Those who are embarrassed by not having a studio... Why? Ask yourself this.
I used to feel the same way.
The fact is that as a wedding photographer you do not need a studio. Hell, PPA recommends strongly against it. If you are not shooting in a studio and/or doing projection sales, there is no point. People do not respect you more and desire to hire you more for a building to meet you in.
Hell, I was able to lower my prices when I got rid of my studio, and become a better value for my clients. And I'm still making more.
TTLKurtis wrote:
Those who are embarrassed by not having a studio... Why? Ask yourself this.
I used to feel the same way.
The fact is that as a wedding photographer you do not need a studio. Hell, PPA recommends strongly against it. If you are not shooting in a studio and/or doing projection sales, there is no point. People do not respect you more and desire to hire you more for a building to meet you in.
Hell, I was able to lower my prices when I got rid of my studio, and become a better value for my clients. And I'm still making more. ...Show more →
I disagree. I have an office space and recently expanded it. I like to show clients my stuff. I have a lot of stuff. I don't want to carry my stuff around in my car. I like having all my stuff in my office. Clients come in, see my nice office, see my nice stuff. All that stuff is part of your business... some may say it's part of your brand.
Inku Yo wrote:
I disagree. I have an office space and recently expanded it. I like to show clients my stuff. I have a lot of stuff. I don't want to carry my stuff around in my car. I like having all my stuff in my office. Clients come in, see my nice office, see my nice stuff. All that stuff is part of your business... some may say it's part of your brand.
I agree with you to an extent. It took me a long time to become okay with not having a studio and to understand that, for my business, it really wasn't a necessity.
One of the main advantages, IMO, like others have pointed out, is legitimacy. I like to hire service professional that I know are going to be around, and have a track record. Money isn't the most important thing to me when I hire someone, but knowing it'll get done right and I'll have support afterwards. Trying to imagine how my clients would feel about meeting in a studio, I think it definitely adds legitimacy.
But like you say Kurtis, everyone's business is different, so you should understand who your clientele is and determine if it's going to help your position.
TTLKurtis wrote:
I agree with you to an extent. It took me a long time to become okay with not having a studio and to understand that, for my business, it really wasn't a necessity.
Right, but you also said you lowered your rates and are making more (by working more?). So perhaps at a lower price point, having an office or meeting space isn't crucial. I'm making more than I used to. I don't credit my office space alone for that, but I believe it's a contributing factor.
It's not a necessity, as cottage industry has become more popular (just like it used to be 200 years ago!), and a main street presence is not a requirement for a photographer. That being said, having a commercial office/studio can paint a picture of legitimacy to some... and others fully know that tomorrow there could be a "For Rent" sign in your office window and they prefer knowing where you live, because odds are it's more complicated for you to stop paying the rent there.
Though years ago I had a second floor office and someone said they didn't trust me because I wasn't on the first floor. But that was an excuse, you know? So take feedback with a grain of salt.
TAGfan wrote:
I kind of echo what Inku said - I think an actual location adds some credibility to the biz. Whether that's your home office (not possible in my situation) or another office location.
I think it would also help me to book a higher percentage of wedding clients I meet with, by being able to show more of my work more efficiently and in a more relaxed and comfortable atmosphere.
Scott... I agree. I've found that as our average booking has passed the $5K mark.. more and more couples expect us to have a space. They get the rate sheet after inquiring and then respond with, "Looks great... We'd love to set up a meeting and come to your studio.".. it feels like such a let down to then have to tell them that we have to meet at Starbucks.
This, in part, pushed us in our recent home purchase... so we can have a space to set up for meetings.
joosay wrote:
I've managed to get some nice bookings over coffee but I do feel a bit embarrassed when I have to meet them at a cafe and not my own swanky studio/office space. I was debating if I should get one of those "We Work" spaces here in NYC but I feel it's not the most cost effective option for me right now.
Eventually, I am 100% sure I will get an office/meeting space though. Perhaps next year.
People keep using studio and office sort of interchangeably, is there a substantive difference? Because one makes me picture just a room with a desk and some chairs and a lot of pictures on teh wlal and the other makes me think of that, plus a space to do makeup/change plus a space to store a bunch of gear and a largish place to shoot. And I kind of agree with Kurtis, that having the full studio space isn't necessarily going to help you if your primary line is weddings because it just kind of drags.
