Tips on prices and prints?

privateryan · 11-02-2010, 04:27 PM

As I mentioned in another thread I'm trying to start a photography business. I want to offer prints to my clients and not a DVD. Obviously my prices would be relative to print costs (among other things). My questions are these; Can anyone recommend a good quality, relatively inexpensive printshop? And what would good prices be (minus printing cost which will be added after I find a good printshop) for someone just starting out? Any help will be appreciated as I'm sort of wandering in the dark regarding this.

Ubuntu_user · 11-02-2010, 04:41 PM

If you're just wanting super cheap 4x6 prints, then you'd better use snapfish.com
But for me personally, their quality isn't up to par.

I use NationsPhotoLab.com their service and quality is simply nothing short of outstanding. I also hear that EZPrints.com and MyPhotoPipe.com are good as well-I've never tried them so I can't testify to that though.

wsteffey · 11-02-2010, 04:58 PM

If you have a Sam's Club membership you might want to give their service a try. They use a really nice semi-gloss paper that looks much richer than high gloss, and they seem to offer pick-up on larger sizes that other shops mail. And, they are cheap.

privateryan · 11-02-2010, 05:37 PM

Originally posted by Ubuntu_user

If you're just wanting super cheap 4x6 prints, then you'd better use snapfish.com
But for me personally, their quality isn't up to par.

I use NationsPhotoLab.com their service and quality is simply nothing short of outstanding. I also hear that EZPrints.com and MyPhotoPipe.com are good as well-I've never tried them so I can't testify to that though.

No, not super cheap 4x6's especially if their quality isn't that great. IMO if the print quality is crap then the cheap price isn't justified. Thanks for your other suggestions though.

Originally posted by wsteffey

If you have a Sam's Club membership you might want to give their service a try. They use a really nice semi-gloss paper that looks much richer than high gloss, and they seem to offer pick-up on larger sizes that other shops mail. And, they are cheap.

I have gotten personal prints done at Sam's and was fairly pleased with the results. I also noted that they offered pick-up on larger sizes. I just never thought of using them for business printing. Interesting...

Ubuntu_user · 11-02-2010, 06:17 PM

As another plug, NationsPhotoLab.com will do drop shipping for you too! It's no more $$ than the regular shipping fee (unless you qualify for free shipping).

privateryan · 11-04-2010, 11:35 AM

Originally posted by Ubuntu_user

As another plug, NationsPhotoLab.com will do drop shipping for you too! It's no more $$ than the regular shipping fee (unless you qualify for free shipping).

This is probably a dumb question, but what exactly is drop shipping?

SpecialK · 11-04-2010, 11:44 AM

3X print price worked in the old days.

icywarm · 11-04-2010, 12:15 PM

Definitions of Drop shipping on the Web:

Drop shipping is a supply chain management technique in which the retailer does not keep goods in stock, but instead transfers customer orders and shipment details to either the manufacturer or a wholesaler, who then ships the goods directly to the customer. ...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drop_shipping

An arrangement whereby a mail-order or Internet merchant accepts orders for products, and then pays a manufacturer or distributor to ship the product to the customer.
E-commerce words glossary

Typically employed by TV shopping channels. The channel may stipulate that featured merchandise be stored and distributed at designated fulfillment facilities across the country that have been inspected and monitored and found to be highly qualified. ...
on-linetechnologies.com/directResponseTerms.php

When merchandise is stored and distributed from a fulfillment facility.Drop shipping often refers to goods being on hand at a central warehouse prior to airtime.
DRTV Glossary of Terms for the Direct Response Television (DRTV), Radio and Internet

Individual packaging, addressing and delivery of the premium to a specific address.
Employee Recognition Awards | Glossary & Industry Incentive Terms

Life Is Goods, Inc will drop ship orders according to instructions on your purchase order. There is a $20.00 drop ship fee per instance.
Life is Goods - US Distributor

Shipping of merchandise direct to the end-user.
Glossary for Financial Tombstones - Deal Toys: New England Acrylics

icywarm · 11-04-2010, 12:18 PM

Also as Sam's Club is Costco in Canada... Costco does great work... ergo Sam's Club does great work? It has been 10 years since I took a university logic class... but even I can find the holes... but still Costco does do good work..

**Miguel** · 11-04-2010, 12:25 PM

If you outsource printing and fulfillment to a lab, then it's the same amount of labor you have to put forth, regardless of the product dimensions.

4x6 is too low margin, and also too unimpressively small to offer as a product for an aspiring professional.

