Every once in a while a new business model comes along that forces other businesses in that particular area to take notice and potentially make some changes. We've seen it done with airlines, computers, phones, music services, and many other things. In our industry, a new business model that has been seeing a lot of growth lately is called Shoot & Share Photography. Whether you love it or hate it, the shoot & share business model is a new way that many people are thinking about photography services, and it's going to affect you and your business in some way.So what is Shoot & Share Photography?
In the past, people would book a photographer to take their pictures and then schedule a time to sit down and look over the photographs with the photographer to select the images they'd like to purchase. With the advent of the Internet, a lot of the scheduling and sitting down together time has been eliminated, but most photographers still make a large portion of their revenue on the prints that their clients purchase after an event has been shot. A Shoot & Share photographer, on the other hand, charges a little more for the actual photography service (the time shooting and editing the images), and then simply hands their clients a disk of the images or posts them online for their clients to view, download, and share with anyone that they would like. A shoot and share photographer makes almost 100% of their revenue on the photography services, and print revenue doesn't really come into the picture for them.
What are the Benefits and Downsides?
Of course there are quite a few different opinions on this topic, but some of the benefits of the Shoot & Share business model include the following:
- Once a session has been shot and the images have been edited, there is nothing else you will need to do besides handing the images on USB stick (or through an online service) to your clients. You have received payment for your services, and your clients have received their images. You can quickly be on your way to the next thing.
- Because there is no barrier (cost) to your clients for receiving their images, they may share more of the images with their friends and family, which may in turn result in a larger number of referrals to you and your business.
- There are no high-pressure sales meetings between you and your clients. If your client wants a print of a specific image, they simply take the digital image that they have already received and print it wherever they would like.
And some of the downsides include:
- Once a session has been shot and the images have been edited, there are very few additional face-time opportunities between the photographer and their clients. Because of this, there isn't much of an opportunity to see the reactions from your clients when they view the photographs you have taken, and there isn't as much of an opportunity to grow the relationship further.
- Getting a potential client to commit to a higher upfront cost can be more difficult than selling a smaller package with potentially unlimited tail-end (print) revenue for you.
- It turns out that when people receive a disk full of images, there is a good chance that none of the images will ever become prints. The images will be looked at, admired, posted to facebook, and then neatly filed and tucked away on a computer for safe-keeping.
- When the images are printed, you are no longer in control of where they are printed or what the final outcome may be. Your photography may be absolutely stunning, but if your client chooses to print their images at a local Walmart, the bland colors and cheap paper are all that your client is going to see every day when they look at the pictures on their wall. Additionally, very very few of your photographs will end up being displayed on canvas or on other high-quality paper types.
- There is no reason for your client's friends and relatives to interact with you. If they want an image from the event, they will contact your client instead of contacting you.
Growing Your Business Online
Shoot & Share photographers are popping up everywhere, but that doesn't mean you will need to abandon the sale of your photography prints and products. In fact, the Internet has made selling your products easier than ever when you are teamed up with an online service provider like Instaproofs. Your clients can get access to their photos online and they have the option of purchasing products like canvases or prints in just a few easy steps. Additionally, you don't have to worry about the challenge of building a website or making arrangements for credit card payments because it is all part of our package.
So whether you are a traditional photographer looking to hold onto your product sales or a Shoot & Share photographer looking to boost your income wherever possible, Instaproofs understands the importance of keeping your clients happy.
No matter what your business philosophy is, learning to sell photos and prints online is a great way to reach more clients and increase your business's bottom line. Shoot, share & sell…we’ll help you boost your photography business along the way.
Have questions? Please feel free to contact us by filling out our online form or by giving us a call at 435-258-6197.