You are here, so that means you have already taken your leap toward professional product photography. The biggest question of beginner photographers is how much they should set their price packages. Most amateur freelance photographers that have just stepped into the market struggle with this question. The pricing factor is very critical for new businesses. Overpricing can result in the loss of potential clients and underpricing only because you are new, can be an injustice to your talent and hard work. There is no set of actual decided prices that we can mention. However, this article will guide you through some factors to consider while pricing your product photography business.
Figure out the running cost
The first thing you need to do is to figure out the total running cost of your setup. For perfect pricing, you should include all the expanses whether they are permanent or temporary.
- Start with the equipment cost. Consider all the expensive equipment and lighting setups you got for your studio. Do not forget to include potential replacement and repair costs.
- Another important factor that you should make sure your business is paying for is the studio space cost. The studio space can be a rental or a personal space. If the space is personal, that does not mean you have to cut the cost. You can assign a rental value to that place while calculating the total cost.
- Marketing is one of the key elements for making a business successful. If the marketing is done right, it will prove immensely beneficial for your new product photography business. Calculate all the marketing costs, such as advertisements, portfolio website cost, digital marketing, etc.
- You also need to include the cost of payments you have to make to the other officials working for your business such as accountants, etc.
- Do not forget to include the taxes and other general expenses associated with the product photography business.
Cost of your time and effort
One of the main mistakes beginners do is not valuing their talent while setting the prices for their services. You have to take into account the factors like pre-production, different locations, setting up the equipment, etc. Depending on the type of product you are shooting, it can vary in terms of time and effort required. So keep in mind that you first will have to analyze the project properly to calculate the cost. Some projects also require extra time and effort during post-processing, if such is the case, include a fair cost for it too.
Determine the price
With all the costs calculated, now you have to decide the right prices.
- Review the market: To come up with the best price, review your competition in the market. With some research, you will get a clear idea of what the prices are according to the expertise.
- Evaluate the value: Never set too low prices, in hope of getting clients. Underpricing will decrease your business value and can set low standards. Similarly, avoid overpricing. If you are a beginner, do not go for market prices set by professionals.
- Pricing models: These are a few models to go with when it comes to product photography.
- Price per image
- Price per product
- Hourly/Daily (by time)
- You can also offer multi-service packages.
The rates in product photography vary from 10$ to 2000$ for a single product image depending on the effort required, license, complexity, and other factors. The rates can go even higher when professionals and big brand names are involved.
Keep a realistic Profit Margin
Once you have decided all the costs and prices, make sure that your profit margin is reasonable and is rewarding you according to the time and effort putting into it. If you think that the prices are not paying off how much you expected, you can increase the prices, as your portfolio gets stronger.
Conclusion
This brief pricing guide shows you, how you can price your product photography business by considering all the important aspects. If you are a beginner, keep the prices according to the market rate for beginners. Increase the value as your business grows and your portfolio improves. In the end, keep one thing in consideration, do not under or overprice.