Toronto corporate photographer

Choosing less satisfaction

January 15, 2014 No Comments

Would you:

• buy a pair of shoes based only on price?

• buy a book based only on price?

• decide on concert tickets based only on price?

• choose a restaurant based only on price?

• plan a vacation based only on price?

Why would anyone choose a photographer based only on price?

A 2013 study by J.D. Power looked at customer satisfaction with North American car rental companies. A key finding was that customers who chose a car rental company based on lowest price were the least satisfied.

This parallels a similar 2013 North American hotel study which found that consumers who chose a hotel based on lowest price were also the least satisfied.

Would any customer be satisfied with the lowest-priced photographer?

When is the price of photography expensive?

January 14, 2014 No Comments

“Aren’t your photography prices too high?”

Compared to an amateur photographer, a Craigslist photographer, or an inexperienced photographer then I certainly hope that my prices are much higher than any of those.

But I’m not expensive when compared to a photographer with similar experience and knowledge.

I quoted $1,560 for a job last month that required eight business headshots. A few days later, someone from the company called to let me know that their project was cancelled. She said that she had received quotes from four Toronto photographers, including myself, and all were within $300 of each other. Unfortunately, she continued, “My boss budgeted only $500. I told him it wasn’t enough!”
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Underspending Is Overspending

January 9, 2014 2 Comments

Charles Mortimer was the CEO of the former General Foods from 1954 to 1965. During this time he doubled the company’s sales and tripled its earnings. Mortimer’s background was in marketing. He was once quoted as saying:

The surest way to over-spend on advertising is not to spend enough to do a job properly. It’s like buying a ticket three-quarters of the way to Europe; you have spent some money, but you do not arrive.

If you replace the word “advertising” with “professional photography”, the saying would still hold true.

When a company seeks the lowest-cost corporate photography, that company is shooting itself in the foot, or more accurately, in the wallet. When spending on photography for business marketing, it’s not what you pay that’s important but rather it’s what you get.

Cutting corners and paying just enough to get ineffective or low quality business photography is a form of overspending because you’ve bought a ticket to nowhere.

If a job is worth doing then get someone to do it properly. – anonymous

Picture Perfect

January 6, 2014 No Comments

Pictures interest people more than text.

People get information faster from pictures than text.

People can get more information from pictures than text.

People understand pictures better than text.

Pictures have greater emotional impact than text.

People trust pictures more than text.

Pictures have more credibility than text.

Emotional impact + trust + credibility => pictures influence people more than text.

People remember pictures more than text.

So what should your company use for your marketing, more pictures or more text?

More Memorable Corporate Photography

January 5, 2014 No Comments

Everyone wants to save money. Presumably that’s why some companies use cheap stock pictures on their web sites. But using such pictures is counter-productive. Cheap stock pictures actually push customers away.

By design, cheap stock pictures target the lowest common denominator. This means the pictures are bland, generic and very simple to understand, just like the pictures in a children’s book.

A 1988 University of Texas study, “Effects of Color and Complexity in Still Photographs on Mental Effort and Memory”, showed that: (i) viewers pay more attention to complex photos; (ii) complex images are processed by the viewer just as easily as simple ones; and (iii) viewers remember complex pictures more than simple pictures.

This means that using cheap stock pictures serves no purpose other than to save money. But spending any money for something that delivers nothing is actually a waste of money.
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When to pay less for corporate photography

December 28, 2013 No Comments

All companies need some type of corporate photography to help market their business. And of course when hiring a photographer, every company is looking for a deal, a bargain, a discount.

Professional photography isn’t like selling widgets or any low marginal-cost item. When a photographer has a very low price, it means something is off, something is missing. But is this always a bad thing?

It’s okay to go with cheap photography when:

• You want less.

• You’re happy with good enough.

• You don’t mind working with a less-experienced photographer.

• You like to cut corners.

• The pictures aren’t really important.

• Your business marketing doesn’t have to be effective.

• You don’t need to make a good impression.

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Lines of Sight

For Customers