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As a business owner, setting up pricing packages for your products and services might not be the most fun part of your job - or the easiest one too. When deciding on what type of pricing to use, there are two choices. You could create tiered wedding photography packages featuring your products and services. The second option is to create an a la carte pricing, which allows your clients to choose the products and services they desire for their wedding day. While mastering the a la carte pricing model could be a bit of a challenge initially, but once you know how to break it down, this pricing format could help you increase your overall profit through add-ons from clients. So if you are looking to bring in changes to your current pricing structure and alter it to suit a more personalized pricing package, this blog brings you 4 amazing tips on selling your products and services a la carte. Take a look!

Photography Pricing Tips To Sell Your Products & Services A La Carte

1. Create A Reasonable Starting Price

Similar to a pricing model based on packages, the starting price of your basic collection for a la carte is very important. If you charge too much for your coverage, you risk pushing a lot of potential bookings away. With an a la carte model, you might rely on post-booking sales. This might push away the clients who would have spent money, but did not book because of your high starting price, which could be destructive. If you charge too little for your coverage, you open up the opportunity to not make enough money. Oftentimes, clients who are attracted to a lower coverage price do not upgrade as often, leaving you with less in post-booking sales.

Related Read: The 4 Secrets To Building A Killer Pricing Page

2. Offer Uniquely Attractive Options

Each product or service you offer has to be able to stand on its own. With packages, you can group products and services together, making them more attractive because there are several benefits to buying the combination. With a la carte, you would not be able to do this, and thus each item must be bookable on its own merits and price. You will know pretty quickly how appropriately each item is priced, as it will either be booked a lot or only a little. Set selling goals for each item, and then you can know which way you need to adjust, if at all.

Related Read: 6 Quick Optimizations To Your Pricing For Big Results

3. Make Your Processes Easy & Flexible

More often than not, if a client doesn’t book you, it is probably because they find your pricing too complicated. Try to avoid making it difficult for a client to add a product or service to their base package. The benefit of ordering from an a la carte pricing is that your clients can have exactly what they want, without having to receive items they are not interested in. However, there is a risk in this strategy, as too many options can confuse your client. So, make it easy for them to clearly understand what makes each product or service unique and distinctive, and even easier for them to add it to their base package.

Related Read: How To Price Photography Prints

4. Build Touchpoints

When a package is booked, every single step is outlined - what events you have to photograph (engagement session, wedding, etc.), and what products you have to fulfill (engagement prints, wedding album, etc.). However, with a la carte, often the only thing that is booked upfront is the basic coverage. For you to keep your profits high and at the same time provide your client with the products and services they want, you will need to offer them more items at a later date. This would require more touchpoints with the client. Do not expect them to just come back and purchase from you on their own accord. Yes, if they happen to, that is wonderful. But, you will need to schedule built-in touchpoints throughout the lifecycle of your client. You can schedule one before the event and one right after so that you can maximize your income opportunity.

Quick Tip: After you receive your images back from a professional wedding photo editing company, set up another touchpoint with your clients. This way, you will be able to deliver their images and continue to encourage add-ons for them.

Is A La Carte Pricing For You?

How do you know if you should use a la carte pricing in your business? Here are a few things to consider:

• You are a full-time photographer: A la carte requires you to stay in touch with your clients throughout the entire client lifecycle, from booking to pre-event to post-event. If you do not have time to keep in touch with your clients, then you risk losing out on valuable sales. Full-time photographers at least have a little more time (in theory) to invest in this sort of client interaction.

• You have non-referral-based clients: Clients who come from non-referral sources do not come in with as much trust in you as a client coming from a referral source. Because of this, having an a la carte system allows them to book a minimal amount upfront, and not have to commit to anymore until they gain further trust in you. This will make them feel more comfortable, and could likely increase your booking percentage with this type of client.

Further Read: Should Wedding Photographers Negotiate Their Prices

When you choose a pricing model that is perfect for your business, you can begin to focus on spending more time in meeting and booking ideal clients. You can also work on new ways to market your services and build your brand both online and offline. To learn unique and effective marketing strategies, you can check out our Blogs/News section that has not just business tips but loads of photography tricks in store for you.

At ShootDotEdit, we are passionate about sharing tips, tricks, and all photography-related ideas with you that could help you hone your skills as a wedding photographer and also grow as a business owner. What we also love to do is provide you with professional photo editing services so that you don’t have to stress over the post-production workload and can work on building your wedding photography brand. To learn more about how we can help you, you can take a look at our pricing plans.