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"Are you local?"- how do you respond to this @ ...

Nikon_14
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p.1 #1 · "Are you local?"- how do you respond to this @ bridal shows?

Did my first "real" bridal show yesterday about 3 hours drive from where I live. Volume was light, but decent enough for the price paid.

The scenario typically ran like this:

"Wow, I LOVE your images!" (body language indicated 'Enough that I want to sign today')

But then...
"Are you local?"
And then body language changed to that of a politician being encouraged to take a class in ethics.

I tried showing images from weddings that I had shot in the local area, to no avail.

Any ideas?

Edited on Feb 18, 2013 at 02:40 PM · View previous versions

Feb 18, 2013 at 02:31 PM

myam203
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p.1 #2 · "Are you local?"- how do you respond to this @ bridal shows?

I would downplay it big time. "I travel all the time, so it's no problem!"

Feb 18, 2013 at 02:36 PM

Littleguy
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p.1 #3 · "Are you local?"- how do you respond to this @ bridal shows?

What was your response to them that got you the body language change?

I think they are afraid that there will be an extra travel charge - how have you address that?

Feb 18, 2013 at 02:53 PM

Nikon_14
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p.1 #4 · "Are you local?"- how do you respond to this @ bridal shows?

Littleguy wrote:
What was your response to them that got you the body language change?

I think they are afraid that there will be an extra travel charge - how have you address that?

My response initially was that I told them where I lived, which is about 2 to 3 hours away. BIG MISTAKE.

I then changed to showing images of venues and weddings I shot in that area last year. Not as much of an allergic reaction then, but it still was an immediate deal-breaker.

Never thought about the travel charge- perhaps I should've mentioned "No extra cost for travel" or some such thing.

Feb 18, 2013 at 03:06 PM

Nikon_14
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p.1 #5 · "Are you local?"- how do you respond to this @ bridal shows?

Nikon_14 wrote:
Littleguy wrote:
What was your response to them that got you the body language change?

I think they are afraid that there will be an extra travel charge - how have you address that?

My response initially was that I told them where I lived, which is about 2 to 3 hours away. BIG MISTAKE.

I then changed to showing images of venues and weddings I shot in that area last year. Not as much of an allergic reaction then, but it (the fact that I wasn't a local) still was an immediate deal-breaker.

Never thought about the travel charge- perhaps I should've mentioned "No extra cost for travel" or some such thing.

Feb 18, 2013 at 03:06 PM

Nikon_14
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p.1 #6 · "Are you local?"- how do you respond to this @ bridal shows?

Nikon_14 wrote:
Nikon_14 wrote:
Littleguy wrote:
What was your response to them that got you the body language change?

I think they are afraid that there will be an extra travel charge - how have you address that?

My response initially was that I told them where I lived, which is about 2 to 3 hours away. BIG MISTAKE.

I then changed to showing images of venues and weddings I shot in that area last year. Not as much of an allergic reaction then, but it (the fact that I wasn't a local) still was an immediate deal-breaker.

Never thought about the travel charge- perhaps I should've mentioned "No extra cost for travel" or some such thing.

Feb 18, 2013 at 03:07 PM

jared_irl
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p.1 #7 · "Are you local?"- how do you respond to this @ bridal shows?

"yes"

Feb 18, 2013 at 03:08 PM

oldrattler
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p.1 #8 · "Are you local?"- how do you respond to this @ bridal shows?

"I do not mind traveling and there is no additional fee."

Feb 18, 2013 at 03:15 PM

deepbluejh
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p.1 #9 · "Are you local?"- how do you respond to this @ bridal shows?

jared_irl wrote:
"yes"

Because clients love being lied to. Seriously, bad idea.

To the OP, you can answer their question, but answer it in such a way that it addresses their concerns with a non-local photographer. This may work or it may not. In the end, if they are set on someone local, there is almost nothing you can say to change their minds. Regardless, in the context of a bridal session, you are probably limited in the type of dialog you need to change their minds on the matter. You might only get in a few brief sentences before they move onto the next table.

