deux années – giveaway 25

Happy 2nd birthday to Paperie Boutique!
Visit PaperieBirthday.com for all events!

Winner announcements start on Monday, July 25th…

If there’s such a thing a a super-duper triple-360° mega giveaway, well then #25 would be it! Up for grabs for one lucky Paperie reader are three amazing prizes from Francypants Boutique, One Willow Presets, and The Album Cafe.

The BonjOrganization .pdf guide ($99 value) has over 50 pages teaching the art of balancing work and family along with client and time management. Bonus items include “Worst First” charts for the family, Kelli’s Mom-preneur schedule, client checklists, filing systems, and more. Also features Kelli’s extreme office make-over and the strategic setup of her office. It will change the way you work and play!

“I wish I could leap through email and just hug your neck. I read your BonjOrganization e-book last night and had so many light bulb moments. Really, I love organization. It makes me happy. But I can’t keep up with a system that I love yet. Now, I printed off your Worst-First Chart and your Schedule, and I’m tweaking them to our family’s needs. And already, I feel so much better!! I can do this! I had a very productive day today, kept up with housework, clients, Parker’s school program, and even ate dinner out with the family after the play. This morning? Both of my kids made their beds and Parker even finished his handwriting homework before we left the house. And I even had the strength (and sense) to say an emphatic NO to a client who is asking for yet another exception, and I haven’t even shot her session yet. (I’m not going to take the session at all, in fact.)

Thank you, Kelli. You’re such a gem. And I will be shouting the praises of your BonjOrganization e-book from the rooftops, darling.”
~Stacey Woods, Stacey Woods Photography

The One Willow Presets “Triple Collection, plus Timeless” collection ($139.00 value) includes 82 presets, 55 posts, and 5 tones.

And The Album Cafe “Complete ‘Pure’ Marketing Set” ($89 value) is designed for printing with WHCC and Vistaprint – it literally includes everything you need to set up your new business (or add much-needed sparkle to an existing one).

So how do you win these great prizes? It’s simple!

1. Go to your Facebook and Twitter accounts and post the following on either or both (then tell us where you did):
Win @kellifrance onewillowpresets.com @thealbumcafe “mega-prize kit” at @PaperieBoutique / PaperieBoutique.com – http://PaperieBirthday.com

2. Like Francypants Designs on Facebook.

3. Like One Willow Presets on Facebook.

4. Like The Album Cafe on Facebook.

Each entry requires its own separate comment here. (In simple terms: If you want FIVE chances to win, you have to do the five things listed above, and then make five separate comments here telling us how you did them.)

Comment that you have posted to your Twitter and/or Facebook account(s), with a link to where you did it – or that you’ve liked one or both vendors on Facebook – in separate comments here to have multiple chances to win!

ATTENTION: All links you post must direct to public-access accounts. We cannot verify links on private, friends & family only, or passworded accounts and they will not be eligible to win this item. If we have to subscribe to your feed, a website, or forum – or request permission to see them – your entry will automatically be disqualified.

Comment(s) must be posted here by 11:59 p.m. EDT on Monday, July 25th. You can enter up to five times total. Post that you have met both requirements in separate comments to have multiple chances to win!

You can enter / post up to five times total – one entry each for both the options listed above. (PLEASE NOTE: Comments are held for moderation and may not appear immediately. Please be patient! They will show up eventually.)

You have five chances to win, but only one chance PER OPTION – please do not post the same link multiple times. Duplicate links will be removed. Each entry requires its own separate comment to have multiple chances to win!

Comments on this entry will be numbered in order of posting. The winning number will be chosen by Random.org, and the winner will be contacted within 48-72 hours of the winner-announcement to claim their prize.

Good luck!

Big thanks to Francypants Boutique, One Willow Presets, and The Album Cafe for this great prize pack. Don’t forget to check for their Paperie birthday celebration coupon codes. You can find those codes, and several others from our vendors, continually updated this week here!




It’s the weekend and I still have several more giveaways left!
We’ll keep going ’til all of them have winners – see ya’ soon!
-Robyn

P.S. Vendors, if you are interested in being a part of the birthday celebration, e-mail me at “robyn AT paperieboutique DOT com” ASAP!

the total package

BrandSushi is back today for another guest / vendor post and giveaway – up for grabs is a copy of their eBook “Total Package Pricing“.

