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website, shopping carts and professional printing services used?

Michelle Carrillo , Sep 26, 2008; 02:46 p.m.

I am starting a brand new business, and am sorting through all the options involved in the business side of things. (Note: Will be focusing on portraits... family, kids, maternity, boudoir, and then eventually will hopefully be doing weddings.)

I would like to have a nice website, but being fresh, can't afford a top of the line thing like others might have. (Can always upgrade in the future, right?) I was looking into one at www.photobiz.com, and was wondering if any one you used them, or have other places you might suggest instead.

This place I mentioned (photobiz.com) also has an option of adding on a shopping cart. Does anyone use this feature from them? It looked nice, but also looked like it might easily become WAY too complicated, with so many features offered that it might overwhelm the client.

Also, I'm looking into all the options of where to go to actually get the photos (etc.) printed. I've heard great things about www.millerslab.com. Any others you might suggest?

One idea I had floating around in my head was to go through the professional services site offered by www.shutterfly.com, where they have the option of uploading each event into its own gallery (and individual url). The upsode is that clients order diretly from there, so things are shipped directly to the client and I can skip that stup. The downside is that it does say "shutterfly" all over their gallery, so it doesn't look as professional.

Help! I need ideas... how do you handle your ordering/shipping to clients? What kind of packaging do you use? DO you ship stuff or hand it to them directly?

Ideas/comments are definitely appreciated here.

-Michelle

Answers

Sam Ellis , Sep 26, 2008; 08:39 p.m.

Check out Smugmug. $150/year and you should be able to make that up no problem with sales. You can start off with one of their templates and then learn to customize with your colors, backgrounds, etc.

Use code QoYLQX1yf8Q6s for $5 off.

Sam

www.samellis.com

Dave Hoffmann , Sep 27, 2008; 03:09 p.m.

Website: Get a BLOG, they are free. Shopping Cart: I highly recommend Photocart (http://www.picturespro.com) - a one-time $279 cost and you own the software, which runs on your web server. No commissions, etc. to pay.

Mike Plavchak , Sep 28, 2008; 12:09 a.m.

I used Printroom.com. Now I use Exposuremanager.com. both are $99/year. I would spend the money and get a real web site and link it to a smugmug or printroom, Exposuremanager site. Exposuremanager only has a 10% commission, one of the lowest. Well worth not having to have prints made and collect money/credit cards.

Lindsay Branscombe , Sep 28, 2008; 10:04 p.m.

I use oscommerce. its actually an opensource shopping cart that you can customize to your needs (which is what i have done) you do have to have some knowledge of coding, but it is by FAR the best option if you want an ENTIRELY customized cart and not just putting your banner on top of their cart.

you can see mine at bscphoto.com/catalog

Michelle Carrillo , Sep 29, 2008; 07:23 p.m.

Thanks for all your suggestions; I'm going to start looking into all of them riht now. This definitely helps me a lot. Thanks again.

Lindsay Branscombe , Sep 30, 2008; 12:12 a.m.

not a problem! I did my cart entire on my own. Took a little work and all, but otherwise i am VERY happy. If you need help with the oscommerce cart (if you so choose to use that one) let me know.

alman one , Oct 02, 2008; 09:21 a.m.

hi, if anybody may be inerested, i am a web developer i build websites, and especialy photo galleries, photoblogs more info: http://inparis.me/weblog/ thanks

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