It never ceases to amaze me just how little some people are willing to pay for the artwork that they claim to love. And in order to get it cheap, they will use the line “But this will be a great promotion for you,” as if they are doing you a favor.
Just last week I got a call from a potential client wanting to know if Drew Brophy would be available to paint a design for a large event. The design would be used for t-shirts and posters.
“We love Drew’s work and we think it would be a fresh look form what we’ve been using,” he said enthusiastically. So far so good.
But then the red flags came out (and the hairs stand up on the back of my neck when this happens):
He started name-dropping. “We are going to have famous NFL Football team owners there, Mike Ditka, and famous comedians, and musicians.”
I don’t care if Buddha himself is going to be there, I just want to know what the project is so I can quote it out. “Can you tell me more about the design work you want done?” I asked, trying to steer him off of that topic. I had a meeting to go to in 10 minutes, and I didn’t care to talk about famous people.
I knew what was coming next, the IT WILL BE GOOD FOR YOU line. “This will be a great opportunity for Drew to show his artwork to all these celebrities.” Uh huh.
Ignoring that obvious lead-in to “we want it for free”, I said “Let’s talk about exactly what you are looking for so I can get you price quote.”
And then he pulled out the dreaded “Oh, how about a trade?”
This is where I lose my patience. I should be cooler than this, but there is no greater insult than having someone waste my time trying to get me to give away Drew’s sweat and tears.
“We don’t trade. We are a professional business. We charge for our services.” I said calmly, but agitated.
He stopped bragging about the famous people (and if he knew that Drew has quite a few famous friends and clients, who actually PAY for his paintings, he might have seen things differently), and we finally talked about the project.
I sent him a proposal, based on a fair and reasonable price quote. I already knew I was wasting my time. People who ask for trades are not serious clients or professional businesspeople. And they certainly don’t value the artwork.
We talked on the phone again, and he said “Your prices are too high. The guy I used last year charged almost half!” I said, “Well, that sounds like a great deal. You might want to use him again.”
He didn’t give up trying. “Look,” he said emphatically. “Cut us a break. We’ve already spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on this event.”
And that was it. That proved right there how little the artwork was valued. “You spent all that money and now you’re going to skimp on the artwork?” I asked, my voice high and exasperated.
He got it. Right there I think he got it. But I don’t know that he’ll call back (Especially if he stumbles on this post!) I doubt that the event is going to be as big as he described, because if it was, he’d want the public image on posters and t-shirts to be the best possible.
I don’t like to go down this road of complaining, but I share this experience because all artists face this problem.
And I think the answer to it is to stand your ground. If a client doesn’t value your work, then you shouldn’t sell it to them cheap, or trade it, and definitely never give it away.
Because in doing so, you devalue your work even more.
And worse than that, you’ll devalue the work of all the other professional artists out there who care about the industry of art.
If you value your work, then others will, too.
Maria xxoo (Below is a video of the cheapskates lines in the real world – it’s hilarious!)
