I posted the other day about this being a great time to consider whether any of your business policies and touch points aggravate your customers, and if so fix them. I included a PS saying we know we’re not perfect, and "if you reckon this is the pot calling the kettle black, please leave a comment or email us". I was glad I did because Mark went to some trouble to leave a lengthy comment detailing his frustration with us. My point here is not so much to talk about his particular issues (we've been in touch, of course, and we  pretty much have to take what he says on the chin, and fix the To View More >>

Is it just me or are we all (suppliers to the wedding industry) suffering from our clients' "fear of commitment"? The numbers of bookings are down, the time between booking and getting married is getting shorter. "It's the Recession," we cry, and it's almost true. It's not the recession, it's the fear of it. How can we overcome that fear? This is just a question, but ... are we better to say, "We'll give you a 20% discount" or, "We can be flexible?" What does "flexible" mean? It might refer to payment terms. It might mean they can start with a 'shoot only' package and add the trimmings later – To View More >>

Forget about boxing, here are the Queensberry Rules for photographers! 1. Outstanding presentation adds enormous value to your photography. 2. Using the same albums as everyone else reduces the value of your photography. Ask anyone in the street how much a stack of prints is worth, or a disc of images, or a slideshow. Everyone's been to the mini lab, or burnt a disk, so the answer is, "Not much". What you're paying for when you hire a professional, of course, is their time, skill and artistry. Focusing on the presentation takes nothing away from that. It simply places the photography in a To View More >>

Every time I go out to buy something I start thinking about ... Marketing. Sorry. Anyway, a new camera is on the cards, a point-and-shoot (I'm not a photographer, OK!) I know what I want in a camera, I've done my homework and I've whittled down the list to a couple or three that all fit my criteria. They all offer me great image quality, enough control and they cost about the same. I'm not a camera brand 'fan-boy' so I'd be happy with any of them. How do I decide which one to buy? I don't know. But when I go out to buy, one of them will tip the scales in some way. Reputation, customer service To View More >>

How much is an experience worth? (Contains a movie plot spoiler...) If I said to you, "Yeah, in the end the shark gets it," would you still go to the Jaws movie? I could tell you there was blood, pretty girls, lots of really stupid people in boats and a very big angry shark. It could never match the experience, just spoil it. What is that experience worth? Apparently it was worth $260,000,000 in the US alone. If you give your clients a good experience, what is it worth? What is it worth when they tell their friends? I can't tell you enough how valuable the experience of you is to the Bride and To View More >>