For Photographers

A Confused customer Always Says No

There’s a well-known saying that states, “A confused mind always says no.”

This also applies to customers who are confused about a sales offer. They will always take their business elsewhere.

When searching through photographers’ web sites, a customer can become confused when they don’t understand exactly what the photographer is offering, the benefits of hiring that particular photographer, or any of the claims made by the photographer.

A photographer’s web site can create confusion by:

— Having too much information or too little information. Oddly enough, the correct amount of information might be related to the photographer’s prices.

— Offering too many choices.

— Using too much technical jargon.

— Showing a lack of consistency in presentation or message.

— Having no differentiation from other photographers.

Some businesses intentionally try to confuse customers. This is done so that one company’s products or services can’t be easily compared to its competitors. This practice can be common among companies that sell a commodity in an oligopoly, such as telecoms and home energy companies. How much do you enjoy dealing with these companies?

A confused customer is always an unhappy customer.

Many photographers use one of those dubious haze filters on their lenses to eliminate “haze”. Perhaps putting a clarity filter on their business might be more effective.

 

More Is Not Always Better

Some photographers offer their customers a disc with all the pictures they shot on that particular job. Similarly, some customers want a disc containing all the photos taken. Why?

To me, this suggests that the photographer can’t edit, the customer can’t make a decision, or the customer doesn’t trust the photographer to do the job properly.

Certainly there may be times when having all the photos might be a good thing, for example, when the pictures are used as evidence in a trial. But quantity is not quality.
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Credibility and Trust

While shopping in a Toronto grocery store today, a woman approached me and simply asked, “Donate?” She held up a laminated piece of letter-sized paper which had the headline “DONATE DISASTER RELIEF” along with some small, generic pictures of people who may, or may not, have been in disaster-stricken areas. I turned her down.

The woman continued walking the store aisle, asking everyone else the same thing. As far as I could see, everyone turned her down.

Although she may have been legitimate in her request, she had no credibility. The flimsy piece of paper she held was obviously cheaply printed and her “presentation” was unconvincing.
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Are you just a price tag?

While shopping for a pair of winter shoes recently, the ones that I liked most ranged from $99 to $199. All of these shoes looked good and all were comfortable. Which one to choose?

Most of these shoes had only a simple price tag attached. But one pair had a twelve-page booklet attached which described how the shoes were made. These were the shoes I bought (for $179).

When a customer asks something like, “What’s your price to do four business headshots?”, this is a good indication that the customer is shopping price. This is not the time for a photographer to act like a price tag. Instead the photographer should be a booklet of information.
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It’s The Principle

Virgin’s Richard Branson once mentioned the importance of building a company based upon principles, not policies.

According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, a policy is a definite course of action. A principle is “a moral rule or belief that … influences your actions.”

Let’s put it this way: a policy explains “what” and a principle explains “why.”
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Being Too Expensive Is Really An Opportunity

A customer may directly or indirectly tell a photographer that their price is too high. When this happens, the photographer has to understand why the customer is saying this.

A customer may say the photographer’s price is too high when, in reality, the customer is undecided or confused about the offer. It’s easier to say, “it’s too expensive” than “I’m not sure how I can benefit from this photography.”
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