How to get a group discount on headshots if you work in a co-working or shared office space

Do you work in a co-working or shared office space? Are you an independent freelancer or small business owner renting an office, or a desk in one of Montreal’s several business hotels or co-working spaces? If so, and you too would like to benefit from group rates on having a professional portrait done to update your profile picture, this post is for you. A significant part of the time investment in doing an on-site corporate portrait in your office is setting up a mini-studio on site in an office space (often in a boardroom). If you happen to work in a shared space, or in an office with other businesses renting offices on the same floor, you can easily leverage your investment in a portrait session to access the kinds of group discounts larger companies and corporations receive. Here’s how to do it:

1. When you are planning to book your own on site, in-office portrait send or post a message to the other professionals and businesses sharing your work space letting them know and offering them the chance to participate.
2. Contact your professional corporate photographer and inform him or her that you’d like headshots taken for yourself and colleagues / co-workers and ask for a group or bulk rate.
3. Make the booking and ensure everyone who’s signed on is ready on the day of the shoot.

It’s that simple. You can easily arrange to have the photographer handle payment so that you are not involved, but with as few as 5 people you can likely negotiate the price per portrait to $75/head or even lower. For groups larger than 10 you may even be able to get your portrait taken for free. Have your cake and eat it too Times are tough and people everywhere are working longer hours for often stagnant or lower pay. Many highly qualified and skilled professionals may find themselves temporarily un-or underemployed and even the hottest freelancer goes through down periods. Having a good, updated profile photo isn’t going to land you a new job or get you a new gig, but it does comprise one piece of a professional package. When you are marketing brand “You”, every little bit helps. Leveraging similar needs of a group for getting a professional portrait is one way you can help yourself while helping others and save money at the same time. To see some samples of portraits taken in-offices using seamless white or grey backdrops that can be set up where you work, please visit my gallery here.