Top 21 Reasons To Start A Photo Booth Business
So with all the choices of businesses to start there, why start a new Photo Booth company in 2024? Is it lucrative? Is the market over-saturated?
What if you don’t have any prior knowledge or experience in photography or in starting a business?
I had many of the same questions before I started my own photo booth business. If you’ve been on the fence about starting a photo booth business, I’ll break down everything you need to know about why I recommend it.
1. The Photo Booth Industry is Growing
Have you been to a corporate holiday party, wedding, bat mitzvah, or Quinceanera lately? You may have found yourself wearing a goofy hat or glasses and performing a fun Boomerang with your friends in front of a photo booth.
Photo booths have become a staple at events, and this trend continues to grow. As noted in Google Trends, the search term “photo booth rental” continues to represent a strong interest in search terms over time.
Furthermore, as an industry, the photo booth market is anticipated to reach $1 Billion in sales in 2032, up from $589 M in 2022 according to Global Market Insights.
This is due to the growing demand in the photo booth rental industry as people continue to demand photo booths to capture memories of their most cherished life events.
Whether it is a wedding, a 50th birthday party, Quinceañera, or a corporate holiday event, the demand for photo booth rentals is growing.
Furthermore, with the growth of AI, photo booth software is raising the bar on what is possible for backdrops and visuals within the industry. It’s an exciting time to be a photo booth owner.
2. Low Start Up Costs
A photo booth business can be started with $3K-$4K with the most expensive item being the photo booth itself and an iPad or DSLR camera.
The good news is that most photo booth companies allow you to pay monthly so even if it takes longer to pay back, the low monthly cost of less than $200 is worth it. Furthermore, you can tie the iPad into your monthly phone contract.
I bought my first booth through the Photo Booth Supply Company called the “Salsa Booth.” It is an iPad-based photo booth which means the iPad screen is used by the attendant and guests to operate the booth.
What I love about it is that it’s easy to set up and it is modern, sleek, and elegant and fits well at any event.
If you’re interested in offering prints in addition to a digital booth, a high-quality photo printer will cost anywhere between 700-1200.
I highly recommend a DNP 620a dye sublimation printer. It’s about 50 lbs, and it produces high-quality and fast-drying prints.
When you’re at an event, the last thing you want is a guest hanging out by the printer waiting for their prints.
3. Fast Income and Great Money
imagesOne of the biggest perks in the photo booth rental business is how quickly you can make money.
I found this out after launching my business in 2022. Within 30 days of starting, I made enough money at my new business to pay back the $3500 upfront costs of the booth with money left over.
I started my own photo booth business with digital sharing-only events and did not initially offer prints. My initial marketing strategies included promoting my photo booth business within my local area. I posted on local Facebook and Nextdoor sites and to my friends and family network.
My target market focused on corporate and community events because we were just entering the holiday season.
Based on my market research within my local area, I was able to charge between $450 to $1500 for digital events.
I would suggest looking at your local market to see who your competitors are to understand what the market rate is for your area.
For example, if you live in a major metropolitan city like New York City, photo booth rental businesses will charge more than in a rural town with lower demand.
However, if you are the only photo booth owner in your small town, that will serve as an advantage to you!
If you offer prints, this can be included within your packages or as an add-on service. I charge $200 for unlimited print photos.
You can also offer guest books, customized backdrops, Airdrop, a Glam filter, a survey results feature, and more as add-ons. The glam filter is a filter with a clean, white backdrop, it produces gorgeous and flawless photo shots.
A tip! When business slows down, like right after the holidays, I offer discounts and specials to attract more clients.
4. Entertainment Value
Photo booths add a fun and entertaining element to any event, making it memorable for guests.
Taking silly pictures and sharing special moments is not only fun but it lightens the mood at events.
5. Anyone Can Start A Photo Booth Business and Do Well
You do not have to have any prior knowledge in photography, technology, or business to be successful.
As a new photo booth business owner, you learn by doing. Get yourself out there and you will learn a ton just by working a variety of events. This is a great way to learn what types of events you prefer over others so you can market to specific clients.