How did you arrive at your current price list?

What’s your hourly rate (and how did you calculate it)?

Is your photography business turning a profit, or leading you down a path to the Poor House?

What message do you want your photography brand to convey, and what steps are you currently taking to maintain and build upon that message?

Are you 100% confident in your current pricing and package options?

If you’re having trouble answering these questions, it might be time to take a step back.

When I first started my photography business, I spent many long nights working out pricing, packages, brand and marketing strategies and budgeting for all sorts of things I hadn’t anticipated. I’m lucky enough to have a background in brand strategy, advertising and marketing, but many photographers (both new and established) don’t have that luxury, and find themselves overwhelmed with their pricing, collections, and marketing endeavors. We’re about to fix that!

Enter TOTAL PACKAGE PRICING, the pricing and collection building guide for wedding and portrait photographers who don’t want to go broke.

This three-part eBook series takes you through every facet of pricing your photography for profit, discovering — and utilizing — your CORRECT hourly rate, building a strong group of collections and packages that you’ll feel confident selling, and turning your business into a full-fledged brand. Here’s a run-down of what’s included:

BOOK 1 – Intro to Business and Brand Strategy : What’s in a brand? Learn how to position yourself and your products for top results. We’ll cover business structure (and why you can’t be everything to everybody); pricing and sales (learn not only WHAT to place in your collections for maximum profit, but HOW and WHY clients choose the way they do); perceived value and the inherent risks involved with discounting your way into the Poor House; and how to identify and utilize your brand’s “face and voice” to build a solid foundation on which to launch (or re-launch) a winning photography business and brand. Wherever possible, real-world examples are given and geared toward both Portrait and Wedding photographers, so everyone should be able to take something tangible out of the workbooks, regardless of their clientele!

BOOK 2 – Hourly Rates and Product Pricing : This volume will guide you toward the answer to that ever-elusive question: What are you worth? Learn the real way to calculate your hourly rate (I’ll give you a hint: it’s probably a LOT higher than you think it is!) and implement a price list that will set you up for success, and won’t leave you digging into your couch cushions when Tax season rolls around. You’ll also receive a set of Excel Spreadsheets that are already set up to do ALL THE HARD WORK (i.e. calculations) for you! But, if you don’t have Excel, never fear! All calculations are thoroughly explained in the workbook, and blank PDF templates are included so you can also do all the work by hand to get the same results! This workbook also comes with two sample price lists (one for wedding photography and one for portrait photography), as well as my personal product catalog and price list for comparison!

BOOK 3 – Building Profitable Collections : From deciding what to offer in your packages and collections to tallying their final prices and values, this workbook will leave you with a solid understanding of what goes into collections for maximum profit and confidence. You’ll also receive an Excel Collection Builder that calculates everything for you (as well as instructions on how to calculate everything by hand if you’d rather do it the old fashioned way!). We’ll cover scenarios for both wedding photographers (whose packages include service hours) and portrait photographers (whose collections are product-based).

And here is a basic list of the items included in this set:

(3) Excel Templates — each with multiple tabs (.xlsx format). These WILL also work in Apple’s Numbers, although some formatting might appear slightly different than in the screenshots. The Excel Templates were created in Excel 2010 and will work with recent versions of Excel on both Mac and PC. Compatibility with older versions of Excel or Numbers, or other spreadsheet programs is not verified.
(1) Instruction booklet to help you get started using the Excel Templates.
(3) PDF workbooks totaling over 50 pages of insider branding, business and pricing tips in clear, concise, and easy-to-understand terminology with real-world examples to get you thinking and keep you learning.
(1) Blank PDF line sheet with a quick pricing formula “cheat sheet” in case you’d rather do the calculations by hand.
(1) Sample Price Catalog from my own studio for reference.

Important Note: This workbook’s purpose is to give you a solid foundation and understanding of pricing and budgeting structures; it’s always a good idea to consult an accountant or tax professional to make sure you’re keeping everything in order! These workbooks do not provide financial advice — their purpose is to teach you tested pricing methods, and the psychology behind presenting those prices and packages in a way that will maximize profitability with your client sessions and orders.

And during this giveaway, all Paperie readers will receive 20% off at BrandSushi with the code PAPERIE20!

How do you win the eBook “Total Package Pricing“?