Feb 18, 2013 at 03:19 PM

jared_irl
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p.1 #10 · "Are you local?"- how do you respond to this @ bridal shows?

deepbluejh wrote:
jared_irl wrote:
"yes"

Because clients love being lied to. Seriously, bad idea.

To the OP, you can answer their question, but answer it in such a way that it addresses their concerns with a non-local photographer. This may work or it may not. In the end, if they are set on someone local, there is almost nothing you can say to change their minds. Regardless, in the context of a bridal session, you are probably limited in the type of dialog you need to change their minds on the matter. You might only get in a few brief sentences before they move onto the next table.

That's not being lied too. Some people have different ideas of what 'local' means. Is that area a part of your standard shooting area? Yes. Is that area a place you would consider being within your normal driving/meeting distance? Yes.

What's not local about that? Your mailbox is in a different zip code?

I consider myself 'local' to quite a number of places, because I frequent them, know my way around, and consider them part of my normal commute.

If I drove somewhere and setup a booth and was working on selling brides in that area, I'd prolly make sure I considered myself local to the area, otherwise it would be quite a stretch to make it worth my while to setup that booth.

But I suppose if you really wanted to get into the semantics of it, you could simply say "I don't live here, but I'm in the area often enough and shoot here enough that I consider myself a local."

Feb 18, 2013 at 03:37 PM

morby
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p.1 #11 · "Are you local?"- how do you respond to this @ bridal shows?

What do you guys do about travel fees? I don't do a lot of travel for wedding and engagement photography, but when I do I charge a mileage fee. I do $1 per mile over 25 miles from where I live for weddings, and $2 per mile over 15 miles from where I live for engagements. Sometimes I have shoots 3 and 4 hours away and want to make sure it's worth my time. This summer I have an engagement shoot in NYC and it will take the entire day. I would end up breaking even after gas, tolls and food for the day. There are circumstances where I'll wave the mileage fee, but it's not often and it's stated in my contract.

Feb 18, 2013 at 04:31 PM

deepbluejh
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p.1 #12 · "Are you local?"- how do you respond to this @ bridal shows?

jared_irl wrote:
deepbluejh wrote:
jared_irl wrote:
"yes"

Because clients love being lied to. Seriously, bad idea.

To the OP, you can answer their question, but answer it in such a way that it addresses their concerns with a non-local photographer. This may work or it may not. In the end, if they are set on someone local, there is almost nothing you can say to change their minds. Regardless, in the context of a bridal session, you are probably limited in the type of dialog you need to change their minds on the matter. You might only get in a few brief sentences before they move onto the next table.

That's not being lied too. Some people have different ideas of what 'local' means. Is that area a part of your standard shooting area? Yes. Is that area a place you would consider being within your normal driving/meeting distance? Yes.

What's not local about that? Your mailbox is in a different zip code?

I consider myself 'local' to quite a number of places, because I frequent them, know my way around, and consider them part of my normal commute.

If I drove somewhere and setup a booth and was working on selling brides in that area, I'd prolly make sure I considered myself local to the area, otherwise it would be quite a stretch to make it worth my while to setup that booth.

But I suppose if you really wanted to get into the semantics of it, you could simply say "I don't live here, but I'm in the area often enough and shoot here enough that I consider myself a local."

I get what you're saying, just that most people would not consider three hours away "local".

"I don't live here, but I'm in the area often enough and shoot here enough that I consider myself a local."

I think that works a lot better than just "yes, I'm local".

Feb 18, 2013 at 04:33 PM

awad
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p.1 #13 · "Are you local?"- how do you respond to this @ bridal shows?

morby wrote:
What do you guys do about travel fees? I don't do a lot of travel for wedding and engagement photography, but when I do I charge a mileage fee. I do $1 per mile over 25 miles from where I live for weddings, and $2 per mile over 15 miles from where I live for engagements. Sometimes I have shoots 3 and 4 hours away and want to make sure it's worth my time. This summer I have an engagement shoot in NYC and it will take the entire day. I would end up breaking even after gas, tolls and food for the day. There are circumstances where I'll wave the mileage fee, but it's not often and it's stated in my contract.

