These articles are about strategies to combat the recession. I ended my last post by posing the question on everyone's lips: what happens if my bookings drop? You'll need to have read my previous post to make sense of what follows, but to recap, based on the numbers in the graphic below, if I get 30 wedding bookings and average $5000 per job my income is $71k. If I could get 40 bookings I'd make $114k, even if my average dropped to $4600. All good, but what happens if I can only get 20 bookings? The answer is my income drops to $28k! I could still achieve my $100k income goal with just 20 weddings To View More >>

Follow the links for "the story so far" in our series on the recession... Yes, times will be tough for a while but you shouldn't assume the sky is falling. It makes no sense to sacrifice your business and market reputation to survive the short term challenge. Instead you may need to pull your horns in and find ways to prosper while others decline. A good place to start is by analysing your budget and business model, and we have a spreadsheet to help with that. Most people react to the threat of declining sales by saying, "I've gotta cut my costs". Everyone needs to work out their own figures, but To View More >>

I’m dropping my prices … people aren’t spending as much … my bookings are down … I need to go to cheaper albums … I’ve started doing shoot-and-burn … I’m worried about my income. You’ve heard the talk. Are you struggling in the face of competition, recession and demanding clients? Or do you just want to hear someone else’s take on things? As well as our usual Photojunction webinars, we’re hosting two new ones on the most critical issue facing professional photographers: how to survive and thrive in today’s demanding market. Webinar 1: How to sell albums (and why) Thurs To View More >>

I’m dropping my prices … people aren’t spending as much … my bookings are down … I need to go to cheaper albums … I’ve started doing shoot-and-burn … I’m worried about my income. You’ve heard the talk. Are you struggling in the face of competition, recession and demanding clients? Or do you just want to hear someone else’s take on things? As well as our usual Photojunction webinars, we’re hosting two with Queensberry on the most critical issue facing professional photographers: how to survive and thrive in today’s demanding market. Webinar 1: How to sell albums (and why) To View More >>

It's that time of year when we take stock, make resolutions and ask questions ... like how can we make this year a winner? Are there too many photographers? Why do we ask our competitors for advice? What can we learn from musicians? And the big one: How much are our images worth? Sadly, that's not just about how good they are or how much time we spend on them in post-production. Our latest client newsletter is below. Let us know what you think by leaving a comment here or emailing Ian directly. Cheers, Nigel How much are your images worth? We received this present from our design consultants, Alt To View More >>

I've packed my bags and shed a tear (as I leave my family) and right now I'm eating airline food and watching all of the movies I can as I jet over to the UK for a speaking series for Queensberry. It all started with a stranger walking into my studio and being curious. Liz from the MPA was on her last days of travel in  New Zealand and happened to find our studio. We had a conversation and what do you know ... I'm off to the UK with MPA. I'm going to talk about me and all of the things I did wrong to get to where we are now ... because I know so much on that subject. I'm going to talk about albums To View More >>

Is it just me or are we all (suppliers to the wedding industry) suffering from our clients' "fear of commitment"? The numbers of bookings are down, the time between booking and getting married is getting shorter. "It's the Recession," we cry, and it's almost true. It's not the recession, it's the fear of it. How can we overcome that fear? This is just a question, but ... are we better to say, "We'll give you a 20% discount" or, "We can be flexible?" What does "flexible" mean? It might refer to payment terms. It might mean they can start with a 'shoot only' package and add the trimmings later – To View More >>

More feedback on my email, Your next album company It's hard to compete ... We've seen a massive influx of photographers from Eastern Europe charging very low prices and supplying reasonable products.I understood the impact of this EU "migration" in British hotels and restaurants, but I honestly hadn't thought about the impact on photographers (Jo and Kirsten will be shaking their heads!). Even so I feel that this kind of competition is always with us ... in one form or other. The purpose of outstanding presentation is to add value to your photography. That's why,whoever you use, your albums must To View More >>