Majority of Dad's clients will not respond after their photos are delivered

Peripheral · Jun 29, 2013

Is it common for people to not respond/say thank you when their pictures are delivered? My Dad is very frustrated because he has his own LLC photography business, but he is constantly complaining about how his clients in the area never give him any feedback. He said he did some free photo shoots for several clients once, like 5 I think, and only one responded. He emailed them their pictures and never got any response back. I talked to him just today and he said about 1 in 10 clients respond back. He lives in Indiana.

This seems really strange to me--even for a well-established professional photography business, like Wyant or something, I should think the clients would respond with a thank-you, even if the pictures weren't the best. But my Dad said he just did a wedding shoot, with something like 1000 photos, and he picked the best 30 and put them in a zip file and sent them to the client. He says the file has been downloaded 8 times, but he hasn't received ANY responses back.

Even if my dad's work sucks, wouldn't they at least tell him that? I'd think someone would.

Anyway, for those of you professionals out there, I'd like to help my dad. Is this a common phenomenon in the photo world? Does this happen to you? What does it mean, and how might my dad fix it? I can provide further info if needed.

vintagesnaps · Jun 29, 2013

Free - that might be the key word. I don't know if people would view a photographer as a professional if the photos are free or cheap, and some people seem willing to accept any photos given to them if they're free/cheap. Providing 30 photos of a wedding doesn't seem like that may have been enough to meet clients' expectations especially shooting that large a number of photos.

I think to be viewed as a professional it's necessary to present your work in a professional way and have work that is comparable to what other pros in the area are doing. Maybe look at what other portrait and wedding photographers in your area are offering as packages and what photos they're displaying as sample of their work. I think it takes time to build up a reputation and gain respect, and maybe accept the fact that some people just aren't as likely as others to show appreciation.

Peripheral · Jun 29, 2013

I don't really know specifically what he's done, but he doesn't do any free work anymore. His work is cheaper than most because he's just getting started.

vintagesnaps said:
I think to be viewed as a professional it's necessary to present your work in a professional way and have work that is comparable to what other pros in the area are doing. Maybe look at what other portrait and wedding photographers in your area are offering as packages and what photos they're displaying as sample of their work. I think it takes time to build up a reputation and gain respect, and maybe accept the fact that some people just aren't as likely as others to show appreciation.

You're saying without a solid rep as a photographer people aren't even going to respond? Like I said, my dad estimated 1 in 10 people give any sort of feedback for his work. He has his own business cards, website, he communicates with clients actively throughout the process--perhaps he is just bad at photography or people don't like his personality?

Derrel · Jun 29, 2013

I have read a number of threads addressing this issue on various photo forums over the past 10 years, and YES, ZERO response, ZERO acknowledgement is exceptionally common when images are delivered via e-mail or web-download in the USA, and also in Europe, and in the UK. People get the photos, and are so damned lazy and ill-mannered that they typically give NO response. Not even a quick tap on the ,"REPLY TO" button, and "Hey, we got the px, thxs! Sad, but typical.

Nothing. Welcome to the modern era. A zip file hosted on a server with free download access??? He's gonna wait years for people to respond the way he expects, because, from the experiences of dozens and dozens of photographers around the world, responses are very few in number, and are typically only sent by the most well-mannered, conscientious people.

Peripheral · Jun 29, 2013

Derrel said:
I have read a number of threads addressing this issue on various photo forums over the past 10 years, and YES, ZERO response, ZERO acknowledgement is exceptionally common when images are delivered via e-mail or web-download in the USA, and also in Europe, and in the UK. People get the photos, and are so damned lazy and ill-mannered that they typically give NO response. Not even a quick tap on the ,"REPLY TO" button, and "Hey, we got the px, thxs! Sad, but typical.

Nothing. Welcome to the modern era. A zip file hosted on a server with free download access??? He's gonna wait years for people to respond the way he expects, because, from the experiences of dozens and dozens of photographers around the world, responses are very few in number, and are typically only sent by the most well-mannered, conscientious people.

