Shot another Glenview / Buffalo Grove wedding recently (for LEUXO). Here are my best shots.
If I was making cranberry juice, I’d call it Cramberry Juice. It would sell in a round glass bottle which would be crammed with real fresh cranberries (not made from concentrate). It would be organic and contain no sugar or high fructose corn syrup. Cranberries would be sourced from small local farmers whose profiles would appear on the label along with terms like “the real 100% juice” and “a glass a day to better urinary health”. The factory would house a cranberry bush garden where visitors could come in and pick their own cranberries to make fresh squeezed juice on the spot. Our website would be cramberry-juice.com (this domain is available, for now).
Shot my friend’s wedding recently. Did the preparation and formals, then came as a guest to ceremony and reception. Couldn’t help but grab the camera during the first dance and garter toss to capture some moments. Here’s a sneak peak. More at http://www.leuxo.com/blog.
This topic has been on my mind for quite a while and since I can offer weighed perspective from both ends, I think I’m more than qualified to pick this matter apart. With that said, if you agree, disagree or want to add to the conversation, feel free to comment, write, or call me.
First, a quick background overview, just to establish credibility. I’ve been with CustomUSB since 2004. During this time, I’ve worked with every type of client imaginable (consultants, educators, accountants, programmers, marketers, public speakers, managers, engineers, entrepreneurs, and musicians). In conjunction with rest of the talented CustomUSB team, I also developed specific market strategies and industry solutions which were successfully integrated and to this day fund our existence.
By night (and weekend), I am also a professional event photographer. Along with my partner, Slav, I use my self-taught camera skills to cover weddings, bar mitzvahs, private parties, and corporate events. Being in the industry and having outside marketing and sales experience gives me a bird’s eye view of the entire event photography landscape.
Here’s what I’ve been noticing (and this is a general observation, because if you dig deep enough, you can find a niche market for anything).
Now, a quick search on WPPI reveals that there are more than 260 photographers in Illinois alone. If you’re a wedding photographer in Chicago, how do you stand out?
Let’s assume you have a couple sitting your studio right now (that’s right, stop everything you’re doing and imagine it). They’ve been looking for a wedding photographer all week and you’re the last one on their list. By now they are exhausted and overwhelmed to the point of thinking that everyone they’ve looked at that week offers the same quality of work. Now, you and I know that this is not true. You’re probably one of the best wedding photojournalists in your city, but to the client you’re just like everyone else – same albums, same photo effects, same DVD with proofs.
But wait, you don’t offer a DVD at all. You offer an 8GB flash drives, made out of recycled materials. And along with your studio logo, this drive is embellished with the couples initials, perhaps even their full names and their wedding date. Furthermore, this drive comes in a nice clamshell package with a custom insert featuring the best photos from their special day. I think we can both agree that this could make a huge difference in their hiring decision.
And on top of that, the cost to you is minimal when compared to the total value of this contract.
—–
So here’s how this works.
First, choose a USB model. I have included some popular models below.
Then, send us your logo and we will engrave it on the top side of the drive so it’s visible when the drive is plugged in. On the metal drives, because the process of laser engraving etches the logo into the body of the drive and the resulting color is based on materials of the flash drive (usually aluminum), I suggest getting dark colored drives (black, blue, red, gray, etc). If you are thinking about buying wooden drives, the color doesn’t matter. On these drives, the logo is burned into wood, so you get enough contrast between the base material and the engraved logo.
At this point, we can send you the drives so you can use them. Or, you can go a step further and have us etch the couple’s names on the other side. In this case, we can hold on to the drives for you until you have a signed contract and know who the drive will be going to. In both instances, you’re doing something unique and unusual (for now, until the rest of the industry catches up).
—-
By the way, here’s who we’ve already worked with. Call them for an honest testimonial. Then call us and we’ll help you plan this out – 800-447-0149
I’ve been out of the office for two weeks. Many of you asked, some didn’t, but yes, it was a vacation (first in the last two years). I went to Israel (again). Here are the best photos from that trip.
You'll never find better tasting fruit than in Israel.
A lemon tree growing right outside the house we stayed in (Golan Heights near Lebanon border)
Ruins of the ancient Herod's Castle in Massada (Ramat Hagolan)
My son making faces.
Ancient city of Safed (Tzfat). World center of Kabbalah studies.
Grilling shish kebabs.