I'd start with 5x7, but even that these days is pretty small and low-margin. 8x10 or 8x12 becomes more worth your time. Packages are better. Value-added framed artwork of event captures can make you some money too.

Regarding the printing service, if you have a large enough volume, Costco works quite well--if you are nearby one.

Otherwise, I'd setup a situation where your customers can order in your own controlled online gallery, and then have a lab fulfill the order, including shipping the final product to the customer. That saves you a lot of costly handling.

I've used Smugmug for many years. You can setup a "Pro" account site that lets you determine the markups over cost on every product. They use both EZprints and Bay Photo. The former is pretty standard and generic and does a good enough job. Bay Photo is one of the best online labs, and has been around for decades. They do can do customized work for you.
You can also establish a less expensive "Power" account directly order images from EZ Prints yourself and then resell them to the customer. You'd have to configure your gallery to not let the customer directly order, but that's easy.

3X markup is a nice metric, but things are so competitive these days. I would research what your competition charges and take it from there.

M

privateryan · 11-04-2010, 12:31 PM

Originally posted by SpecialK

3X print price worked in the old days.

Not exactly sure what you mean, can you elucidate?

Originally posted by icywarm

Definitions of Drop shipping on the Web:....

Well I did look up the definition of drop shipping but I must be missing something because I don't understand why it would be better than regular shipping.

rhodopsin · 11-04-2010, 01:18 PM

Instead of paying to have prints mailed to you, then paying again to mail to customer, drop-ship printer mails directly o customer, saving both money and time. A printer with multiple facilities around the country can save even more on shipping by making the print at the facility closet to customer, for least-cost shipping. Smaller carbon footprint benefits too!

Use 3X (3 times) print price to you is a guide to figure what price to charge your customer.

alohadave · 11-04-2010, 01:18 PM

Originally posted by privateryan

Not exactly sure what you mean, can you elucidate?

You charge your customers 3x times what it costs you to make a print.

privateryan · 11-04-2010, 02:46 PM

Thanks everyone, thus far this has been very informative.

11-02-2010, 04:27 PM	#1
privateryan Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Atlanta Posts: 209	Tips on prices and prints? As I mentioned in another thread I'm trying to start a photography business. I want to offer prints to my clients and not a DVD. Obviously my prices would be relative to print costs (among other things). My questions are these; Can anyone recommend a good quality, relatively inexpensive printshop? And what would good prices be (minus printing cost which will be added after I find a good printshop) for someone just starting out? Any help will be appreciated as I'm sort of wandering in the dark regarding this.

11-02-2010, 04:58 PM	#3
wsteffey Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 106	cheap prints If you have a Sam's Club membership you might want to give their service a try. They use a really nice semi-gloss paper that looks much richer than high gloss, and they seem to offer pick-up on larger sizes that other shops mail. And, they are cheap.

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11-02-2010, 04:41 PM	#2
Ubuntu_user Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2010 Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,545	If you're just wanting super cheap 4x6 prints, then you'd better use snapfish.com But for me personally, their quality isn't up to par. I use NationsPhotoLab.com their service and quality is simply nothing short of outstanding. I also hear that EZPrints.com and MyPhotoPipe.com are good as well-I've never tried them so I can't testify to that though.

11-02-2010, 05:37 PM	#4
privateryan Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Atlanta Posts: 209 Original Poster	Originally posted by Ubuntu_user If you're just wanting super cheap 4x6 prints, then you'd better use snapfish.com But for me personally, their quality isn't up to par. I use NationsPhotoLab.com their service and quality is simply nothing short of outstanding. I also hear that EZPrints.com and MyPhotoPipe.com are good as well-I've never tried them so I can't testify to that though. No, not super cheap 4x6's especially if their quality isn't that great. IMO if the print quality is crap then the cheap price isn't justified. Thanks for your other suggestions though. Originally posted by wsteffey If you have a Sam's Club membership you might want to give their service a try. They use a really nice semi-gloss paper that looks much richer than high gloss, and they seem to offer pick-up on larger sizes that other shops mail. And, they are cheap. I have gotten personal prints done at Sam's and was fairly pleased with the results. I also noted that they offered pick-up on larger sizes. I just never thought of using them for business printing. Interesting...

11-02-2010, 06:17 PM	#5
Ubuntu_user Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2010 Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,545	As another plug, NationsPhotoLab.com will do drop shipping for you too! It's no more $$ than the regular shipping fee (unless you qualify for free shipping).

