When I started my portrait business in 2003, traditional print products were still very much a staple product for the boutique photographer. For my newborn-focused studio, collages were a hugely popular item! In early 2007 I started offering digital file collections along next to my traditional print products and over the past 6 years, my product sales have evolved from 100% traditional print to about 80/20 digital vs. traditional print. However, one thing HAS remained consistent – the desirability of a collage product. Through some creative sales ideas, I have been able to incorporate collages successfully into my digital product offerings.

My digital files collections are set up in four different levels.: sets of 3, 6, 12 and 24 poses. With the purchase of any file collection, clients receive a 50% DISCOUNT off retail for prints made the files in their collection.  I’ve extended this offer to collages as well, offering 50% off retail for framed wall collages. This has been a great option for clients who want both digital files and a fun, custom and ready-to-hang piece of wall art.

I also use collages as an INCENTIVE to select a higher level digital file collection. For clients who select the 12 or 24 pose collection, they may opt to have a collage artwork file created with 9 or so of their favorite images in their collection. Typically I recommend a 16×20 ratio collage for the client as they can easily have it printed as an 8×10, 11×14 or 16×20 and then use off-the-shelf frames.

The key to both of these options is that the collage I am creating for the client must use images that are already selected as part of their digital file collections. The price of the collections themselves account for the editing of each image, so the only “cost” of the collage file (such as used as an incentive for the higher level file collections) is the time spent designing it.  By using the Collage Connection templates, I typically spend under 10 minutes designing the collage. For the discounted framed wall collages, the cost covers the design time as well as the cost of printing and framing the actual collage.