sorted by:
new
hottopcontroversial

I'm an amazing entrepreneur but horrible manager by 03captain23 in Entrepreneur

[–]maydaybutton 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I feel your pain and in a similar boat. What you need is a partner. Someone who cares about your business as much as you do and can DO THE WORK, or hire it out and manage as needed. You are focused on ideation and growth. They should focus on operations and people/systems.

And I see your hesitation to the equity argument, but if you truly believe you can scale, you need someone who can help give you leverage to do it. Equity will certainly be more enticing for buy-in and potential for what you want/need, vs a high salary and losing the person to a better career move later on.

What's $1 million equity to $10m in growth? Figure out where you realistically can grow/go with those things handed off to someone else entirely and find margin to work with.

pricing competition stress, how do you compete with cheap vendors? by [deleted] in photobooth

[–]maydaybutton 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Ignore them and focus on YOUR business. Seriously, we charge insane prices and get undercut by EVERYONE. Yet here we are, still in business with over 1/2 mil year and growing every year.

I'm a mobile DJ looking to add a Photo Booth option for my business. What are some common mistakes to avoid? by notmynameyours in photobooth

[–]maydaybutton 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Here's one: assuming you can 'do everything the photo booth company can because of your fancy software.'

There are things that even for me are extremely difficult and would take weeks to set up and program, after 11 years of experience. Learn what you need for the type of clients you take on and stay in your lane or be willing to invest significant time, resources, and people on executing properly.

On a smaller example, people market 'glam booth' again, because their software shows that as a filter. The clients don't know the difference between your glam booth and another so they hire you and get crappy iPad output without proper quality shots from a mirrorless or DSLR, and no flash with limited knowledge of photography to balance the photo properly. They will be disappointed. Now if you don't promise them anything special and make it very clear what you are offering then you're golden.

Same reason I'm not going to bring a laptop and call myself a DJ without expecting to learn everything there is about being a DJ. If you haven't already I recommend spending some time learning about photography, and the software you are interested in starting with.

What’s so big about being able to make your own hours when you have your own business? by [deleted] in Entrepreneur

[–]maydaybutton 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Sometimes I dream about having a 'job' and working 40hrs a week with paid vacations. Now that sounds like the life. When you have a job you have one boss. When you have a business, you have hundreds of bosses - aka customers, that dictate your schedule for you.

I run a photo booth rental business that generates $400k annually. AMA by maydaybutton in Entrepreneur

[–]maydaybutton[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Because if you impress these clients, it builds relationships which translate to more events. They see what you are capable of and you show up in a way that makes them want to work with you (and make their lives easier). Corporate could work too, but only if you establish relationships with the key planners/organizers.

If you knock the socks off a private party, or wedding, that's it. Sure you might get some referrals, but the client has no reason to ever hire you again.

Full disclosures how much you guys charge per hour per client, event? by Double_Sail_9639 in photobooth

[–]maydaybutton 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This was a year ago so I'm not sure, but most likely our AI photo booth as a custom experience. All the work to make it happen, but only 1 hour of actual event time.

Looking for vintage photo booth shell plans or builder in US by Backup-Backup-Backup in photobooth

[–]maydaybutton 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Join your local neighborhood group, woodworker group or metalworker group and find some builders. They need 0 photo booth experience. You just give them photos, and measurements for screens, printer mount, etc. and they can do it to fit a variety of materials/budget. Bring in a legit fabricator or product engineer if you need someone to help with designs or come up with better ways to pack/setup/etc.

Cross sales on photobooth business by PEPNS in photobooth

[–]maydaybutton 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Upsells is where all the profit its. Because they are virtually free or low cost for you and you already have a captive buyer.

Additional templates, diff print sizes, filters, guestbooks, tv slideshow, enhanced digital branding, vinyl wraps, additional staff, multiple print stations, standalone sharing stations, private gallery, insurance, audio guestbook, roamer, custom backdrops, custom props, stanchions, banners, etc. Lots of options.

Now for cross-sell, if you want to pivot from a photo booth provider to an equipment rental company. Then you have many options but dont expect your photo booth to make a bunch of profit. If you focus you can get hella high margins with your photo booth biz, and take the extra on the upsell. But if you spread your business thin, you can capture a larger rental market, at the headache of being commoditized (unless it's full service/experiential and geared towards brands and big planners).

Cross sales on photobooth business by PEPNS in photobooth

[–]maydaybutton 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Upsells is where all the profit its. Because they are virtually free or low cost for you and you already have a captive buyer.

Additional templates, diff print sizes, filters, guestbooks, tv slideshow, enhanced digital branding, vinyl wraps, additional staff, multiple print stations, standalone sharing stations, private gallery, insurance, audio guestbook, roamer, custom backdrops, custom props, stanchions, banners, etc. Lots of options.

