Alyson Stanfield, Author at Art Biz Success

A Framework for Accepting Art Commissions

Whether you accept commissions for portraits (houses, people, pets), funerary urns, custom jewelry, or garden sculpture, you encounter situations that other artists don’t.

Commissioned artists must meet with patrons, communicate throughout the process, figure out payment schedules, and create documents that outline terms to the clients. All of this on top of making the client happy.

Commissions aren’t for everyone, which means there is plenty of room for artists who enjoy and are good at them. If you are one of those artists, follow these 8 steps to land more of them.

8 Steps for Landing Art Commissions

1. Add a prominent link for commissions on your website.

Include steps for commissioning a piece and testimonials from happy patrons alongside images of the finished work.

2. Provide at least two ways to contact you.

See that your marketing materials, including your website, have both an email address and a phone number. According to Matt Oechsli, the affluent prefer phone to email.

At least one artist has lost an opportunity for a mural commission because she didn’t have a phone number on her site and her email was down. How do I know? Because I was the person looking for an artist to help a neighbor with her project.

3. Understand your pricing structure.

Commissioned artwork should be priced higher than your other work because you are trying to meet someone else’s expectations.

Some artists charge as much as

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The Art Biz Bonus Episode: What Are Your Legal Priorities?

Do you need to be concerned about copyright? Trademark?

Is it important that you have tight contracts?

It depends on your definition of success and what your business goals are.

I know that “it depends” isn’t a satisfying answer, but it’s the truth. I don’t want you to pay buckets of money to attorneys when you don’t have to.

In this episode of the Art Biz Podcast, I talk with photographer and attorney Kiffanie Stahle about legal concerns for your art business.

Kiffanie, who is the founder of the artist’s J.D., has developed the Creative Business Model Canvas to help you home in on legal priorities. Find it here and follow along on this episode.

The Art Biz Bonus Episode: What Are Your Legal Priorities? Read

Where Motivation Comes From

I want to help you expand your art business and grow your art career.

Each of my blog posts, class lessons, or live events is carefully designed to help you get one step closer to your dream.

In these formats, I can teach you:

What strategies you could be using to promote your art.
Why these strategies are helpful.
How to implement strategies.
About artists who are getting good results by using these strategies.

Still, as much as I would like, I cannot teach you how to get motivated to do the work.

I’d go so far as to say that I can’t teach you anything if you are not motivated.

I can give you information, but that information is no good if it is merely collected – put on a shelf in hopes that it will somehow magically work just because you paid for it.

I can write motivational articles or respond with positive feedback if you comment on my blog or Facebook page, but I cannot give you the motivation to take action.

Motivation must come from within you.

If you aren’t motivated to do the work, it doesn’t matter how many books you read or classes you take. You’re throwing your money away if

Where Motivation Comes From Read

How To Plan Your Year

What’s on your calendar for the New Year?

I’m not talking about your appointment calendar. I’m talking big picture. What are you doing that makes you want to jump out of bed in the morning and get to work?

If there’s not much there, it’s time to get busy. You can’t earn more money or increase recognition without exhibitions and events on your schedule.

You can use a desk or desktop calendar for appointments, but for this job you want to get a clear overview of your year’s rhythm.

You’re looking for periods that you know will be particularly busy and others when you might be able to sneak away for a well-deserved vacation.

You also want to be aware of potential for too much overlap on your calendar. There might events you’d like to schedule, but might bump up against others that are already in place.

It’s confusing to schedule events that occur too close to one another.

It’s confusing to your fans and followers because everything looks to have the same level of importance. They don’t know which message to pay more attention to.

It’s also confusing to you because you’re promoting more than one thing at a time. You don’t know how and where to spend your energy.

There are numerous ways to plan your year so that you can envision its rhythm. Here are the two most important ones that I use.

The Wall Calendar

The framework for all of my planning is a wall calendar so that I can see the entire year at once.

I’ve shared previously that I love the Seize The Year calendar by Neu Year. Its biggest asset is that it can be displayed either vertically or horizontally.

How To Plan Your Year Read

My Favorite Things 2017 Edition

You won’t find raindrops on roses or whiskers on kittens on this list, though I’d argue that they are both delightful. Instead, here’s a peek at the things that made me happy over the past year (or longer).

I hope you’ll read and share your own favorite things in a comment.

Food

Bert’s Eggnog

On last year’s favorite things list, I saved the best for last. This year, I won’t make you wait.

This family recipe has made many a doubter into an eggnog convert. I’ve tried others that professed to be THE BEST, but they’ve never come close. I defy you to make a single batch of it.

Nopalito

Luck steered my husband and me into Nopalito restaurant in San Francisco last spring. WOW! If I could live a healthy life on their totopos alone, I’d do it.

But I don’t need to wait to return to San Francisco because their cookbook had recently been released and, ever since, my husband been earning the title Chef. We have had many delicious meals from the Nopalito cookbook.

Rosemary-Mezcal Paloma Cocktail

Some people live on Mai Tais on Maui, but we lived on Palomas. If we have to have them away from that island paradise (twist our arms), we add our spin – inspired by the delicious version at Vesta Dipping Grill in Denver. We make it with smoky Mezcal instead of tequila and add homemade rosemary syrup. Heaven.

