing. We get into the money blocks that are specific to service businesses like ours. The ones that don't look like money blocks. The ones that feel like logic, like humility, like just being realistic. We talk about pricing paralysis, the myth of the critic-proof price, the "keyless life" framework for building a business that stops draining you, and the real reason so many photo booth founders stay stuck, even when their business is technically working. And the part where Denise talks about the value of what you're actually creating for your clients? I wasn't expecting it to land the way it did. What you'll learn in this episode: Why crowdsourcing your pricing is one of the most dangerous things you can do, and why everyone else's price is just as made-up as yours What "money blocks" actually are, how they form, and why they're affecting your pricing confidence right now (even if you don't realize it) The truth about "critic-proof pricing" (spoiler: it doesn't exist, and chasing it is keeping you stuck) Why there's no such thing as a price that works for everyone, and why trying to please all clients is actually hurting your business How price perception IS part of your marketing, and what that means for photo booth companies targeting premium clients The "keyless life" framework from Denise's book and how to apply it to your booking process, follow-up systems, and day-to-day operations Why the hustle mentality is officially over, and what "chill and prosper" actually means for your business model Real talk on website friction: Are you making it hard for clients to give you money without realizing it? How Denise has personally hired photo booth companies (including for her mum's 60th and her annual Oscars party), and what she says photo booth owners should be communicating to potential clients about the VALUE of what they do Resources Mentioned: Denise Duffield-Thomas Website: https://www.denisedt.com Get Rich, Lucky Bitch by Denise Duffield-Thomas. Available wherever books are sold Chill and Prosper by Denise Duffield-Thomas. Available wherever books are sold Denise's Podcast, Chill and Prosper. Available on all major podcast platforms Denise on Instagram: @denisedt Money Archetypes Quiz by Kendall Summerhawk (mentioned in episode) Your Next Steps: Work with Me: https://bit.ly/POD-Site2 Join Photo Booth Mastery Hub - https://bit.ly/POD-Hub Connect on Social: https://www.instagram.com/photoboothmastery

    47 min

  5. APR 9

    Your Creativity Needs to Eat. Stop Starving It.

    There is a clip that lives in Catalina's head. She has never been able to shake it.   It's the music video for Humble by Kendrick Lamar. That moment where the camera doesn't just move, it dances. Every cut on the lyric. Every angle shift perfectly timed. It made something shift in her brain. And it planted an idea: what if a photo booth experience could feel like that?   That's what this episode is really about. Because that idea didn't come from studying the photo booth industry. It didn't come from a vendor catalog or a trade show floor. It came from watching art.   And that's the conversation we're having today.   Where does your creativity actually come from? Not the version you perform for clients. The real raw material. The fuel. The stuff that makes you look at a blank canvas and see something instead of nothing.   I've been thinking about this a lot. And the more I think about it, the more I believe creativity is one of the most underrated and misunderstood assets in this industry. We talk systems, pricing, team building, corporate clients. All of it matters. But none of it is what makes your work unforgettable. What makes your work unforgettable is you. Your particular lens. Your specific obsessions. That weird, unrepeatable combination of things only you love.   And here's the thing: it doesn't come from inside the photo booth world. It never did.   There's a book I keep returning to called The Art of You. The premise is simple but it will stop you in your tracks. Your creative identity, the thing that makes your work distinctly yours, is built from your experiences. Everything you've ever seen, heard, felt, explored. The places you've been. The films that kept you up thinking. The art that made you feel something you couldn't name. All of it goes in. All of it comes out in your work.   And that means the question isn't just what do you do. It's who are you? What have you lived? What are you made of?   What You'll Learn in This Episode:  Why your most powerful creative asset has nothing to do with photo booths How Catalina's obsession with film, travel, and art directly shaped the experiences she builds What The Art of You teaches us about building a creative identity no one can copy Why Paris, modern art museums, and immersive pop-ups matter more than your competitor's Instagram The real reason so many founders feel creatively flat (and it's not what you think) Why consuming only industry content is a trap that makes everyone's work look the same The actual homework you need this week (no spreadsheets, no audits, we promise)   Resources Mentioned:  The Art of You (book referenced in the episode) Kendrick Lamar's Humble music video   Your Next Steps: Work with Me: https://bit.ly/POD-Site2 Join Photo Booth Mastery Hub: https://bit.ly/POD-Hub Connect on Social: https://www.instagram.com/photoboothmastery

