Travel Expenses…Me or Client?

[Orin Jenkins]

Hi Jeffrey:

When you are shooting on spec you usually pay your own way with the hope that you’ll not just impress the client with your talents but also that you are secure enough in your business to be able to shoot on spec. If you do great then your new client will know that they have to pay it all in the future; but they’ve probably done this before.

If your client is a newbie then they’ll appreciate any knowledge you can give them, short of giving away the job, in how to handle future jobs. I take along Talent Releases, Location, Children, and Expense Agreements — all sorts of releases so that I know I can cover myself and that there are no further business questions to ask nor answer.

If you gave a quote I’d recommend you stick to the quote to look more dependable and educated in the business. If you call back and start adding one item the client may expect in the back of their mind that you may call back with other little updates as you go along. Don’t take advantage, and absorb your forgetfulness as a lesson learned.

If the client comments when you get there about your travel expenses you can either say you forgot (nope) or that you shoot spec as spec; with this honesty they may reimburse you or come to some other agreement with you concerning your “good will” as a spec shooter. Maybe they’ll buy you lunch AND give you the shoot.

Repeat business is what you need these days to keep it in the bank instead of their pockets.

I hope you work things out and your honesty pays you back.

Director: The Photo College.com teaching all what they love about capturing things, then letting them go into the eyes of others.

[Jeffrey Gould]

Orin, I think you misunderstood…my trip this week is just to present myself, my work and to see their facility…so in that way, it is a spec and I have no problem flying on my “dime”.

The questions was that if I book the job, can I then present a proposal with an added line item of “Travel Expenses” even though I gave them a verbal for the project? From what I got from some of the posts here, is that they are two separate things, the work and the travel. You made some great points about honesty and client perceptions and I’m known by family and friends as “honest to a fault”. Does my explanation change your views about adding the travel at all?

Jeffrey S. Gould
Action Media Productions

[Jeffrey Gould]

Hi, Just wanted to give an update on how this all worked out. I updated my written proposal to say “plus travel expenses, estimated to be $900-$1,1100”. I gave my presentation yesterday, the doctors loved it, asked how much, I gave them the proposal, he signed it with no questions asked. I then asked the Administrator (who really wanted me to book the job) if they are OK with the travel and she replied “he signed it, all you have to worry about”.

Nice to have people on your side, the Panera Muffin Tops didn’t hurt. So thank you to all who gave me the confidence to pass these charges along to the client…where they should be.

Jeffrey S. Gould
Action Media Productions

[Mike Cohen]

mmm, Panera muffin tops…

[Mark Suszko]

I once did a 2-3-day freelance corporate shoot in Frisco for an Oakbrook Illinois company. Instead of me adding the travel and hotel bill to my invoice, they just had their own in-house travel department book and pay for my flight and hotel; we (about 50 people) were all going to the same conference that I was going to record, and they could get a bigger discount using their own booking agent, so we all saved money on that deal.

[Grinner Hester]

When ya start handing your time away for nuthin, ya soon can get int he red. If you actually pay… well, thats red from the get-go.
Bottom line is it deserves investment, do it. If it’s just another gig, it’s their penny. I charge the same for travel time as I do for anything else.