Israel, like many European countries has a large population of homeless cats. Many of them die of starvation or diseases. This one was patiently watching us grill. We later fed him.
Ancient city of Akko. Located in the Western Galilee, it is one of the oldest cities in Israel. Here you see ruins of the Acre Citadel.
Army service is mandatory. Guys serve 3 years, girls 2 years.
The family dog. Mother of 7.
Jewish Quarter in Jerusalem. Window of a Yeshiva.
Playing.
Sunset in Haifa. Grandson & Grandfather.
Just completed an order for NM Partnership. They are a non-profit government entity that helps businesses relocate and operate in New Mexico. While we love Chicago, we also love chili peppers and were thrilled when NM Partnership decided to do a USB drive in a shape of, well, chili pepper.
Their drives came in two color schemes – red and green. They are very detailed, just as you would expect of our rubber molding process.
Do not each the chili pepper USB drive, if you get one.
While most people were out complaining how bad the economy was, I started a new company. Here’s the entire story.
A few years back I began a slow transition into photography. Slav Zinger, a professional photographer with 30+ years of experience, and a good friend (we’ve been friends since he shot our wedding in 2005) saw something in me. I also saw something in him so “I let” him teach me everything he knows. In the last three year, my skills improved dramatically. As I entered deeper and deeper into the realm of event photography (weddings, bar-mitzvahs, corporate events, parties), I saw several trends.
The industry was changing. On the one side of the tracks, you had 50 and 6o year old photographers who were reluctant to change. They liked the good ol’ days when it was common for clients to pay $10K for an all-inclusive photo package that included proofs, albums, and a studio portrait session. This still exists today, just not on the same scale and not enough to sustain all the ready-to-retire pros.
On the other side, we had the 23-year olds that just came out of photography school and could not find a studio to work for or the 30-somethings that recently lost their job and decided photography was easy money. The rise of digital gave way to people who would have never considered professional photography as a career. Now, they could buy a $3K camera, print some cards and go knocking on doors. They were willing to work for practically nothing. Most of them produced mdiocre results. And they were completely killing the professional photography market (in terms of consumer trust).
The second trend I noticed is that, at least in the last few years, the frequency of people buying an all-inclusive package has decreased. This is mainly due to budgetary constraints caused by the shaky economy. What this means is that a bride and groom will come to a photographer, pay him $1400, have him shoot their wedding and then supply all the images on DVD (or a USB drive). And this is where (LEUXO.com) comes in.
LEUXO is a Photo Bookbinder. We craft hand-made luxury photo books. We sell direct.
Here’s a common scenario. A husband and wife who got a photo package I described above realize they don’t have an actual professional photo album of their wedding. Traditionally, they would have to contact a photo studio, who would then contact a photo bookbinder. Now, they can buy an album directly from us. All they do is provide their high-resolution photos, we do the layout, we consult them, and we make a perfect photo book that reflects their personality, style and mood.
LEUXO does not mass produce. Each book is made by hand. Photos are color and brightness balanced one-by-one, then printed one-by-one on professional photo paper. We then make the cover out of genuine goat leather or pure linen based cloth. Your names are then heat stamped on the front or the spine. Each book is perfect, or it’s not shipped. And this is what I want to focus on. At CustomUSB, I sell commodity products. We have great quality control and our products are top-of-the-line (I only work for companies I believe in), but NAND Flash is still a commodity. At LEUXO, we make art. Each book is truly unique, the layout is one-of-a-kind. Our quality and customer satisfaction promise is real. People that know me personally know how I work, and my customers know that I go above-and-beyond. I want to make this a standard at LEUXO.
I want to be clear, we are not the only ones making professional photo albums (not the $25 stuff like Blurb, but real professional photo albums). We are the only ones selling them direct, and also the only ones focusing on specific markets (see who we work with).
With this said, we have a long way ahead of us. Lots of bridal shows to do, lots of people to partner with. I will keep this a running discussion and post new developments as we move along the product life cycle. Thanks for listening. Spread the word.
Playing with my son on Sunday, I thought about something. You know how there is Legoland, well, why isn’t there a Play-Doh World or Play-Doh Universe (LEGO is already heading in this direction)? It only makes sense, right? In order for Hasbro to grow the Play-Doh brand, they need to build a cult-like following (similar to what LEGO has done with Legoland). I am not saying they should follow in the footsteps of Lego, but there is definitely room for some growth. Here are some things people at Hasbro can do.