    13 min
  6. Stop Calling It An Activation

    APR 2

    Stop Calling It An Activation

    You are losing clients before they ever contact you.   And most of you have no idea it's happening.   There is one word spreading through this industry like wildfire, on websites, in proposals, on Instagram captions, and it is being used completely wrong. Every single time I see it, I cringe. Because I know exactly what it's costing the person using it.   The word is activation.   And today we need to talk about it. Because the language you use in your business is not just marketing copy. It is a signal. It tells every person who lands on your page exactly who you are, who you work with, and whether or not you actually know what you are doing. And right now, a lot of us are sending the wrong signal.   Let's get real: language either attracts your ideal client or repels them, before you ever get on a call. In this episode, I am breaking down what a brand activation actually is, why using it incorrectly is quietly killing your credibility with the exact clients you are trying to attract, and what words you should be using instead depending on who you are actually selling to.   This is a loving call-out. But it is still a call-out.   What You'll Learn:  What a brand activation actually is (and what it absolutely is not) Why misusing industry language signals to corporate clients that you do not understand their world The real reason so many photo booth founders borrow vocabulary they cannot back up How the wrong language on your website is costing you inquiries you will never even know you lost What language to use if you are targeting corporate and experiential clients What language to use if your ideal client is a couple planning a luxury wedding The three questions to ask yourself when auditing your website and Instagram right now Why language alignment is not a cosmetic fix, it is a positioning strategy    Your Next Steps: Work with Me: https://bit.ly/POD-Site2 Join Photo Booth Mastery Hub: https://bit.ly/POD-Hub Connect on Social: https://www.instagram.com/photoboothmastery

    15 min

  7. MAR 26

    You're Not Unfocused. You're Addicted to the Wrong Kind of Busy

    You're working. You're learning. You're in the groups, you're researching, you're asking questions, you're staying current.   So why hasn't the revenue moved in two years?   That's the question nobody wants to sit with. And it's exactly what this episode is about.   Let's get real: there's a version of shiny object syndrome that doesn't look anything like impulse buying. It doesn't look like chaos. It looks like hustle. It looks like a founder who genuinely cares, genuinely works hard, and is genuinely getting nowhere.   In this episode, I'm going deep on the most expensive version of shiny object syndrome in this industry. Not the one where you buy a booth you didn't plan to. The one where you're in constant motion but the business looks the same six months from now as it does today. That's avoidance dressed up as productivity. And it's costing you more than you know.   I also get into why your brain is literally working against you here, why Facebook groups can become a trap if you're not careful, and the one question you need to ask to figure out exactly where your focus should go for the next ninety days.   What You'll Learn:  Why the most expensive version of shiny object syndrome looks like constant productivity, not distraction How dopamine and novelty-seeking are literally making you feel busy while keeping you stuck The difference between motion and direction, and why hardworking founders confuse the two Why crowdsourcing your strategy in a Facebook group is keeping you spinning How to audit your own business to find the one thing that's actually holding you back What it really means to build a lean, scalable equipment lineup What ninety days of real focus actually looks like, and what to do with every idea that tries to derail it Why the founders I've watched go from stuck to scaling all had one thing in common: they got bored for a while   Mentioned in This Episode: Scale: Catalina's coaching program for 6 and 7-figure photo booth founders. DM the word SCALE to @photoboothmastery on Instagram to learn more.   Your Next Steps: Work with Me: https://bit.ly/POD-Site2 Join Photo Booth Mastery Hub: https://bit.ly/POD-Hub Connect on Social: https://www.instagram.com/photoboothmastery

    17 min

  8. MAR 19

    He hit seven figures and didn't love it.