We don't charge a fee if it's within a 100 miles, over that we do $.55 per mile. We shoot in NYC a lot and we don't charge any extra fees for that, unless it'sa really early starting wedding or a wedding that'll go late and then we have the couple pick up our hotel room cost and that's it.

Feb 18, 2013 at 04:35 PM

deepbluejh
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p.1 #14 · "Are you local?"- how do you respond to this @ bridal shows?

morby wrote:
What do you guys do about travel fees? I don't do a lot of travel for wedding and engagement photography, but when I do I charge a mileage fee. I do $1 per mile over 25 miles from where I live for weddings, and $2 per mile over 15 miles from where I live for engagements. Sometimes I have shoots 3 and 4 hours away and want to make sure it's worth my time. This summer I have an engagement shoot in NYC and it will take the entire day. I would end up breaking even after gas, tolls and food for the day. There are circumstances where I'll wave the mileage fee, but it's not often and it's stated in my contract.

Different people handle this in different ways, but I try to price travel into my fee as much as possible - especially for weddings. Travel is relatively cheap and few things are as big of a buzz-kill as hearing that a photographer charges $1/mile to travel to your wedding. Even if you're already spending $3000 for coverage, that extra $50 or so just feels like salt into the wound and might be enough for you to lose the booking.

Feb 18, 2013 at 04:40 PM

TheGE
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p.1 #15 · "Are you local?"- how do you respond to this @ bridal shows?

They ask, "are you local?" for a reason, which by the way, you can't always assume you know why that is exactly in every case.

But don't throw ready made answers at them. Instead, find out why that's important for them to ask. Then you'll get to the real question. Are they asking because a friend got burned dealing with someone out of town? Are they asking because they don't want to travel? Is it that the last guy told them it would be $500 for travel?

So ask why first.

Feb 18, 2013 at 04:41 PM

morby
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p.1 #16 · "Are you local?"- how do you respond to this @ bridal shows?

deepbluejh wrote:
morby wrote:
What do you guys do about travel fees? I don't do a lot of travel for wedding and engagement photography, but when I do I charge a mileage fee. I do $1 per mile over 25 miles from where I live for weddings, and $2 per mile over 15 miles from where I live for engagements. Sometimes I have shoots 3 and 4 hours away and want to make sure it's worth my time. This summer I have an engagement shoot in NYC and it will take the entire day. I would end up breaking even after gas, tolls and food for the day. There are circumstances where I'll wave the mileage fee, but it's not often and it's stated in my contract.

Different people handle this in different ways, but I try to price travel into my fee as much as possible - especially for weddings. Travel is relatively cheap and few things are as big of a buzz-kill as hearing that a photographer charges $1/mile to travel to your wedding. Even if you're already spending $3000 for coverage, that extra $50 or so just feels like salt into the wound and might be enough for you to lose the booking.

Would you do it for an engagement session? I've had a few engagement sessions at the Jersey Shore and in NYC that take a whole day away. I charge $300 for the session and disc and wonder if a whole day away is worth it.

Feb 18, 2013 at 04:46 PM

deepbluejh
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p.1 #17 · "Are you local?"- how do you respond to this @ bridal shows?

morby wrote:
deepbluejh wrote:
morby wrote:
What do you guys do about travel fees? I don't do a lot of travel for wedding and engagement photography, but when I do I charge a mileage fee. I do $1 per mile over 25 miles from where I live for weddings, and $2 per mile over 15 miles from where I live for engagements. Sometimes I have shoots 3 and 4 hours away and want to make sure it's worth my time. This summer I have an engagement shoot in NYC and it will take the entire day. I would end up breaking even after gas, tolls and food for the day. There are circumstances where I'll wave the mileage fee, but it's not often and it's stated in my contract.

Different people handle this in different ways, but I try to price travel into my fee as much as possible - especially for weddings. Travel is relatively cheap and few things are as big of a buzz-kill as hearing that a photographer charges $1/mile to travel to your wedding. Even if you're already spending $3000 for coverage, that extra $50 or so just feels like salt into the wound and might be enough for you to lose the booking.

