Creating photo packages for online sales is the same as creating them for paper order forms, right? Wrong! Selling photo packages for an online environment is different. It’s all about keeping packages simple and intuitive so that parents can quickly find the right package and complete their order! If you use your old package methods, you won’t reach the sales levels that are possible online.
What’s in a Package
Just like in the old days, packages are made up of products, and the amount of products included in each package is determined by units. A unit is an 8x10, or 2 5x7s, 4 3x5s or 8 wallets. All make up a "sheet.”Over the years, I’ve seen so many parents order the smallest package possible because they had no idea what the photo would look like. I’m guilty - I’ve done this with my own kids’ photos. With PhotoDay, parents can see the photos before ordering and choose more than one photo for a package. For example, a mother might choose a sibling photo for the 8x10 she’s giving to Grandma, a 5x7 of an individual shot for her office, and wallets of a buddy photo so that her daughter can share them with her friend. This variety will potentially lead to bigger sales.You should keep your PhotoDay packages as clear and easy to understand as possible. It may be tempting to get creative with package names, but we have discovered that clarity trumps creativity when it comes to sales.
Package Examples
You probably already know that most grandparents want an 8x10 that they can easily see, and most parents who are inundated with pictures of their kids want a 3x5. Those giving photos as gifts to aunts and uncles usually want 5x7s. You should structure your packages based on the way your customers actually use their photos. Here are four basic packages you might want to consider.
.Large Family Pack
- Memory Mate
- Magazine Cover
- 2 5x7
- 4 3x5
- 2 3x5
- 2 3x5 Magnets
- Digital Download
Perfect Pack
- Memory Mate
- 2 5x7
- 2 3x5
- 8 Wallets
- Digital Download
Economy Pack
- Memory Mate
- 1 5x7
- 2 3x5
- 4 Wallets
- Digital Download
Basic Pack
- Memory Mate
- 1 5x7
- 2 3x5
For someone to purchase a package they must feel like they’re getting a better deal than if they purchased the prints separately. Make it clear how much of a savings your customer is getting by spelling out the percentage discount over buying the prints separately.
Maximizing Your Profit
It used to be that photographers loaded packages up with things like Rookie Cards and other speciality items. With PhotoDay, packages should be limited to the print combinations that give you the highest profit. Speciality items can always be included as add-ons. Digital downloads are a big seller with parents who want to share photos via email or social media. Making it more cost effective to buy a package with a digital download, instead of the digital download on its own is a great way to increase package sales.
A Premium for Convenience
People are willing to pay for convenience, so the environment you sell your product in matters. Think about it, a glass of wine at a restaurant can sometimes cost as much as the same bottle of wine at the liquor store. Why? Because of the convenience of being able to order wine by the glass with your dinner.PhotoDay gives your customer more options (poses & design templates), more flexibility (products & photo editing), and more control (data entry and timing). They can preview their purchases and customize their products like never before. Perhaps most convenient of all, they can ship orders directly to specific destinations. All of this brings added value to your the parents and organizations you serve. It’s important that you make that value obvious to your customers - and the way you structure packages is key to doing just that.
Smart Package Pricing
I recommend levels of pricing in increments of $10-15. So, a basic package might be $32.99 (don’t forget about charm pricing) and the next biggest package would be $49.99. One of the great things about our system is that the photographer is not locked into any specific price or package. If you want to test a different pricing structure or package for one client, you can. If you want to adjust your packages season to season, you can. You can entice parents to choose specific packages by creating special offer incentives.
Digital Downloads in a Multi-Pose World
If you're offering multiple poses, you want to give parents who want digital downloads that little extra incentive to purchase digital downloads of every pose. For example, you can make up a Digital 3 Pack and knock 20% off the list price for the individual downloads. Each single high res photo could sell for $37 while the Digital 3 Pack could sell for $90.For you advanced users, you can duplicate a price sheet and add a low-res download to EACH package. Value the low-res at $10., run a special: Buy a package within the first 24 hours and get a free low res download!After 24 hours of posting, simply swap price sheets to the one without the downloads.The Online DifferenceSelling online is an interactive, step-by-step process that is very different for parents than staring at a static order form. The benefits are endless for photographers - no more hard-to-read customer data, boxes of order forms cluttering up your office, tedious record keeping...I know you know what I’m talking about. For today’s busy parents, the online experience is quick and often on-the-go, so you need to structure your packages to meet their needs.We can’t wait to see the packages you create and to hear about how they’re working for you. Please share your package strategies in our PhotoDay user group!
