# Working for a car dealership?



## lyonsroar (May 11, 2011)

Has anyone worked for a car dealership taking the pictures of the cars for eBay and web advertising?  There's a job opening for just that where I live that I'm considering applying for...

Just wondering if anyone's done it before?  Impressions?  Money?  I'm workin for minimum wage now so there is quite a bit of room for improvement in that last department!  

Thanks.


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## subscuck (May 11, 2011)

Having just spent a lot of time looking on line after my kid totalled his car, you ain't gotta be no pro. I can't see there being a lot of hours either. It may be doable as a second part time job. But I could be wrong, or at least mistaken...


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## lyonsroar (May 11, 2011)

Would a car dealership be willing to pay more for better pictures of the cars?   There seems to be some debate online about this.  Some seem to think that a dealer just needs a photo, any photo, and that will do, but others seem to think that the better the photo, the easier the car will be to sell for good money...IDK...


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## photocist (May 11, 2011)

Why dont you email or call them?


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## subscuck (May 11, 2011)

In my quest to find a decent car for my kid I noticed the following:

1) Only "Internet Specials" are on-line. In both pre-owned and new, that's a small number of their total inventory.

2) How many pics of each car varied widely from dealership to dealership.

3) The web sites are only updated once a week.

4) As already stated, you don't have to take pro quality shots. It really doesn't matter how nice the shot is, they're small, low res images.

All of those lead me to believe that in all likelihood, it doesn't pay much, and won't require very many hours of work per week.


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## Ginu (May 11, 2011)

I would definitely apply and see where it goes. Think about the experience you can get and perhaps equipment 

Something like this can easily be done part time on the weekends for some extra cash


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## mrpink (May 11, 2011)

We hired a professional photographer at our dealership for our internet sales.  Took an old showroom and turned it into a "studio"

Here are the web examples of the photos he takes....

Beechmont Toyota - View All Used Toyota Inventory Online

To answer your question, yes, car dealerships are pouring tons of money into internet sales.  One of the main parts of that is the photography.  If you have even minor skills it could be a good job for you.  Pay is not great at all, but this may just be the cheapness of our dealership, others may be willing to pay more.  They should buy you a camera, tripod, and get a pro lighting company to set up your lights.

Any other questions, feel free to ask.





p!nK


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## mrpink (May 11, 2011)

Ginu said:


> Something like this can easily be done part time on the weekends for some extra cash


 
For a very small dealership, yes.  For a larger dealership (with deeper pockets) it is a full time job just trying to keep up.







p!nK


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## lyonsroar (May 11, 2011)

photocist said:


> Why dont you email or call them?


 
I am doing so, but I wanted to get some opinions from someone who has done this before...



mrpink said:


> We hired a professional photographer at our dealership for our internet sales. Took an old showroom and turned it into a "studio"
> 
> Here are the web examples of the photos he takes....
> 
> ...


 
Wow! that would be amazing if they bought me a camera and had lighting set up for me... 
I have a line in the email telling them what gear I have, should I delete that?

EDIT:  looking at the dealers website it looks like they have a similar setup to the one you linked too...empty showroom, white walls.  Also noticed that the photos are woefully underexposed...


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## Bo4key (May 11, 2011)

I work for a car dealer, and I can tell you it's all about dollars and cents. As long as the picture shows the vehicle, they aren't going to care about composition, etc. Any smart dealership is not going to pay extra for "better" pictures for online or newspaper adds. The only time I can see paying for better photos is for a brochure or something, but most of those are provided by the manufacturer anyways.


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## lyonsroar (May 11, 2011)

Bo4key said:


> I work for a car dealer, and I can tell you it's all about dollars and cents. As long as the picture shows the vehicle, they aren't going to care about composition, etc. Any smart dealership is not going to pay extra for "better" pictures for online or newspaper adds. The only time I can see paying for better photos is for a brochure or something, but most of those are provided by the manufacturer anyways.



So they why wouldn't they just toss a P&S at a lot porter and tell them to go at it?  I'm sure 90% of them are good enough to get the car in frame...
Not arguing, just...stating?


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## CCericola (May 11, 2011)

I think it depends on the dealership. The higher end dealers hire pros, but it is usually a contract job where you are paid per shoot and you will be expected to have your own lighting and equipment. Smaller dealerships may just need snapshots of used inventory. They have stock photos of the new vehicles. I don't think you can expect to quit your day job for this unless maybe you could get contracts with multiple dealers.


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## Bo4key (May 11, 2011)

> So they why wouldn't they just toss a P&S at a lot porter and tell them to go at it?  I'm sure 90% of them are good enough to get the car in frame...
> Not arguing, just...stating?


Most do. Even the Trader magazine that posts our vehicles in print and online just has a girl that comes around with a P&S.

