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New Independent Marketing Executive Program for Videographers
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20% of gross is way too steep.
2% of net is realistic. -
OK, OK, OK. Let’s say 15%. That was my original thought but I wanted to test the waters at 20%. And let me tell you, the waters ain’t pretty.
“A $6000 job does not yield $6000 profit. By taking 20% of the total budget, you are asking for a cut of what I pay my vendors (grip rental, PA’s, etc)”
Again, let’s say 15%. I’m repeating myself when I say, without the client nobody gets paid. Not you or the vendors or the sales rep. My feeling is that the person bringing you the client, should be top on the list. Yes I know the others make the finished product possible but my feeling is the one who gets the client wins out.
“There is definitely value in someone who can deliver sales, but in this business it has to be a two way street. The sales person’s fortune has to rise and fall with the profitability of each job.”
The pricing (and thus the profitability) is determined by you. You could adjust your pricing to include my 15%. On a $6000 job, that would be a price increase of $900. So charge $6900 instead of $6000. So I get $900 and you get $6000 to then produce and pay who you need to pay.
What if it’s a $10,000 job. You charge $11,500. I get $1500 and you get the full $10,000 minus paying your people that you would have to pay anyways.
Keep in mind, as your marketing man on the streets, I’m getting paid nothing to spend my time promoting you. I get nothing if I generate nothing.
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2% of net won’t inspire anyone. Keep in mind, I’m out and about promoting you and not getting paid unless I produce some results.
You may need to adjust your pricing to include my 15% (not 20% anymore, you guys made your point), instead of $6000, you could charge $6900. It’s just math. You probably already determine what you will make on a given project so you can now account for me.
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LOL!
Without you I have my current clients.
Without me you don’t have a product.$6900 is more than just math, dude.
[Jonathan Gould] “You probably already determine what you will make on a given project so you can now account for me.” Try producing, no joke. If you want front end cash, sales ain’t it. Try insurance or law.
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(quote about knowing the product/service): “This is your job as the producer. This is not the marketing executives job. But if you never meet the person, you will never have the chance.”
We just have a fundamental disagreement here. I don’t care if you only charge 2 percent, what you say your offering as the “contact” is no more than I can do by cold-calling likely prospects myself.
(maybe NSFW)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OtIOHw80dFg
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[Jonathan Gould] “Again, let’s say 15%. I’m repeating myself when I say, without the client nobody gets paid. Not you or the vendors or the sales rep. My feeling is that the person bringing you the client, should be top on the list. Yes I know the others make the finished product possible but my feeling is the one who gets the client wins out.”
You may feel that that the person bringing the client in should get a big cut off the top, but that doesn’t make it so. You want to charge what amounts to a premium price for your services, but don’t want to assume any of the risk, nor do you offer anything I can’t do for myself. You are simply not in a position to demand a large percentage of the gross. And certainly not a higher percentage than what is customary. You need to look at what agents make, and what they do for the money.
[Jonathan Gould] “The pricing (and thus the profitability) is determined by you.”
That is false. The pricing is determined by the market. And the market can’t bear the cost of your service at the percentage you want. You can try to justify it a hundred different ways, but the bottom line is the money to pay what you want simply isn’t there.
Even if it was, you are still way overcharging, and under delivering for reasons that I stated in previous posts. Even if you brought me super easy, low risk, high dollar gig, lets say a low-mid level feature post. Where I didn’t have to hire any crew, or go shoot anything. All I had to do was go to my studio and cut footage, I still wouldn’t give you 15% of the gross. I think you would have a hard time finding anyone that would.As several of us have said before. It’s been tried, and it doesn’t work. And trust me it has been tried in a much better economy, and at a time where there were much fewer choices and the business was closed to outside competition. It didn’t work then, and it certainly won’t work now. This economy simply can’t hand out free money to people that are not significantly contributing to the bottom line in either services rendered, or risk.
I’ll say it again, if you think it is so easy, and you can just charge 15-20% more than everyone else in the market, try this. What you need to do is bid these projects yourself as the producer. Then you can bid whatever you want. Higher whomever you want, offering whatever you want to pay, do all the work to get paid and make the client happy, and you get to keep all the money left over at the end.
I think you will find it a learning experience.Scott Sheriff
Director
https://www.sstdigitalmedia.com“If you think it’s expensive to hire a professional to do the job, wait until you hire an amateur.” —Red Adair
Where were you on 6/21?
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[Mark Suszko] “I would suggest you convert your sales training into something people buy to use for themselves”
I think Mark has a good idea here Jon. There may not be much demand for a commissioned salesperson, but if you have a training program ready to go with a lot of experience and knowledge behind it, why not convert that into something consumable. It would be great for people venturing out on their own or college kids looking for their next step. Something to think about.
Jeff
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Thanks for your thoughts…
Yes I could put this into a training program for the videographer but that’s like teaching you how to fish instead of just giving you the fish! Do you really have the time or the desire to go out and prospect around your community? You guys are busy with your “genius” – shooting, editing, producing.
The marketing executives prove their worth through value-add, finding the leads, pre-qualifying them and doing other things like following-up to make sure the contracts go through. Wow… someone wants to help me get more business, instead of paying several thousand a month on, often, wasted advertising… Gee I wonder what that would be worth to me so I can focus on that $10K Medical training video this coming Sunday where I am promised even more of those if I get it right?
Take care.
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You’re trying to sell people on hiring a middleman, in the decade where those are going extinct in many walks of life.
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Not to mention, Mark, that if in all the feedback no one here seems to be sold on the idea, what are the chances that a client is going to be locked down and delivered in a way that won’t blow up in the producer’s face?
That’s what I keep thinking…
Best regards,
Ronald Lindeboom
CEO, Creative COW LLC
Publisher, Creative COW Magazine
A 2011 FOLIO: 40 honoree as one of the 40 most influential publishers in America
http://www.creativecow.netCreativity is a process wherein the student and the teacher are located in the same individual.
“Incompetence has never prevented me from plunging in with enthusiasm.” – Woody Allen
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