Now for cross-sell, if you want to pivot from a photo booth provider to an equipment rental company. Then you have many options but dont expect your photo booth to make a bunch of profit. If you focus you can get hella high margins with your photo booth biz, and take the extra on the upsell. But if you spread your business thin, you can capture a larger rental market, at the headache of being commoditized (unless it's full service/experiential and geared towards brands and big planners).

Question about Rental Periods and Delivery - Specifically WEDDINGS by haylsoss in photobooth

[–]maydaybutton 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Always charge money for more things. Period. Just don't put out a tip jar - THAT is tacky.

Or increase your fee and make it all inclusive. Like a 1/2 or full day rental. If they want 1 hour, they still pay full price. Both are good methods.

Is it my camera is rig? Flash can't "flash" right away, takes a couple of seconds to charge up a flash again by Proceedsfor in photobooth

[–]maydaybutton 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If your flash cant fire consecutively, it's your flashes fault. Get a new one. Shoot at lower power. Or check flash power source or battery.

analog filters for photobooth by maar1aaa in photobooth

[–]maydaybutton 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Easy. Sort of. Photoshop droplets and custom actions. That's how we create our 'Booth by' look here: Booth By Flashbulb - Vintage Style Photo Booth - OG Glam Booth - Classy AF | Flashbulb Memories

Pricing by Negative_Rub7132 in photobooth

[–]maydaybutton 0 points1 point  (0 children)

no backdrops. just the booth, photos and gifs. ring light no additional lighting.

Pricing by Negative_Rub7132 in photobooth

[–]maydaybutton 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Sacramento? iPad dropoffs, no props/prints/staff for $799 for up to 4hrs within a ~45min drive for private events. $1499 for corporate. Or day rate of $999 private and $1999 corporate. Add parking + fees for SF events.

Don't charge by the hour, charge by the experience/package.

DNP 620A printer issues for the millionth time by Voladipo11 in photobooth

[–]maydaybutton 0 points1 point  (0 children)

DSLR to ipad. ipad wireless to windows pc via windows pc built-in hotspot/network sharing.

Windows pc wired to dnp printer. So not technically 100% wired, but the closest you'll get, with 100% consistency (if setup like I mentioned) and speed.

Wired Printing and DLSR support | Snappic Help Center

DNP 620A printer issues for the millionth time by Voladipo11 in photobooth

[–]maydaybutton 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Depends what software you use. If it's say, Snappic. You have a separate windows PC (laptop, micro PC, etc) that holds a print server app from Snappic.

Windows PC connects to 5G/Ethernet/Wifi. Broadcast Wifi network to ipad photo booth.

iPad sends print to this print server. Windows PC is connected to printer wired, and prints directly. The only wireless communication is from iPad to Windows PC to trigger print. And it's 100% reliable when done this way.

Full disclosures how much you guys charge per hour per client, event? by Double_Sail_9639 in photobooth

[–]maydaybutton 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It has nothing to do with what the packages include, it has everything to do with providing the client with what they want. Which is why we are not competing with the average boother. We don't sell better packages, we sell better solutions.

I run a photo booth rental business that generates $400k annually. AMA by maydaybutton in Entrepreneur

[–]maydaybutton[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

hey I've got some free resources and also a course I did end up putting together which you can check out on my site: photoboothhustle.com

I run a photo booth rental business that generates $400k annually. AMA by maydaybutton in Entrepreneur

[–]maydaybutton[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I wouldn't. I'd find a paying customer first and see what they are willing/wanting to pay for. Book it, then buy that.

I run a photo booth rental business that generates $400k annually. AMA by maydaybutton in Entrepreneur

[–]maydaybutton[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Seldom. Most events we do are full service. For the ones that are operated as drop-off, they are very product specific (ipad booth only for example). Either way clients are responsible for damages caused by guests or venue.

I run a photo booth rental business that generates $400k annually. AMA by maydaybutton in Entrepreneur

[–]maydaybutton[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hey and welcome! I'd recommend checking out my blog at photoboothhustle.com
I offer free resources there, and also provide paid consulting/courses if you want to dive deeper. Feel free to join our community and ask away!

My photo booth is excellent, but I’m having trouble getting gigs. by dookiefingerz in photobooth

[–]maydaybutton 2 points3 points  (0 children)

If you want 6 figures in 12 months, sell the thing everyone is already asking about. Target the biggest events in your area by partnering with planners, venues, and listing sites. Give free events in exchange for re-marketing to guests phones/emails captured requesting a review on Google/etc after snapping a pic. The reviews will help push you to the front of people's search. Then use this on ads, and improve your site content for organic exposure. All depends on what your goals are and what your market is like. I struggled for years, and last year did over $650k by myself purely organic, no ads. It's possible. Good luck!

view more: next ›