ON LOCATION STUDIO SHOOTS (at home)

EdinburghGary said:
I have been thinking along those lines, but not really in peoples homes. Think just outside peoples homes ;) :D

Gary.
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No no no! You've just ruined the concept. It's the Venture look, in their homes, at sensible prices - which you can afford because you would have no studio overheads for this aspect of the business.

It's in their homes which is the key differentiation. That's a good business angle. You could steal a lot of customers with that, which TBH is the only way you'll get the business volume you aspire to. Franchise up a team of guys with Gary's Magic Portrait Kit, spend HUGE amounts on brand marketing, and watch the money roll in.

Nothing (much) to do with photography, but it could work as a business :)
 
When you have a studio, why would you want to travel to people's homes? Wouldn't it make more sense trying to get the people into the studio? Travel time, humping your gear around, dealing with very small spaces etc etc is a lot of bother. Try and entice them to visit the high tech studio that will give them wonderful results.
 
EOS_JD said:
When you have a studio, why would you want to travel to people's homes? Wouldn't it make more sense trying to get the people into the studio? Travel time, humping your gear around, dealing with very small spaces etc etc is a lot of bother. Try and entice them to visit the high tech studio that will give them wonderful results.
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Of course. Edinburgh it's daft. I'm thinking Glasgow, Stirling, and generally further afield.

G.
 
EOS_JD said:
When you have a studio, why would you want to travel to people's homes? Wouldn't it make more sense trying to get the people into the studio? Travel time, humping your gear around, dealing with very small spaces etc etc is a lot of bother. Try and entice them to visit the high tech studio that will give them wonderful results.
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You do it because (maybe) that's what customers want. And because rivals are not doing it. And they are not doing it precisely because it is difficult and they can't see an easy way around that.

Shoot at home is the business angle. The full big studio treatment in your home, through the miracle of Gary's Magic Portrait Parlour brought to you. If Gary can do it, and it's looking like he might be able.

Humping gear around, yeah, you must have humped your family around with all their gear, and it's not much fun. There's grief even before you arrive. Possibly over long distances (there are only two Venture studios in the whole of Scotland) with toys and different outfits and all the other paraphernalia that you have readily to hand at home? I think it's a compelling sales story :)

And if it's possible to get the set-up small enough, the kit portable enough, easy enough to use without too much training, and to get printable shots straight out of the camera and on to a nice lap-top screen. Well that's an idea that could be scaled easily to a team of photographers/agents (Gary's plan) which would open up a massive geographical area. And if nothing else the price would be compelling - a fraction of the two grand or so that you get stung for by Venture.

Like I say, such an idea is rather more a business using photography rather than a photography business, if you see what I mean, and no doubt some skilled and seasoned professionals will be horrified, but if there is a customer need...?
 
lol home portraits - its not a new idea. I thought I had invented it ten years ago when we started but I then met a chap who had been doing it back in the 70s

We have two studios but still prefer home sittings

stew
 
artona said:
lol home portraits - its not a new idea. I thought I had invented it ten years ago when we started but I then met a chap who had been doing it back in the 70s

We have two studios but still prefer home sittings

stew
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There is nothing new under the sun. What is different, is the combination of factors that add up to compelling new service (although certainly not unique). It is driven by an underlying belief that many families would like a low-cost high-quality Venture-style shoot, and preferably at home rather than transporting the whole caboodle off to a studio. The studio is there mainly for the convenience of the photographer rather than the customer. This is exactly what friends want me to do for them.

1) Home environment.
2) Big studio look and quality.
3) Can be done with a HiLite, shiny train, simple fixed formula set-up.
4) Does not require huge technical skill (that's all sorted).
5) Minimal post processing so proof images ready to view immediately. Sales opportunity.
6) No studio overheads.

That is a formula which could be franchised, with the support of a BIG marketing budget. Only a few years ago the technology and equipment to do this just didn't exist.

I think that's a combination of benefits to make an interesting business plan, but it is predicated on the assumption that there's a demand for it, ie a contemporary, high-quality, low-cost, home portrait service.
 
If you look at many photographer's web sites (especially those who don't have a studio) they offer a sitting in the clients home (I've been offering that for a couple of years now). I can see with marketing that it could make things better.

it's only in the last few months that I've had much more work and I need to get better at the business side of things - all work in progress.
 
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