Is it just me or are we all (suppliers to the wedding industry) suffering from our clients' "fear of commitment"? The numbers of bookings are down, the time between booking and getting married is getting shorter. "It's the Recession," we cry, and it's almost true. It's not the recession, it's the fear of it. How can we overcome that fear? This is just a question, but ... are we better to say, "We'll give you a 20% discount" or, "We can be flexible?" What does "flexible" mean? It might refer to payment terms. It might mean they can start with a 'shoot only' package and add the trimmings later – To View More >>

Forget about boxing, here are the Queensberry Rules for photographers! 1. Outstanding presentation adds enormous value to your photography. 2. Using the same albums as everyone else reduces the value of your photography. Ask anyone in the street how much a stack of prints is worth, or a disc of images, or a slideshow. Everyone's been to the mini lab, or burnt a disk, so the answer is, "Not much". What you're paying for when you hire a professional, of course, is their time, skill and artistry. Focusing on the presentation takes nothing away from that. It simply places the photography in a new To View More >>

Every time I go out to buy something I start thinking about ... Marketing. Sorry. Anyway, a new camera is on the cards, a point-and-shoot (I'm not a photographer, OK!) I know what I want in a camera, I've done my homework and I've whittled down the list to a couple or three that all fit my criteria. They all offer me great image quality, enough control and they cost about the same. I'm not a camera brand 'fan-boy' so I'd be happy with any of them. How do I decide which one to buy? I don't know. But when I go out to buy, one of them will tip the scales in some way. Reputation, customer service To View More >>

How much is an experience worth? (Contains a movie plot spoiler...) If I said to you, "Yeah, in the end the shark gets it," would you still go to the Jaws movie? I could tell you there was blood, pretty girls, lots of really stupid people in boats and a very big angry shark. It could never match the experience, just spoil it. What is that experience worth? Apparently it was worth $260,000,000 in the US alone. If you give your clients a good experience, what is it worth? What is it worth when they tell their friends? I can't tell you enough how valuable the experience of you is to the Bride and To View More >>

Our UK Account Rep, Jo Newman, emailed me today: I thought you might use Mark's comments as an opportunity to talk more about our plans to XXXXXX XX XXX XXXXXXXX . [Sorry - Ed]  I was a bit disappointed when I saw your second post about Mark's comments.  It didn't mention marketing at all :) In fact I've had a few comments and quite a few emails talking about our brand strategy over the last few days. And Robert emailed me weeks ago saying I should be stressing branding more and pricing less: if photographers don't "foster an expectation consistent with their pricing level" they're fighting a To View More >>

When people contact us about their wedding, if they are doing a general search, they most often ask, 'How much to shoot our wedding?' Eventually they get around to 'What do I get?' and finally 'Are you available?' This email just came in. It says it all really.To whom it may concern,Would it be possible to be sent a full price list of your wedding packages?Thanks, Justin We all want our clients to care, because it is the caring that makes them better clients. So what are we selling? Are we selling a product at a price? Are we selling our ability to make great photographs? Are we selling our ability To View More >>

Tupperware 'fan boys' are everywhere. Prodding the skeptical, hosting Tupperware parties, and enthusiastically trying to convince their peers of the benefits. Their argument: Once you try it, you'll understand. And most people do. The experience of using Tupperware's product is usually enough to quickly switch a sceptic's loyalties, and soon enough they'll be passionately promoting the product themselves. That's (loosely) Tupperware's business model, and you can see how it would have a snowball effect. They've built a brand around positive customer experience and word of mouth marketing.  As To View More >>

If you're finding this year tough, and you've said, or thought, what's wrong, I'm not doing anything different... right there may be your problem. Just as things changed when you switched from film to digital, or PC to Mac, or Nikon to Canon, things have changed with the end of the party economy... Have you heard how much the Las Vegas convention industry is suffering because it's not a good look for corporations to go there to "party" when times are tough? This is probably not the best time to be selling party souvenirs. Your work needs to be significant, worthwhile, to survive the end of the To View More >>

Heather and I bought a second-hand Kenwood mixer thirty years ago when we went to live in the Solomon Islands. We thrashed it for three years making our own bread – a lot better than the sweet yellowy stuff from the local store! – and it still works fine today. After I used it last weekend I posed it next to our toaster and snapped a photo with my iPhone. It looks a bit beaten up but it won't surprise me if the darned mixer outlasts us! Unlike the toaster, which has been a dog since Day One and may not survive the month. Isn't it an awesome thought that the albums you're creating right now To View More >>