Cleansing

In last year’s favorite things post, I mentioned The Plan: Eliminate the Surprising “Healthy” Foods That Are Making You Fat–and Lose Weight Fast (2014)by Lyn-Genet Recitas. This approach to eating the foods that are right for you is right for me. Whenever I feel off-track with regard to eating (often!), I jump on her 3-day cleanse and lose a few extra pounds while gaining energy.

Reads

Both of these books were gifts from my wise coaches.

The Book of Joy

You can’t go wrong when the two main characters are

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The Art Biz ep. 13: Find a Niche for Your Art with Maria Brophy

Maria Brophy has served as an art agent to her husband, Drew Brophy, since 2001. Since then she has also helped thousands of other artists plan their careers, increase sales, and negotiate deals. Her experience and secrets are chronicled in her new book, Art Money Success.

I asked Maria what she was most excited about these days, and she gave me a pretty decent list.

I liked #1 on that list: niche markets. Done! Now we can talk.

In this episode of the Art Biz Podcast, Maria and I discuss:

What is a niche market?
4 types of niche markets for artists:
1. Style of art
2. Lifestyle
3. Geographic location
4. Purpose
How to find your niche audience.

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21 Snappy Things to Write on a Note Card Besides Happy Birthday

Jamie was my BFF in middle school. Though we were inseparable at the time, we drifted apart in high school and thereafter.

Over the past ten years, we rediscovered our friendship and have been trying it on as maturing adults.

Something lovely has happened recently: we’ve started writing letters. By hand. The kind you have to put a stamp on and drag your butt to a mailbox to send.

I see it as a way to use up my embarrassingly large stockpile of note cards and stationery. But it’s more than that. It’s nostalgic. It reminds me of the notes we used to write, carefully fold, and pass to each other in the hallways between classes.

I feel a little sorry for those who are wed to digital texts and social platforms – and the kids who will never know the joy that those paper notes can bring.

And there is something joyful about handwriting on paper.

I’ve always encouraged clients to distinguish themselves by sending handwritten cards (with their art on them) in the mail. The message you share is sincere and introduces people to or reminds them of your art.

Here are 21 reasons (as if you needed them) to send a card to a friend or potential friend.

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Christie's video - Salvator Mundi by Leonardo

Is Any Artwork Worth $450 Million? (Curious Monday)

Last week, someone paid $450million for Leonardo da Vinci’s Salvator Mundi.

Yeah, it’s Leonardo.

Yeah, there are fewer than 25 known works by Leonardo.

Yeah, it’d be pretty cool to have one of Leo’s works hanging in your home.

But … 4 hundred and 50 million dollars?

Is any artwork worth that amount?

Tell us what you think in a comment.

Is Any Artwork Worth $450 Million? (Curious Monday) Read

The Art Biz ep. 12: The Bumpy Road to Success: Stories from Our Clients

I believe in the power of being part of a dynamic group of ambitious people.

You can’t possibly get everything you need from a single person, and I can’t possibly know everything there is to know about artists’ businesses and careers. That’s why I created the Art Biz Inner Circle and why it has grown over the years.

Our members represent a wide range of media, personal goals, and geographical regions – including quite a few who are overseas. Yet they rely on one another for inspiration, motivation, strategies, and accountability.

Throughout the year, we have watched many of our members create and attain their stretch goals – several of them doubling (and more) their income from last year.

We supported members as they struggled and reorganized their plans. Yes, even the ones who attained their big goals encountered bumps along the road to success.

Our team of coaches is top-notch (I don’t trust just anyone with my clients).

In this podcast, I talk with Debby Williams and Cynthia Morris, who serve as coaches for our members in the Art Biz Inner Circle. We discuss the celebrations we witnessed as well as the many struggles our artists faced and we provide numerous tips to help with your artist journey.

The Art Biz ep. 12: The Bumpy Road to Success: Stories from Our Clients Read

7 Ways You Might Be Scaring Off Potential Buyers

Art buyers often have as many insecurities about the process of buying art as you do, which means they are sensitive to the signals you’re sending.

It’s your job to reassure them that they are making the right decisions – and you can do so in very subtle ways without resorting to sales speak.

And it has just as much to do with what you don’t do and say.

Here are seven practices that will scare off your audience and potential fans.

1. Being indecisive about prices.

Indecision makes you appear less confident.

Set your prices after you’ve done your homework and be ready to share them in person and online.

If you’re ever pushed for a price that you aren’t certain about, say, “Let me check my list and get back to you. I wouldn’t want to give you the wrong price.”

2. Apologizing for your art.

The apologetic artist who brushes aside compliments about her art is not market-attractive.

I am not in any way condoning arrogance. I’m saying that you need to hold your head up and say “Thank You” when you are given a compliment.

As Julia Child said in Julie & Julia, “Never apologize. No excuses. No explanations.” Along the same lines . . .

3. Playing down the fact that you’re an artist.

Heart surgeons don’t look at the ground and say, “I’m kind of a heart surgeon.” When someone asks what you do, you shouldn’t respond meekly with, “Well, I’m kind of an artist.”

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Alyson Stanfield