Associate Shooter approached directly by clients

Hey, so I am in an awkward situation and I am not sure how to handle it. I shoot as a contracted associate for a photographer who lives about 1 1/2 hours away, she also shoots for me sometimes. I shoot for her clients in my area and vice versa. We each shoot and deliver raw images to each other (no post) and make a little less then half of what we would make as the booking photographer (we have a similar price structure). We have been doing this for years now, and usually it's good but sometimes problems arise. So I've just been contacted directly by a client that has always booked me through her. She has hired me specifically 3 times now and this time (4th) she skipped past the other photographer and contacted me directly to book through my company. I don't know if I should tell her to contact the other photographer or just book her myself. I have other associates that shoot for me and I am trying to look at it from every angle. If it was a 2nd shoot for this client I would tell her to book me through her, but by shoot number 4 I'm not sure. They are specifically seeking me out for what I bring and the relationship they have developed with me. I have not responded to the client yet, it is time sensitive because they want a shoot this weekend. Advice requested, I am open to every side of the argument but please be kind. TIA

 

Edited to add: I also only book sessions for the other photographer on weekdays during school hours, this would be outside of my normal booking times for her.

Edited October 15, 2019 by idobelieve

I’d talk to the other photographer and offer a referral fee. If you take the job without talking to her and she finds out it could ruin your relationship. If you ask the client to call the other photographer it would be awkward and you could both lose the business.

I’d talk to the other photographer and offer a referral fee. If you take the job without talking to her and she finds out it could ruin your relationship. If you ask the client to call the other photographer it would be awkward and you could both lose the business.

 

Thanks, I took your advice and came to a quick and easy agreement with the other photographer about a referral fee for this one with no drama. I really appreciate your input :)

Thanks, I took your advice and came to a quick and easy agreement with the other photographer about a referral fee for this one with no drama. I really appreciate your input :)

That’s great. Always best to keep good relationships with colleagues, you’ll know them longer than you know any client.

This is something that I haven't really seen before, no offense, but normally if your booked through someone else to take photos, its normally in a "oops cant do this photoshoot because my cameras aren't working so ill have a different photographer help me out.."

 

If you're not aware of or experienced with this type of arrangement between Professional Photographers, specifically, and/or businesses in general, then it would seem that you're not very experienced with the running of a business and business to business relations, generally.

 

I've worked in a quite a few countries, representing my own company and also as an employee of a National Corporation - most if not all successful businesses, both large and small, have business to business relationships and that is exactly what the OP describes.

 

WW

If you're not aware of or experienced with this type of arrangement between Professional Photographers, specifically, and/or businesses in general, then it would seem that you're not very experienced with the running of a business and business to business relations, generally.

 

I've worked in a quite a few countries, representing my own company and also as an employee of a National Corporation - most if not all successful businesses, both large and small, have business to business relationships and that is exactly what the OP describes.

 

WW

 

Every time I've tried to get paid for photography, I've at best broken even and in some cases lost money, but in any case I do run a small business(as a side job to my full time job) repairing scientific instruments, or specifically gas chromatography/gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy(GC and GC-MS).

 

The nature of what I work on means that I'm almost always doing repairs on-site. Within about a 60 mile radius, I'll take business dealing with most manufacturers equipment. I also venture out a bit further to work on two particular models-the HP 5890(and 5971), and the SRI 910. The HP actually doesn't have any shortage of people who know HOW to work on it, but business is a bit thin for it these days, parts are getting hard to come by. Through some fortunate circumstances, I've positioned myself well on parts availability-i.e. "Yes, I can come and install it tomorrow" whereas a lot of people would have to say "It will take me a couple of weeks to track that part down."

 

In addition, many people won't touch MSs at all, where I'd rather work on them than anything else.

 

I work through an informal network of other independent people-some who do it full time, and some who do it as a side business like I do. I'm happy to refer things like Agilent 6890s and 7890s to one of a couple of different people depending on where they are located. At the same time, those same people are happy to send anything 5890 related or anything other than the most basic mass spec work my way.

 

We don't have referral fees, but we all do sub-contract each other-i.e. if someone insists on hiring me for a job I can't do, I'll subcontract it to someone better qualified and only retain a small amount of overhead for it. I've also had the reverse happen far more often-someone else sub-contracts me to do a specific task in the course of their business. Usually, that comes about because they're dealing with a client who really doesn't want to use another provider.

 

In the end, it works out well for all of us. In lieu of referral fees(where we say "I can't do that-call so and so") we usually do things like trading around loaner equipment when someone else is in need of it.

 

So yeah, I'd say that in many businesses, these sort of arrangements are the norm rather than the exception.

Most of the "how to" things I see online constantly always put out that unless you run some sort of agency.. that you only use other photographers is in case of "oops over booked for the day/emergency keeps me from getting to this shoot so I have to have a fill in go do it" or "of a big as crap wedding that NEEDS to have extra photographers running around"

 

I think that adds credence to my point: your experience, knowledge, understanding research of how businesses interact and form liaisons to have quid pro quo working business relationships, is limited to (a relatively limited amount of ?) reading on the www.

 

On the other hand, my comment was predicated by 50 years of business experience, across several different types of businesses and business platforms, including, over that time, us building and owning three Photography Studios/Businesses.

 

Basically, forming these types of quid pro quo business relationships, is common sense, and it makes sense.

 

WW

Basically, forming these types of quid pro quo business relationships, is common sense, and it makes sense.

Yes.

 

Unless, of course, you’re in the unfortunately-not-oxymoronic business of politics, in which case it can lead to a mess of trouble! :)

I don’t see any reason not to have these types of relationships. It makes good business sense. If you can bring in projects you can’t complete but you have trusted partners who can, you can farm them out and everybody wins. If you have time to do more projects than you can bring in, you can do them for a trusted partner and make extra income and everybody wins. I do this all the time in my day job as a small business owner. Trust between business owners is essential here, so having some best practices (e.g. don’t poach a client, but if approached by one work out an agreement) is good for business.

. . . I do this all the time in my day job as a small business owner. Trust between business owners is essential here, so having some best practices (e.g. don’t poach a client, but if approached by one work out an agreement) is good for business.

 

Absolutely.

 

Evidenced by your excellent advice to the OP in your post #2.

 

WW

This is reminding me how much I don't like commissioned sales people.

 

Some years ago, I was in a store watching a sales person explain a product to

a couple. He wasn't explaining it to me, though I was close enough to hear

the sales pitch.

 

I then left the store, returned later, and bought the product. His explanation

had nothing to do with my decision to buy. When I bought it, I was asked if any

sales people had helped me, and I said no.

 

But also, many retailers will refer customers to others when they don't have the

product, and know that another store might have it. They do this without expecting

a referral fee.

 

 

However, in the case above, where two are working closely together, and pass

customers back and forth as needed, a referral fee makes a lot of sense.

Thanks, I took your advice and came to a quick and easy agreement with the other photographer about a referral fee for this one with no drama. I really appreciate your input :)

Your stomach must like you for acting like an adult.