11-04-2010, 11:35 AM	#6
privateryan Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Atlanta Posts: 209 Original Poster	Originally posted by Ubuntu_user As another plug, NationsPhotoLab.com will do drop shipping for you too! It's no more $$ than the regular shipping fee (unless you qualify for free shipping). This is probably a dumb question, but what exactly is drop shipping?

11-04-2010, 11:44 AM	#7
SpecialK Pentaxian Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: So California Photos: Gallery Posts: 16,481	3X print price worked in the old days.

11-04-2010, 12:15 PM	#8
icywarm Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Saskatchewan Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,278	Definitions of Drop shipping on the Web: Drop shipping is a supply chain management technique in which the retailer does not keep goods in stock, but instead transfers customer orders and shipment details to either the manufacturer or a wholesaler, who then ships the goods directly to the customer. ... en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drop_shipping An arrangement whereby a mail-order or Internet merchant accepts orders for products, and then pays a manufacturer or distributor to ship the product to the customer. E-commerce words glossary Typically employed by TV shopping channels. The channel may stipulate that featured merchandise be stored and distributed at designated fulfillment facilities across the country that have been inspected and monitored and found to be highly qualified. ... on-linetechnologies.com/directResponseTerms.php When merchandise is stored and distributed from a fulfillment facility.Drop shipping often refers to goods being on hand at a central warehouse prior to airtime. DRTV Glossary of Terms for the Direct Response Television (DRTV), Radio and Internet Individual packaging, addressing and delivery of the premium to a specific address. Employee Recognition Awards \| Glossary & Industry Incentive Terms Life Is Goods, Inc will drop ship orders according to instructions on your purchase order. There is a $20.00 drop ship fee per instance. Life is Goods - US Distributor Shipping of merchandise direct to the end-user. Glossary for Financial Tombstones - Deal Toys: New England Acrylics

11-04-2010, 12:18 PM	#9
icywarm Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Saskatchewan Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,278	Also as Sam's Club is Costco in Canada... Costco does great work... ergo Sam's Club does great work? It has been 10 years since I took a university logic class... but even I can find the holes... but still Costco does do good work..

11-04-2010, 12:25 PM	#10
Miguel Site Supporter Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Near Seattle Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,743	If you outsource printing and fulfillment to a lab, then it's the same amount of labor you have to put forth, regardless of the product dimensions. 4x6 is too low margin, and also too unimpressively small to offer as a product for an aspiring professional. I'd start with 5x7, but even that these days is pretty small and low-margin. 8x10 or 8x12 becomes more worth your time. Packages are better. Value-added framed artwork of event captures can make you some money too. Regarding the printing service, if you have a large enough volume, Costco works quite well--if you are nearby one. Otherwise, I'd setup a situation where your customers can order in your own controlled online gallery, and then have a lab fulfill the order, including shipping the final product to the customer. That saves you a lot of costly handling. I've used Smugmug for many years. You can setup a "Pro" account site that lets you determine the markups over cost on every product. They use both EZprints and Bay Photo. The former is pretty standard and generic and does a good enough job. Bay Photo is one of the best online labs, and has been around for decades. They do can do customized work for you. You can also establish a less expensive "Power" account directly order images from EZ Prints yourself and then resell them to the customer. You'd have to configure your gallery to not let the customer directly order, but that's easy. 3X markup is a nice metric, but things are so competitive these days. I would research what your competition charges and take it from there. M

11-04-2010, 12:31 PM	#11
privateryan Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Atlanta Posts: 209 Original Poster	Originally posted by SpecialK 3X print price worked in the old days. Not exactly sure what you mean, can you elucidate? Originally posted by icywarm Definitions of Drop shipping on the Web:.... Well I did look up the definition of drop shipping but I must be missing something because I don't understand why it would be better than regular shipping.

11-04-2010, 01:18 PM	#12
rhodopsin Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Deep Forest Posts: 643	Instead of paying to have prints mailed to you, then paying again to mail to customer, drop-ship printer mails directly o customer, saving both money and time. A printer with multiple facilities around the country can save even more on shipping by making the print at the facility closet to customer, for least-cost shipping. Smaller carbon footprint benefits too! Use 3X (3 times) print price to you is a guide to figure what price to charge your customer.

11-04-2010, 01:18 PM	#13
alohadave Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Quincy, MA Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 2,024	Originally posted by privateryan Not exactly sure what you mean, can you elucidate? You charge your customers 3x times what it costs you to make a print.

11-04-2010, 02:46 PM	#14
privateryan Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Atlanta Posts: 209 Original Poster	Thanks everyone, thus far this has been very informative.