tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17534827.post3420671479673798802..comments2024-03-27T22:02:52.479-04:00Comments on Digital ProTalk: Are Wedding Albums Dead? - Part 2David Ziserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02674227631785266632noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17534827.post-35224247021141601072010-08-18T13:35:30.113-04:002010-08-18T13:35:30.113-04:00If clients simply want a disc to be able to view d...If clients simply want a disc to be able to view digital slideshows or post on Facebook, why not provide them a disc of low-res images...look great on computers, but can not be reproduced in print?<br /><br />Then, if they want printed images, they can come back and order them through the photographer.<br /><br />Am I missing something?Scott Birdsallnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17534827.post-50575445980597054792010-08-15T10:22:55.836-04:002010-08-15T10:22:55.836-04:00David
really enjoyed the 2 part post--thought pro...David <br />really enjoyed the 2 part post--thought provoking--well done--thanks for sharing.<br /><br />have to agree with a previous comment--digital media has changed and continues to change so quickly and longevity is not really known on top of that, so prints are perhaps still the way to go for clientsStephenhttp://www.stephenmilanophotography.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17534827.post-64874125139316560922010-08-14T07:08:11.217-04:002010-08-14T07:08:11.217-04:00Hi David,
Good, common-sense post. Thank you.
My...Hi David,<br /><br />Good, common-sense post. Thank you.<br /><br />My only concern is that moving away from physical prints also means moving away from longevity.<br /><br />At the moment, there is no long-term digital storage option that we know will ensure image files are available for a couple's great-great grandchildren.<br /><br />Discs corrode, hard-drives fail and there is not guarantee that great-great grandchildren can access their great great grandparents' cloud-based storage account.<br /><br />Many professional photographers don't have proper back-up solutions in place. Even more of our clients don't. So my feeling is that there is a big risk in just giving a digital option.<br /><br />High-quality albums are a very convenient and reliable storage and viewing medium. The are low-tech, don't need upgrades every two years, and high-quality prints are known to last for 100 years or more.<br /><br />If we are selling our work as something of great value for the years ahead, I think we should also be explaining the benefits of top-end wedding albums and printing as a long-term storage/viewing option.<br /><br />Our approach here is to offer a disc of images as an extra that the couple can buy. But only once they have bought an album, rather than as an alternative to an album.<br /><br />Not everyone will agree with this, but it suits our philosophy of providing our wedding clients with memories the the decades ahead.Rogerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09242173603824170009noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17534827.post-25440565150911420592010-08-14T06:53:33.304-04:002010-08-14T06:53:33.304-04:00Hey Everybody,
Thanks for the great imput. Amy, I...Hey Everybody,<br />Thanks for the great imput. Amy, I'm using your quote in my CBTL tour - you nailed it!<br />-DavidDavid Ziserhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02674227631785266632noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17534827.post-55880474508788520822010-08-13T19:36:34.303-04:002010-08-13T19:36:34.303-04:00Amy,
Wonderful idea in your concluding thought, t...Amy, <br />Wonderful idea in your concluding thought, that's right in line with some things I've been doing recently.<br /><br />David,<br />This quality of thinking and insight, of being in tune with the market, is the real reason you stay on top (aside from your superlative skill, of course!)Robert Ashhttp://www.robertash.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17534827.post-17326326616726649992010-08-13T17:22:37.996-04:002010-08-13T17:22:37.996-04:00Great post David. Thanks, I certainly like readin...Great post David. Thanks, I certainly like reading!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17534827.post-21829153153879929562010-08-13T16:40:30.476-04:002010-08-13T16:40:30.476-04:00Really interesting, insightful post. After last w...Really interesting, insightful post. After last week's discussion on your pricing system and a few others I've read, I've been thinking hard about my pricing for next year. With today's largely Gen-Y (digital kids) clientele, it makes a lot of sense to consider their proclivity toward pixels rather than print.<br /><br />Introduces new challenges, but a wealth of opportunity for standing out! And as for never getting printed...we can alway work some printing costs into our pricing and surprise them with a "bonus" wall cluster or basic album along with the digital delivery.<br /><br />Food for thought!!Amy Chamhttp://www.paperswanphotography.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17534827.post-89124325153375504902010-08-13T12:57:39.691-04:002010-08-13T12:57:39.691-04:00You can't convince someone who only wants a ch...You can't convince someone who only wants a cheap Kia to buy a Rolls Royce. Maybe they can't affoard it, maybe they don't see the added value. It's not just an educational issue. Everyone knows a Rolls Royce is a superlative car, yet the market share is infintesimal.<br /><br />I have people that call that absolutely do NOT want prints or albums. All they want is a CD or DVD. Maybe mom is a scrapbooker, or whatever. Maybe it's just that all the wedding magazines admonish brides to get their digital files (because 1/2 of us will be out of business by next year, and 90% will be out of business in the next 5 years), so the only insurance they have is a CD/DVD (Hell, we have photographers who go out of business before the DVD is delivered, with the couple ending up with NOTHING - no wonder they're scared!).<br /><br />"Change your thinking that a photograph needs to be delivered on a piece of paper. It doesn’t anymore! Today a photograph is a collection of 0's and 1's captured on a digital camera, stored on a computer, and can be delivered via the analogue method of prints, or digitally on a disk, iPad, or any other convenient method of digital conveyance."<br /><br />Exactly. This is one thing Gary Fong has suggested, as well. Sell the image at $X per image, and the client has the option of receiving the image either in an album (artistically presented as collaged pages), or in digital form. I get more effective money in my pocket selling them the images on DVD than in the album because I don't have the time in building the collages, nor the expense of producing the album.