Would you do it for an engagement session? I've had a few engagement sessions at the Jersey Shore and in NYC that take a whole day away. I charge $300 for the session and disc and wonder if a whole day away is worth it.

$350 for a local, two hour session. I would only do an all-day session on an off day (no weekends), and for $500 plus all travel fees. This is probably why I don't do too many of these sessions.

Feb 18, 2013 at 04:50 PM

Dudewithoutape
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p.1 #18 · "Are you local?"- how do you respond to this @ bridal shows?

morby wrote:
What do you guys do about travel fees? I don't do a lot of travel for wedding and engagement photography, but when I do I charge a mileage fee. I do $1 per mile over 25 miles from where I live for weddings, and $2 per mile over 15 miles from where I live for engagements. Sometimes I have shoots 3 and 4 hours away and want to make sure it's worth my time. This summer I have an engagement shoot in NYC and it will take the entire day. I would end up breaking even after gas, tolls and food for the day. There are circumstances where I'll wave the mileage fee, but it's not often and it's stated in my contract.

If you dont mind me asking, how much are you charging? The math for a scenario where "entire day"s work is only breaking even for "gas, tolls, and food" just blows my mind. For example, 3.5 hours (7 hours back and forth) of driving at 65 mph, $4 per gallon of gas, 20 mpg car, that's about $91 roundtrip, food another $10, $15, $20? Tolls, $20? Total, <$140. Even if my math is off by $50 or so, it would still be under $200.

To the OP, I would be honest. Tell them how far away you are, how much you charge (if you don't charge anything, tell them this!), and then show how you've shot at local (to them) venues.

Feb 18, 2013 at 05:07 PM

morby
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p.1 #19 · "Are you local?"- how do you respond to this @ bridal shows?

Dudewithoutape wrote:
morby wrote:
What do you guys do about travel fees? I don't do a lot of travel for wedding and engagement photography, but when I do I charge a mileage fee. I do $1 per mile over 25 miles from where I live for weddings, and $2 per mile over 15 miles from where I live for engagements. Sometimes I have shoots 3 and 4 hours away and want to make sure it's worth my time. This summer I have an engagement shoot in NYC and it will take the entire day. I would end up breaking even after gas, tolls and food for the day. There are circumstances where I'll wave the mileage fee, but it's not often and it's stated in my contract.

If you dont mind me asking, how much are you charging? The math for a scenario where "entire day"s work is only breaking even for "gas, tolls, and food" just blows my mind. For example, 3.5 hours (7 hours back and forth) of driving at 65 mph, $4 per gallon of gas, 20 mpg car, that's about $91 roundtrip, food another $10, $15, $20? Tolls, $20? Total, <$140.

For engagement sessions it's $300 for the session and a disc of images. You're right, I'm still making money off of an engagement session. I guess I was also factoring in taxes with that number too. I would still make money, but to be away from my family for an entire day, and then editing and what not on top of that I feel it's not worth $100 profit.

For weddings a shoot and burn is $3500. With albums, album upgrades and additions it's anywhere from $4200-$6500.

I spend a lot of time working and being away from my family, so my mileage fee is primarily motivated from not wanting to be away from them more than I have too. If I'm going to be away for a shoot or a wedding I want to make it worth. I took Cliff Mautner's workshop about two years ago and he got an inquiry for a wedding in CA while we were with him. We asked what he would charge to do that. His starting price is $8000 and he said he would probably add a $3000 travel fee to shoot the wedding (imagine making that kind of money!!). He said he doesn't like to travel, so if he booked it he got an extra $3000 if he didn't book it than he didn't have to travel. For him it was a win either way. Since then I've taken the same approach as well (but without those crazy numbers!).

Feb 18, 2013 at 05:16 PM

roland hale
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p.1 #20 · "Are you local?"- how do you respond to this @ bridal shows?

My assumption is that her concern may be travel fees - but that's just my best guess. You need to identify the problem before you can fix it.

As you said, there's a quick, evident change in her body language when you say "No, I'm not local." In a friendly and direct manner, make note of this and ask what concerns she has about you not being "local."

Feb 18, 2013 at 06:40 PM

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