Inku Yo wrote:
Right, but you also said you lowered your rates and are making more (by working more?). So perhaps at a lower price point, having an office or meeting space isn't crucial. I'm making more than I used to. I don't credit my office space alone for that, but I believe it's a contributing factor.
Nope, working the same amount, earning more per wedding charging less, because I have way less fixed expense now.
As for the whole legitimacy thing, I don't know, I guess it depends on whether you can get people to trust you or if you need a building to help do that. The fact of the matter is a LOT of brick and mortar businesses go bankrupt and close their doors, so I'm not sure that it actually has the effect we might assume it does.
TTLKurtis wrote:
Nope, working the same amount, earning more per wedding charging less, because I have way less fixed expense now.
As for the whole legitimacy thing, I don't know, I guess it depends on whether you can get people to trust you or if you need a building to help do that. The fact of the matter is a LOT of brick and mortar businesses go bankrupt and close their doors, so I'm not sure that it actually has the effect we might assume it does.
Ok, off topic a bit, but why lower your rates? If I decided to close up my office tomorrow just because I felt like I didn't need it, I wouldn't lower my rates because I have 1 less expense to pay. My work/talent is worth the same, really, whether I have an office or not.
Well, I should take a step back and explain, I guess. Technically I wasn't lowering my rates, I just put them back where they were before. See, I had a home I bought to use as my studio, but I was planning to move to an amazing retail location in town and the rent was going to be about double what I was already paying. So for the last year I increase my rates in anticipation of my higher fixed costs.
Over the course of that year I saw bookings drop dramatically, some of which were due to pricing, and other factors I was able to identify as being separate and fixable - really stupid oversights on my part and an overly relaxed approach to inquiries/meetings. Anyways, I decided not only against the big fancy retail studio, but while I was at it I decided the home studio never was quite what I hoped it would be in terms of being able to shoot there even though it worked really well for meetings and projection sales, so I got rid of that as well. Part of this decision was that I would focus solely on weddings and stop pursuing portraits and commercial work.
Now my prices are the same as they were before I planned the big move, but I have removed an enormous fixed monthly cost, and therefore I am making more for the same amount of work.
TTLKurtis wrote:
Well, I should take a step back and explain, I guess. Technically I wasn't lowering my rates, I just put them back where they were before. See, I had a home I bought to use as my studio, but I was planning to move to an amazing retail location in town and the rent was going to be about double what I was already paying. So for the last year I increase my rates in anticipation of my higher fixed costs.
Over the course of that year I saw bookings drop dramatically, some of which were due to pricing, and other factors I was able to identify as being separate and fixable - really stupid oversights on my part and an overly relaxed approach to inquiries/meetings. Anyways, I decided not only against the big fancy retail studio, but while I was at it I decided the home studio never was quite what I hoped it would be in terms of being able to shoot there even though it worked really well for meetings and projection sales, so I got rid of that as well. Part of this decision was that I would focus solely on weddings and stop pursuing portraits and commercial work.
Now my prices are the same as they were before I planned the big move, but I have removed an enormous fixed monthly cost, and therefore I am making more for the same amount of work....Show more →
Inku Yo wrote:
Here's my take on it and it may not be true for anyone else...
If I were going to hand over many thousands of dollars to anyone, I would hope they're not working out of the trunk of their car. Or at least they shouldn't give the appearance that they are.
Again, that's just me. If I want someone to spend $10K+, they need to know that I'm good enough at my job to have a nice location and that I plan on sticking around a while.
+1
also gives you flexibility to set your meeting time to any time, even late evening or early morning.
that was my biggest issue i had with meeting in public. they never had open when i needed.
I prefer having an office to meet clients. Yes it is also my stucio and I have to have a studio for a lot of my non wedding business which I prefer shooting at this time. I do hear comments from some about having to meet at a coffee shop etc. Just did not give the client the level of professionalism they wanted. Photography is known to be a flaky business anyway. I try to show I run my business as a real business and not a hobby.
Ok, I really hate coffes shops. To much noise, no privacy. I am biased.
TAGfan wrote:
So the numbers came in and for 390 square feet the price would be $900 a month. Its a nice space with walking traffic, but I think that's a bit high..
Wow....where is that...next to Nieman Marcus ? Any "retail" space will be much higher than an office complex or park.
TAGfan wrote:
So the numbers came in and for 390 square feet the price would be $900 a month. Its a nice space with walking traffic, but I think that's a bit high..
