Youth Sports Action Shots vs T&I profits?

[CobyPhoto]

Originally Posted by Matt_G

That is correct. Parents want choices and when given the opporunity most cant pass up a good pose.

If I shoot T&I, they are either paying up front or there is a guaranteed minimum purchase the organization is responsible for. I learned years ago, shooting on speculated sales is not going to make you money.

On my T & I shoots, I shoot and sell packages to approximately 75%-80% of the team members. All of these are paid up front.

I often shoot kids at the same times, that say they left the check at home, forgot the money or envelope, etc. yet only 1 to 2 of those ever make the effort to come pay for those photos.

Bottom line, I just don't work for free.

CJ

[Matt_G]

Yes, paying up front does work and it has worked for years. My business plan is different and I am very happy with it. We all work hard :) Just know I wouldnt do it if it didnt make me $$

[toverman]

Some great info here. Tagging it for reference and also to borrow it for a bit.

I shot a soccer game on spec last weekend, mainly to get back into the swing and show what I could do. The coach of one of the teams is the longtime president of a soccer association I knew from some previous projects. He is pleased with the photos and would like me to submit a proposal to cover the entire league next season, which I'm interested in, focusing on action shots and possibly offering team group photos.

It's a big league, with 250 teams, so I will be hiring some extra help. Most interested in how to shape the proposal so that I get some money in advance. For the league, they would actually prefer giving coaches complimentary 8x10s rather than skimming off a percentage of my profits, which is refreshing. The league did not have a contracted photographer for action shots this season (only for team and individual shots). It's in a soccer-crazy community that is fairly affluent, which is good and bad: everybody has a camcorder or digital camera. They'll be able to see the difference in my work, I hope. The question is whether they'll open their wallets and let the sun shine in.

Any thoughts/advice would be most appreciated.