Within the first several months of owning my photo booth business, I worked at various events – children’s parties, weddings, corporate functions, and more. I learned pretty quickly which clients I preferred working for the most and targeted my marketing efforts to capture these groups.
In addition, before you start your photo booth business, make sure you conduct solid market research on the types of photo booths available along with the software and customer service included.
If you are going to stand apart as a successful photo booth rental company, you need solid equipment and software that will deliver the best products for your clients so your photo booth rental business can stand out.
Having easy-to-use software and access to excellent customer service is vital.
I love the software and customer support offered through The Photo Booth Supply Company. It is streamlined, very easy to use, and has excellent access to customer service.
It also comes with ready-made marketing tools such as quality images, examples of client proposals, pricing tables, and print templates to get your photo booth rental business up and going quickly.
With access to pre-made marketing material, I was able to launch my business efficiently and create a beautiful website. Furthermore, I was able to secure my first clients by sending them examples of professional, ready-made proposals.
If I had to produce all the marketing materials on my own, it would have greatly slowed me down from launching my own business and it would have taken me longer to secure my first few clients.
6. Great Flexibility – You Decide When You Work
For me, flexibility along with great income were the main sellers of buying a photo booth. I can accept jobs that work around my schedule – not the other way around.
As a busy mom working multiple jobs, I needed an income source that would both pay well and provide flexibility in my schedule.
The photo booth business fits that bill. You can choose to work when you want and for whom you want to. You simply choose the work you’d like and kindly do not accept the events you choose not to.
Furthermore, especially with iPad-based photo booths that are very easy to operate, you can choose to provide only drop-off services without an attendant during the event. This frees up the time you need to be present at the event.
Or let’s say you have small children at home and you don’t want to leave them with a babysitter. You can outsource someone to do the setup and breakdown for you. As the owner and boss, you call the shots.
7. Add Your Photo Booth To Your Established Party Rental Services
Are you a photographer? A DJ or bartender? If you’re already in the party event business, you can make easy money by adding a photo booth to your established business.
Make it easy on your client by including a photo booth in your list of offered services so your client doesn’t have to find a separate vendor.
8. Training Is Straightforward
The best way to learn in the photo booth business is simply by doing. By going to events you’ll learn quickly what to do and what not to do.
For example, I learned the hard way to always set the backdrop against a wall or sturdy structure. Without doing this, guests fall back into the backdrop and break it.
This happened to me about three times, but without going to events, I would not have learned.
When you receive your new booth, read and learn everything you can and reach out to the photo booth company and other photo booth owners for any questions you may have.
There are helpful successful photo booth business owners on Facebook groups who can answer questions for you as well.
9. Ease of Use
Photo booths, especially iPad-based, are user-friendly and don’t require professional photography skills. The simplicity of operation allows people of all ages to participate and enjoy the experience. The photo booth is easy enough for children to take their pictures along with seniors.
10. Easy Service To Explain & Sell To Clients
Most people have a general idea of what a photo booth is even if it’s a vision of one of the old fashion booths you see at the movie theaters.
It’s a relatively straightforward service to explain to potential clients, and with the marketing materials and visuals, even easier to demonstrate.
Through the Photo Booth Supply Company software, there is a cool tool called “Proposals.”
Here you can send a client a sample proposal of what their event would look like. You can include a sample backdrop, photo template, and overlay, and the proposal will showcase what a photo, boomerang, video, and GIF will look like for that client’s event. Here’s an example: https://boothpics.com/proposal/HDAB
The proposal tool is an excellent way to acquire more bookings – especially from new clients who need to see a visual idea of which features the photo booth can perform. The proposal hits home because it showcases an excellent all-in-one visual for the client so there’s no longer any guesswork.
11. Scaleable Business Plan
If you choose to scale your business, it’s easy. You can purchase additional booths to cover more events, expand your client base in multiple geographic regions, or even partner with other owners.
There are a variety of photo booth types out there to choose from and offer to your clients – 360 booths, stand-alone, enclosed, iPad run, DSLR, mirror booths, and the list goes on. No glass ceiling here.
