commercial photography

Pots, pans and pictures

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Everyone owns some pots and pans yet restaurants don’t view this as competition. Restaurants know that people will still dine out. Eating at a restaurant is about more than just the food.

Everyone owns a camera and some professional photographers view this as competition. Why? Hiring a professional photographer should be about more than just the pictures.

A commercial photographer has to offer something more than what a camera’s “Auto” setting can do. Otherwise, they will have no choice but to compete on price, (always a losing situation), and their photo career may be nothing more than a flash in the pan.

 

More than just cost

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It seems that the mantra of most businesses is “cut costs”. Many companies are not just concerned about controlling their costs but also about reducing costs to the absolute minimum. These companies want to spend less but still, somehow, earn more.

Most companies view a professional photographer as an expense. So they immediately think that photography is a cost like any other and it has to be minimized. This is the barrier that a commercial or corporate photographer has to get around. There are two ways to do this:

1) Be the cheapest photographer in town.

2) Stop being seen as an expense but rather as an investment.

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Photographer shopping

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If you’re shopping for a box of Cheerios breakfast cereal, it’s possible to shop price because Cheerios is exactly the same at every store.

When shopping for shoes, you look at, touch and try on every pair that catches your eye. Shoes usually vary from store to store and shoe shopping is based on look, fit, feel and price.

How do you shop for a commercial or corporate photographer?

Every professional photographer works differently so how do you compare? You can’t see the photos before they’re made so how do you choose something before it exists?

Is the $4,000 photographer twice as good as the $2,000 photographer? Will $750 pictures work as well as $2,000 pictures?
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Message Tailoring

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When a commercial or corporate photographer markets their photography services, they must remember that a business client is quite different than a retail customer. Even then, business clients are not all the same.

For a retail customer, someone who buys family portraits or wedding photography, the pictures themselves are the final product. But for a commercial customer, the pictures are a business tool, a means towards an end.

With a small business, where the photographer deals directly with the business owner, the customer’s primary need when buying photography services is to increase their sales. But with a large business, the customer’s needs change. Sure, a large company still wants to increase its sales but that’s not the primary motivator when hiring a commercial or corporate photographer.

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The Three-S Business Portrait

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There was a Toronto photographer who did “three-S” portraits. When someone arrived at her studio for a business portrait, which she hated doing, she would tell them to “sit down, shut-up and smile.” She would then proceed to quickly photograph them.

Most companies know that business portraits are important. When a business hires a corporate photographer to produce portraits of their key employees, these people should be warned that they will be asked to smile. This is not meant to be cruel and unusual punishment.

A smile need not be a big, toothy grin. But a friendly appearance is important and that comes not just from the mouth but also from the eyes.

By having the employees smile, the photographer is following proven science.

A recent study at Penn State University found that when you smile, you don’t only appear to be more likable and courteous, but you actually appear to be more competent.

– Ron Gutman CEO/founder of HealthTap

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Monkey Business

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When a car has a leaky tire, the problem is obvious and the solution is simple. The car owner could shop price to find the cheapest, reasonably competent “grease monkey” to make the repair. (Grease monkey is an uncomplimentary term for a low-end car mechanic.)
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Professional Insurance

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Professional photographers are insured but amateurs are not. Why would you hire an amateur to do your corporate photography or commercial photography? How can your business afford such a risk?

Here’s one example, another example and another example that show why an insured photographer is important.

Professional photography is all about reducing customer risk. The risk of problems during the photo shoot, the risk of poor quality pictures, the risk of missing deadlines, the risk that the pictures won’t meet your needs and the risk of wasting your time and money.

Professional photographers are worth more than what they cost.

 

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