Batter Up

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During yesterday’s Toronto Blue Jays at New York Yankees game, (the Blue Jays won 8-5), the TV announcers were talking about the value of veteran pitchers.

One announcer explained that, although younger pitchers can often throw the ball faster than the older guys, veteran pitchers have more control and they understand the game better. This means that veteran pitchers can throw exactly the right pitch at the right time and win games. That’s why, the announcer continued, veteran pitchers cost more.

A similar explanation can be used to explain why experienced photographers cost more.

 

Trash the risk

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Last week, a Quebec woman drowned while being photographed in her bridal gown during a “trash the dress” photo shoot. A “trash the dress” is where a woman is photographed a few days, weeks, or maybe even months, after her wedding while wearing her bridal gown in a wet, dirty or otherwise unorthodox location. One would have thought that this fad disappeared after the 1970s but it became trendy again a few years ago.

The family of the victim released a statement which seemed to place blame on the photographer:

These character traits made [the victim] very trusting in others. … One thing we are certain about is that [the victim] would have never put her life at risk. Her love for life, for her husband and for her family would never allow it.
(…)
She trusted [the photographer’s] recommendation for the location and felt safe enough to attend the photo shoot alone with the photographers. She followed their directions and put trust in their professionalism.

While no lawsuit against the photographer has been launched, (the funeral has yet to be held), one might guess where this is heading.
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Smaller is bigger

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From my own anecdotal viewpoint, it seems that smaller companies often have bigger budgets for corporate photography than do larger companies. For examples:

• Last month, the world’s second largest car manufacturer asked about covering its Toronto press conference. It was apparently budgeting $250 for two hours of shooting, a couple hours of editing, and a disc of images to be used internally and for media handouts.

By comparison, a small publisher in Toronto, with a handful of employees, budgeted $650 to cover its 30-minute press conference with one picture for media handout and a handful of other photos for internal use.

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Size doesn’t matter

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A few days ago, a potential customer asked why a business portrait would cost $500 when the photo is just going to be used small on their web site.

In the 1990s and earlier, many companies had no issue paying hundreds of dollars, or more, for a business portrait. Back then, the cost to publish a brochure, annual report or other form of print marketing was relatively high. The cost for business portrait photography was only a small fraction of the total publishing cost.

Today, every company has a web site where the cost to publish is essentially free. This zero cost has made some folks think that corporate photography should also be very cheap. Their thinking is, “why should we pay hundreds or thousands of dollars for pictures that cost us nothing to publish?”
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It’s not the pictures

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If one photographer quotes $150 for a business portrait and another photographer quotes $800, which of them will win the customer’s business? Despite the obvious price difference, it’s not obvious which photographer the customer will choose.

There are two types of customer: the price shopper and the value buyer. Although it’s common for some folks to alternate between the two, for example: be a price shopper when buying groceries and be a value buyer when shopping for clothes.

Some people will always choose the low-price option. These customers are price shoppers and they care only about cost. What they pay is more important than what they get.

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Nothing is better

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Some photographers don’t understand the value of nothing.

Customer: I want to buy this $1,400 refrigerator. After you deliver it to my house and install it, I’ll pay you $200. How does that sound?

Store clerk: Our cost on that refrigerator is $800. If I accept your $200 then we’ll be losing $600 plus the expense of delivery and installation, and we won’t make any profit.

Customer: But isn’t $200 better than nothing?

Store clerk: Of course not. Forget it.

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Message Tailoring

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When marketing photography services, commercial and corporate photographers must understand that business clients differ significantly from retail customers.

For retail clients, those who purchase family portraits or wedding photos, the photos themselves are the final product. But for business clients, photos are tools to achieve a larger goal, to increase revenue.

Retail customers often make decisions based on a variety of emotions, whereas business clients are driven by a single emotion: fear. Fear of making a poor decision, fear of losing money, or fear of looking bad in front of their superiors.

In the case of a small business, where the photographer interacts directly with the owner, the primary goal is usually to help the business increase sales. However, the priorities of a larger company are different. While increasing sales is still important, it’s not always the primary driver when hiring a commercial or corporate photo.grapher. For example, photos may be used for communications and public relations.
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