I had no idea what I was going to write about.  Then I bribed my beloved Hermione into doing a photoshoot and was reviewing the camera card with Photo Mechanic.  (Fab program, by the way!)

Turns out, Hermione (upstager-extraordinaire) and Haunani (photographer, here) are responsible for the first post of 2010:

Aside from making me giggle, this image made me think about upstaging.  Particularly of the business variety.

It made me wonder what my clients and potential clients see when they view my business.  When they walk into the loft, are they seeing the lighting or the photography? Do I want them to note the atmosphere (homey and comforting) more than I need them to want a gallery-wrapped canvas?

What about you — your studio presence and/or your web presence? What do your clients see first?  What takes center stage in your business?  Price? Stature? Availablility? Images? Artist? Design? Doohahs and thingamabobs?

There’s no right or wrong answer to this question, but it’s food for thought that can make all the difference to your business.  Some photographers are absolutely fabulous at having built their photographic brand around their personalities, while others have successfully transferred readers’ attention to their breath-taking images.

Whatever your point of differentiation, make sure that your intent is being met.

Ask a few peeps what they notice when they visit your website or your studio.  Is your intention making its way to your consumer? I’ve seen absolutely lovely photography being completely overshadowed by doohahs on the website, and photographers who think they’re sending the ‘book a family portrait shoot’ message who are actually sending a pretty strong ‘book me to shoot your wedding’ message.

There’s no better time to define and REFINE your focus than at the start of the year, which I’m pretty sure is going to be your best yet.  Welcome to the year your business takes off, lovelies!

Want to read it on the blog? WHAT'S IN FOCUS FOR 2010?

How do you get your clients to spend X, where X represents your happy place?

Portrait collections.  I’ll tell you, until I agreed to be the grammar fairy and sous chef for Alicia Caine, I thought portrait collections were straight-up stupid.  I tried them, failed with them, and gave up on them.  And then I got smart. I listened to Alicia.

Collections are building blocks.  If collection #1 has block A, collection #2 has block A & B.  Collection #3 — blocks A, B, and C.

If your collections are complicated, clients are going to buy items a la carte.  If your collections are designed like building blocks, clients will move on up the collection ladder until they find the one that suits them.  And then purchase it.

A quite spiffy example using arbitrary portrait products…

Collection #1:  5 8×10′s

Collection #2:  5 8×10′s and 3 wall portraits

Collection #3:  5 8×10′s, 3 wall portraits and the session’s digital negatives

There’s no confusion there.  The collection assumes that OF COURSE you’ll want building block A, you’ll probably want building block B, and we’ll do a dance all the way to the credit card terminal if you’d like building block C, too.  Your clients will be happy to enjoy savings over your a la carte pricing, and you’ll be happy to have reached your sales goal with ‘em.

If your brain just exploded because that’s so simple but you wouldn’t have thought of it, you should probably check out the Easy as Pie Portrait Pricing Guide.  The whole book is like that.  Code Camper30 saves you $30.

Want to read it on the blog? PART III: GETTING YOUR CLIENTS TO BUY MORE STUFF.

These tactics are merde.  Utterly useless, absolutely foul bile pulled from the belly of an ancient, stinking dragon.

These merde tactics fail to factor in YOUR costs, YOUR time, and YOUR expenses.  It’s great thatTiffany Teenybopper lists $15 5×7′s on her website.  Her website fails to mention that Tiffany Teenybopper has a minimum order of $750 and sells her $725 album with every portrait session.  Those $15 5×7′s only get sold so clients meet the minimum.  (Tricksy, eh?)

Likewise, if Stan Dingelhausen charges $3,000 for weddings, you think charging $3,000 for wedding coverage will be profitable, too.  You don’t know about Stan’s wife, Laverne, who can RAW-process all of Stan’s images in an hour.  You, on the other hand, process images slowly and clocked 23 hours of post-processing on your last wedding.

