I’ll start with a disclaimer- this is what I’ve found works best for me and the couples I serve! There are photographers who do things completely differently than me and it works well for them, and that’s fantastic! But today, I’m delving into what I’ve found is best for my particular business model.

Have you ever had so much on your to-do list that just looking over your tasks makes you want to take a nap? That’s kind of how I feel when I’m presented with too many choices. It’s like when you order from a Vietnamese or Thai restaurant that you’ve never been to before- a menu that’s 12 pages long with literally 100+ entree choices? I’m quickly overwhelmed and end up just looking for whatever sounds most familiar.

Because this is how I feel about buying experiences, I tend to think my brides and grooms might feel the same way about searching for a photographer. Something like this-

“Ok, so this photographer offers a PASS gallery, but this one offers a disk that you can purchase separately, and then this other studio says we can only buy the files one at a time. But what about an album? There are like, 47 different types of albums offered by this ONE studio alone! Eff it, let’s go for ice cream.”

Does that sound familiar? It’s not that photographers want our clients to feel that way- we’re just trying to serve a variety of couples in whichever way suits them best by offering multiple buying options. But more options involve making more decisions, and with all the decisions a couple already has to make in the wedding planning process, what we end up doing is petrifying them with too many choices. Present someone with TOO many options, and you’ll run the risk of overwhelming them into inactivity.

I hate feeling like that. To me, simple is best. I prefer to BUY simply, so I also prefer to SELL simply- it’s what I’ve dubbed the Theory of Simplicity! It’s why I only offer two wedding packages, and there’s ONE difference between the two; one includes an album, one does not. That’s it! Everything else that’s included in the package is what I’ve deemed necessary to give my couples the best wedding experience possible, and the only other add-ons they can opt to purchase are “extra stuff” like additional hours of coverage, canvases, etc.

And when it comes to the Anniversary Experience? There’s just one package. One. Why? I want to make it easy for my couples to look at what I offer, decide easily whether it’s a good fit for them, and allow them to say either “yes!” or “not yet” without hemming and hawing over collection A, B, C, etc.

There is a beauty to being able to simplify someone’s decisions for them. I think it’s part of why Apple’s been so successful- they’ve simplified the decision-making process for their consumers, making it easier for people to say “yes” to a purchase. Removing the stumbling blocks of excessive, unnecessary choices is a step toward selling someone on YOU and whatever it is you provide, because you’re making it easy for them to say YES.

This Theory of Simplicity extends to so many different corners of my business, but it began with pricing! These days, it extends into bookings, albums, meetings, workshops, you name it. If I can make it simple, I do so. And I’ve never once had a client come back and ask that I provide more decisions for them to make because it wasn’t hard enough the first time through :).