Episode 28 - The Real Reason You're Undercharging (And Why Clients Feel It)

The Real Reason You’re Undercharging (And Why Clients Feel It)

Welcome to the Photography Breakthrough Podcast. Today's episode is going to hit home for a lot of photographers. Why do I say this? Because I hear about this issue all the time. I actually see it all the time and every time I do, my heart sinks.

Today we're going to dive deep. You are not charging enough for your photography.
And clients, they feel it first and foremost. Undercharging is not being generous. It's confusing. And clients can feel it. They know you paid a lot for your camera and your lights and your gear. In their head, they're adding everything up and it just doesn't add up.

Now pricing. It's not math, it's emotional truth. You see, when you undercharge, you are quietly saying. Please, please don't expect too much from me and clients hear that loud and clear.

So here's. Here's what's really happening. You don't fully trust the impact of your work. Not yet anyway, so you soften your price to reduce the risk of being seen. But clients, they don't want cheap reassurance. They want confident containment.

There just needs to be one shift instead. Of justifying your price, anchor your price to outcome.
Say something like this. This experience is designed so you never feel awkward, rushed, or unsure of how you look. That's not you being arrogant as a photographer. That's clarity for your client. When you are confident, clients feel that as well.

Maybe you are wondering what that looks like when a client feels confident and you feel confident.
I had one client who's passed away, but she was very confident from the start. I'm talking about Aretha Franklin. The soul singer with the voice that we will all remember forever. Aretha Franklin was a very confident woman and she only wanted confident photographers working with her. My price, it showed confidence. And it showed her that this is the person for me.

If you want to see that for yourself, not just see the pictures, but look deeper on the client side and the photographer side and see what that does for you. You can get your signed copy of Aretha Cool right now by going to arethacool.com. That's the only place where you can get a signed copy of the book.

When you get your copy, take a deep look deeper into the pictures,
deeper into the images, so you can see what embodied confidence actually looks like in creative work.

That confidence carried us through for 13 years up until the time she passed away, but she's not the only one. For over 30 years, I've been shooting clients in a confident way and charging a price to match, and you can do the same.

When you're confident about your price, your clients feel it. But it starts first with you. Stop giving your work away. Undercharging is not being generous. Every shoot you do is wear and tear on your gear. Eventually, you'll have to upgrade. How can you do that when you give your work away for
pennies? It doesn't add up.

Stay with me, we're gonna work to improve your confidence.
So you can charge what you are worth. And when you do, your clients will see it. And yes, they'll pay what you are worth.

If this reframed pricing for you, do me a favor and leave a five star review. And then send it to your friends who you know, who are also undercharging. It is time to thrive and charge what you're worth.

All right, everyone. Have a wonderful rest of your day or evening. I look forward to seeing you again this time next week on the Photography Breakthrough Podcast. I'm your host, Matthew Jordan Smith. Bye for now.