The Photographer’s Guide to Holiday Gift Giving: 5 Gifts Under $50
What does this mean for you?
It means that keeping your current clients is more important than ever. Not only are they a reliable source of revenue due to repeat orders, but they also provide the word-of-mouth referrals that are the livelihood of any photography business. Delivering the expected customer experience and results is no longer enough to keep clients coming back and referring their contacts to you. It's essential to go above and beyond to make a positive impression to stay "top of mind" when someone mentions needing a professional photographer. Gift-giving, especially around the holidays, can help you make a lasting and positive impression. Clients who receive thoughtful gifts are much more likely to remember and remain loyal you and your photography business. Not all gifts are considered equal. Some photographers try to create the impression of gift-giving by offering discounts on services and packages clients haven't purchased yet. This strategy typically comes off as a "promotion" rather than a gift. Instead, choose gifts that your clients will remember, cherish, and show to their friends and family members. You don’t have to spend a fortune to create a wealth of goodwill. In fact, you can surprise your top-value clients with the gift of a lifetime while keeping the cost per gift under $50. How? You’re a photographer. You already have photos of your clients. Personalize any wide range of affordable gifts with a client's photo and TA-DA, a one-of-a-kind gift! What kind of affordable and personalized gift will show your clients that you value and appreciate them this season?
Here are five personalized gifts under $50 that your clients will love:
1. Table-top easel prints
There’s no easier way for your clients to commemorate a special event or a loved one than with a refined, elegant easel-back tabletop print. Imagine each of your top clients opening a gift to reveal a beautiful, long-lasting image that they can display instantly (no nails or screws required). Easel-back prints come in two variations - canvas gallery wrap prints and metal prints. The gallery-wrapped canvas gives your client's print a more artistic, casual feel without sacrificing detail. Your clients get a stunning, personal image rendered on luxurious canvas that they can enjoy for decades to come. Your clients get the same stunning colors and clarity with a print on metal, but in a more refined, minimalist package. The best metal prints have a glass-like appearance with minimal color distortion, delighting clients and making you the "go-to" professional for all their photography needs. Do you have business clients? Perfect! Easel-back tabletop prints make excellent signage and marketing assets for your small-business clients. You can also showcase the company's individual employees on easel-back art for them to display in their office or retail store. This will create a strong sense of engagement and connection between your business clients and the people they serve. How much will a table-top easel print cost you? If you’re looking for gift ideas under $50, you’ll be pleased by how far your gift-giving budget can stretch. You can purchase a single canvas wrap print for less than $10 (under $20 for the largest option). If you’d rather opt for a showstopping metal print, you can keep your costs well below the $50 limit. Order Table-top easel prints>
2. Canvas Wrap PRO
Finding beautiful, personalized gifts under $50 for your best photography clients can feel like a real challenge, but these stunning art canvases offer a high-end luxury appearance for an affordable price. These printed canvases come in a wide range of sizes, from 5x7 inches all the way up to 40x60 inches. Many sizes come in under $50 per gift, including our popular 24x30-inch size. What makes Canvas Wrap Pro canvases stand out? First, they’re constructed with 1.25-inch-thick frame bars, about twice the thickness of standard artist canvases, which gives them a premium gallery appearance. Deep-framed canvases enhance the artistic effect of the printed images in a way that two-dimensional photographs can’t. Second, we only use 100% poly-cotton artist-grade canvas, manufactured to strict standards to ensure consistent quality and durability. The image is printed directly on the canvas using latex ink for exceptional color and clarity. The image extends on all sides of the canvas, eliminating the need for framing or otherwise covering the edges. For a more traditional look, wood frames are available in classic black, white, or brown. Choose this option when building your gift on our website, and it’ll come framed and ready to display. Each Canvas Wrap Pro features a solid supporting face that eliminates the risk of warping, sagging or stretching. This ensures that decades from now each one will be stretched as tightly and uniformly as the day it was made. The patented design is also puncture-resistant, adding to the gift’s durability. Your Canvas Wrap Pro gift comes with a finished backing for a truly professional appearance. Recipients can display their art right out of the package, metal screw fasteners and corner bumpers make it convenient for clients to enjoy all year long. Order Canvas Wrap PRO>
3. Wood Floating Frames
North American Poplar Frames are perfect for the client who deserves something truly timeless and classy. While our 1.25” thick Canvas Wrap Pro offers a sophisticated look and feel, our 1.75” thick North American Poplar Frames provides an elite appearance while combining simplicity with striking depth. All sizes are available in rich brown, sleek black, or classic white. Some of the most popular sizes; 8x10”, 9x12”, and 11x14” are under $50. Making them affordable choices for photographers who want to treat their best supporters without blowing their gift budget. Order Wood Floating Frames>
4. Acrylic PRO
Acrylic PRO prints are fantastic gifts for clients who deserve high-quality personalized products, particularly when budget is a significant consideration. These gifts allow you to exceed your clients’ expectations for quality at an affordable price. Your clients will appreciate the quality in every layer of these beautiful prints. We use second surface printing on ¼ inch acrylic to consistently produce exceptional images with stunning clarity. A finished backing completes each Acrylic PRO print, giving it the high-end appearance that will truly impress your clients - and everyone they tell about you! To create a dramatic effect, we've designed a unique hidden mount just for our Acrylic Pro prints. The mount gives the print the appearance of “floating” about 1.5” from the wall. Rounded corners and smooth edges give these prints a modern feel. They work perfectly with any decor and are available in a wide range of sizes. Prints up to 16x20” are available for under $50. Order Acrylic PRO>
5. Metal Print MAX
The true downside of gifting a client a personalized Metal Print MAX is that you won’t be there to see their expression when they unbox their gift. Metal Print MAX is created with a specialized process that infuses images onto coated aluminum providing brighter colors, better contrast, and higher visual depth. Better than anything your clients have seen. The unique process infuses brightly colored, specially formulated dyes into the high-gloss metal, creating attention-grabbing luminescence and remarkable image clarity. As with our Canvas Wrap Pro and Acrylic PRO gifts, we've designed our Metal Print MAX to maximize the sense of depth. Each Metal Print MAX is fitted with French cleats or a notched block float mount hanger, making the print appear as though it is floating ½ inch away from the wall. Metal Print MAX are available in a wide range of sizes. Several sizes are under $50, including classic sizes like our 8x10” and 11x14” options. How many of your clients should receive personalized gifts? In a perfect world, you could surprise every single client you’ve served with a personalized gift for the holidays. Like most photographers, you probably encounter a wide range of clients throughout the year. Some of them have been fantastic to work with and have helped you tremendously by referring their contacts to you. Others, well you’ve completed their projects and would prefer to simply wish them the best of luck elsewhere. Does it make sense from a growth standpoint (not to mention in terms of raw expenses) to purchase personalized gifts for all your clients? Probably not. There’s no hard-and-fast rule here, but some photographers follow the Pareto Principle, which states that 80% of outcomes arise from 20% of causes. This means that 20% of your clients are likely driving about 80% of your income, either through direct contacts or by recommending you to colleagues and other contacts. That's certainly not the only way to approach it, but it works well for many who use it. If you track your income and referrals, you should quickly identify the 20% of clients who bring you the most business and revenue giving you an idea of who to gift to. Order Metal Print MAX>
BONUS Tips:
#1. Customize and Share: Free Mockup Templates for Sales & Social
One of the most stressful parts of the holidays is finding unique gifts. Help your clients visualize gifting wall art to their loved ones. Our free photoshop marketing templates are easy to use. This is a perfect way to utilize past photo sessions. Clients love envisioning how your work will present in an actual room setting. View Templates>