EDIT: I work for the largest car dealership in town (no brag)


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## Bitter Jeweler (May 11, 2011)

Bo4key said:


> EDIT: I work for the largest car dealership in town (no brag)


 

This made me laugh.

It lacks a sense of scale.


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## Bo4key (May 11, 2011)

Bitter Jeweler said:


> Bo4key said:
> 
> 
> > EDIT: I work for the largest car dealership in town (no brag)
> ...



I guess you're name suits you. I've read a few of your posts and you are always looking for something snide to say. 

There are 100k+ people here and we are also top 5 in the province/state for our brand. Does that provide enough "scale" for you?


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## o hey tyler (May 11, 2011)

I work for a car dealership selling Mini Coopers. The owner had "cautions" about letting me do car photography for whatever reason. He hired me as a "sales associate", and was fully aware of my photography background, yet was hesitant to let me start taking the photos of the new Mini's on the lot. Now that I'm actually doing the photos, and using strobed light, he seems to be pretty happy. I think the hesitation mostly came from the fact that the 18 year old girl that has worked for him for 9 months 'REALLY ENJOYS' taking photos of the Minis. However, she has limited photographic knowledge and only has access to a Nikon P&S from 2001. 

I was SUPPOSED to do photos for the Saab/Volvo dealership in my area (I drive a Saab, so it would be fitting), but that seemed to fall through. I was going to charge them 10 dollars per car (because I hadn't done car photography at that point, I'd charge them more now). And I told them I'd photograph cars if they had a MINIMUM of 3 cars per trip (it was about a 30mi drive for me, and wouldn't be worth it unless I made my gas money back). 

What Bo4key said was somewhat incorrect. Maybe the car dealership that HE works at doesn't care about composition or framing, but I've imposed on the owner of the company I shoot for that better composed photos will draw more customers in. It's a fact. In 2007, roughly 33% of car sales ORIGINATED online, that number has only gone up since then. It's probably closer to 50%. Putting your best foot forward and having nicely composed images with the company logo in them is important. Having a 3/4 "hero" shot as the 'default photo' is important. SOCIAL ****ING NETWORKING is important, if not the most important. I work closely with an advertising analyst from AutoTrader.com. Next on my bill is photographing a lot of Mini Coopers, and starting both a Twitter for our business, and a blog attached to our website via a subdomain.


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## o hey tyler (May 11, 2011)

If you want to get into car photography, Lyonsroar, I'd look for a USED CAR DEALER that has a GOOD PRE-OWNED selection. If they don't get a lot of ****ty cars, but also doesn't have anyone to photograph their cars well, go there first.

If you have additional questions, feel free to ask. I'll answer them as best as I can. However, right now... There is a bong calling my name. And it's full of "The What?", so I feel as if it's necessary to tend to that.


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## Bo4key (May 11, 2011)

I totally agree with o hey tyler on the importance of online marketing and social media. What I was getting at, and should have made clearer, is that there aren't a lot of dealerships out there that will pay a lot of money for "better" photos, and that it isn't a venture that is going to allow someone to retire early. There isn't a lot of money in it, but would be great as a side job to supplement one's income.


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## dl4449 (May 11, 2011)

I also work for a dealership and the sales department uses a P&S 
I don't think any of them would pay some one to do it at lease here in California.


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## lyonsroar (May 11, 2011)

dl4449 said:


> I also work for a dealership and the sales department uses a P&S
> I don't think any of them would pay some one to do it at lease here in California.


 
Well they're obviously paying for it or else they wouldn't be posting a help wanted ad.  It's just a question of how much.  I'll email them tomorrow...


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## Bitter Jeweler (May 11, 2011)

Bo4key said:


> Bitter Jeweler said:
> 
> 
> > Bo4key said:
> ...


 

I really am not actively looking for something snide to say. I can't help that the opportunities on this forum are quite bountiful. I thank you for that.


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## c.cloudwalker (May 12, 2011)

Just like photographers, not all car dealerships are created equal.

Smart ebayers do recognize the fact that decent photos DO help the sales but that doesn't mean they are willing to spend a fortune on a photog. I think most of them do what a friend of mine did. Learn just enough, with some very basic gear, to produce clear, sharp decent shots.

That said, you won't know if this dealership is smart about the photography until you talk to them so I wouldn't worry about it other than getting yourself ready for all possibilities. And by that I mean, set yourself two rates (somewhat higher than what you really want to get so you can give them a discount, lol) and go talk to them.

First rate would be scenario 1: work for hire, they provide the space to shoot and all the gear you need (think about it in detail in case they are not set up but are interested in the idea.) Scenario 2 would be you shoot as an independent with your own gear and they bring the vehicle to your chosen spot if their lot is just too ugly.

Offer them both scenarios as you can get something for yourself in both cases. Sc 1: No need to put out money for any gear (lights is what comes to mind mostly) but you make some pay. Not having the rights to the shots is not a problem, why would you want rights to those shots?

