All Media

Recently a photographer asked what he should charge for ‘All Media’ use, in the UK for 1 year.
He knew the AOP’s guidelines recommended +750% for ‘All Media’ use; however, he felt that was totally wrong.

He claimed his BUR was £2000 (“my basic day rate for advertising is £2000.00, which gets them ONE yr UK, 2 media”) – but reckoned for ‘All Media’ use, £2,500 would be about right i.e. an additional £500.

So is the AOP’s BUR system wrong !!
Your BUR+750% = All Media.

Well, let’s look at it the other way around:
All Media-750% = your Base Usage Rate (BUR).

So if one says £2,500 is for ‘All Media’, then £2,500-750% would suggest one’s BUR is only £333.33 i.e. your basic rate for ‘standard use’.

Garbage In, Garbage Out – as they say.
If the figures don’t stack-up, then obviously your BUR figure must not be right – is the way I would see it.
The figure you are referring to may be based on something, but it should be obvious it’s not your Base Usage Rate – and if it is not your BUR, then naturally the AOP’s pricing guidelines will not make any sense.

So if you are wanting to use their pricing system, to help you work out what the fee should be, then obviously you need to get this bit right first.

Now let’s look at what ‘All Media’ actually covers.
Media use is broken down into the following sections and the recommended percentage figures for each media can be found in the AOP’s book Beyond the Lens:-

. Ambient (includes: garage forecourt, airport and rail station screens and all public areas where advertising is screened).
. Billboards / Posters (includes: 96/48/16/12/4 sheet, superlites, escalator panels, bus sides & panels, taxis wraps & seats, bus backs, tube, underground).
. Brochure / Catalogue.
. Direct Mail (includes: door drop leaflets & postcards).
. Inserts / Prints.
. Marketing Aids (includes: umbrellas, ashtrays, beer mats, exhibition panels, trolley panels).
. Magazine ads (includes: advertorial features, ads & PR).
. Magazine editorial.
. Newspaper (includes: advertorial features, ads & PR).
. Packaging.
. Point of sale.
. PR (includes: images used to promote within a press editorial/advertorial or trade handout).
. Press (includes: trade, consummer, local, national, magazine & newspapers).
. Television / Cinema (includes: interactive TV, Video, mobiles, CD ads).
. Worldwide web ( includes: email ads & internet use).

So if a client says they need to use the images in ‘All Media’, then this is all the things they are saying they need to use the images for. Which would indicate they are about to spend a lot of money here, over the next 12 months. Naturally that needs to be taken into account when you are quoting a fee, because clearly these images are hugely important to them.
Hence the +750% figure.
Which is there to help you meet their needs.

A useful link to terms used by Ad agencies and information on usage: A PhotoEditor.