another pricing strategy to consider.

Salfrico commented on my last post, citing this other article on pricing as a counterpoint to the preceding post. (You may want to read that one first, just to catch up.)

The main thing that kind of made me giggle about that article was the idea that you are supposed to remove the emotion from it, because wanting to put a number on the value of your time away from your family is based on emotions, too, not just all that fluffy arteest stuff, isn't it? When you remove the emotion from anything, it means you are making a choice to ignore all those little voices that pop up and say, hrmm, maybe - not always but maybe - there's something deep inside me about this whole thing that makes me feel a little uncomfortable. They don't like hearing my perspective because it makes them question their own philosophy. Maybe they talk the talk but don't actually walk the walk. (And yes, I've met both ilks - there are people who have integrity and demand 6 figures a year, and they are totally cool with hearing my perspective and say, "Yeah? That's nice," and others who feel like frauds and then try desperately to justify their income figure to someone like me who says, "Yeah? That's nice.") A 6-figure income doesn't impress me, unless you donate half your money to charity or something lol.

Anyhoo. While she picked a relatively modest income of $50,000 as a nice starting point, she touched on the idea that spending time away from your family for $10 an hour is somehow wrong. I imagine that all those people out there grateful for and dependent on their $10 an hour job are thinkin', "Thanks, lady. Up Yours." She's also missing the fact that if she's charging say $50 for her time and talent and you have to pay another $50 for a single sheet, then as she said, working from the hard cold emotionless facts, I can only afford WalMart, therefore, I'm going to invest in that $50 sheet and call it a day. And, there are those of us who don't give a damn about a surround sound TV so when we say we couldn't afford ourselves while maybe we could, there are also those who don't WANT or need to - in some cases, it's actually a choice not to become elitist in our lifestyles and our shopping choices, right down to the photographer that we choose. Call me a hippy or a tree hugger or whatever you want. Money isn't evil, but it isn't the central focus of my life either.

Because it's a well-known fact that photography has no measurable value - it's really an intangible and subjective thing - and our hard costs after initial investment is so piddly, we are selling is the same damn thing as WalMart - a $50 8x10 sheet. At some point, then, you have to become empathetic to your target market, who values photos of their children equally regardless of income, but who still require that service. So put yourself in the emotional shoes of the person shopping you as a photog. The hard cold fact of life is, the bulk majority of consumers are price shoppers, even when they have $3500 to spend instead of $50; *most* people shop with their hearts, whether the feeling in their heart is a burning desire to have at least one decent picture of their child to hang on their walls (and there's no accounting for taste - there are lots of people out there who still like studio portraits, but no thanks for me) or a burning desire to brag to all their friends on how much they spent on their photographer, to someone else who will care (definitely no thanks.) When you picture someone making 6-figures spending $3,000 on a session, it's not really the same percentage of their disposable income as say someone who is only making $30,000 a year. Go watch My Fair Lady, and pay special attention to the part where Eliza Doolittle's offer is realized as relatively speaking a 'king's ransom' - when viewed from that perspective, it says that someone who makes a meagre income loves their children more, relatively speaking, doesn't it? (And no, of course it doesn't, but when you take the emotion out of it, that's a valuable statistic to consider.)

Some of my clients can afford a more expensive photographer, while others struggle every year to scrape together the pennies they need to pay my fee. They wait 6 months for me not because I'm not the cheapest person out there, but because my philosophy and personality are a good match for them. They tend to be the folks with a strong work ethic, who love their children fiercely, and want to support a local business instead of a chain store. They hire me because they like my work, not because they can brag about who took their pictures. They want me taking their children's pictures because I like kids and kids like me. (I can't tell you how many family photographers say they hate kids... boggles my mind...) I know other photographers out there who kick my ass in talent and skill, so I like to believe that my clients hire me because they respect my integrity.

The point is, price-shoppers don't want me because I'm still WAY more expensive than WalMart, and the elitists don't want me because I have nothing to offer them in terms of superficial value (a label). That makes me feel pretty good about where my prices are set. I'd much rather be respected than liked or admired. I enjoy the basis of her philosophy of working from your desired income up (not a new one, but a popular one that many photographers will sell other photogs for a huge chunk of change, and one that ironically every library on the planet has 68 books geared towards every type of business you can imagine for the low low price of $12 a year) but think she contradicts herself and still treats photography as an elitist service, trying to guilt people into feeling like they are undervaluing their families by working for a mere $10 an hour. Thank you, and screw you.

She doesn't really put her money where her mouth is, because she put in a disclaimer that she aims for 6 figures. I lost respect for her ideology at that point, not because I think she's greedy, but because at that price point I can assure you that we have a very different value system. Having been a single parent and having learned how to have what I need and want what I have, I'm able to pooh-pooh those photogs aiming for a weekly income of 5 figures (resulting in a meagre 6-figure salary of $120,000 a year) and say, knock yourself out. If YOU believe in your pricing strategy, then you have found the right one. If you question your pricing strategy, investigate what's out of integrity in your philosophy. When you can justify your pricing and feel you have a sound balance of emotional and business sense, you're good to go. Every time I hear someone start talking about their pricing and feeling like they can't justify it, saying things like they can't afford themselves, that's usually a better indicator of someone spending more than they make because they want more than they have. They are waiting to have, be, and do more before they are satisfied and find a 6-figure salary really appealing. Me, I admit I completely and totally lack the desire and drive to get there. Too competitive, too much work, too many conferences and competitions to attend, too much travelling, too much overhead, and not enough fun. And, while they are making money hand over fist, they are actually spending as much if not more time away from their family, but feel like they can put a price tag on their absence. There's something fundamentally wrong with saying, I won't leave my kids for $10 an hour, but I will for $100. Your time with your kids is for sale to the highest bidder at that point, so hell yeah - you better avoid feeling any emotion about that whatsoever. Icky. Blech.

Be firm and be true to your own value system and you'll figure it out. If you value labels, become a label photographer. If you value artistic integrity, become an arteest. If you just want to have a creative outlet that is a) enjoyable and b) pays for itself, have at 'er. This is the BEAUTY of photography as a business. There is no correct recipe for it. There is no right or wrong answer, and only YOU will ever know what works for YOU. All the high-priced photogs out there encouraging us to shoot for the stars and feel that we low-priced photographers somehow lower the industry standard can, frankly, bite my ass. When you eliminate having to work away from the house every day and are able to sit at the computer and take frequent breaks to make your kids' lunches, kiss their booboos, and avoid the headache and hassle of commuting to some job that leaves you feeling hollow and empty, $10 an hour sounds pretty damn good, doesn't it?