Wedding Videos

Daddy0

Two summers ago, I helped out a friend with a last minute request to video a wedding they were photographing. They have now asked me about videoing 2 more weddings on the beach in June. Can anybody give me some advice on what to charge? Where can I get some ideas as to what other wedding videographers are doing and charging?

studio1972

It's really just like photography. You need to charge what your work is worth. Compare your work honestly to that of other videographers and see where you fit.

tenoverthenose

I couldn't imagine charging less than $5000 for a wedding video while making any money. This is also why I no longer do wedding videos You'll need to look at all of your costs, taxes, time involved, etc. to find out where you need to be. I can't recommend looking at your competition for pricing because you have no idea if they have done their homework.

RayLarson

I do wedding videos and have just had to revise my pricing due to upgrades in technology. It's always a moving target as there are kids with camcorders who will shoot a wedding for next to nothing (you get what you pay for) and those that take advantage of the Wedding couple and those that do really fine work at a good price. Wedding videography is a very difficult field as Brides want everything they see on Newtork television for the price of home video. There is no posing or shot list per se and most times you don't get a second chance for shots. That is not to say that if you are a pro, prepared and have the right equipment you can't do the job but it's not an easy field so be aware. As for price, check reputable videographers and look at their demos and prices then see where you and your equipment and experience fit and charge accordingly. I cannot stress enough to cover all bases, have an ironclad contract that spells out the limits of your services, and turn down those jobs that don't seem right. These are some of my IMHO suggestions. Best of Luck!

studio1972

tenoverthenose wrote: »

I couldn't imagine charging less than $5000 for a wedding video while making any money. This is also why I no longer do wedding videos You'll need to look at all of your costs, taxes, time involved, etc. to find out where you need to be. I can't recommend looking at your competition for pricing because you have no idea if they have done their homework.

Well if somebody else is providing the same quality product for less money or a better product for the same amount, it doesn't matter much what your overheads etc are, you're not going to sell many videos. Now if you look into these things and decide you can't compete and still make a profit, that probably means it's not the right business for you, or maybe you need to improve your skills to the extent where you can ask a higher price.

Setting your prices without being aware of what your competitors are doing is just about the most stupid thing I could think of in any business.

tenoverthenose

studio1972 wrote: »

Well if somebody else is providing the same quality product for less money or a better product for the same amount, it doesn't matter much what your overheads etc are, you're not going to sell many videos. Now if you look into these things and decide you can't compete and still make a profit, that probably means it's not the right business for you, or maybe you need to improve your skills to the extent where you can ask a higher price.

Setting your prices without being aware of what your competitors are doing is just about the most stupid thing I could think of in any business.

I disagree. I think there are far too many people trying to break into this industry by undervaluing their services. And while that works to a certain extent, I have a hard time recommend that as a business model. I have seen countless people/businesses in this industry charge an amount that makes it impossible for them to make a living. Nothing is worse that doing a Cost of Doing Business analysis and realizing that you are loosing money, especially given the stress of this line of work. Running a business this way longterm leads to failure.

Just because someone else has decided to run their business poorly does not mean that you should.

On the other hand, I do agree that you need to be able to compete and be better at your craft than your competition, or at least different. What I am saying presumes that you are not providing the exact same service or product as your competition. By embracing the individuality of your service you can escape the commodity market of wedding pros and get paid for your art. If you do this, and create because of your unique service (and not a product/service that anyone can replicate) and you will find that you do not need to worry about your competition because they are no longer your competition.

studio1972

tenoverthenose wrote: »

I disagree. I think there are far too many people trying to break into this industry by undervaluing their services. And while that works to a certain extent, I have a hard time recommend that as a business model. I have seen countless people/businesses in this industry charge an amount that makes it impossible for them to make a living. Nothing is worse that doing a Cost of Doing Business analysis and realizing that you are loosing money, especially given the stress of this line of work. Running a business this way longterm leads to failure.

Just because someone else has decided to run their business poorly does not mean that you should.

On the other hand, I do agree that you need to be able to compete and be better at your craft than your competition, or at least different. What I am saying presumes that you are not providing the exact same service or product as your competition. By embracing the individuality of your service you can escape the commodity market of wedding pros and get paid for your art. If you do this, and create because of your unique service (and not a product/service that anyone can replicate) and you will find that you do not need to worry about your competition because they are no longer your competition.

I'm not sure we are disagreeing here. I don't agree with running a business at a loss, unless it is part of a longer term plan to build a portfolio and than charge more (many businesses make a loss in the first year). You need to compare yourself to businesses that you think you are similar to in quality. I'm not saying that you should be the cheapest, just that you have to price realistically. If you get this judgement wrong you sill soon find out one way or another.