Since you have absolutely no idea how others price their work and value their time, others’ price lists are completely worthless to you.

So, how do you begin to craft a decent price list?  Value your time and know your cost of goods sold for each item you sell.

A VERY BAD EXAMPLE:

Sweeney Todd just ordered a 5×7″ print.  My cost on that item is $1.19 plus .81 worth of packaging, so $2.  I’ll multiply that number by 5 and voila!  A 5×7″ print is $10!

A VERY GOOD EXAMPLE:

Sweeney Todd just ordered a 5×7″ print. My cost on that item is $1.19 plus packaging, so $2.  My time is valued at $60 per hour.  Processing, ordering and packaging a 5×7″ print takes 10 minutes.  Therefore, my cost of producing a 5×7″ print is $12. I’ll multiply that number by 5 and voila!  A 5×7″ print is $60!

See the big huge difference there?  A mother of four may value her time at $80 an hour, while a photographer who’s just starting out might place the value at $20 per hour.  The cost of goods sold for an artistic product is determined, in large part, by the value an artist places on his or her time.

Other factors — like having to pay rent on a studio space, or a photographer’s average number of sessions per week — will also play a huge role in determining pricing.

If, for example, I pay $1300 per month for a studio space, my overhead costs are much higher than the photographer who works from home.  That studio space has to be heated, cooled, and maintained.  It requires internet and phone services, etc, etc…in this example, I have to make about $1500 per month to cover overhead before I can begin to make a profit. I might have to charge significantly more for the same product being sold in the same town to the same person to maintain a profitable business.

Please take the time to determine your costs, the value of your time, and your strategy for covering overhead expenses when creating your product pricing.

Want to read it on the blog? PART II: WHEN YOU MIGHT ACTUALLY MAKE A PROFIT

And yet, there are always those who have an excuse to avoid purchasing the guide, or to avoid raising prices despite the fact that they’re working for pennies an hour.

In honor of Black Friday, I did some comparison shopping:

If your 8×10″ print costs less than $23, your work is cheaper than the 1-hour studio work of the Picture People.

If your canvas prices start at less than $149, Sears is a step above you in the pricing food chain.

Check out the cost of a specialty 10×30″ print that can’t be printed within 10 minutes in the back of the store, won’t you?

Perhaps you’d like a 10×10″ print with a nasty Photoshop action applied for only $79.99…

Oh, and that 16×20″ print you’re scared to sell for $60?  It’s $99.99 at the big S.

Think your collections are too expensive?  The Picture People are offering groupings from $149 – $975. Yes, $975.

You’ll find Kiddie Kandids pricing similar to the others…about $20 per 8×10″ print.  Same at Sadie’s.

Did you want your portrait to finished in black and white, or to include a vignette?  That costs extra.  $1.99 per click.

Oh, you need RETOUCHING?  That requires a quote. And will add a few days’ time to your 1-hour portraits.

These chains are all based on volume to achieve profitability.  Of course, even Wal-mart gave up on this volume mentality, closed 500 of its studios, and now sports PictureMe Portraits, which is run by CPI Corp, who also handles Sears’ studios.

There ya go.  Let’s begin with all photographers everywhere charging at least $20 for prints size 8×10″ and under.  Part II: When You Might Actually Make A Profit, a post full of pricing tips, will hit Tuesday.

If you’ve had sense knocked into you all of a sudden, hit up the Easy as Pie Portrait Pricing Guide and enter code ‘Camper30′ for $30 off!

Want to read it on the blog? PART 1: ESTABLISH BASELINE PORTRAIT PRICING

I felt like such a failure because I couldn’t find an image of me suitable for the @brandcampblog Twitter account.  And then my Mom sent me a stack of photos, including this one:

Note the classic Marie posing: smile, stand stiffly, hold your arms to your sides, get in front of a ‘pretty background.’  Of course, this image is backfocused, because that’s my Mom’s signature.  I’m in focus in approximately four photos from my childhood.

