As a photographer, providing the highest quality of services and products to my clients is my goal. As my business grows, changes inevitably happen along the way. This year, I’ve made a few changes in regards to my album offerings. This is an exciting new step in the process of offering a high end, luxury portrait experience for my clients. In this blog post, I will explain why I decided to switch to a new album company, introduce you to my new platform for designing albums, and how I’ve changed my pricing structure for selling client albums. Click here to read my original blog post, where you can learn about how to get started with selling and offering albums for portrait sessions.
Switching to a New Album Company
I decided to move to a new album company for two main reasons. First, I didn’t love the cover and fabric designs that my previous album company was offering. The fabric colors did not complement my brand. The one fabric that my clients ordered was often out of stock with no suitable alternatives. In addition, the custom cover options and fonts were outdated and did not reflect my high-end, luxury brand. Second, the production times were quite long. Once an album was ordered, it would take at least 4 weeks for the album to be made and shipped. Shipping costs were also pretty high.
After asking around and doing a lot of research, I found two album companies that I love. They each offer similar heirloom albums with different cover options at comparable prices. And I’m a big fan of their $10 flat rate shipping. The customer service and quick production times have been incredible, too!
Exploring a New Album Design Platform
With my previous album company, I was able to design my client albums within the platform itself. That was nice, but I also felt like the design capabilities were lacking. Again, after asking some friends, I decided to go with AlbumStomp. It’s a one-time fee, versus the yearly fee I was paying before. Plus, your purchase of AlbumStomp includes AlbumPrüfr free for one year! AlumPrüfr is an online platform that allows clients to review their album designs and make comments if they want to make changes. It’s only $50 per year thereafter.
Adjusted Album Pricing Structure
Lastly, I decided to remove albums from my collections and include album credit instead. A few things led to this, but it primarily came down to cost. Let’s say a client booked a newborn session that included an album when she was 3 months pregnant. I wouldn’t shoot her newborn session for another six months. Then let’s say she didn’t get around to selecting her favorite images for her album until close to the baby’s first birthday. (I have terms in my contract to avoid this but at the end of the day, it happens.) That would mean that there could possibly be 18 months that go by from the time that she booked her collection until the time her album was designed and ordered. Within that timeframe, my cost to order the album could have increased meaning I’d be making a smaller profit.
I now include an album credit that clients can use that will act as a discount toward their total cost. So no matter if my album prices increase, their album credit is still worth the same value. Additionally, instead of putting a blanket markup on my albums, I’m now pricing them per image. And instead of nickel-and-diming for every upgrade, I decided to include all upgrades. That way, my clients have more choices included at the same cost so they can build the album of their dreams without being confused or overwhelmed with the cost. I explain more about this inside the August 2023 MMP masterclass, which you can read about below.
Offering Albums for Portrait Sessions
I’m thrilled to continue offering albums for my maternity and newborn portrait sessions. With the new album companies I’m using, the new design platform I’m exploring, and my adjusted pricing structure, I’m confident that these changes will bring even more joy to my clients and help them to preserve their families’ memories.
Curious to learn exactly which album company I left behind and which ones I’m using now? Want to watch me design a newborn album using AlbumStomp? Dying to take a peek at my private album information page that I send to my clients (complete with pricing)?? Consider joining the Membership for Motherhood Photographers and you’ll be on your way to offering albums for your portrait sessions!
Members get insider access to it all plus so much more. Every month, I share a new business masterclass, a behind-the-scenes video from a real portrait session, AND host a live group coaching call. I’m an open book and love coaching members every month. Click here to learn more about the MMP and join today for just $17! You’ll receive all content ever released inside the membership for as long as you’re an active member.