Furthermore, as a photo booth operator, you have the choice to either be the attendant yourself or outsource an attendant.
If you are your attendant, the profit margins are higher as you are not absorbing staff expenses. However, if you own multiple booths, you can greatly increase your profits and serve more clientele.
12. Innovative Products & Services
The photo booth business has been evolving over the years, continually introducing innovative services and ideas to enhance the user experience and stay ahead of the market.
Examples include:
- Digital and Augmented Reality Enhancements:
- Integration of digital and augmented reality features has become a trend. Photo booths now offer augmented reality filters, backgrounds, and digital props, providing users with a unique and interactive experience.
- Social Media Integration:
- Photo booths have adapted to the social media era by incorporating features that allow users to instantly share their pictures on various social media platforms. Some even offer customizable hashtags and captions, promoting user-generated content.
- Green Screen Technology:
- Green screen technology has become a popular addition to photo booths. It enables users to choose and customize backgrounds, transporting them to different locations or fantasy settings, adding an extra layer of creativity to their photos.
- 360-Degree Photo Booths:
- Innovations in photo booth design have led to the development of 360-degree photo booths. These booths capture images from all angles, creating stunning and immersive photos or GIFs.
- Innovations in photo booth design have led to the development of 360-degree photo booths. These booths capture images from all angles, creating stunning and immersive photos or GIFs.
- Animated GIFs and Boomerangs:
- Photo booths now often include features that allow users to create animated GIFs or boomerang-style videos. This dynamic element adds a fun and shareable aspect to the traditional photo booth experience.
- Customization and Branding:
- Businesses have started offering highly customizable experiences for events. This includes personalized photo layouts, branding options, and the ability to tailor the entire photo booth setup to match the theme of the event.
- Data Analytics and Insights:
- Some photo booth services leverage surveys and data analytics to provide insights into user engagement. This can help businesses understand trends, user preferences, and the overall success of their photo booth services at events.
- Contactless and Touchless Technology:
- In response to health and safety concerns, the photo booth industry has adopted touchless technology. Users can now operate the booth, select options, and share photos without physical contact with the booth’s interface.
- Instant Digital Sharing and Printing:
- Guests enjoy sharing their digital prints instantly through text, email, Airdrop and then downloading on social media. Instant prints are also a big highlight at events. For older adults who may not be the best at digital sharing, offering physical prints is a great idea.
- Guests enjoy sharing their digital prints instantly through text, email, Airdrop and then downloading on social media. Instant prints are also a big highlight at events. For older adults who may not be the best at digital sharing, offering physical prints is a great idea.
As technology continues to advance, we can expect even more exciting developments such as AI in the world of photo booth services.
13. Versatility Of Events
You won’t be pigeonholed into just being hired for one particular event.
These days, photo booth rentals have a home at virtually every type of event including weddings, corporate parties, engagement parties, quinceaneras, bat mitzvahs, senior centers, birthday parties, baby showers, graduation parties, school dances, and any other social events you can think of.
Don’t be surprised to see a photo booth event at the next event you attend!
14. Easy For One Person To Transport & Set-Up
The heaviest two pieces of equipment are the photo booth and the printer (if you provide prints). The photo booth comes in a sturdy case on wheels for easy travel. The printer weighs roughly 50 lbs.
The other equipment and items you will need like props, extension cords, and lighting can fit into bags and carry cases. For our events, werecommend using a collapsible utility wagon to transport everything.
For transport, any car will work. If you’re doing larger or multiple events that require more than one booth, a larger car or SUV would work best.
I deliver and set up 90% of my events. I’m 51 years old and 5′ 2.” The hardest part for me is putting the photo booth into the car but because it’s in a case on wheels, I can wheel it to where I need to go.
The printer can be heavy to carry at 50 lbs. so I usually put that on the wagon to transport with my other equipment.
15. Creative Expression: Designing and customizing photo booth events allows you to showcase your creative expertise – and it’s fun!
Setting up and breaking down a photo booth is not the only responsibility at an event. The preparation work includes crafting unique template designs catered to your client’s desires.
