How much to charge for digital images?

ClearBlueSky

How much money should I charge potential customers for the use of digital images? . . . . as an individual image to be used on their web site? . . . or as a group of images to be used in an online gallery by a business client of mine? How much to charge for photos they will use in traditional printed brochures, on billboards, etc.?

I come from a background of selling traditional matted / framed prints in a traditional gallery setting here in the American Midwest.

My photography endeavors include architecture, landscape, rural settings, etc. In the context of this question, potential clients include web site developers, as well as housing developers who will be receiving images of their high-end residential subdivisions; multi-story condo buildings with condos of $300,000 to $500,000;overviews hole by hole of fancy & newly developed regionally and nationally acclaimed golf courses; etc.

Any comments will be appreciated. Thank you.

chrisjohnson

Sounds like you have a great client base for whom the photos have a high value in their business. I would set my pricing initially in relation to the value they place on the service. Check this versus your local competition - but photographer price is not the most important factor for someone selling a 500k condo. He wants great images and reliable service with no hassle and, as long as you not blowing his budget you have a lot of room for manoeuvre. The main question I would ask is "what is your budget?"

(He probably does not need the digital image as such - he needs different versions tailored for printing and web and maybe one in a frame for his downtown office - all part of the no-hassle service).

I would recommend you make some choices about what NOT to sell. The average web site is done on a shoestring budget and there is almost nothing left for photography. So unless you are working for Sears you need to be very careful. You cannot survive for long by charging 10k$ to a condo developer, say, and 20$ to a web site, while your "condo" quality is being retailed in a frame via an art gallery for $300. The idea is to keep your best business prices moving up, not down.

Sorry if this answer is not concrete enough or you already know this.

Angelo

welcome to dGrin

we have a wonderful search engine built into the site. if you enter DIGITAL DOWNLOADS a slew of threads turn up all dealing with this subject. I'm sure you'll find lots of helpful information to read through.

.

ClearBlueSky

goldenballs wrote: »

Sounds like you have a great client base for whom the photos have a high value in their business. I would set my pricing initially in relation to the value they place on the service. Check this versus your local competition - but photographer price is not the most important factor for someone selling a 500k condo. He wants great images and reliable service with no hassle and, as long as you not blowing his budget you have a lot of room for manoeuvre. The main question I would ask is "what is your budget?"

(He probably does not need the digital image as such - he needs different versions tailored for printing and web and maybe one in a frame for his downtown office - all part of the no-hassle service).

I would recommend you make some choices about what NOT to sell. The average web site is done on a shoestring budget and there is almost nothing left for photography. So unless you are working for Sears you need to be very careful. You cannot survive for long by charging 10k$ to a condo developer, say, and 20$ to a web site, while your "condo" quality is being retailed in a frame via an art gallery for $300. The idea is to keep your best business prices moving up, not down.

Sorry if this answer is not concrete enough or you already know this.

"Thank you" for taking the initiative to reply . . . with a good overview of thoughts!

ClearBlueSky

Angelo wrote: »

welcome to dGrin

we have a wonderful search engine built into the site. if you enter DIGITAL DOWNLOADS a slew of threads turn up all dealing with this subject. I'm sure you'll find lots of helpful information to read through.

.

"Thank you" for that insight with the reference to various threads about Digital Downloads in this overall forum!