1. Tweet the following on Twitter (and tell us where you did it):
Win the “Total Package Pricing” eBook from BrandSushi.com / @brandsushi over at @paperieboutique / PaperieBoutique.com – http://is.gd/YsVq50

2. Post the following to Facebook (and tell us where you did it):
Win the “Total Package Pricing” eBook from BrandSushi.com over at PaperieBoutique.com – http://is.gd/YsVq50

3. Like brandsushi on Facebook: facebook.com/brandsushi

4. Follow @brandsushi on Twitter: twitter.com/brandsushi

Each entry requires its own separate comment. (In simple terms: If you want FOUR chances to win, you have to do all four things listed above, and then make four separate comments here telling us how you did them.)

Comment(s) must be posted here by 11:59 p.m. EDT on Sunday, June 12th. You can enter up to four times total. Post that you have met all four requirements in separate comments to have multiple chances to win!

You can enter / post up to four times total – one entry each for the options listed above. (PLEASE NOTE: Comments are held for moderation and may not appear immediately. Please be patient! They will show up eventually.)

You have four chances to win, but only one chance PER OPTION – please do not post the same link multiple times. Duplicate links will be removed. Each entry requires its own separate comment to have multiple chances to win!

Comments on this entry will be numbered in order of posting. The winning number will be chosen by Random.org, and the winner will be contacted within 24-72 hours of contest’s end to claim their prize.

Good luck!

Thanks to BrandSushi for another awesome giveaway!

gimme an S! an E! an O!

The digital edition of the September 2010 Professional Photographer Magazine was released today.

(P.S. Keep reading for a special giveaway from photographers-seo.com!)

For this month’s article, I reviewed several digital media storage products by BellaGrafica (“Jeff & Julia Woods General Collection“), DNL Photo Packaging, JLee Albums, Loktah, Miller’s Professional Imaging and The Designer Concept, MpixPro, Pexagon Tech, Rice Studio Supply, and Verbatim.

Click each of the magazine pages above for a larger view. You can find the article on page 48 and page 50 of the print-version when it hits mailboxes. And you can also download the digital edition now if you’re a PPA member or digital subscriber.

And last month Heather Lickliter of Stylized Portraiture helped me write the August “The Goods” column. This month she’s escaped over to the new “Workflow Polish” column where she shares her post-session workflow, with added comments / critique by Audrey Woulard. Congratulations Heather!




Today’s guest / vendor post is by Zach Prez. He has freebies and a prize for Paperie readers!

Hi, I’m Zach Prez. I specialize in search engine optimization for photographers, although I’ve been helping small businesses rank in Google for about 10 years. There’s no better feeling than helping someone become successful on the web and grow his or her business. Okay, maybe there are a few things better, like cycling on the American River Bike trail near Sacramento, CA.

I wrote Photographers SEO Book almost 2 years ago now. What started as some informal phone conversations with my photographer friend quickly expanded into ninja tactics that boomed her business from Google in a matter of weeks. Everyone wanted to know her secret, so I turned those conversations into a non-technical how to guide that any level of photographer can follow. It has since helped hundreds of people understand and improve in search results.

Earlier this year I released Photography Blog SEO Zen. It’s an ebook for photographers, designers, or wedding vendors on how to update your blog infrastructure and write blog posts to rank more easily. Blogs typically output many more pages than a traditional website, meaning more chances to rank in search. Blogs are especially helpful in ranking very specific phrases (long-tail SEO) so I would hope you see about 3x the traffic from your blog compared to your photography website. My blogs and ebook help you get there.

I’m giving away one of each product above for Paperie Boutique readers. Enter to win by commenting on any blog post on either of my websites – photographers-seo.com -OR- photoblogseo.com – by the end of the day on Saturday. (We’ll notify and announce the winners on Monday.) You’ll learn something new and hopefully share your thoughts about the post, what you learned, or something insightful

If you want something FREE right now, check out my Search Engine Optimization Guide for SmugMug Sites -OR- Email SEO Class for Photographers.

UPDATE: The winners have both been announced here – check them out!

Thanks Zach for sharing such valuable information with our readers!

And don’t forget we currently have two giveaway-contests going on here at Paperie. Through midnight Wednesday you can have a chance to win your choice of camera bags from Jo Totes. And through midnight Thursday you have the chance to win a $50 gift certificate from Denny Manufacturing.