This also shows off my killer glasses — you know, the ones the size of my face that I threw a tantrum to get because they were so PERFECT — and my overachieving ways.  Badge after badge after badge.  I was a perpetual merit badge earner.  My Mom sent me a bag full of badges I earned that she never bothered to sew on with this photo.

My point?  Be personal.  Forget your effin’ logo already.  Get the camera out of your face.  Do dry cleaners have hangers in their avatars?  Do SEO gurus hide behind a laptop?  Let me see your face.  Even if it’s your face from twenty years ago, it allows human connection to happen on the internet.

Oh, and um.  Follow Brand Camp on Twitter, won’t you?  You can also score a mini-branding consultation with me while supplies last.

Want to read it on the blog? AVATAR CHECK!

Only two colors?  Ugh.

That dog campaign went well that one time…

EVERYONE has been using boring fonts lately…

A bullseye isn’t a bullseye without arrows…

Much better.

Generally speaking, a ‘boring’ logo is a simple logo.  And simple stands the test of time.

Want to read it on the blog? WHEN AMATEURS POSE AS GRAPHIC DESIGNERS

There’s a lot of pressure on writers and producers and gurus and execs when it comes to events like Jim and Pam’s wedding. YEARS of sexual tension, flirting, playful comments, dating, a pregnancy – and it all comes down to this. I’m happy to report that NBC hit it out of the park.

How?

Consistency.

Everyone acted the way we expected them to act.  No part of the event went as planned.  Jim and Pam had to elope from their own wedding to have a magic moment.  Kevin wore kleenex boxes instead of shoes.  Dwight kicked the woman he’d just slept with in the face during the ceremony.  (Accidentally, of course.)

The Office features characters so convincing that we believe they are real — and we believe they are real because they are consistent.

Are YOU being consistent with your writing voice in your web copy, your blog, and your marketing materials?

Words are a HUGE part of your brand, and are capable of conveying just how formal, posh, quirky, funny, casual, or feisty you are in your business.  If your e-mails are laden with ‘OMG’s and ‘lol’s but your website copy is stiff and rigid, potential clients won’t know which one is the ‘real’ you.

Likewise, if your marketing materials are soft, sweet, and sappy, but you’re actually sarcastic and given to profanity, I guarantee you’re not attracting the right clients with those postcards.

Your identity needs to be CONSISTENTLY conveyed in your words.  All your words, from web copy to your latest brochure to a quickie blog post to Twitter.

What’s that you say?  You’re awful at writing?

Not so, my friend.  Not so.  If you have mastered the grammar skills taught in the fourth grade, you can write.  You have a voice.  The hallmark of ‘good’ writing is generally determined by the distinctive voice of the writer.  Find that voice, and use it.

Want to read it on the blog? CONSISTENCY IS CRUCIAL TO YOUR BUSINESS.

Yes, I know what you’re thinking.  Yes, I friggin LOVE breaking the mold.  And yes, I tell you to make your brand uniquely you.  Every single day.  I know.

But dammit, call the info section the ‘info’ section, not ‘FQQ’ which stands for Frequently Queried Queries.  Your potential clients aren’t mind readers, and no one knows that your ‘Hit the Highway’ sessions are really just outdoor engagement sessions.  You made it up.  Don’t expect the rest of us to know about it.

AXIOM 2: Just because you CAN wear those bell bottoms with that glittery shirt and those platform shoes doesn’t mean you should.

When it comes to Flash, well hell, we all went nuts in the Nineties, and most of us never returned.  The flashier you can make it, with more bells and whistles and doodads, the better, right?  WRONG. Just because you CAN get all your text to fly in, blink, and dissolve into glittery bits doesn’t mean you should.  If a graphic or Flash element isn’t helping to sell your products or services, it’s distracting from them.

AXIOM 3: D.I.Y. is not the answer.

STOP. DESIGNING. YOUR. OWN. WEBSITE.

