Photo Assignment: Two Cookies and a Soda. How Would You Handle It?
Real life Project 52 member's real world assignment.
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The email was short and to the point.
“What are your rates and availability for a food shoot next week”?
This can be a heart-stopper for many new photographers.
They instantly start to wonder whether they will be too high and not get the gig, or be so low they leave money on the table. Then the imposter syndrome pops up its ugly head and they start to second guess their work and, and, oh, it’s hopeless, they aren’t going to get the job anyway. Sigh…
However, our intrepid photographer handled this correctly by taking a moment and then sent an email back asking for more particulars:
What does this photograph entail?
Is there a layout?
What is the expected usage of the image?
What time in the following week do they wish to schedule?
Did they need a food stylist?
A day went by with this note coming back to the photographer.
This is our idea for the shoot; Two cups of soda, medium and large, and two cookies.
Here is the layout:
Usage is POP for one month. (POP means Point of Purchase, like a counter card or poster)
The following Wednesday.
Probably do not need a stylist, but a representative would be standing by to offer assistance.
OK, that sounds pretty good.
We needed a bit more information before we sent the final bid.
“Is this local, national, or international?" we asked.
The response was; international for one month.
We quoted a price and the photographer shot it on the following Wednesday, it took 1.5 hours. Another 30 minutes of post to clean it to perfection and shipped to the client.
Who absolutely loved it!
I am reasonably certain that a lot of you actually saw this photograph in use.
So how much would you have charged for this cookie shot?
See the end of the post for a poll.
This is normal in business these days.
You get a short email asking you what your rates are, or if you are available.
And you are tempted to send them back a rate sheet or simply dash down a number that sounds good to you.
Don’t do that.
A few ground rules:
Never give a quote until you know what you are quoting.
Never give a quote directly back to a query. Always follow through with questions. If this is a problem for the client, you don’t want to work with them anyway. I guarantee it.
Never respond to a fee query over the phone. Ask your questions, get their number, and call them back with a quote.
Create an internal price list so you have it at your side…
Make sure you have studio rental prices, stylist prices, prop houses, rental rates for gear, MUA and hair stylist rates, and model rates… every darn thing you need to do a photograph should be on your list so you do not have to spend a week tracking this stuff down. Have it ready.Have your boilerplate Bid/Contract ready to go, and you can modify it for each client. Typing one up each time is ridiculous. Your bid is your contract and should contain all of your stipulations as to price, payment schedule, usage rights, and anything that would impact the production of the image.
Never… I mean NEVER… just toss out a number off the top of your head. That anchors your client, and they get really wonky when it changes. And it will change.
Prepare yourself for the basic rejections and have them ready, even if you have to write them up and paste them on the wall.
a. Too expensive
b. Not sure which way to go
c. Can you do something on spec
NO, no you cannot.
(Unless you want to, and then it is fine with me, but that is YOUR choice)When they respond, make sure you are working with the correct person.
“Will you be making the final decision, or do you have to get approval from another team member? If so, how long would that take?” If you are working with the correct person, good. If not, try to get as much info on the other team member if you can.Before you send it out, double-check your bid. Nobody likes to go back and change the work order once it has begun. Be sure of your pricing and rights packaging.
If you are giving a range of pricing, never give the lowest number first. That will anchor the low price, and the possibly higher price will confuse them.
Instead of saying; “We can do this from between $3000 and $6000…”, say, “We have done this type of shoot before, and it came in at about $6000, but we have occasionally done it for $3000 if the circumstances are right.” You have now anchored the higher price, and the lower price seems like a bargain.
Bidding a job has several layers of complexity, and these days we are sending bids to people who have never purchased professional photography before.
So from sophisticated art buyers at major agencies to a small entrepreneurial business person starting up something in their garage, we have to be ready for it all.
We discuss all of the best practices in Project 52 Pro System, and these exercises can not only protect you - and your client - but also help you get more work because of the professionalism in business that you present.
Thanks for reading and I hope this gives you some ideas for bidding a job.
See you all next time.
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Was the actual bid and fee ever shared?