Sc 2: Has the advantage, through higher pay, of financing gear for you that you can use somewhere else. You would need however to have a contract ready for them when you meet. And it needs to be a serious one, not something you're going to make up in the next 5 minutes without any knowledge of contract law.

Which scenario you push more will depend on your financial situation. For example, with sc 2, you need to get yourself some liability insurance. Imagine a light stand killing over and your strobe falling right on the car... you may have just bought yourself a paint job for a car you don't own. You also need to put out the money for the gear you don't have before anything comes in.

Going with sc 2 I would definitely put in a clause about a minimum number of cars per month so that you can come out ahead no matter what. What would be the point otherwise?

Lots to think about and figure out before you talk to them. Get set, ready, go!


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## gsgary (May 12, 2011)

You will only need a cheap point and shoot


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## sbakewell1101 (May 12, 2011)

A few years ago this was my exact job... amoung other office things was to photograph the cars... they gave me a point and shoot camera and a blank white wall. Knowing that the point and shoot camera was not really the best option, I opted for my dslr... i would bring it in with me every day and set my flash up to help with shadows on the tires and in the engine.. after a few weeks of me doing this and noone appreciating me using my own camera i stopped bringing my own camera.. they were pouring money into internet sales like no other doing this doing that... BUT the men that were in charge of this were like children and they would not stick to one thing or the other.they were constantly switching the way they wanted things done.. i kept my head on my job doing close to 25-30 pictures of every vehicle (we had about 100 vehicles on the lot at all times) this to me would of been a full time job... it seemed everytime i would find the vehicle, find the keys, make sure it was clean (if a used car) i would get the pictures done and then they would turn around and WHOLESALE the car.. not to a customer but to another dealership or auction so all the work I did adjusting it so it looked right, renaming the pictures so they would appear right on the site and whatever else I did was really just a waste...i would get soooo frustrated. because they were not making money off the wholesale.

Not to mention having to redo the shots once it was a different seasons... noone wants to buy a car that has been on the lot since winter which is evidenced by the snow in the picture... so in my job it was a lot of work because I also handled the website... filing... various other office stuff, and i did alot of their marketing plans like designing flyers... plus i only worked three days a week cause i was going to school... but i did a good job about keeping up with the cars cause to dope that was supposed to help me was always busy when it came time to go outside in the freezing winter or in the blistering sun (you know how cold it is in michigan in january in a cold car? or how hot that same car will be in july? lol)  

also know that car dealerships is a tough club.... mainly for guys (IMO) and a family thing... I worked there for one year and never once did they say  I was doing a bad job.. in fact me and the office manager got along VERY well.... then one day  I walked in and knew something was up.... there were new people... i i figured out that they were going to let me go because they came to me asking passwords and stuff... i confronted my boss and he said it was not his decision but the owners... who hired two people to do the job i was doing (why didn't they just have me do 5 days a week?!) my bosses tried to save my job, but since it was the owners neice and friend coming to work there i was up a river.. oh well ten days later i had a job at a law office, where I am doing what i go to school for lol...

so yeah take the job if you want lol but it is a lot of hard work lol


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## sbakewell1101 (May 12, 2011)

as a side note i checked their website and like 5 cars have the photos done... looks like the owners friend and relative did not do such a good job HA!


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## sbakewell1101 (May 12, 2011)

i tried starting facebook, twitter and thought about a blog, but really they there was no way for me to show them in their minds that this was working ..i had trackers on websites even could tell them the most viewed car on the website but they did "get it" at least i dont think...  i tried to implement a program that would find out HOW the customer found us but was not successful. 

to the people who are succesful at it i applaud them!


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## mrpink (May 12, 2011)

Internet sales is the future for the auto industry.  The other week I was in the dealership, back where the sales staff sit and do their email responses and calling, the sales manager came in and said that there was a couple on the lot looking for a used car.  No one's head even twitched, he asked if there was anyone available to go help them out... dead silence.  Now anyone who has ever been on an auto lot knows, you seem to be hounded at the very second your look at a car for more than 3 seconds, not anymore.  Internet ups, credit pre approvals, carfax certifications... it's all online.

Our photographer at work even does personal shoots for the Porsche and Maserati customers... I think he charges somewhere around $400 for 10 shots of their "baby".  Rich people love to have a photo of the car they spent a small fortune on, I guess it makes them feel better about themselves.

So, OP.  Do some research on the dealership you are soliciting.  Go to their website, print out some photos... have photos printed from a more professional photographer (not sure about copyright laws there- tread lightly)  You need to show them what they have, and what they are missing.  You would be surprised at how many General Managers have never even seen their own photos online, good or bad.

Good luck, dealership groups are a funny bunch.





p!nK


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