Are You Making These 3 Big Pricing Mistakes?

Let's dive into some mistakes you may be making right now around pricing. ...and how to fix them asap

To hear the full episode head to the Profitable Portraits Podcast here  and listen to episode 13

You can also read this blog post on how to determine your perfect (and profitable) price list- CLICK HERE

If you’ve been struggling around how to introduce your pricing to clients or WHEN you should do that, I'm pretty sure a few of these mistakes may surprise you and get you moving in the right direction to make this part of your business that much easier.

So let’s get right into it- First thing I want to talk about is how people order a steak at a restaurant. 

Now, I have talked about this before, but if you haven’t heard this, then you don’t know what the heck ordering a steak has to do with your photography business…..

Let me explain….

Before I was a photographer and before I worked in corporate banking, I worked at the Keg, which is a steakhouse and bar. I was a bartender and a waiter.

It was a great job and it taught me a lot about sales and how to talk to people…

And one of the biggest lessons I learned was HOW people inquire about things…

For example, when I would go up to a table to take their order, I would undoubtedly get the question “ummm ok,  I’m thinking about maybe getting the special, but I have a question”---and then they would ask me----”How big is the 8oz sirloin?”  If you’ve ever worked in a restaurant, you are probably nodding your head, right? This happens. Maybe you even asked this question to your waiter before.

“How big is the 8oz steak???… it’s 8 frickin ounces!!! 

Right? Sounds obvious.

However, chances are, the person asking is not wondering about the weight of the steak, they already know it’s 8oz- it says so right on the menu… so what exactly are they asking?

Sometimes, people don’t know HOW to ask what they really want to know...or how to ask for more info… so they say the only thing they can think of to ask… 

and it was my job to know what they were actually asking… so, yeah- obviously I knew that THEY knew the steak was 8oz… but what they were really wondering is how much real estate is it gonna take up on their plate. How much food is this? Is it too much food for them...or not enough, should they order an appetizer as well… what else comes with the steak…

So, to answer them….I would show them with my hands how “big” that 8oz steak actually was, and then I would follow up with more info and questions- how hungry are you? Explain other choices and sizes… 

do you see where I am going with this?

When it’s YOUR job, then YOU are the expert… your clients are not the experts-- You need to listen to what they are asking….but also ask some of your own questions so you can make sure that you are answering all the things they are NOT asking…. Or that they don't know HOW to ask.

Most of the time, our potential clients don't even know what to ask us when they reach out to inquire...and why should they? It’s not their job.

All they know is that they want photos like that of themselves, and the only thing they can think of to put on your inquiry form is “how much?”  

It annoys me when I see photographers complain about this question...stop complaining!  You are getting inquiries… your clients don't know the “right” way to inquire with you...

Be happy they reached out at all… then coach them so you can find out what they REALLY want to ask… which is usually; “can I do this?” OR “I don’t know what to do in front of a camera.” OR “what is involved?” “what will it be like?”  “Is this for me?” 

To hear the 3 big mistakes, head to the Profitable Portraits Podcast here

You can be more profitable, photographers are doing it all over the place so why not you?

Listen to the profitable portraits podcast here (this is episode 13) . Get exclusive content for boudoir and portrait photographers 

~t