Do you feel Sympathy for potential clients?

[shawncorson]

Originally Posted by Numenorean

I missed the part where he put the persons name address and phone number.

Okay so it says Tara. I know a few Tara's myself. Is it one of them? I doubt it.

Just an opinion.

[spb]

Originally Posted by shawncorson

Just an opinion.

so did you mean it to be taken seriously or not?

[shawncorson]

Originally Posted by spb

so did you mean it to be taken seriously or not?

Not in a literal sense. Nobody should do 8 hours of work for half of their original price based on someone's circumstances considering I can't go into Best Buy and say "my favorite show is on tonight and I JUST HAVE to watch on that 73" TV please give it to me half price, I was beat as a child"..the world just doesn't work like that.

I was just giving a sarcastic opinion.

[flyinbrian]

Payment plan. I had bride with same issue she took 10 mths to pay no skin off my back take the 600 down and 600 in payments over the next year. Once its in the can it doesn't matter how long it sits process them after to get the full payment.

[Ratjack]

I dont see a problem cutting someone a break once and awhile just to be a good helpful person.... but really... she is trying to play you with that email. She is trying to get you to feel bad for her, its clear since she had to bring up that she has been abused and everything.

With what she wrote... i say don't do it. It would have been different if she had said something more like "I appreciate your time working with me but we have decided that we cannot afford more than $600.". If she would have just said that and been done it would have been in your lap to contact her and say, "you know what, I will do this for you for $600 as a gift". But instead she tried to convince you to do it by playing on your emotions....

That being said, I do not think you should put their email on the internet. If anything remove the name and reword it yourself just to give us an idea of what she said. But that is just my opinion.

[JDPhotoGuy]

Originally Posted by flyinbrian

Payment plan. I had bride with same issue she took 10 mths to pay no skin off my back take the 600 down and 600 in payments over the next year. Once its in the can it doesn't matter how long it sits process them after to get the full payment.

Sorry for the aside and a slight off topic here, but...

You may want to rethink your logic on that. Not that it's necessarily the wrong stance to take every time, but you need to understand that you are sacrificing something here.

Small businesses shouldn't be in the habit of acting as a loan agent. We simply don't have the cash flow volume to handle it. Not to mention we draw it out and usually don't charge extra for the privilege.

You're basically shooting yourself in the foot. Because while you're getting all the money owed eventually, what you're not getting is the purchasing power that a lump sum gives you.

I'll see if I can explain the difference in a short story...

Three equally destitute and ambitious brothers each inherit a million dollars from their late uncle's passing. In his will, the uncle stipulates that the youngest brother will receive his million in payments of $10 a day. The middle brother will get his million in yearly installments of $100,000. But the eldest brother was set to receive all his money in one lump sum.

Ten years later, the brothers decide to catch up over dinner. The middle brother is the first to arrive to the restaurant. He shows up in his 2 year old mid-class truck, dressed in clothes from Sears. Shortly after, the youngest brother arrives. Still as destitute as the day of the inheritance. An hour later, the eldest brother shows up in his new Mercedes.

The eldest brother took the million dollars and bought a $250,000 house then used the rest to purchase into a few fast food chains. In the 10 years, he's made that money at least 5x over. The middle brother took his $100,000, put a down payment on a nice middle class house and lived a comfortable middle class lifestyle. But the youngest brother, while his inheritance will surely be coming in for even his grandchildren, had no measurable change made in his life at all.

-----------

That ^^ while an extreme example very much holds true for all situations. You're theoretically better off charging less to get it all paid in one lump sum. Not saying offer a discount to everyone who has money issues. Just saying if your choices are to do a shoot paying $1500 on a payment plan vs a shoot paying $1000 on delivery, you should be taking the latter.

Feeling bad for potential clients is fine, but you have bills to pay too. Unless you want to be asking for payment plans when you pay your bills, you should avoid these scenarios like a plague!

