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!)
Haha! Great article María! I get that all the time. Both with artwork and music. Drew’s one blessed dude having you to do the negotiating. My wife’s the one that’s good a the negotiating part too. I don’t have the patience! -Danny
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You will appreciate these videos. They say it all:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mj5IV23g-fE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R2a8TRSgzZY
“We didn’t budget for this”
“We’ve only got $ so much set aside for this”
“We paid less at the taco stand”
“We can roll the cost over to the next time”
“I’m not making any money on this, either”
“This is an opportunity”
“You gotta work with me”
This video has all the lines that we hear over and over again! It’s hilarious!
Thanks, Annie Wildbear for sending me to these videos
Aw man, too funny Maria! I feel your frustration, these guys are like cockroaches. Everywhere! They seem to be crawling out of the wood work lately! Time to open up a can of Raid! 🙂
Wow, I love the part when he said the guy he used last year was half the price, and you said, well you should use him again! That is awesome! You can tell it didn’t work out because he was looking for someone new! Most of the time when someone charges half the price than the norm, they are half the problem! You pay the fair price and you get professionalism and quality! Thank you for training all the people out there to treat all of us artists with respect! :o)
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LOL – that video was chock full of those “budget excuses” we all hear! Another great article, Maria!
I say just about the same thing that you did when Joe Cheapskate tells me that some other painter will do the work for “$x”: “well, I’m sorry I can’t drop my price, so go ahead and have them do it for you if my price isn’t in your budget”. Funny thing is that they later end up bringing the motorcycle parts to me to have the work re-done while complaining about how long the other guy had his parts (I’ve built my reputation on quality and quick turnaround time). Karma can be such a witch – they end up paying two artists instead of just paying me ONCE.
REally good video to make your point! Thanks for this article.
I wish I had a nickle for every time I have been approached with these offers. I would be Trump rich. Problem is I have fell for it many times to and got burnt. Many times I have just wanted to go work at McDonald’s. Just give it up. Plenty of times I have volunteered my art out of the goodness of my heart to help organization like homeless kids or something but I think that is different. Some times I just want to punch them in the face for asking. That wouldn’t be very christian of me though.
Mike
One other thing I always ask them if they barter with the brain surgeon before they have their brain surgery. They looked all over and found you for a reason and now they want to pay as little as possible is ridiculous. Sports players, actors, union workers can all go on strike and get more money but if we want to charge more oh my we are criminals…..
Mike
Hi Maria,
Stumbled on your articles this evening, thought they were great. Thank you!
Tom
Thanks for addressing this topic Maria. It’s probably a good idea to re-address it every few months just to remind us artists that there are people worth waiting for that value what we do. It’s so easy to fall for these “offers”. I’m pretty good about reading them up front, but still, I watched the video with a heavy feeling in my heart remembering times I’ve come across these people. It’s so degrading, and so hard to remember to hold the line all the time. Your story of how you handled the situation is one we all need to hear. Art is one of those things that most don’t value until it’s taken away.
Maria! Your posts are always a breath of fresh air. Very grateul that you share your experiences online – I’m going through the above situation at the moment and it’s NOT FUN but courage and confidence will see me through and this post has helped reinforce my confidence to stick to my guns…
What a great article! I am a face and body painting artist and I get this lots too!
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Another fantastic article Marvelous Maria!
Ask yourself – what kinds of people do you want to work with, then read this quote from the article:
“People who ask for trades are not serious clients or professional businesspeople. And they certainly don’t value the artwork.”
Stand your ground.
Have an excellent day!
Love the clip! Good for you for standing your ground!
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