Didn’t See That Coming

Why didn’t the customer accept your quote? Was it too expensive for them? Did they find a better photographer? What did you forget to do? What did you not foresee?

• In February this year, a municipality requested a photo quote for an upcoming economic report. I sent a quote and heard nothing for a few days. Was my price too high? What didn’t they like?

The contact person then emailed and said she was happy with my quote. But her budget was cut and all photography was cancelled.

• In March, a communications agency asked for photography of a small media tour. An unnamed celebrity was going to visit various Toronto TV stations and newspapers and do a meet-n-greet. I was to tag along and shoot behind-the-scenes pictures. The quote was sent and . . . no response. Did they go with a cheaper photographer or maybe a more experienced one?

The contact person later said the event was cancelled because the celebrity decided not to come to Toronto.

• In April, an ad agency requested photography of people handing out free product samples and coupons in various downtown Toronto locations. I sent a quote and heard nothing for two days. What happened?

It turned out that my price was okay but the promotional event was cancelled. The factory that made the new product couldn’t ship on time and the company lost interest in the giveaway.

• In May, a small pharmaceutical distributor was in a hurry to get pictures of its first retail store about to open. I sent a quote and never heard back. Two months later, I checked its web site to see what photography it was using. The distributor’s web site was gone and the contact person’s LinkedIn page was gone. It seems the store never opened (a Google search turned up nothing) so I assume the company went out of business.

• In August, a medium-sized Toronto commercial real estate brokerage requested a price for 32 business headshots. I gave them a price and never heard back. Oh well, I thought, maybe they went with a cheaper photographer.

I found out that, just weeks after I sent my quote, the company was acquired by a larger company. A multi-million dollar takeover doesn’t happen overnight. This deal must have been in the works for many weeks or even months. So it’s a reasonable chance that my photography was turned down because the real estate brokerage found out it was about to be shut down.

• In September, a new medical practice asked for staff headshots and pictures of its new office that was to open on October 2nd. I spoke with the office manager and sent a quote but never heard back. What happened?

Out of curiosity, in early November I looked at its web site to see if they had hired another photographer. The web site didn’t exist. Since this medical practice is near a friend’s home, I drove by the storefront medical office. It was empty and a “For Lease” sign was in the window. It apparently closed before it even opened.

• Two-and-a-half weeks ago, a Toronto investment company manager sent an early morning voicemail asking for ten business headshots. I called him back later that day and there was no answer. I called back the next day and again the day after that and still no answer. A Web search revealed a brief news story reporting that the company just got bought by another financial company. This news article was dated four days after the manager had phoned me.

Maybe I just have bad luck.

I think that some customers request a photo quote before their plans have been finalized. It seems they want a “what if” price. “What if we hire a photographer . . . ?”

This is not a bad thing. At least they’re thinking about photography.

When you have a quote turned down, it may not be because your price was too high for that customer. It might be for something you had no control over, something you never saw coming.