When considering a photographer, it’s worth looking at more than just the upfront cost. You need to consider the total cost of payment. Additionally, a cheap photographer may provide you with images that you are unsatisfied with; putting you in a position to have the property re-photographed. Alternatively, locating a photographer that offers a money back guarantee will assure that you are satisfied with the images before paying for them. Make sure to ask your photographer these 6 questions before hiring them.
How can images affect the perceived value of what you do?
The quality of images used by a company in its marketing campaign can directly impact the prices that can be charged. This is because, photographs play a key role in the value potential buyers see in what you do. We live in a visual world, where images can affect the perceived value of a product or service. If you are a designer and all of your projects were taken on your cell phone, these images are likely to make your photos dark and dingy. When potential buyers see these images, they will assume you are cheap and more than likely unprofessional.
On the other hand, if your portfolio consists of high quality, professional images that look like they’ve come straight out of a home magazine. Buyer will assume that you are great at what you do and will show them that you care about the work that you do. If you an architect, then beautiful images can help position your brand within the upper echelon of architects in your area.
If we look at a hotel, professional images can directly affect the rate that they charge guests to stay in a room.
For example:
Let’s be conservative and suggest that quality photographs can add just 1% to the average room rate; raising it from $200 per night to $202 per night. Most price increase would be higher than this, but we are using a low number to show that even a small increase can have a big impact.
If the hotel has 100 rooms, and on average fill 65 of them every night for the year:
Then at $200 per night is: 65 rooms x $200 /night x 365 days = $4,706,000
At a 65% occupancy rate and an average room fee of $202 per night the total comes to $4,792,450. That is an increase of $86,450! By adjusting their rates by 1% to match their new position on the market, the hotel increased it’s profit margin and the photography basically pays for itself.
Conclusion:
Professional images can change the way buyers see your business. By providing quality visuals they will be able to see the value of your services, allowing you to raise your rates or propose more for a given project. If anything, your clients will want to share the professional images of their project to their friends and family, driving more people to your site and potentially gaining you a new client or two in the process.