You can't stay in business waiting for customers to bring you rolls of film…

You can’t stay in business if all you do is make 2 sets of 4x6 prints from a roll of film. You can’t stay in business if you wait for customers to come to you. You’ve got to do more, as traditional roll counts fall inexorably to the basement.

There was a time when you could open a one-hour photo operation, put a sign over the door, and have a pretty good shot at making a living. That time is past. Intense competition has taken the profit from the simple act of developing and printing film, and the switch to digital cameras is eroding your customer base.

The bad news is you’ve got to keep “feeding the monster” just to cover the ongoing expenses of lab lease and maintenance payment. The good news is that if you’ve got a digitally-enabled lab you are ready to expand your repertoire to include these profitable “sidelines”. These ideas can help.

We've gathered ideas for 31 "Profit Modules" from some of the sharpest photo retailers in the world. Ideas that you can implement in your business. And we've brought them all together in one 90-page manual to help you get started.

Most of these profit centers are based on the assumption that you already have a digitally-enabled lab and at least one computer running Adobe Photoshop. The first 24 can be done in your existing store or lab without requiring more than a few square feet of space, and don’t require you to ever take a photo of a person. The next five require only small amounts of studio space and professional lighting equipment; the last two are completely different business models!

The Profit Modules

1. Sell used cameras
2. Become an eBay consignment center
3. Market niche products on the internet
4. Sell big, high-quality telescopes
5. Sell binoculars
6. Become a camera repair center
7. Sell instruction manuals for photo equipment
8. Offer rental services
9. Teach photography - especially digital photography
10. Become a technical support center
11. Video transfers and copies to tape or DVD
12. Duplicate CDs
13. Sell watch battery replacements
14. Become a battery center
15. Sell Eggs
16. Make postcards, brochures and catalog sheets
17. Copy oversize photos & art work
18. Restore old photos
19. Become a miniature wholesale lab
20. Do Online Photofinishing
21. Sell Photo Greeting Cards
22. Make photo calendars
23. Make photo business cards
24. Offer wide format printing
25. Create passport and ID photos
26. Shoot business/publicity portraits
27. Do group pictures
28. Build your digital event photography business
29. Ease into wedding photography
30. Become a full-fledged General Portrait Studio
31. Become a picture framer: full bore and semi custom
     

You get all this in a soft-bound 90 page book, with color photographs, for only $29.99

Available from PMA Business Resources or Order online

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