Commercial Inquiry

[mad editor]

I just received an inquiry from a tile company in California that provides the tile for Starbucks locations. They want shots - exterior and interior shots showing their tile and the Starbucks brand in the photos - one location is near me and the other is about 60 miles away.
I have never charged for a commercial job like this and quite frankly do not know how to quote. I have emailed them asking them how they are using the photos, is it a one-time deal, will they be using over a long period, in catalogs, in advertising, etc. and am waiting to hear back.
Thanks to Jim Bryant, I have the cost of doing business calculator, but I am clueless on what a company like this is used to paying for photography.
Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks!
Pat

[autofocus]

Well, I guess you'll have to wait for them to get back to you Pat to find out what their plans are before you can quote this intelligently. There could be a lot of variables here that'll need to be considered.

[mad editor]

Originally Posted by autofocus

Well, I guess you'll have to wait for them to get back to you Pat to find out what their plans are before you can quote this intelligently. There could be a lot of variables here that'll need to be considered.

Thanks. This is super new to me.

[mad editor]

Got a quick reply.
They want the files to be used in their catalog. They sent me a copy of the catalog - it's a very sleek, high-end publication showcasing their Italian tile in all manner of commercial settings.
They want unlimited rights to use the photos whenever and as often as they want.

[Jim Bryant]

WOW! That could be come coin. Find out how many images they want the full rights too and and what they consider which rights for what publications (Web, company sales catalog, inhouse mag, magazine and newspaper advertising) and give them a quote for those individual rights. I bet the they will be shocked as hell. Don't give in! They are being paid very well by Starbucks for their services and can afford your quote.

[autofocus]

Originally Posted by mad editor

Got a quick reply.
They want the files to be used in their catalog. They sent me a copy of the catalog - it's a very sleek, high-end publication showcasing their Italian tile in all manner of commercial settings.
They want unlimited rights to use the photos whenever and as often as they want.

Having never done too much of this type of work I can't give you too much help. However, I'm sure there's a handful of people here that'll give you some direction. ...like what has to be spelled out in the contract, etc. We will have something like this coming up for us later this year ourselves. We've been hired to photograph a designer showcase plus some other houses in a house tour..some of those photos will wind up in several magazines. So, we'll also be faced with similar concerns.

[mad editor]

Originally Posted by Jim Bryant

WOW! That could be come coin. Find out how many images they want the full rights too and and what they consider which rights for what publications (Web, company sales catalog, inhouse mag, magazine and newspaper advertising) and give them a quote for those individual rights. I bet the they will be shocked as hell. Don't give in! They are being paid very well by Starbucks for their services and can afford your quote.

They want rights to six shots - one exterior and two interior of each location.
Quoted from the email: " We will be using it primarily in an Installation Reference Book. We would need complete rights and be able to use it whenever necessary. We can also reference you in the final book."

So, they're not committing to X number of uses in X number of publications.

I have thanked her for sending the PDF of a currentl catalog and said I will gt back to her.

Now, I have to sit down and figure this all out.

Thank you for your help!

[JFSanders]

Minimum 15K per image for unlimited licence. For rights 20K PER IMAGE. See Best Business practices for photographers by John Harrington. This is in addition to your set up, shoot and post process fees. Make sure you get a contract signed and returned before you ship any image files.

Jim

[mad editor]

Originally Posted by JFSanders

Minimum 15K per image for unlimited licence. For rights 20K PER IMAGE. See Best Business practices for photographers by John Harrington. This is in addition to your set up, shoot and post process fees. Make sure you get a contract signed and returned before you ship any image files.

Jim

OK, another question, when I book a portrait package shoot, I require 50% upfront at time of booking, 25% at time of shoot, and the rest plus $ for any additional prints, upon delivery.
Wth this kind of client - how much do they usually pay upfront?
Believe me, my head is spinning. I've been online all night reading!
thanks for the heads up on the book too, Jim.
P.

[Brian Mullins]

Originally Posted by JFSanders

Minimum 15K per image for unlimited licence. For rights 20K PER IMAGE. See Best Business practices for photographers by John Harrington. This is in addition to your set up, shoot and post process fees. Make sure you get a contract signed and returned before you ship any image files.

Jim

I am glad to see really high prices being mentioned here! Nice change of pace! I hate to say this though - it's for a catalog, not a stand alone marketing piece so it's not going to even get close to that price.

For a commissioned work (such as this), I can see splitting up your fees for creative and licensing. Depending on how high end they want the work and the prep involved, you could charge $3k for the shoot then $1.5k for unlimited licensing of the work. To be honest, they may balk at this but it should be close enough for them to work with you.