There was a time when candles were a much needed utility. When night came it was a good thing to have a little light to let us see in the dark.
When light bulbs were invented and candles became obsolete, they became an art form.
Candles, for the most part, lost their utility.
What about photography? Is it an art form? or a commodity? Is it obsolete as a business model?
It never really was a necessity, the way candles were. Of course, photography recorded history, was a big part of journalism and became the most powerful way we sentimentalized our family memories.
The worse thing that can happen to a market is commoditization. But I don’t think this is possible with photography. Or is it?
What about cell phones? Which really are not phones anymore. But cameras. And amazing ones at that.
Have they commoditized photography? They have, in a sense. Everyone is a photographer. I see this every day in my business when out shooting weddings, families or fairies.
When at one time folks would wait in line for a portrait or scheduled a family portrait at the local studio, we simple stand and shoot with our ‘phones’. Good enough.
The solution…
- Be a leader. Be courageous in your community. Be someone people look up to who creates something above and beyond what the cell phone shooters create. It takes guts, courage and brass balls…but it needs to be done in order to make waves and make profits in photography
- Create and tell stories with your photography…Santa portraits, fairy portraits, babies first year programs, family portraits, multi generation portraits…Creating new and exciting products and promotions that resonate with your clients.
- Perceived value… If you’re offering a session with files, at a low cost, you’re doing it wrong. You will never, ever build a long term photography business on this model. Ever. Don’t be fooled. Many are. Asking for a sale built upon a valuable photographic experience is for many a new path. And it is essential, it needs to be blazed. There are no businesses built upon a low value, price only offer. None. Learn to value and sell what your product stands for.
- Find a way through marketing. Marketing is everything. Selling is part of this game. When you become a marketing of photographic services and have the confidence and courage to ask for what you’re worth, then, and only then will you start growing in profits.
- Avoid passivity. Turn of the TV and social media. Tune out the drama, the BS, the messes that are clogging up your journey to success. It’s so easy to fall into playing victim, or falling into passive, blame game, excuses and crazy rational. Mindset is everything.
- When they show up, bill em! Many times I’ve struggled when asking for the sale and quoted my price. As artists we all too often struggle. I feel like dying inside, every pore and ounce of my body is screaming some negative internal messages.This is a skill and needs to be mastered or starve.
The changes we’ve seen have been drastic. There’s no use crying over it is there? (I’ve seen many photographers fall into this cesspool of blaming and whining…)
Cell phones, digital cameras and all things techno change industries and have created massive cultural shifts. New skills and mindsets are game changers in business and is the solution.
The days of opening a studio and expecting line ups are long gone, like a fart in the wind.
More than ever we need to be marketers of photographic services.
When candles lost there utility NEW markets emerged, The same thing happened with photography.
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