    There's a version of success that looks great on paper and feels like a trap in real life. Aldo from I Touch XP has been in this industry for 16 years, worked the Super Bowl five times, activated for Beyonce's tour across 22 cities, landed Disney as a client after Coachella, and crossed seven figures in revenue. And then he scaled back. On purpose.   This episode is for the founder who thinks scaling always means going bigger. Because Aldo is proof that sometimes the most powerful move is getting really, really clear about what you actually want and building toward that instead.   I sat down with Aldo at PBX and we got into all of it. His journey from wedding videographer to seven-figure corporate experiential operator. The moment he realized he had to choose between weddings and corporate (and why he chose corporate, hard). The philosophy behind why he calls his setup "controlled chaos." The hiring struggles he still hasn't fully solved. And why he hit a million dollars and then... didn't love it.   This is one of those conversations where every answer gives you something to think about. Aldo doesn't run his business the way you'd expect. He doesn't have a fancy website driving his leads. He doesn't automate much because every single project he does is custom-built from scratch. He travels 80% of the time. He flies first class because a one-day project is actually a three-day project when you account for travel, and he prices accordingly. He is, by every measure, doing this his own way.   And it's working. What You'll Learn: Why Aldo chose to go all-in on corporate and completely dropped wedding videography (and why he thinks trying to do both splits your resources and your identity) How he thinks about pricing for travel, custom builds, and one-of-a-kind activations that no one else can replicate or price-match The "inspire, don't sell" philosophy he uses on sales calls and why it turns his clients into advocates who sell him to their bosses What happened when he hit seven figures and why he scaled back the year after Why he believes relationship-building is the entire foundation of a corporate business and what that actually looks like in practice His honest take on the hiring struggle, letting people go, and what he wishes he could learn right now The "lipstick on a pig" strategy he uses to elevate any activation and keep clients coming back What advice he'd give to wedding booth owners who want to move into corporate (and why he thinks if you can sell a $2,800 wedding booth, you can sell a $100K experiential) His one piece of advice for standing out in any market: offer something no one else has, and they can't price-match you   Your Next Steps: Work with Me:   BitPhoto Booth Mastery - Home   Join Photo Booth Mastery Hub:   BitPhoto Booth Mastery Hub   Connect on Social:   Instagraminstagram.com/photoboothmastery

    45 min
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5
out of 5
6 Ratings

About

Scaling Out Loud The Photo Booth Business Podcast for 6-Figure Founders Ready to Break the 7-Figure Ceiling If you’re a 6-figure photo booth business owner stuck in the "Chief Everything Officer" role, juggling bookings, managing tech headaches, and feeling crushed under your own success, this podcast is for you. Hosted by Catalina Bloch, founder of MDRN Activations, MDRN Photobooth Co., and creator of Photo Booth Mastery, Scaling Out Loud pulls back the curtain on what it actually takes to grow from six to seven figures without burning out in the process. Catalina’s not just talking theory. She’s actively running a 7-figure booth brand while helping hundreds of founders do the same. Each episode is packed with strategy, real-world insights, and unfiltered lessons that speak directly to photo booth entrepreneurs. Inside, you’ll learn how to: • Systemize your business and step out of the weeds • Attract and close high-ticket corporate and wedding clients • Raise your prices confidently and profitably • Build a team you can actually trust • Turn hustle into strategy without losing your edge No recycled advice from other industries. No vague "just work harder" mindset. Just real talk from someone who's built what you’re building and isn’t afraid to say what needs to be said. If you're ready to trade chaos for clarity and bookings for bigger opportunities, hit subscribe and follow Catalina on Instagram @photoboothmastery. Your next level doesn’t start with more work. It starts with listening.

Information

  • Creator
    Catalina Bloch
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    21
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 MDRN Creative Group Inc.
  • Show Website
    Scaling Out Loud

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