Every day, hundreds, maybe thousands of drivers see one of the portraits I made for a local insurance agent on a billboard along a highway in my county.
The leads aren't rolling in.
Apparently nobody is asking, "Who took that amazing picture?" And apparently nobody is telling anyone, "Joel from Joel Nisleit Photography made this amazing picture for me. You need to book a session with him today!"
Free exposure is free exposure. It's nice, but no store will take it as payment for anything I want to buy, so why should I? In my experience, it doesn't generate leads and benefits only one party (not the photographer).
When I started freelancing as a photographer in 2012, getting my images out there seemed like the best way to get new leads. In 1980, when nobody had a smartphone that could find 1,000 photographers in 0.3 seconds, it might have been.
But in 2019, after seven years of freelancing, people offering to publish my work for free is more of an insult than a business proposition.
When I shop on Amazon, Walmart, Piggly Wiggly, KwikTrip, none of them take "exposure" as a form of payment. I can't insert images of their stuff on my website in the card terminal. But, strangely enough, they do take actual money.
Can you imagine checking out at a store and telling the clerk, "I don't have money, but I can pay you by putting pictures of the goods on my website?" Doesn't work!
I believe free advertising offers come from a good place, and I appreciate that people are interested in my work. But if you really want someone's images, pay them. And if you really want to give them free advertising, tell everyone to hire them. But don't expect to use their work to promote your business for free and then call it the "gift of exposure."
Recently a venue updating their website wanted some of my pictures for promotional use. In exchange, they offered to display my pictures on their site. Well duh. The images would be used to promote the venue, so of course they would be displayed on the website. That's not compensation. That's me providing something the venue wants that would benefit the venue and not me -- and me getting nothign of value in return. I don't want my hard work promoting your business for free, and you wouldn't either.
For most photographers, including me a couple of years prior to this article, getting images on venue websites is a priority. However, when the venue made this offer, I was de-focusing my business on weddings at the time and didn't want any extra wedding leads.
Most importantly, based on previous experience, "free" exposure doesn't really do anything. It may generate a few inquiries, but it's just not as good as money.
Besides, I'm used to getting published. I had thousands of photos published over the nearly seven years I was a newspaper photojournalist. It's nothing new.
As a business, you don't need to take every opportunity. I've talked with other professionals who've had similar experiences with "free advertising" and who don't accept it anymore.
Art is hard. Really hard. Making art that pleases people is even harder. Making art on command that pleases paying clients is professional excellence and personal sacrifice.
I encourage freelancers to not feel guilty asking for money for their products or services. It's not selfish. It's straightforward business. It's how every other business treats every other business, and it's how other businesses demand you treat them.
To those offering free advertising to artists in exchange for their work, please respect that creators are not all just getting started. We don't all need free advertising. We do need money for the services, products and sacrifice we provide, just like your business does.
For charity, causes that are important to me, friends and family who I choose to help, yes I would consider doing work for free and have done that. But if you're a business using my work to make money, please expect to pay -- with money.
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