This third tri was a lot smaller than the others, only 180 participants. Sales have been slow. The event had the feeling of being quite a small training event for the pro athletes so not the best for sales. But more importantly, the business model we are using now seems to be a lot better. With each participant having their own gallery they can find their images easily. We shoot as much as possible on prime lenses now because the quality is phenomenal. As we are putting online only, we are able to shoot many more images per participant. I found at the finish line I was shooting the entire sequence of 7 - 9 shots. I even had a second camera on a tripod which I also triggered to get the wide shots. Having so many shots means too things: 1) We can offer an enticing package of 'All Your Photos' for a nice price as they get so many; and 2) It is easier to identify the participant as we have a series of images to read the number off of them.
I also used two cameras on the bike shots. The remote trigger was working so I had to push the shutter manually with one hand on a tripod, and shoot the other camera hand held. This was great to get both front and back shots of the bikers.
Most of the larger races (WTC branded stuff) sell pre-paid photo packages as part of the race registration. Either Brightroom or FinisherPix does the shooting and for a set amount, usually about $90USD, registrants just add the line item to their on-line registration fees. This makes is a 'one-stop' shopping experience for the athlete to pay for a package they know will arrive and be of a quality they expect.
Couple of things come to mind with this approach.
1. The photographic organizations have built a good reputation, so the athletes won't be disappointed in the end product.
2. The on-line registration process with their checkbox to add the race images is soooo easy for the athlete to sign up (AND PAY!!!!) for images on the spot. They are already excited about the race (ie: getting ready to put money down) so why not grab part of that enthusiasm? This of course would require a good relationship between you and the race promoter/director to get that function added to registration. This approach also gives you a good listing of email addresses for follow-on emails on upcoming events, AND gives you an idea of what the workload will be like on race day. You won't focus your efforts on these individuals, rather, you'll have a good idea of what your revenues will be going into the event.
3. You are already lumping the athletes into individual folders, so from a technical perspective, all you need to do is write a small script that searches each athletes event folder number, zip the images into one file and email them to the athlete with a nice "Thank-you" note. For example, I received a couple emails on IRONMAN Mont-Tremblant that my images were shot, they were on their way and then they just showed up as a link to download the zip file that had them all in it. A nice thank-you was part of the email, in addition to a link to the "Lost and Found" section so I could look at the images which were not indexed and hopefully get some more added to the series.
Sounds like you're on your way to pinning this down.
So great ideas there Scott. Thanks. I will give some though to that for next season. Now we are winding down for this summer, but hope to have some fresh new ideas for spring when we open again.
So great ideas there Scott. Thanks. I will give some though to that for next season. Now we are winding down for this summer, but hope to have some fresh new ideas for spring when we open again.
The truly amazing part of the on-line registration/sign-up approach is, when ever do you have the opportunity to put your services in front of 100% of those in attendance? Talk about 'targeted marketing'. Wow.
Comments
This third tri was a lot smaller than the others, only 180 participants. Sales have been slow. The event had the feeling of being quite a small training event for the pro athletes so not the best for sales. But more importantly, the business model we are using now seems to be a lot better. With each participant having their own gallery they can find their images easily. We shoot as much as possible on prime lenses now because the quality is phenomenal. As we are putting online only, we are able to shoot many more images per participant. I found at the finish line I was shooting the entire sequence of 7 - 9 shots. I even had a second camera on a tripod which I also triggered to get the wide shots. Having so many shots means too things: 1) We can offer an enticing package of 'All Your Photos' for a nice price as they get so many; and 2) It is easier to identify the participant as we have a series of images to read the number off of them.
I also used two cameras on the bike shots. The remote trigger was working so I had to push the shutter manually with one hand on a tripod, and shoot the other camera hand held. This was great to get both front and back shots of the bikers.
Couple of things come to mind with this approach.
1. The photographic organizations have built a good reputation, so the athletes won't be disappointed in the end product.
2. The on-line registration process with their checkbox to add the race images is soooo easy for the athlete to sign up (AND PAY!!!!) for images on the spot. They are already excited about the race (ie: getting ready to put money down) so why not grab part of that enthusiasm? This of course would require a good relationship between you and the race promoter/director to get that function added to registration. This approach also gives you a good listing of email addresses for follow-on emails on upcoming events, AND gives you an idea of what the workload will be like on race day. You won't focus your efforts on these individuals, rather, you'll have a good idea of what your revenues will be going into the event.
3. You are already lumping the athletes into individual folders, so from a technical perspective, all you need to do is write a small script that searches each athletes event folder number, zip the images into one file and email them to the athlete with a nice "Thank-you" note. For example, I received a couple emails on IRONMAN Mont-Tremblant that my images were shot, they were on their way and then they just showed up as a link to download the zip file that had them all in it. A nice thank-you was part of the email, in addition to a link to the "Lost and Found" section so I could look at the images which were not indexed and hopefully get some more added to the series.
Sounds like you're on your way to pinning this down.
.
The truly amazing part of the on-line registration/sign-up approach is, when ever do you have the opportunity to put your services in front of 100% of those in attendance? Talk about 'targeted marketing'. Wow.
.