The difference between wow and blah

April 21st, 2009 in Marketing by Ian Baugh

Tags: Albums, Business, Clients, Feedback, Packages, Presentation, Pricing, Value

Gerard read my posts on album marketing and asked if I recommend charging for coverage and albums separately or together. I personally think both options are viable; it’s what works for you that’s important…

Here’s the fundamental QBY business* proposition, which you either agree with or you don’t: Queensberry albums add value.

Display your work in them and you present your photography in a whole new context (you expect more money for it!)

Which means you want your work in albums. You profit from the albums, and you profit from the perceived value they add. That’s why, at the time of sale, your goal is to hand the clients an awesome display sample and have them say, “Wow, how much is that?” Or words to that effect.

So, if I’m pricing the album separately, I need to bear in mind that what clients really want to know is how much they’re spending, all-up. Obviously you shouldn’t hide that from them, but you don’t want to overstate it either. I’d certainly stress the difference between their minimum commitment (however you define that) and what they just said “Wow” to.

If I’m pricing my coverage and the album together I’d take care not to commit the clients to a specific album (a 20-side 12×12 or whatever) because that will limit their thinking (discourage them from upgrading). That’s why a lot of studios frame the album component as a “deposit” or “credit”. I would certainly make it clear that they don’t need to make a final decision until after the wedding.

One other thing.

If you’re starting out , chances are you won’t be able to command the prices you eventually want to – but you absolutely must get your business headed in the right direction. An all-in price may accomplish that better because it ensures your work will be presented beautifully, and get you on that upmarket path. You’ll look great value compared with other people offering equivalent presentation – and you’ll be perceived as competing with THEM rather than with the bottom end of the market.

To be clear, you’d expect me to say that, and it may amount to suggesting you offer albums rather cheaper than you might want to. It may not make you popular with your competitors either. But I think it’s good advice, and no-one said that getting started was easy.

Cheers, Ian

* Albums are not just about business of course, any more than you’re in photography just for the money. The nice thing about our industry is that most of us love what we do.

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March 16th, 2009 in Marketing by Danny Bay

No Comments »

Tags: Business, Clients, Economy, Feedback, Seth Godin, Story

I don’t like long posts, and I’m always at Ian and Nigel to keep ‘em brief so I apologize. This recent post prompted Ken to comment and me to respond with this, my longest ever…

Ken asked whether our industry’s main challenge wasn’t “crap photography” but competitors with stupid pricing, for example, “2 photographers, hi-res images and Queensberry with 60 images for £1500.”

Ken suggested that people like that shouldn’t last in business but they keep coming back…

So I presume that if in fact they’re surviving, they’re probably a high volume, low margin outfit – possibly with healthy post-event sales techniques. And that model works great for some people, so more power to them, but there are certainly other ways to skin the cat.

Consider mainstream grocery stores, based on volume, low margins and impulse purchase techniques. They’re very successful in New Zealand, as everywhere – formulaic, calculated and, did I say, successful?

But boutique grocery stores are popping up all over Auckland. To name a few: Farro, Nosh, Sabato and Huckleberry Farms.

Their model is different and it seems to be working. The product isn’t actually that much different – a little, enough anyway – but the big difference is their story (see seth godin). When I walk in I notice their story straight away. Abundant tasting stations, very knowledgeable staff, grass-fed eye fillet, guilt-free eggs and the illusion that I am personally both successful and a good cook (the latter is unquestionably not true). They tell me that story, and I like to hear it because it makes me feel good. And the story ends at my place when I cook for my friends, who compliment me on the meal. Little do they know that the mushroom sauce was pre-made and the pasta was hand made, just not by me!

I’m sure the same can be applied to a wedding photographer, as there are plenty of people who won’t want a studio that shot 300 weddings last year. Those same people, maybe like me, are looking for (or are receptive to) an alternative story. My suggestion is to find one that’s true to you and run with it.

For example, on our most recent NZ tour I met a photographer who is developing his story and it’s different. Ben Marden lives ‘off the grid’ in a remote part of Australia and powers his home and studio with solar panels and wind turbines – something he thought would be ‘off putting’ for his clients when he first moved there. Instead his clients are impressed at how progressive he is and how wonderful it is to be more sustainable. Now it’s a feature in Ben’s story… and it has nothing to do with packages or shooting techniques or price points.

Thanks for reading. I’ll go back to the bat cave and get programming.

Danny

PS I got this off Ben’s site: “The common law of business balance prohibits paying a little and getting a lot. It can’t be done. If you deal with the lowest bidder, it is well to add something for the risk you run and if you do that, you will have enough to pay for something better.” - John Ruskin