Photographers (and probably all vendors, really) can often be found complaining about the fact that the first thing people ask them about are price.
Why wouldn't they ask about price first?
Pay attention to what you do when you shop. You are at a large department store, which carries items you can afford, and items you can't afford. You see something you like - a shirt, a pair of shoes, a dress, whatever - you look at it. You might feel it to see if you like the fabric. You might observe how it is constructed.
And then you pick up the pricetag and look at the PRICE.
If you love, love, love it and it is at the very end of your budget limits, you might still try it on to see if it is the perfect fit. Sometimes, that perfect fit might push you over the edge and you will scramble and do anything you can to buy that precious item.
Other times, you try it on, along with some other items that are a better fit for your budget. You love the expensive item, but you decide you can make do with the less expensive version. It might not be as nice or as expensive, but it will be ok for what you want. Or maybe, sometimes, the less expensive item is even better.
Our clients do the exact same thing when they are shopping for a vendor. Why wouldn't they? It is human nature. Don't complain about it. Instead, maybe post your starting prices on your website, or your whole pricelist for that matter. If you're not comfortable doing that, understand that it is one of the first things people want to know, and they do use it to help them weed out all of their choices. They really have no other place to start.
Christine Tremoulet is a Houston, Texas Hot Mama Boudoir photographer and wants you to have a Business of Awesome. She also runs Wholly Matrimony, a destination wedding blog. She is a creative geek, having blogged since 2000 at BigPinkCookie. When she isn't taking photos or knitting, she is busy devouring all the info related to Marketing & Social Media and its powers that she can find online. Follow her on Twitter.