After all, who buys Play-Doh - not the three-year-old, his parents do.
I am sure the Hasbro marketing team can come up with a million reason why this wouldn’t work. In fact, every day I hear excuses on why something can’t be done. So much time and energy is devoted to proving that a specific concept will be a failure. There are meetings upon meetings that outline the flaws of a project, promotion, or campaign. You can argue about something not happening all day, or you can be like the three-year-old with a new set of Play-Doh. Piece by piece, mold by mold, you can build your Play-Doh universe. You just have to start.
Imagine this scenario, you are a top-of-the-line USB manufacturer. A client comes to you to order some USB drives for an event they are having. It’s an invite-only, red-carpet gala (slash) product launch. A Manhattan hotel, celebrities, a keynote. Each flash drive is a completely custom piece made out of virgin Finnish birch with a heat stamped logo and a rope lanyard made out of genuine bull hide leather.
Three months later … the product is a complete failure, the company is out of money, and this order was bought with a PO with net 30 terms.
This, of course, is a fictional scenario, but these types of situations do happen, lately more then ever before. What do you do? The client has the product and you’re out of money. Well, I have a solution. Each flash drive sold, contains a tiny wireless microchip that can be accessed via satellite. It allows you to “shut off” the drive, literally. A 64GB flash drive can be easily turned into a useless dog’s chew toy, just with a click of a button (or two). Customer doesn’t pay you – you turn off the drives. Client does a charge back and doesn’t want to return your stock – you turn off the drives. Then, there is the other function. Instead of turning the drives off, you can pop-up an advertisement. When the drive is plugged in, user gets a message – “Thank you for using a CustomUSB Flash Drive. Click HERE to get some of your own.”
Ok, I’m way ahead of the game. This product does not exist yet. But if I was to build software for USB drives, I’d look into this.
Image Credit: dialog5
I spoke with the director of product development at Universal Music Group today. We had an hour long conversation about the state of the music industry, specifically when it comes down to using USB drives in live concert recordings and release of USB music albums. Here’s what can be deducted from our discussion.
What is attention worth? Every day I get people (both in the music biz and not) that try to compare the cost of USB drives to CD’s. The fact is, USB drives will never get close to the cost of CD’s – flash memory costs more as well as the cost of other electronic components plus the fact flash drives are reusable. There is just so much more built into a USB drive that you don’t get with a CD. The bottom line is, if all of these value-added attributes are of no value to you, stick with CD’s. If you have no budget, stick with CD’s. If you want to stay boring, stick with CD’s.
On the other had, and especially when it comes to the music industry, I think everyone has gotten tired of the guy on the corner passing out his CD demos. There are too many things in front of our eyes that beg for our attention as is , everything that’s not new and different is invisible. This is where USB drives come into play.
I have plenty of clients (like Chester Wilson and Thr3efourteen of Mega Beat International) who go to conferences and conventions and build a contact list of people they want to work with. The first time I met Chester (at a dental convention in Chicago – YES, he is also a dentist) he did not know what pre-loading was (if you don’t know, look it up – HERE). Now, he gets drives for every event he goes to (not to mention, gives my name to everyone he meets). Because he was able to grab attention of the right people he now works with Rick Ross, Trick Daddy, and is about to make a soundtrack for a motion picture. Don’t get me wrong, Chester and Thr3efourteen are good at what they do, but a lot of times that’s not enough, you still need to get noticed.
The second thing we discussed, was live concert recordings. While this sounds like a good idea at first, it’s a tough gig to get into. Think of who is involved in putting together a live performance – the artist, his manager, the label, the venue, not to mention the people that hold the rights to the music. Try getting all of them to agree on the same thing, let alonegive up commissionable rights to live performance sales.
Bottom line, the USB music idea works perfectly when done in the right context. I mentioned this before, but it’s worth repeating. The music is not the product, the artist is. USB drives (and other merch/specialty products) help reinforce the identity of a well-known artist. They are souvenirs of the experience the fans take part of. In this lies value. For some, this is a completely different way of thinking about what they do and how they do it. For others (like Radiohead, Mars Volta, and Lamb of God) it is a well aligned mechanism for building brand equity. Either way you look at it, it’s all about proper context.
Photo Credit: Kyle Baker
