As my business grows, as my experience has gone up, as my ability has improved, as my confidence has improved I have raised my prices.
I am not 100% at where I want my prices to be, but I am well on my way to eventually making it there! I am also so much closer to where I want to be than I was a short year ago!
Every so often I will offer discounted prices to people, in different forms.
I never saw anything wrong with that, until lately. I have realized that the less I charge, the less people trust me. The less I charge the less people trust my ability as a photographer and the less they appreciate what I give them.
I didn't really think that was true until I have experienced it for myself several times. I know it isn't the case for everyone, but a few experiences especially lately has really driven that home for me.( I do have a good friend, that really appreciates the pictures I do for her and her family, and I can see and feel that. I am so thankful for that! And love taking photos for her because her and her family really do appreciate me and my work)
I had a session where I felt it was spiralling out of control. I couldn't figure out why.I got to realize they didn't trust me as a photographer. Replaying everything in my head, the whole scenario, hashing it out with someone close to me, I came to realize they didn't respect me. but it was my fault, I didn't charge them what I was worth. I was cheapening myself. Cheapening there experience.
It was a huge eye opener for me. I need to know my worth, and embrace it. When I do that people will have a better experience, they will get better photographs, they will have better memories, they will treasure the portraits more.
I heard another photographer say something like this ( I may have put in Target and Macy's but same concept) if you buy a shirt from Target for $10 and you buy a shirt from Macy's for $80, which shirt will you treasure more? Which one will you take better care of? Which shirt will stay engrained in your memory?
I feel this was a great lesson for me! After spending a lot of time thinking about these scenarios I have never felt more confident about my pricing, I am proud of my pricing, and the photographs and products I produce!
I will not be offering such big discounts anymore. It is cheating myself and my clients.