[Candyann]

I know I came late into this thread, but damn! Drop and run! She could just be playing it up for a discount and who the heck plays the my dad abused me card. Believe me I am not cold hearted,I do have sympathy for people, but I don't let people use me. 50% isn't a discount, it is rude to even ask for it.

[Arman's Photography]

Originally Posted by asianstutter

Today, I was contacted by the bride who was looking for a wedding photographer. She told me that she was a 22 year old, in school, lots of loans, family troubles and so on....
She was on a budget of course. She wanted 50% off on one of my package. So basically she wanted a packages with 8 hours, my cost? $1200. she wants to pay $600.
Anyways here's what she wrote



Do you guys get this alot?
Do you feel sympathy and give them a little discount?
what do you guys say?

I did not read all the posts and replies, so sorry if anyone has said the same.
My opinion on this topic is, if you can not afford something you don't buy!
I can not go to a car dealer and ask for 50% off!
It is getting ridiculous with all those demands like wedding photographers are some sort of beggars and will work for peanuts just to be busy.
I would not cave in and would not take this job, I am sorry. I had many questions like that but refused to do it, I got my price and that is firm, if the client can not afford it they can look somewhere else. My time, product and equipment ware and tare costs so much!

[sixsixfour]

saw this pic on another thread here and deemed it appropriate. if i was in your shoes and did it, this would be my rig...





I do hope you ran the other direction.

[Davivascaino]

That email sounds really fishy. Why the hell she would tell you all that details?? She did say on purpose she was "abused' to try to convince you. That was very low level in my opinion.

Second, if she is so troubled in finances, why she is getting married? she is going to spend much more money compared to a single life.

Third, why the hell she needs a excellent photographer(assuming you are one very good)?? If I can't afford a acura, I buy a toyota. If I can't buy a 3d TV, I buy a regular one! If you do not have money to get the best, get the good/average. There is nothing wrong with that. It is because of this mentality ("I NEED the best all the time, despite my budget) that US almost crashed few years ago.

I am not a professional photographer, but her story sounds very weird, and she is clearly taking advantage of her hx of "abuse", which I really suspect that it is not true

[cdifoto]

Anyone who claims to have it rough and then lists out specific requirements is blowing smoke for freebies. No empathy.

[rhommel]

Originally Posted by asianstutter

Today, I was contacted by the bride who was looking for a wedding photographer. She told me that she was a 22 year old, in school, lots of loans, family troubles and so on....
She was on a budget of course. She wanted 50% off on one of my package. So basically she wanted a packages with 8 hours, my cost? $1200. she wants to pay $600.
Anyways here's what she wrote



Do you guys get this alot?
Do you feel sympathy and give them a little discount?
what do you guys say?

What a small world, I assume you're also from Toronto... I did receive a similar email from the SAME bride! did she also give you 3 wedding dates to choose from?

Unfortunately, our budget for photography is $600 due to the fact that we are paying for this entirely on our own and are in a lot of student debt.

I turned her down, I did counter offer and said that the most I can give her is a 20% discount. I told her I cant give her a 70% discount

[digital paradise]

Something not right about people volunteering that type of personal information without knowing the audience. I would not do this job for full price. It is either too much baggage or they are tying to pull a fast one.

[Arman's Photography]

Originally Posted by digital paradise

Something not right about people volunteering that type of personal information without knowing the audience. I would not do this job for full price. It is either too much baggage or they are tying to pull a fast one.

We have a lot of patients like that here in the GTA, I stopped replying to the e-mails forwarded trough my website, asking me what my packages and rates are!? And on my website it is clearly stated what the prices and packages are, no way somebody can miss that! So why are people asking for my pricing if they already have seen it? No reply!

[memoriesoftomorrow]

Originally Posted by Arman's Photography

And on my website it is clearly stated what the prices and packages are, no way somebody can miss that! So why are people asking for my pricing if they already have seen it? No reply!

I get that every now and again. The real classic being someone looking at the website, seeing that I am already booked for their date, then contacting me and asking "are your really booked for my date?" The wording on my website being "Below is a list of the dates for which I already have confirmed bookings for 2013."

I really don't know how I can make it any clearer