Your opinion on showing proofs

Hello All-

 

I'm new to this forum and would like to get your opinion on how I plan to show portrait proofs. Please see a

sample here: www.catturaphotography.com/Stacey

 

I would like for clients to be able to view their images at their convenience and cut back on my face time to

help me with the bottom line. I would like clients to be able to view their images and then submit their print

order from this setup. I will offer "one on one" time at my home office to view images up close on my monitor too.

 

Please let me know what you think about the process and I also encourage critiques on the images.

 

Thank you! I look forward to being a part of Photo.net.

I should say...the "one on one" time in my home office is for those clients that feel they need to see the images closer up to make a decision. I don't want to encourage that. Do you think clients can make a decision with the online viewing that i'm offering?

I encourage face-2-face review (and with paper proofs, not screen images). It is an additional opportunity to 'sell'. I don't think it is wise to consider meeting with clients to be a "burden". I can't say in dollars-and-cents, but a sincere, in person compliment is a very valuable sales tool that might actually help the bottom line more than taking a more impersonal approach. Some folks may want to just look at thier convenience... but that would be my second option to offer.

I live in a small city where clients either send me products to shoot, or I go on location to shoot fashion and vehicle shots, so face time isn't always possible for me. I use GoToMeeting to meet with clients on the Internet and it works very well. Gives me the opp to sell, as well as personalizing the experience while in my PJs<g>.

I agree with Brian's assessment above. The deal is that you're providing a service, only one aspect of which is time-before-lens. There's also the post-production, which can make a big difference in customer satisfaction, and which clients typically can't visualize unless helped to do so. There's the use of your product to promote image, which customers need to be encouraged to explore because it stimulates sales--the extra pic for Aunt Effie, who is leaving a sizeable estate, and all that sort of thing.<p>I followed the link you provided, and my guess is that your customers are dithering because their proofs are all so good. This is not a waste of your time, but an opportunity.

What I hear is I don't have time for my customers. Just go online and look at your pictures.

 

1. Do you honestly think their monitor is close to being calibrated? Do you know have a clue on what they're seeing?

2. You will sell more images at an emotional high then you will after people have seen them multiple times over multiple days.

 

I use online proofing for them to share with their friends and family in hopes to gain a couple $ in post sales. Plus everyone just expects it now. I want to sell prints "in the moment" when they are here viewing their proofs on a large screen.