"How much for that album?"If you ask us that, and you have an approved account, we're happy to tell you.But in 40+ years, while we’ve often offered guidance, we’ve never ever told customers how much they should charge.Well I'm going to be brave and make a suggestion. Then I'm going to ask youwhat you think. But first, some background... For decades many photographers charged really high prices for their products (albums, prints, framing etc). They did this to avoid asking a reasonable fee for theirservices. You can see why. Even our wealthiest acquaintances think photographers charge To View More >>

Interesting question from Sergey on my Opportunities post. What do you do if people want this cool album that they've never seen before – but they want to postpone the purchase, maybe until their first anniversary. Here's what we think. As they say, a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. I'd look for a way to sweeten the deal and get a commitment now. OK, we hate the D word, but maybe a discount would do the trick. Or arrange monthly payments via credit card, preferably with a deposit to cover your costs. Anyway, try hard for a commitment now, and get the album out there working for you. To View More >>

People have been asking about our Queensberry Press discounts and deals. When you order a press book you'll be offered three deals in Photojunction. Just choose the one that works best for you. The best deals are our "value packages", which offer 40% discount on additional products. The deals vary according to the format you've chosen. You can only choose one (all we can afford at this rate!) but whatever the format you can always get a copy here less 40%. If you want additional copies you can order them at 15% off. The only way to get the original album at a discount is as a studio sample, which To View More >>

Our previous special offer was such a great success, we wanna share some more Queensberry Press Book love. Here's the deal: Order any Press Book before the 4th of August, and we'll give you an extra copy free. We'll also send you a free Queensberry Pressbook sampler. If you haven't got a Press Book yet - now's the time! Buy one for your clients and get a free sample for your studio. To claim your second Press Book, just request it in the special instructions when you send your order through Photojunction. Please Note - discount applies to the original book, including extras like Mayu Cases and To View More >>

Many photographers include albums in their wedding packages but you'd never know it! On their websites they'll say they sell them - they may even say how much they cost - but they won't actually show what they look like. We strongly believe that to be successful you need to show people what you want them to buy. Sarah Vivienne from the UK is someone who does a great job of it. These photos are from her blog: On her blog Sarah photographs and discusses her albums with detailed product shots and insight into the design process. I recently spoke with her and this is what she had to say: "I find To View More >>

Late last year Ian and I caught up with award winning photographer Bruce Gabites at his new Auckland studio. He'd just won his eighth straight Kodak Gold award  in the Wedding Album category, and we wanted to find out his secret... We spent a morning talking with him about why he enters photography competitions and what makes him so successful, the affect winning awards has on his business, and albums – the part they  play in his packages, and how he goes about selling them. To listen to our interview with Bruce Gabites click here (22 mins). Cheers, Nigel PS Bruce recently shared some To View More >>

Four years in, and Suzanne Black could teach a lot of people a lot of things…especially about marketing and surviving when times get tough. I had a chat with her about what she thinks are the keys to success, how she turns 90% of her enquiries into bookings and why albums are so important to her business. Positivity is contagious. Suzanne is feeling positive right now. I haven't heard that response to a question about the state of the economy in a long time, but after chatting I've decided describing her as "positive" is an understatement... She says, “In the current climate I think it's more To View More >>

Welcome to the second interview in our series featuring clients whose businesses are thriving despite the current economic climate. Click here to read the first interview with Christian Oth. In the same year they had their first child, Chris and Darcie Siiteri started their Austin (Texas) photography business, Innovative Photography. Fifteen years later they’re still at it and doing better than ever. I gave an initially nervous Darcie an early morning call to chat about how they approach their album sales, and what they do to ensure their clients have an amazing experience and to foster relationships To View More >>

In my posts a couple of months back about album marketing I suggested that you need an entry-level price that doesn't scare people. That prompted Darlene to tell a good story... "If a bride has a Mercedes budget and your prices start at Ford, she won't even come look at you. I've seen that in action with some of my clients. "One guy from a rust-belt town was charging $1500-3000. He told me, 'I can't sell your albums – they're too expensive and I can't get $5000 for a wedding round here'. "I told him he'd be surprised to learn, then, that one of his competitors (20 minutes away) was using To View More >>

I don't like long posts, and I'm always at Ian and Nigel to keep 'em brief so I apologize. This recent post prompted Ken to comment and me to respond with this, my longest ever... Ken asked whether our industry's main challenge wasn't "crap photography" but competitors with stupid pricing, for example, "2 photographers, hi-res images and Queensberry with 60 images for £1500." Ken suggested that people like that shouldn't last in business but they keep coming back... So I presume that if in fact they're surviving, they're probably a high volume, low margin outfit - possibly with healthy post-event To View More >>