5 Tips on Pricing Your Photography (and Earning More Profit)
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You’ve decided to be the average price and therefore an average photographer.
So you’re in Year One of your photography business and pricing scares the hell out of you. You’ve looked around at your friends and competitions and concluded that it’s best to blend in. You’ve decided it’s best to be average and only attract average clients with average projects. Let’s jump into how you can transform your pricing, so you’re able to book more deals, keep your clients happy, and earn more profit.
Sound impossible? See for yourself.
If you’re pressed for time, read this:
- Fairness is a myth
- Options help your clients feel in control
- Say the largest price first — it sticks in our heads
- Never let the client fend for themselves
- Price isn’t the only point you can negotiate.
Fairness, Value, and a Good Price
Fairness
Fairness is the most subjective word in business. Many of you, when crafting your packages inject this notion of fairness.
What is fairness? It’s different for every business deal.
Fairness for a photographer is usually framed as “My prices are fair based on the average price in my local area.”
- But, what if that average is broken from the start?
- Who makes up that average?
- And where did they get their prices?
I am all for being nice and pleasant to your clients, but framing your business as a fair leave you open to price-shopping clients that want to take advantage of your fair price practices.
Value
An equal exchange of value leads to what Blair Enns calls the “Double Thank You Moment.” The moment towards the end of the business engagement where you AND your client are pleased with the work, the results, and the compensation for that work.
This is your new framework — Value. Not fairness.
When we are presenting our work, we seek to offer our clients as much value for the prices offered. We aren’t looking around at the competition, we concentrate on the client sitting across from the table.
How can we offer our clients the most value?
Crafting Your Option
Building your photography packages is standard practice for wedding photographers. We are enabling our clients to get the most value possible based on their comfort. We aren’t pushing clients to choose our one and only option — or the single custom quote.
The Power of 3 (Options)
One is too limited, two feels like a false choice, but three is just right. The power of three seems to follow us wherever we go — Rule of Thirds, the setup to a joke, or the strongest shape — the triangle. Three options allows clients to weigh their choices, eliminate one altogether and be left with a 50/50 choice.
A fourth option works, but 5 and beyond leads to choice fatigue.
Think Like a Tech Startup
When we bought Adobe or Honeybook or Canva — we were all faced with the options: Free, Basic, Pro and Enterprise. Insert your synonyms to match.
Create FOMO
The first option is usually the lowest and offers the least amount of value for the project. The listing is scant compared to the other options. Remember, comparison is good. Option #2 and #3 increase in price and value. The list of features increases too, and some devilish companies will strike through the features you don’t get.
From a glance, we are trying to visually show the density (or lack) of features we’re offering for each option. Make it painful for the client. Clarify that they know what they are NOT getting when going with Option #1.
Anchoring
Read this book: Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman
$34,000.
Now let’s discuss offering your services for $2,000.
Wait…! Do you have some strange feeling now that $2,000 feels like a good deal?
The First Number We See
Based on Kahneman’s work, if we are told to ignore a number, we still stress the first piece of data we receive. $34,000 is an irrelevant number, yet when we immediate start discussing your price at $2,000 seems low, even cheap. But we haven’t discussed what you get with your $2,000.
This is anchoring.
When presenting our packages or skimming the surface of pricing, we want to set the bar high with our clients. This is where listing your prices gets many photographers into trouble. They set the lowest expectation and see if they can up-sell (But that’s a whole blog itself).
When asked what are your prices say this, “My prices usually fall between Y and X.” That’s right. Say the numbers in reverse — high to low.
When pricing your options, there isn’t a formula, but this can help.
Option #1 = X
Option #2 =2.5X
Option #3 =5X or more
For example:
Option #1 = $2,000
Option #2 = $5,000
Option #3 = $10,000
Be The Guide, Not the Herder
The Illusion of Control
When you and your client are in the sales process, the client wants to feel as if they won something. Who doesn’t love a great deal or being the one that negotiated a vendor down? It’s powerful. But our goal as photographers is to lead the engagement from start to finish. The client has sought out our work, they see us as the experts, and understand our limited time. But they don’t want to be helpless sheep.
When clients are spending thousands of dollars on a service, they want to feel taken care of, yet in control. We’ve all seen a client seem frantic or asking ridiculous asks- it’s because the engagement is out of their control. They have lost the thread on why they hired you.
Do You Send an Email or Get on the Phone?
Don’t leave the client to fend for themselves. Before sending your packages through email, insist that you get on the phone with them to present your packages. This is not meant to create a high-pressure sales situation over the phone where they book now.
When a client receives a pricing sheet from you, most of it is self-explanatory, but what if they have questions? Offer to get on the phone then send over the PDF, so they can react, and seek clarifications. Remember, above discussing “control” — when a client is confused, they feel out of control of the situation. Avoid confusion.
Start with Option #3 and Work Your Way Down
The largest, most expensive option is packed with the most value, so it makes sense to read/explain its features. It’s also anchoring the conversation.
As you trail down to Option #2 and Option #1, the value is lower and lower for the price.
Negotiation
I love negotiations. When it works outs, everyone gets what they feel comfortable with. But remember that price isn’t the only point to haggle. Always trade value-for-value. If the client wants to lower your price, then lower the features offered.
Lowering your price without removing your features is discounting — a No-No.
Everything is negotiable:
- Services
- Deliverables
- Quality of service
- Hours available to work
- Deadlines/Timelines
- Payment Terms
- You showing up vs. your 2nd shooter
I would argue that price is the last point to budge.
The Big Picture
Early in our photography business, we slapped together a few prices that sounded fair and were the average for your area. I want you and your prices to stand out from the crowd, not blend in! Your new mindset is that you offer the best value for your client’s budget and you stand by your prices.
Look at your current prices and ask how you arrived that these options? Rework them so you can make your clients feel in control, stress-free and happy they decided to book with you.
Cheers,
Jordan P. Anderson
