Portrait Photographer in Los Angeles

Cannot count the number of times have I been requested, as a business owner, to participate in one of the “daily deals” that are floating around the internet. The first time Groupon contacted me they wanted me to put out a deal that I would end up paying for customers to have a photography session. The idea espoused by Groupon was that the coupon would bring in new customers for me by virtue of Groupon’s incredible marketing machine. And, even though I would not make any money directly with the Groupon coupon I would get exposure and new clients. Yes, this may work with smaller items on sale such as coffee, quick salon treatments,… where people can come back and enjoy prices that are similar the next time around and, additionally, do not have hours of photography editing work after the initial sale.

Taking a photography session that is normally priced at $350 and selling it on Groupon for $50 where Groupon takes $25 is ridiculous. First, the customers buying this coupon will be shocked at the regular price for a session, as their first experience with pricing is so not representative of the value. Hence, they are not likely to be repeat customers. Second, you need to hire an army of people to answer the phones and then do some extra sales/up-selling in order to validate this extreme discount. And, yes I did try to get them to let me sell the coupon for a greater sum, but they responded that it would not appeal to their customer base.

So, regardless to say, I never got involved in the daily deal coupon extravaganza and now have an article published in The Week magazine, December 14th issue, for all to read that validates that these coupons can be a bad business investment for certain businesses. I don’t deny that they are good for those businesses that sell items or services at lower prices and that do not require additional hours of work after the initial purchase. However, they are losing popularity and that I say with great relief!