Thanks, this is the sort of answer I was looking for. I have no experience with this and neither does my dad, so I guess in a way it might be a relief to him.

pixmedic · Jun 29, 2013

whenever it is even remotely humanly possible, we deliver ALL finished products to clients in person. It doesn't matter if it is a single 8x10 picture, images on a disk, or an album. Invite them over, go to them, meet them somewhere. go over the product, talk to them about it, get their feedback, reminisces about the event. Even though you have already gotten their business, delivering the final product in person helps build an extra bit of rapport with the client and shows them that they matter to you even after you have their money and the work is done. it makes the completion of the business more personal, and I think it gives clients a good feeling. I could be wrong though, that's just how we do it. your mileage may vary.

e.rose · Jun 29, 2013

I'm just curious as to why you're on here asking...

Are *you* "Dad"??

And if not... why is "Dad" not on here asking for himself? :lol:

This just sounds like one of those hypothetical, "My... uh... FRIEND... has this problem..." kind of stories. :lmao:

Peripheral · Jun 29, 2013

e.rose said:
And if not... why is "Dad" not on here asking for himself?

Why aren't I the president? Why is the sky blue? I don't know.

e.rose · Jun 29, 2013

Peripheral said:
Why is the sky blue?

--------- > Why is the sky blue? :: NASA's The Space Place <-----------

As for why you're not the president, I would venture a guess that it has something to do with the lack of your political career? :lmao:

No, but seriously... are *you* a photographer? Or are you literally just here to ask questions for "Dad"? I'm just genuinely curious. :lol:

The_Traveler · Jun 29, 2013

Peripheral said:
Why aren't I the president? Why is the sky blue? I don't know.

Here's the answer to the second but the first is out of my area.

Why is the sky Blue?

Peripheral · Jun 29, 2013

Not really a photographer, I just wanted to help my dad's business. Being his son I'm sure you can understand why.

The_Traveler · Jun 29, 2013

Good for you.
Perhaps you could work on the person to person interactions that make any business successful as suggested by Pixmedic above.

Lew

KmH · Jun 29, 2013

pixmedic said:
deliver ALL finished products to clients in person.

+ 99

Sell those products in person too. Dad is likely leaving loads of money on the table.

His work is cheaper than most because he's just getting started.

That doesn't work, because later raising prices means building a new customer base willing to pay the higher prices.

In person selling at the least usually doubles a photographers average sale, and many who sell in person quadruple their average sale.

If Dad isn't averaging about $1000 per sale, Dad likely won't be in business long.

I'm willing to bet Dad doesn't have a well researched, written, business/marketing plan.

sm4him · Jun 29, 2013

pixmedic said:
whenever it is even remotely humanly possible, we deliver ALL finished products to clients in person. It doesn't matter if it is a single 8x10 picture, images on a disk, or an album. Invite them over, go to them, meet them somewhere. go over the product, talk to them about it, get their feedback, reminisces about the event. Even though you have already gotten their business, delivering the final product in person helps build an extra bit of rapport with the client and shows them that they matter to you even after you have their money and the work is done. it makes the completion of the business more personal, and I think it gives clients a good feeling. I could be wrong though, that's just how we do it. your mileage may vary.

^This. If you're going to use the most impersonal means possible to deliver your product, you should probably expect the most impersonal responses (or lack thereof). I wonder how "personal" your dad even bothers to make the email--if I received an email that said something like, "I really meeting you and photographing your family. I am sending the final photos in a zip file; I'd love to hear what you think of them." [Disclaimer: I'm not saying that's the wording I'd use, or even that that's a very professional thing to do, just saying that if you want a response, you need to ELICIT a response.]

If I got some photos in an email that seemed personal and elicited some response, I'd most likely respond. But if I received something more like an invoice or a cut-and-dried statement, like "Here are the photos from your recent portrait session; it was a pleasure doing business with you." I might very well not respond. After all, when Amazon sends me the book I ordered, I don't email them a thank you note. If I "ordered" photos from a photo shoot, and got them in such an impersonal manner, I'd likely just consider it receipt of an order, not requiring a response.