Stop.  Really.  You think it’s badass, but if you can’t afford or don’t enjoy working with a professional web designer, you’d best stick with a template.  In trying to reinvent web navigation, you’ve messed with your search engine optimization, your brand, and your appeal to potential clients.  ::raises hand, is in the thick of this issue at the moment::

Buy a template.  Or hire a professional.

The problems with the rise of ease-of-use in creating your own drag and drop website: they often look TOTALLY AND UTTERLY different on other browsers and at other screen resolutions.  Elements of your website that are downright badass on Firefox may be lame ducks in Internet Explorer.  A professional will spot any issues and optimize your website for all browsers.

Oh, and the temptation to add oooooone last bit of stuff flying in, because you can?  It’s too great a temptation to bear.  (And it looks like poo.)

Want to read it on the blog? EASY WAYS TO MAKE YOUR WEBSITE KICK MORE ASS.

Starting an introductory e-mail without providing a bit of background information about who you are and what you need is like skipping shaking hands to go right for the party in that hot dude’s pants.

Introductions can be simple yet effective:

Hey there, I’m ____ and I love your ______. I’ve seen you on Twitter/Facebook/blog/forum/website/around town/at the bar drinking because of your lack of etiquette-ified e-mails.

Boom!  Now I have some idea of who you are, and may even be able to connect your name with your face and how we know one another, if we do.  If not, it helps to know that all my time spent languishing at the bar about this matter is not wasted.

Also — and this is sneaky — include a compliment.

If you’re asking for advice from a professional, whether it’s a roofer, an SEO-ninja, a marketing guru, or a barista, pay a compliment before asking your question.

‘I adore the way you make pumpkin lattes!  What’s your secret?’ will always be better received than ‘Tell me how to make a pumpkin latte.’

Finally, capitalization, punctuation, and a lack of ‘OMG!!!!’s are always appreciated and appropriate for business-related e-mail.

Want to read it on the blog? ETIQUETTE AND YOU.

I am a partner with _________.  You may have heard of us. We typically shoot twice a year on location for several well-known national children’s stores  We are looking for an artistic children’s photographer to shoot for us this fall in the _________ store at ______ in [a town close to me].

We are interested in editorial, fun photographers. We love photographs that show kids being themselves. Based upon the quality of the content in your website, it appears that you would be a great candidate to work with us.

Note: This is not a natural light shoot. You must use studio lights.

The shoot will take place on the following dates:  x, x, x, x, and x

You would be photographing children digitally, on location in the store by appointment. You will need to have all of your own photographic equipment and a laptop computer. We like our photographers to shoot and sell their own work. The pay is commission-based and generally falls between $250-$750 per day. In addition to the pay, this arrangement is beneficial to you because it also allows you to promote your own studio. If the customers enjoy your work . . . you have instant access to 30-45 affluent, potential future customers.

If you are interested in possibly working with us after reading this email, please let me know and I will send you more information. Please get back to me as soon as possible, as I am actively looking for photographers in your area. You can also call me on the telephone at xxx.xxx.xxxx

Regards,
Mark

Okay, Brand Campers — I’ve seen LOTS of this type of offer on forums over the years.  Let’s pretend that I don’t have an issue with this studio setting up free sessions with free 8×10′s to reach their ‘affluent’ clients.

Let’s just do the math.

So, I am being offered somewhere between $27 and $125 per shoot.  I am to shoot, process, and then sell my own work — giving away a session and 8×10 image before the sale begins, of course.  Please, ladies and gents, FIND ANOTHER PROFESSION IF YOU’RE WILLING TO ACCEPT $27 FOR A PHOTO SHOOT WITH ANOTHER COMPANY.  Portfolio-building freebies?  Shooting for friends?  The road to professionalism is often paved with skill-building freebies.

But this setup — bring your own equipment, shoot it, Photoshop it, sell it, and give someone else the money?

Oh HELL no.

Want to read it on the blog? ON SELF RESPECT