Welcome to the dark side.
I have been working on a mini- series all about commissions for the past week, I have already shared all the good things, how to get commissions and how to get paid, now it's time to share the not so great things and how to deal with them.
As with all of these blogs there is a video about this subject to go alongside so feel free to watch that( it's at the bottom of the page) instead if you would like more information about each of these points - or you can always do both !
So here we go -
1. Not having time for personal work
It's so important as a creative person that you get time to work on personal projects as that is how we express ourselves as artists and unfortunately commissions are super time consuming and can often lead to us not having any time to do our own thing.
2. Being a drawing machine
Sometimes you might have to work with clients that are not really interested in your creativity and / or opinion and only want you for your skills, they just need what's in their head put on paper and as they can't do it themselves, that's where you come in. Try not to take this personally, just focus on giving the client what they want and making them happy, they will appreciate it !
3. Non-qualified buyers
Not all artists are the same and the same goes for collectors, you will be contacted at some point by somebody who is interested in having a piece of artwork done, but speaking to you about it for a while, they may decide that you aren't the artist for them for whatever reason, this will lead to a little bit of your time being wasted, and that is fine, it comes with the territory, learn from it and give your time to qualified buyers and collectors, people that are interested in you and your artwork and nourish those relationships.
4. A loss of creative energy
Working on your own work is inspiring and energising, you are excited to see your vision come to life, with commissions you are creating somebody else's vision so you may not get the same boost of energy from it, it may actually drain you of energy form time to time, leaving you unable to create not only alongside the commission, but for a time after also.
5. Dealing with complaints and adjustments
Since you are creating artwork directly for the client, it's up to them what they want and you have to cater to their needs, you may need to change something that you disagree with or even have to deal with occasional complaints. Try and remember that this isn't personal, always be polite and professional, you never know who s going to recommend you and you don't want to be spoken about for the wrong reasons !
6. The complicated payment
It's up to you how to take your payments but generally they are taken in 2 halves, 50% upfront then the following 50% upon completion. On top of this is the lengthy discussion about prices, leading to this being a much more complicated process than someone simply going to your website and dropping a piece of artwork into their basket and checking out. Make sure when you are communicating with your client, you let them know exactly your payment terms so that there is no confusion. Always keep a copy of your correspondence and if possible, get a signed or written confirmation from the client that they agree to your terms.
Here is the video for more info -
This was the last post on this subject for now, I quite like that it was in 3 parts, I love a good trilogy!
If there is anything else specific that you would like me to cover, feel free to ask, I would be happy to help ! :)
Camile xoxo
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