What would you ask your print buyers ?

[paulr]

Too bad most of those auction sales are for images made by photographers who have already departed.

That's always the case and always will be. The prices and volume of sales for contemporary artists is also on the rise. The art market as a whole may not be at the insane level of the 1980s, but I believe photography is at an all time high.

This is of course one segment of the market--fine art sold at commercial galleries and auctions. It may not reflect trends in other markets. I don't know if the decorative arts and art fair marktes have any way of tracking trends.

[roteague]

You might want to send a gift of appreciation (i.e., a self-produced screen saver) shortly after purchase and enclose a link for a short questionnaire about the purchasing experience. Questions like: how easy it was to navigate from the site, how they originally found you, would they recommend your site to another, etc.

I like the idea of a "gift of appreciation" - just a little extra to go the extra mile. I don't care much for the survey, since you can get most of these answers using Google Analytics.

[Jeffrey Sipress]

OK, OK, I'll kill myself. I can use the money.

[darr]

QT,

Here is a snapshot of a prepaid reply card I just received that I think is simple enough. The company included it inside the box with the Monty Python DVD set I recently purchased for my son as a gift. I will fill it out and return it since I am happy with my order and the service I received, plus it is not out of my way to do so. You could enclose a similar reply card when you ship your customer's orders. You might consider hand signing, "Thank you, Tuan" at the bottom and use postage stamps instead of a meter imprint for a more personalized appearance. From my experience in business (almost 30 years self-employed successfully), most customers like personalized service and they love to refer if you spark their emotions.

From what I see on your site, your photography reaches out not just to art buyers like a lot of the folks here are commenting from, but also many commercial businesses such as: publishers, travel related industries (i.e., transportation, chamber of commerce, real estate marketing), and other forms of advertising needs. Your orchid photography reminds me of what I do for local orchid nurseries here in the Homestead area. I was able to get my foot in the door of the local nursery network via a retired college professor (plant pathologist) that I met through our local Civil Air Patrol unit. You just never know who you are talking to sometimes.

IMO, there is a lot that could be marketed from your work and I think you are on the right path just by looking at what marketing tools you can utilize from your sales. If you have not already, get involved with your local business community since that can help jump start a marketing network for you. I'll say it again: You just never know who you are talking to sometimes.


Just my .02 worth.

[chris jordan]

QT, I'm curious why you would do a survey on these subjects? I think we all take the best pictures we know how to take, make the best quality prints possible, and ship them using the best-quality methods available, so getting feedback on those subjects wouldn't really change anything (e.g., if they didn't like your compositions, you wouldn't go out and try to make "better" compositions...). If people buy your work, that means you have passed the test. If buyers complain about damaged prints arriving in the mail, then you can reevaluate your shipping method. But why would you seek feedback from your buyers about your compositions, print sharpness, or shipping methods? I don't quite get it.

One thing I would like to ask buyers of my prints is "Of all the brilliant art being done out there, why did you purchase mine?" It would be a scary question to ask, but interesting to find out the answer, eh? I did ask somone that question once, but I haven't had the courage to ask anyone else since.

[paulr]

(e.g., if they didn't like your compositions, you wouldn't go out and try to make "better" compositions...)

You could ask them to sketch the improved composition that they'd like to see next time.

[robc]

what is the point of your survey. i.e. what exactly do you want the information to tell you and how do you think that information will aid you in selling your prints.

To put it another way, your question may be more productive is you ask: I am trying to compose a survey to find out x and y and z for the purpose of xxx. How would you go about it.

[Mark McCarvill]

First of all, you’re to be commended for trying to understand your customers. Too few small business owners do marketing research and in my opinion (as a marketing research consultant) they often need it the most.

I'm not sure about making art (composition, color, sharpness) based on marketing research, so I'd focus on the non-art stuff. Maybe ask what they liked and disliked about: a) ordering b) shipping and c) communication. Also consider asking them to describe their all time best (and worst) experiences buying art. These kinds of open-ended questions are a helpful (and often fun!) way to start a conversation with clients because they’re easy for them to answer. They can also yield significant insights and new ways of looking at your business relationship.

Hope that helps.

Mark

[QT Luong]

Why such a survey ? It's mostly curiosity on my part. Maybe not just on my part, since a few of those questions have been discussed here as well. Some of the answers won't have any impact on how I conduct business (although the idea of asking for improved compositions sounds positively brilliant), while some might. For instance, if I discover that nobody cares about limited editions, I would consider stopping editioning in the future.

"Composition" is definitively the wrong word to use. What I meant is that since all prints are purchased over the internet after viewing a 550 pixel image (not a very demanding test), the buyer could have a different impression of the actual print. "Sharpness": Only a small fraction of images sold are from LF. Others are from 35mm or digital. Image sizes vary from 8x12 to 30x45. Non-photographers have often sharpness criteria that differ from photographers (and especially LF photographers). True, we do our best, but the best is often a compromise between conflicting criteria. For instance, shipping. Would shipping in a flat metal crate be the best ? For protection certainly, but for cost efficiency maybe not. So far I use fairly light packaging. Of hundreds of prints shipped, I got no complaints about damage. Yet does it mean that customers are pleased with the packaging ? Maybe it looked uncomfortably light to them, and a sturdier box would have made a better impression ? When it comes to print sales, it's quite a bit about psychology.

It would be very nice indeed if the survey could be conducted with potential buyers rather than actual buyers. But there is no real way to identify them amongst other web surfers. Replies from people who are not serious about buying prints are not useful. Those people are more than 99% of web traffic. So far the only way I could think about identifying those serious about buying prints is that they actually bought some.

[robc]

Well given that you want to survey buyers only, then I would include with the sent print a note asking that you would apprciate some feedback on the service you have provided.

Ask generic questions such as:

Was the delivery timely?
Was the packaging in good condition when it arrived?
Do you think packaging needs to be improved on.
If yes then how?
Did the print meet with your expectations? 1.Above expectations, 2.Matched Expectations, 3.Below Expectations.
If 3.Below then please explain why?

Would supplying the print with a matt improve our service for you?
Would supplying the print with a frame improve our service for you?
What other suggestions do you have for improving the quality of our prints and/or service.

I don't think asking if the print is sharp enough is a good question because they may not have considered it and you are putting the thought into their head.
Asking the following two questions gets an answer without seeding the answer so you should get a more reliable answer.
Did the print meet with your expectations?
If not why not?