Today I’m in a sharing mood. This is a random collection of things that I have learned while building my business. Some have cost me money so maybe I can save you some. Some are just interesting -because they are frustrating when you don’t know them and so obvious once you do. I’m going to “type out loud” so let’s see what comes to mind… ready?
#1: DON’T USE SYMBOLS IN FILE NAMES.
Although you can use symbols (#, %, etc) when saving files on a Mac, PC’s don’t have a clue. This little tid-bit cost me about $50 in shipping fees and some serious angst on both my and my clients end.
They kept calling saying, “We can’t open this one file. They can’t open it at the factory either.” I would double check, could open it no problem, resend… same problem. What was up???
Finally someone noticed my file name and figured it out:
TreeSkirt48″-TaraReed.psd
That ” symbol made it incomprehensible to the PC.
#2: SAVE ON SHIPPING
In this modern world, sometimes we can get around spending lots of money on overnight shipping. Here are some ideas:
- See if your client will give you an account number (FedEx, UPS, DHL) if they request things quickly. I have found that they will if you ask and may not think of it if you don’t. If they are the ones in the hurry, perhaps they should foot the bill.
- YouSendIt.com Even if your client doesn’t have their own FTP site, you can send large files electronically for free. If you want to send more than one at a time, there is a fee, otherwise just send 4 separate files individually for example.
- If you have a Mac, get a “MobileMe” account. Included with an account (the account formerly known as “.mac”) you get what they call an “iDisk” — a virtual storage space, just for you! For $99 / year I have more than saved in time, money and good will. I can get files to a client in minutes if need be. (Assuming they too, have a Mac, I haven’t been successful getting PC people into my iDisk) For more information, head here: MOBILE ME / iDISK INFO
#3: SAVE IMAGES IN RGB COLOR MODE FOR THE WEB, EMAIL ATTACHMENTS & PHOTO LABS
Have you ever taken an image, from Photoshop™ let’s say, and then watched the colors completely change when you “save for the web” or add them to a blog or some other web application.
Have you ever created cool photo/art composites and wanted to have them printed, only to be told by the lab that they “Don’t support CMYK”?
Without going into a color lecture, I’ll tell you that email attachments, websites and photo processors all want RGB color mode. Always check the requirements before spending a lot of time perfecting your art, postcard, business cards or web images — the change between the two modes can make a big difference. (Especially in blues for some reason…)
#4: IF SOMEONE DOESN’T CALL YOU BACK, IT DOESN’T MEAN THEY DON’T LIKE YOU
I know! I know! Sounds obvious… but you know what? Art is very personal! It’s not like selling nuts & bolts — your art is a reflection of you — you pour your soul in it and it is scary to put yourself out there for all to see. It can feel like walking down the street in your underwear you feel so exposed some days. I get it — I’ve been there and take return visits every so often.
I would like to put your mind and ease and tell you — it’s not you, it’s them. The people you want so desparately to talk to about licensing your art are very busy people. With a long list of people wanting their time. Maybe your art isn’t a good fit for them — but that doesn’t mean it isn’t good art. Just be patient and if you feel like there was interest but haven’t heard back, pick up the phone and give them a call!
#5: IF YOU STOP CREATING AND STOP TALKING, YOUR BUSINESS WILL STOP
Again, obvious I know! I just thought I’d throw it in there. You can’t build a business sitting in your pj’s thinking about what you want to create and what products you want to see your art on.
You can build a business, sitting in your pj’s taking action. Take action every day.
Create. Connect. Thrive! This is what I wish for you…
~ Tara
P.S. If you need help, head to my site and see what eBooks are now available. I’ve been taking lots of action and doing lots of writing these days! www.ArtLicensingInfo.com
re: symbols in file names. Sometimes, if the PC client saves the file to their hard drive and manually changes the name to remove the offending symbol, THEN tries to open the file it actually works. This also works sometimes when you get a file you cannot open – for instance the sender says it is a Word Doc (even though it doesn’t have the .doc at the end) and you can’t open it. Save it to the hard drive, add the .doc at the end and often it will open.
Also, if you open a PDF that contains an illustrator file in Illustrator you will have the Illustrator file intact!
Excellent advice about the iDisk. I’m still finding new and wonderful ways to use it. Tons of Mac users don’t know that the iDisk option is even available to them. Thanks for the Costco tip as well, didn’t know that!
You are a wealth of info, thanks so much. I did not know about the DHL/costco prepaid envelopes, good to know. thanks.
Thanks so much for the tip on symbols in file names-something I did not know but is very useful.
Good Info! I think your last point is one of the more important issues for artists. I am President & Co-Founder of one of the original Internet art sites launched way back in 2000. I’ve been working with artists …trying to help them understand the value of the web and how powerful a marketing tool it can be for them. Most still think they can build their own website or join an art site like ArtId and then walk away thinking that’s all they need to do! With the advent of SEO, blogging and social media, “talking to and building relationships with your customers” is easier than ever.
Mary Lawler, our Marketing and Advertising Director for ArtId told me she had connected with you and turned me onto your blog. You have some very good information. Are you interested in sharing or contributing to content on ArtId? We have close to 1,000 members who I know would be interested in licensing art. Our artist community is very active in marketing their work and we have a bit of a whole in our content as it relates to your expertise. Look forward to reading your blog…
Elizabeth Davison,
President ArtId