For example, if a Pokemon birthday is coming up on your calendar, your client will request a Pokemon-themed template.
For many in the photo booth business, designing and customizing templates is one of the most satisfying aspects of the job.
Why? Because creative people find it enjoyable to customize a template from scratch. Aside from making people happy with their photos, this is my favorite part of each event.
My go-to for custom designs is Canva. I love their easy-to-use templates and colorful design choices.
However, if you are not interested in designing your templates, there are plenty of samples to choose from on the Photobooth Supply software. You can also purchase customized photo templates through Etsy and Shopify.
16. Repeat Clients Grow Your Business
As a photo booth owner, the end goal is to provide a customized, enjoyable, and memorable experience for your clients.
You do this by preparing well, setting up on time, being friendly and accommodating, and delivering what the client expects. Going above and beyond and satisfying the client’s needs first will lead to repeat business for you.
In addition, the client does not want to spend time looking for another vendor if they already have a solid, established relationship with you.
Half of my current booked events are through repeat clients. Repeat clients are also the best referral source for your business.
17. Virtual Booth Access
An awesome feature offered by many photo booth manufacturers is the virtual booth. Simply stated, this allows full participation access to any guest who cannot physically make the event in person.
Virtual guests can join in on all the fun of the event in real-time and access all of the features in-person guests can including photos, GIFs, Boomerangs, and videos.
Virtual guests can use digital props and even pose with friends in group photos. These pictures are then shared in the full gallery with everyone else.
18. Marketing Opportunities For Photo Booth Owners & Companies
Events provide marketing opportunities for photo booth owners and businesses.
For photo booth business owners, you can attach company information when photos are shared digitally or you can also provide your logo or name on the physical prints.
You also have free range to market your booth on the day of the event. Examples include wrapping your booth with your logo, providing business cards on the prop table, wrapping your prop table with a customized design of your name and logo, and including a QR code with your company name and contact details on the back of the photo booth for guests to scan.
For companies, marketing features are similar – the photo booth can be wrapped with logos and company branding.
Photos can include the company name and logo.
Furthermore, your client may be interested in gathering information from guests about a particular topic. The photo booth operator sets up the survey-sharing option and includes the questions the client wants guests to answer. Guests must answer the questions before they can access their prints.
Surveys can also be in the form of a fun quiz game for a baby shower, wedding, or birthday. For example, maybe it’s a gender reveal party and the host wants to capture from her guests whether they think the baby is a boy or a girl. Guests answer the question directly at the photo booth.
Surveys can be as short as one question, or as long as you want it to be, with both multiple choice and open-ended answers so you can control the types of responses or leave it all up to the guests.
All of the responses are saved online for you and your client to download and view after the event.
19. Social Interaction
Photo booths provide a shared activity for people at events. Waiting in line, taking photos together, and laughing at the results promote social interaction and bonding among participants and break the ice for strangers at events.
When clients plan events, they are looking for something fun and festive their guests can do together. Photo booths satisfy that need for event planners. Photo booths act like an icebreaker at events and bring people together.
20. Photo Booths Are Fun
Simply put, photo booths are fun and people like them. They provide a form of entertainment, allowing individuals or groups to take spontaneous and often silly pictures.
The process of posing, using props, and capturing moments adds a lighthearted and enjoyable element to social gatherings.
Whether you offer digital, prints, or both, photos serve as memorable keepsakes.
Props and backdrops come in a variety of styles, and even the most reserved participants enjoy dressing up to strike fun poses.
21. Everyone Is Happy To See You
Unlike going to the dentist or being pulled over by a cop for speeding, people are generally pretty excited to see you show up at the photo booth.
You are bringing the star of the party to the party.
It’s pretty cool to have a job where you can share a product that provides a ton of fun and enhances an event. And honestly, since I’ve been a photo booth owner, it never really feels like I’m working because I enjoy seeing other people have fun and enjoy themselves.
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For an active income stream, the photo booth business is a great choice for so many reasons.
With the combination of providing great entertainment, social interaction, and lasting memories, the photo booth business continues to grow and increase in popularity.
