A couple of weeks ago I posted about aggravating business policies and touch points, and asked readers to tell us about the things we do that's frustrating! We received three comments. One I've mentioned already, and the other two also raise important issues. Katherine (not her real name) emailed her account manager to say she doesn't like Photojunction. More important, she doesn't like feeling pressured by Queensberry into using it. She feels that if QBY were truly customer focused she wouldn't feel this pressure and could continue in the way that's suited her perfectly for the last seven years. To View More >>

"Previously we were offering albums we knew our competitors were also offering, but we’ve realised we can use the album to separate us from our competitors." That quote from Nigel's interview with the Youngrens reflects Queensberry's key message to photographers and it got me thinking... A while ago I posted about album companies in trouble – and not hitching your own wagon to dying stars. Today I'm suggesting you be wary of the latest and greatest too ;) In the US and UK markets of 2000, Queensberry albums were revolutionary because we hand-made every album to order. That meant photographers, To View More >>

This clip is from Mad Men, the US TV series about '60s-era Madison Ave ad-men. The guys are planning the launch of the Kodak Carousel. Watch 'em weep. It's not the about the technology, it's not about "new", it's about...  what drives your business. Cheers, Ian To View More >>

Because you'll probably (hopefully) never be engaged again, or plan your own wedding again, or be single again... Sure planning a wedding can be stressful, and frustrating, and hard work, and all those other things that make you want to run off to Vegas and elope - but it's also exciting and fun and romantic. It's now only two days until our wedding, but we're still taking time to relax, reflect, and enjoy the process. Wish us luck, rehearsal tomorrow. Cheers, Nigel To View More >>

Well I don't know about you, but we had a hell of a time finding a venue that had a date even remotely close to the one we wanted - and we were looking over a year in advance. Turns out corporates are booking their annual functions three or four years out, nabbing all the prime dates. We learned the importance of booking early the hard way, especially since we were planning a wedding in the peak summer season. We were after a venue that we felt cared about our wedding. So if we were shown around by a 20-something 'event planner' in high heels holding a clip-board who could only fit us in between To View More >>

I've just been dealing with a frustrated user.  The abridged version... He designed an album in PJ then exported PSDs. He then flattened the PSDs and imported them into ALBUM_CO_X's software for ALBUM_CO_X to make. That is frustrating for me on all sorts of levels - mostly because I tried (and failed) to convince ALBUM_CO_X not to waste time and money developing their own album planning tool... but that's a different story. The album came back with a border around every page, about a quarter inch in from the edge.  Somewhere between this client and ALBUM_CO_X's software the print files that ALBUM_CO_X To View More >>

Where do you start when planning a wedding? I've no idea... You'll have to ask Kayla! But one of the first things I remember was sitting down and setting our priorities. And the reason I remember is because I think it's probably one of the most valuable things we did. What I mean by 'setting our priorities' is that Kayla and I decided we needed to figure out what aspects of our wedding day were most important to us... other than the reception (the most expensive part). We each wrote down our top two priorities - things we considered deserved the most time, money and/or effort. The idea was that To View More >>

Final feedback from my email, Your next album company Unless you have someone on the ground talking to people you are never going to get the real story... That comment's from the UK, where we actually do have someone on the ground – take a bow, Jo! But Jo, a Londoner, is the exception not the rule. Most of our client support people work from New Zealand. Gino, for example, gets up really early to talk to people in North America, while Kirsten works really late to help Jo with the Brits. But it's great to meet people face-to-face, so why don't we base more people locally? First, where would To View More >>

I spent my lunch hour reading a forum post (not here obviously!) about "the best album template software". I guess I may be preaching to the choir, but... 1. Are "clunky" and/or "badly supported" the most common descriptors for album planning software? (We know Remix is "v1.0" right now, but check out our forums - we're committed!) 2. So, why not design your albums in Photoshop? It's exceptional software, but even Adobe doesn't suggest that's a good idea. Adobe's layout software is InDesign, part of Creative Suite. Another great application - we use both ourselves. 3. But what does InDesign know To View More >>