Last summer, this forum was a great help to me as I prepared for my first youth action photography event. I successfully shot action pics at the week long GA DYB State Tournament.

As I hoped at the time, I made some great contacts and have now been asked to submit a proposal for T&I spring baseball pictures.

Of course, this is coming in at the last minute and they have asked for a proposal ASAP as the board meets next week.

I have no proposal and really not sure what needs to be included in it other than the obvious. Cost, shooting location, logistics.

Would any of you be care to share what you use for this?

It it makes any difference - the league will consist of about 45 teams. In this area thankfully, pics are not included in the cost of league signup so I will be using a business model of package sales, starting at about 18.95 and going up to about 49.95 with add on's available as well. I plan to offer the league 10-15% of proceeds.

It helps to know what incentives other T&I companies in your area are offering before you submit a bid. I know other areas of the country, kickbacks as high as 50% exist. That blows my mind, but still, it's incredibly beneficial to know what the league has been getting prior to your bid.

I assume you're covered with good liability insurance. You have absolutely no business whatsoever submitting a bid without proof of insurance.

Make sure your proposal clearly spells out what is required of you - specifically. It should also spell out what is required of the league. Are you scheduling the teams for photographs or is the league? Do you require anyone from the league to be on-hand on picture day? Are you distributing the finished packages yourself? If so, are you giving them to parents on-site? To team moms on-site? Are you just giving everything to the board to have them distribute? Are you mailing them?

Is action work part of the proposal? If so, does your proposal ensure no other photographers or companies sell their work at the park? If so, whose job is it to police that type of thing?

Timeframes should be included in the proposal. How long after pictures are taken will they be distributed? How long after pictures are taken will you be delivering your incentive(s) to the league?

Does your proposal also include freebies for coaches? If so, what are they?

Does your proposal include sponsor plaques? If so, how many per team? What size? Custom engraved or generic 'thanks for being a sponsor' types? When will those be delivered?

Are you offering multi-year contracts? If so, 2 years? 3? Are there added incentives for the league if they sign for more than a single year? What are they?

James has done a good job outlining what your proposal needs to cover so I will not add anything to it.

I would like to add a couple things to be prepared for when you make your pitch.

Based on my experience, don't expect your portfolio to carry much weight. My first time out I put together a really nice display of photos set up to represent each package, prints, buttons, cards etc. It was a total yawn fest. Little or no interest what so ever. I now have a coffee table type book I pass around during the presentation. Some people don't even look at it.

What does catch their attention is work flow. (How soon can you get it over with.) And what's in it for them. (percentage paid to the organization).

You should already have those answers before attempting to do the job so I will not elaborate on the details. Just be ready to talk logistics and money.

And lastly, don't be surprised if they already have their mind made up before you get your foot in the door. Sometimes they just want to be able to say they have two or more bids to keep the management and parents happy.

Good luck,
Marty

Marty is spot-on with the portfolio info. Quality means next to nothing to the board. They want someone that causes them exactly zero headaches as well as provides a decent monetary incentive. That means no calls from angry parents and no trouble on either picture day or distribution day.

Thank you James, let me address each comment individually.

The league is used to 15% or less in kickbacks

I have to schedule the teams. I will be able to have two helpers from the league. I will provide the league with the photo packets to distribute. This is how it's been done in previous years for them.

Liability insurance for 1 Million

Action work has never been offered to this league before. Since I did action for them last year, I'm planning on adding a 'first right of refusal' for any tournament event they may have

I plan to state that I will deliver photos back to the league within three weeks. Hopefully, I can get them back earlier.

Freebies for coaches and sponsors typically consist of only a 5x7 for each in this area. I might offer a bonus plaque for sponsors.

I would like to offer this as a two or three year contract. What are some incentives that you would consider as I have not thought of this aspect.

Thank you for your thoughtful response.

Marty,

I pretty much have this one locked up due to personal contacts on the board. I just dont want to 'mess it up' with a poorly worded proposal, or one that doesn't cover everything. Thats why I asked if someone would share their proposal with me.

Short of the story is, the existing photographer was/is the wife of the ex president who has been gone now for three years. The current board feels they have been 'getting the same look' every year and are ready to make a change.

My lovely fiancee has been a 'team mom' for several years for both boys baseball and girls softball and is very close to the board members.

This is a 'small town insiders' type gig.

sowega wrote:
Marty,
I pretty much have this one locked up due to personal contacts on the board....Thats why I asked if someone would share their proposal with me.


Sorry for my unsolicited reply.

As far as sharing specific language from my proposal, sorry. I have a lot of time and money tied up in it and sharing it might be giving up a competitive edge.

If you have time for a rush order, delivered tomorrow or Friday, you can get "Business and Legal Forms for Photographers" by Tad Crawford. It comes with a CD of boiler plate forms which can be tailored to fit your situation.

http://www.amazon.com/Business-Legal-Photographers-Fourth-Edition/dp/1581156693/ref=pd_sim_b_1

Good luck,
Marty

Sowega wrote: I plan to state that I will deliver photos back to the league within three weeks. Hopefully, I can get them back earlier.

Better double check with the lab if you are going that route whether they can turn it around within the 3 week time frame that you are expecting. A lot of labs are going to be be busy around that time.

45 teams? What time frame are you looking at in shooting all the teams.

Makeup date. Make sure you have a makeup date for the no shows or in the event of a rainout.