<br /><br />It's a win-win situation.<br /><br />I just have to convince them that my 200 images at $20/image ($4,000 investment) are worth more than the 3000 images the Craigslister is going to give them for $200. Christ, why don't they just advertise it - 10 cents a click.<br /><br />I keep reminding myself of Chuck Lewis' words: "Not every warm body is a potential client." I wonder how Rolls Royce salesmen keep their sanity.<br /><br />Please also see:<br />http://garyfong1.xanga.com/726581348/item/Arved Grasshttp://www.I-Do-Photography.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17534827.post-82179225503222494302010-08-13T12:43:12.111-04:002010-08-13T12:43:12.111-04:00Great post! One grammar error though. :) "T...Great post! One grammar error though. :) "This would not be are top..." "are" should be "our".Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17534827.post-9801285387349574252010-08-13T12:37:19.287-04:002010-08-13T12:37:19.287-04:00Great post David (Keep writing and we'll keep ...Great post David (Keep writing and we'll keep reading & learning!!) <br /><br />A lot of food for thought here that will keep me busy all weekend!<br /><br />Thank you.Mark R Coons - Music Man5 Photoshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07070426888394130209noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17534827.post-68395050591072158592010-08-13T10:59:59.516-04:002010-08-13T10:59:59.516-04:00Great post and thought provoking. The only thing I...Great post and thought provoking. The only thing I disagree with is the concept that the album/prints are the best way to share photos and that sharing is not done with images on a disk. My personal and professional experience has been totally the opposite. With today's technology wedding guests from all over the country and world can view the wedding photos online and see beautiful slideshows set to music. Often the bride will have her favorites up on her Facebook page generating lot's of oohs and aaahs and comments about the photos and the photographer.<br /><br />I just came back from an awesome vacation in Maine and I've yet to print any of the photos, but I've watched a computer slideshow of my favorites dozens of times and posted them on my blog and website. I still love beautiful fine art prints and albums, but photos on a really nice calibrated monitor look awesome too!Robhttp://www.robgrantphotography.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17534827.post-11699290303967618082010-08-13T10:56:45.084-04:002010-08-13T10:56:45.084-04:00David. Great post. This sort of problem is faced...David. Great post. This sort of problem is faced in many industries as they deal with creeping commoditisation. There will always be customers who are driven by the need for the cheapest price. Competing in this area is difficult (and margins can be wafer thin). Once a competitor comes up with a lower price than yours, and they almost certainly will, your only differentiation - price - has gone. And so has your business.<br /><br />Happily, there will always be customers at the premium end of the market. These customers understand what value means to them and it's not just price, especially not on such a special day as a wedding! Our job is to make sure that we understand what value looks like from each customers point of view and demonstarte we can deliver it more effectively than our competitors. Understanding our customers - really understanding them - is at the very heart of value based pricing.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05802360312914825150noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17534827.post-48536232447524961022010-08-13T10:50:03.526-04:002010-08-13T10:50:03.526-04:00David. Great post. The comments you make apply e...David. Great post. The comments you make apply every bit as much to other industries who are also suffering at the hands of creeping commoditisation. Almost always there is an opportunity to differentiate if only you look creatively enough at the situation. There will always be clients who are driven purely by the cheapest option. To compete there you have to be the cheapest. Once someone undercuts you, and they will, you're no longer the cheapest and you're in trouble! Equally, there will always be customers who are prepared to pay more because they understand value. Our job is to understand what their value perceptions are and demonstrate we can deliver them more effectively than our competitors. Understanding our customers is at the real heart of value pricing.Mike Wilkinsonhttp://www.axiavalue.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17534827.post-4498798032648813732010-08-13T10:43:10.288-04:002010-08-13T10:43:10.288-04:00David. Great post and all your arguments around p...David. Great post and all your arguments around price and identifying your value hold true in many industries. There will always be a market for people who want to buy solely on the basis of price - it's just that it's not your market! To compete on price alone you end up totally commoditising your offering and to compete you have to be the cheapest, because that's your final differentiation. If you compete at the premium end there may be fewer customers, but they're willing to spend more and understand value, not just price. Our task is to find out what value looks like from their point of view and show them that we can deliver it more effectively than our competitors. Thanks for a great blog!Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05802360312914825150noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17534827.post-90389578834293148412010-08-13T09:55:50.716-04:002010-08-13T09:55:50.716-04:00" I feel bad for the couple because there are..." I feel bad for the couple because there are no “do-over's” when it comes to wedding photography. I always wonder why a couple would make that choice."<br /><br />They often make that choice because people often take the skill of photography for granted. How many times have we heard this:<br /><br />"That camera takes great pictures!"<br /><br />"I don't see what the big deal is. You're looking at something and pressing a button."<br /><br />This is why some people hire photographers charging $500 to do a wedding or get a "friend" to do it simply because they have a new Nikon D3000.jaycarusohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14935998944212721236noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17534827.post-73948926350056648852010-08-13T09:52:05.035-04:002010-08-13T09:52:05.035-04:00Fantastic post today, great way to end the work we...Fantastic post today, great way to end the work week and start the wedding weekend!!!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03392717644102487184noreply@blogger.com