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Wendy Newman Take Heart You're Not Alone - part 2 of 1 2 3

by Wendy Newman Published 01/10/2011

As I attend conferences and speak in different areas of the US, more and more photographers are quietly admitting they are having the same experiences. Clients are balking at price, get upset if digital options are not offered or don't purchase digital because the prices are set unattainably high. The market pressures exist and yet many of us are trying desperately to hold on to conventions that may soon be part of the past; look at how quickly our industry moved from film to digital. I'm not saying we shouldn't sell prints or wall portraits, but I am saying we can't ignore what the consumer wants. Certainly there are different degrees of this pressure and your studio may not feel the need to succumb to selling digital images, but as an industry we need to become educated on how to sell digital images without giving away the store, how to limit and protect our copyright, and how to educate our clients on the pros and cons of purchasing digital versus tangible images.

Most importantly, offering digital images is not selling out the industry, if handled correctly a digital offering can be a tremendous selling and consulting opportunity.

In sales, when a need exists, it is an opportunity to pose your key selling points - to show how your product can best meet the needs of the client. Instead of saying "no we don't sell digital images," ask more questions about why the client really wants the digital image and what it will be used it for. Remember people buy because of benefits not features; the digital form is simply a feature of your photography. The benefit could be any number of things that only a digital form can provide and will vary from client to client. Some of these could include the security of having an archive of their portraits, or the desire to share the images on Facebook, or a need to save money and print their images through other sources.

Once you have identified their true need for the digital form, then you can direct clients to the correct digital product (priced appropriately) and educate them on all aspects of your skills at post production and the guarantees and assurance that you can give with prints that you can't provide with a digital file. When handled in a manner that lets the consumer make educated choices, most clients still choose prints or a collection that combines digital and print forms. When pricing reflects the time, skill and level of reproduction rights release, then clients can be guided to products that have more than adequate profit margins and still meet your established sales goals. And better yet, clients leave happier and feeling that their needs were met.

Offering a digital line of products is not the magic answer for dealing with this economy or the multitude of photographers out there. Remember you are your strongest differentiating point. Other photographers may be able to copy your words, use your marketing ideas, emulate your images and photographic style, but they can't copy you. Do your best to convey who you are and work on ways to differentiate your studio that aren't easily duplicated.

In my studio, I try to be authentic to who I am and project confidence and professionalism in all I do. Part of that is conveyed through personal interactions, through my marketing materials, and also through the degrees and professional certification that I hold. I am always striving to learn more and continue to work on developing a style and products (such as composites and painted portraits) that are different and require a greater degree of technical skill. Creating an exceptional experience marked by friendliness, pride in delivering the best quality possible, and a true desire to win over the client is what I want people to 'get' about my studio.

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1st Published 01/10/2011
last update 09/12/2022 15:00:17

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