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I am lucky enough to be part of an Art group made up of a very diverse artists with mad skills. We get together ever month or so and share projects we have done or are doing. We ask each other advice not only about art but also about promotion of our work and the business of selling one’s art or one’s skills. I love it because it always shakes my brain lose and I can look at things with a fresh perspective.
One thing I have found is by the end of the group I can place a theme on what we talked about for the most part. There are some that are all over the place, but many can be boiled down to a topic.
This month the topic was “Don’t Sell Yourself Short”.
No, I will not lower my price…..
I have version one of my web site up
https://www.nostringsattachedpuppets.com
It needs a lot of work but it’s up. I have gotten back some good feedback and I know where the weak points are including that the phone version does not work at all but that’s figuring out the code to fix that.
It has been up for about a week and I have had two inquires and both want me to reduce the prices on the puppets I have for sale and then they might consider buying them.
A very long time ago an artist who I really respect looked at what I was charging for my puppets and told me to raise my prices. He gave me a formula to figure out the true price of what I was creating from the cost of materials to just making minimum wage for the number of hours I spend making a puppet. I did the math and found that I was under cutting myself to where I was making materials and about 1.50 an hour for labor. I had to raise my prices by $50.00 to even get in the range of minimum wage.
The prices I have on my puppets on the site are my minimum prices I will accept for those puppets.
There is this story of a businessman coming to an artist for a Logo for their business. The artist created the logo to the businessman’s satisfaction rather quickly. The artist gives the businessman the bill for the logo and the businessman says, “But it took you such a short time. Why should I pay you this?” The artist replies, “It took me over 20 years and a lot of work to get to the point that I can create your logo in a reasonable amount of time. You are paying me for my skill and knowledge like you would pay a mechanic to fix your car.”
But the Exposure…
This is something that artists hear all the time. If you do this for me for free or a greatly reduced price then you will get people’s eyes on your work.
The sad thing is that this comes from major businesses that would not even think twice to pay their CEO absurd amounts of money but balk at paying an artist a reasonable fee for their work.
The gaming industry is rife with this problem but I have seen it in the publishing industry and the comic industry and other businesses that use creative work to promote their products.
As one artist put it, “You can die from exposure.”
There are exceptions but they should be rare rather than a common occurrence.
Don’t Under Sell Your Skills…
The shape of the workforce is changing. Where companies did hire pretty much for life, now it is what have you done for the company lately.
A lot of people in their 50s are finding themselves being downsized or shown the door and now they have to find another job because they are nowhere near retirement.
The companies kick their older employees to the curb for younger employees who cost less. There is no company loyalty to their employees. It is all the bottom line and how much money they can make. Start ‘costing’ them too much and the door is right there.
These people have skills that they have learned through their job which are a valuable commodity. But trying to find another permanent position is harder the older you get. You end up piecemealing your career trying to keep everything together.
Don’t sell yourself short. Everything you have learned is worth something. Your experience is worth something. Your skills are worth something. You are worth something.
To my friends who are currently figuring out what is next for them, I wish you all the luck and hope your next job is what you need in your life.
To my friends who are on the creative end of various industries, don’t sell what you know and what you can do short. You have worth.
To those starting out on their careers, even with minimal experience, what you have learned over the years has worth.
To paraphrase Harlan Ellison, “Pay the artist”.
I am grateful for people who do see the worth of what I create.
One thing I have found is by the end of the group I can place a theme on what we talked about for the most part. There are some that are all over the place, but many can be boiled down to a topic.
This month the topic was “Don’t Sell Yourself Short”.
No, I will not lower my price…..
I have version one of my web site up
https://www.nostringsattachedpuppets.com
It needs a lot of work but it’s up. I have gotten back some good feedback and I know where the weak points are including that the phone version does not work at all but that’s figuring out the code to fix that.
It has been up for about a week and I have had two inquires and both want me to reduce the prices on the puppets I have for sale and then they might consider buying them.
A very long time ago an artist who I really respect looked at what I was charging for my puppets and told me to raise my prices. He gave me a formula to figure out the true price of what I was creating from the cost of materials to just making minimum wage for the number of hours I spend making a puppet. I did the math and found that I was under cutting myself to where I was making materials and about 1.50 an hour for labor. I had to raise my prices by $50.00 to even get in the range of minimum wage.
The prices I have on my puppets on the site are my minimum prices I will accept for those puppets.
There is this story of a businessman coming to an artist for a Logo for their business. The artist created the logo to the businessman’s satisfaction rather quickly. The artist gives the businessman the bill for the logo and the businessman says, “But it took you such a short time. Why should I pay you this?” The artist replies, “It took me over 20 years and a lot of work to get to the point that I can create your logo in a reasonable amount of time. You are paying me for my skill and knowledge like you would pay a mechanic to fix your car.”
But the Exposure…
This is something that artists hear all the time. If you do this for me for free or a greatly reduced price then you will get people’s eyes on your work.
The sad thing is that this comes from major businesses that would not even think twice to pay their CEO absurd amounts of money but balk at paying an artist a reasonable fee for their work.
The gaming industry is rife with this problem but I have seen it in the publishing industry and the comic industry and other businesses that use creative work to promote their products.
As one artist put it, “You can die from exposure.”
There are exceptions but they should be rare rather than a common occurrence.
Don’t Under Sell Your Skills…
The shape of the workforce is changing. Where companies did hire pretty much for life, now it is what have you done for the company lately.
A lot of people in their 50s are finding themselves being downsized or shown the door and now they have to find another job because they are nowhere near retirement.
The companies kick their older employees to the curb for younger employees who cost less. There is no company loyalty to their employees. It is all the bottom line and how much money they can make. Start ‘costing’ them too much and the door is right there.
These people have skills that they have learned through their job which are a valuable commodity. But trying to find another permanent position is harder the older you get. You end up piecemealing your career trying to keep everything together.
Don’t sell yourself short. Everything you have learned is worth something. Your experience is worth something. Your skills are worth something. You are worth something.
To my friends who are currently figuring out what is next for them, I wish you all the luck and hope your next job is what you need in your life.
To my friends who are on the creative end of various industries, don’t sell what you know and what you can do short. You have worth.
To those starting out on their careers, even with minimal experience, what you have learned over the years has worth.
To paraphrase Harlan Ellison, “Pay the artist”.
I am grateful for people who do see the worth of what I create.
