Do Your Customers Prefer Price Or Quality?

[Lynnzora]

But by All means, I do believe that it's important not sale yourself short... Charge whatever you feel your services a worth. However, I also say that there are times and circumstances when I think it's cool to bring them down a little.

 

[Big Mike]

I was reading this and it can be tough sometimes... I don't agree with the fact that keeping the prices up will completely weed out people only looking for a bargain... looking to get something for nothing.

I think you are looking at it backwards. Sure, 'bargain hunting' clients can be great...and even lead to a lot of work and be a great thing for you....as pointed out in your example.

But it's also likely that with bargain prices, you will attract the type of people who are not good clients....probably a lot more likely than if you had much higher prices.

Of course, high prices won't completely weed out bad customers...but there is a big difference between having one or two bad customers a year and having to deal with a bad one every other week.

But by All means, I do believe that it's important not sale yourself short... Charge whatever you feel your services a worth. However, I also say that there are times and circumstances when I think it's cool to bring them down a little.

I agree with that :thumbsup:

 

[CrimsonFoxPhotography]

But by All means, I do believe that it's important not sale yourself short... Charge whatever you feel your services a worth. However, I also say that there are times and circumstances when I think it's cool to bring them down a little.

The key word there is that there are "circumstances" where dropping is okay, but one should be very careful. One other person on here pointed out quite clearly that some of the very people that negotiate to get that price down somehow then have this false mentatility that you'll still give them the moon. I think part of this is because [with some of these people, not all] in the back of their mind they still think that lower negotiated price is expensive, so they show up with a rather "why aren't you exceeding my expectations" attitude with any little hiccup that might occur. Bottom line is that you simply have to read people well enough to understand that they are clear on what to expect for the money, I think.

The other potential backfire is that while word of mouth about how good you are might spread, some of those referrals may take offense to the fact that you're charging them regular price compared to the other person...especially if you had dropped the price significantly.

I say if you charge less, offer less..under no circumstances should you ever drop to the point where you lose money unless you turn it into a marketing opportunity, and even then, you should always have a minimum price in mind. For instance, even if I'm making money by charging $300 for a big wedding, what kind of message does that send down the grapevine about your brand?

 

[Lynnzora]

The key word there is that there are "circumstances" where dropping is okay, but one should be very careful. One other person on here pointed out quite clearly that some of the very people that negotiate to get that price down somehow then have this false mentatility that you'll still give them the moon. I think part of this is because [with some of these people, not all] in the back of their mind they still think that lower negotiated price is expensive, so they show up with a rather "why aren't you exceeding my expectations" attitude with any little hiccup that might occur. Bottom line is that you simply have to read people well enough to understand that they are clear on what to expect for the money, I think.

The other potential backfire is that while word of mouth about how good you are might spread, some of those referrals may take offense to the fact that you're charging them regular price compared to the other
person...especially if you had dropped the price significantly.

I say if you charge less, offer less..under no circumstances should you ever drop to the point where you lose money unless you turn it into a marketing opportunity, and even then, you should always have a minimum price in mind. For instance, even if I'm making money by charging $300 for a big wedding, what kind of message does that send down the grapevine about your brand?

You are both absolutely right. You don't want to sell yourself short and DEFINITELY don't want to loose money. I'm just talking about those few instances where you run into someone motivated, humble, and sincere. I don't think anyone in their right mind would expect a $300 wedding lol... Hummm maybe creating that one affordable package that doesn't take too much time and energy for the photographer to execute but in turn it also enables the "average joe" to obtain something quality and nice... Affordable package? Maybe something like 30 minutes, 1 look... includes 1 8X10 and 2 5X7s... This way you're not loosing much time or resources in doing that person a favor. If people know what to expect up front they can't act crazy when you don't go above and beyond... In fact we reserve the right deny services to anyone we want right.

 

[RyanLilly]

Walmart prices are always something like $9.97, or $ 197.47

Applebees, TGI fridays, other chains, price; $12.99, $8.99 etc "pick 2" deals and "limited time specials"

Fine dining establishments do not use the "$" symbol or decimal points in their prices, just whole dollar amounts; 15, 18, 24 etc

Now consider the type of customer that patronizes each establishment, and think about what their priorities are when selecting a product.
The same goes for photography.

 

[LarissaPhotography]

That's good insight on pricing strategy. Show pennies if you're marketing to penny pinchers. Thanks for sharing that.