by Maria Brophy
Then, take time to think. Consider all aspects of what you are being offered and of what you would like to ask for. Take time to ask questions and gain greater understanding before giving a response.
If you agree too quickly, you may forget something important and regret it later.
YOU DON’T HAVE TO GIVE
EVERYTHING THEY ASK FOR
An artist called me about a licensing contract he was about to sign with a wall art company. They were offering him a $500 up front advance and 9% in royalties. Their contract was well written and very fair to the artist, except for one thing. They wanted 150 of his images. The artist did not want to give them that much art, not yet. It was part of his business model to reserve certain images for limited edition prints only.
I recommended he tell the wall art company that he is willing to provide them with the images that he’s releasing for open edition, and that some of the images will be reserved for limited edition. The limited edition images will not be a part of their contract.
The artist worried that by making this demand, he would lose the deal. But that wasn’t what happened; the company respected his business model and agreed to take the images he was willing to give them. They were okay with him holding back the ones that he deemed limited edition.
Some clients will ask for things you don’t want to give. It’s because they don’t know your business model or future plans. How could they? It’s up to you to let them know what you are willing to give and what you are not willing to give.
BE FIRM AND SOUND CONFIDENT
When you firmly tell your client what you can and cannot do, you are taking control of your business and earning their respect at the same time.
Use phrases such as “I don’t do xxx, but I will do yyy instead. Does that work for you?”
When a client asks us to sign a “work for hire” agreement, I’ll say “We don’t do work for hire. But what I can do is give you limited rights to use the art for what you need it for. Fair enough?”
When you say “I don’t do ...,” you are announcing to your client a very firm stance. Most people will respect that and look for another way to get what they need. But if you say “Well, um, I don’t know about that...” the client will push you to do it.
Never waiver on your response to your clients. If you sound wishy washy, they will try to convince you to do something you don’t want to do, and if you cave in, you’ll regret it later. Stay firm, friendly and confident.
NEGOTIATING MUSTS
RESEARCH: Research as much as you can about the company and the people you are dealing with. Look up their most recent campaign or products. Get a feel for what is important to them and their branding. Come to understand who they are as a brand and a company so that you can learn what is important to them. This will aid in your negotiation.
KNOW WHAT YOU WANT: Know specifically what you want before entering into any negotiation. If you don’t know what you want, you’ll never get it. Write down on a piece of paper three things:
Your desired outcome; be very specific and make a list that includes pricing, timing and details such as how you will be marketing, how your art will be printed, and what you want overall.
The lowest outcome that you will agree to if you have to; and
Your deal breaker, which is the outcome that will cause you to walk away from the deal.
ASK QUESTIONS: Be aware that everyone wants something. What does your client want? What do they need? What is important to them? What are they afraid of?
One of our clients chose another artist over Drew for a major campaign illustration job, as his price was lower than ours. They paid him a deposit and shortly after, the artist disappeared without delivering the work. This client now had two problems; they were up against a tight deadline, and they had just been screwed over and lost their money. After losing two weeks on the project, they came back to us for a revised quote and asked us to lower our price. We refused and instead, we addressed what they really wanted. We convinced them that it was worth paying for an artist who will deliver by deadline and help them avoid a disaster. Their fear was that if they were to go to another unreliable, but cheaper artist, they would find themselves right back where they were, without the art they needed. In the end, they agreed to our price.
Ask questions. Talk less, Listen More. Dig deep with your questions so that you know what their concerns are and their needs are. Sometimes it’s not what you think.
Some of the questions you can ask clients to get into their head:
“What do you feel is the most important outcome of this project?”
“What problems have you had in the past with these types of projects?”
“What is it that you like about my work?”
“Who else have you asked for a proposal/price quote?”
“What other artists have you worked with? How was your experience with them?”
“What is the biggest concern you have about this?”
ASK FOR WHAT YOU WANT: Many artists hesitate to ask for something extra, fearing they will lose the deal. No one is going to withdraw their interest in you just because you asked for something.
Always ask for what you want. The worst thing they can do is say no. Often, a client will pay or give more than you expect. Most of your clients will want you to be happy.
Some of the things I’ve asked for, and got: plane tickets and hotel rooms, free art supplies, travel fees, merchandise and free advertising.
DON’T GIVE UNLESS YOU GET: Concessions should be tit for tat. A concession is something that is removed from the deal or added to the deal. For example, if the client asks you to lower your price then you should lessen the scope of work. Or if they ask for more work than you quoted for, add to the price.
Never grant a concession without anything given to you in return. Make sure that if the other party asks you to make a concession, that you are given something extra. In business deals, you can get very creative with this. Ask for free advertising or extra products or plane tickets.
BE FLEXIBLE: Don’t be afraid to change your offer if they change the details. Make creative adjustments to your offer to fit their budget or their situation.
Often we are wary of changing our offer in the middle of the game. But sometimes it’s necessary, especially when the deal has changed and new information is gained during discussions. Don’t be afraid to withdraw something you offered earlier, if it makes sense to do so now.
BRAINSTORM AND GET CREATIVE: Brainstorm creative ideas to make the deal fair to everyone. Business author Seth Godin said “The best deals are ones that have never been done before.” This is absolutely true in the business of art. Most of the deals I put together have been creatively crafted by myself and the client.
FOLLOW UP WITH WRITTEN DOCUMENTATION: Follow all of your conversations and negotiations with a written recap. Craft an email to your client, detailing what you agreed to. This will ensure that you both have clarity on what was discussed and there can be no disagreements about it later.
NEGOTIATING NO-NO’s
Never negotiate against yourself. If you gave an offer or a price and the other person didn’t accept it, DO NOT offer them a lower number. This is called negotiating against yourself. Instead, ask them to make you a counter-offer.
Don’t fall for the “hurry up and sign” gambit. If your client is in a giant hurry to get you started on the art, get them to slow down long enough to nail down the agreement between the two of you. For some people, “hurry up and sign” or “hurry up and get started” ends up in a disaster for the artist. They either don’t get paid, or they are pushed into agreeing to a bad deal.
We once had a client tell us they needed a three week project in less than ten days. We agreed to a price and I told them we required an installment payment to get Drew started on the sketches. They moved surprisingly slow for someone who was in a rush; I suppose they didn’t believe me. Three days went by and no payment. Now we were down to seven day
s for Drew to do the work. I called and told them if they wanted Drew to start on the sketches, they would have to get us the installment payment asap. If he didn’t get started he wouldn’t be able to meet their tight deadline. I used their rush to our advantage. They bank wired the payment immediately.
Sometimes a client will rush you to sign a contract before you have time to think about what you are agreeing to. Never do this! Slow things down. Make it clear that you need time to read through their contract and understand it. If you don’t agree to something in the contract, have them change it. If they are in a hurry, they will move quickly to make the changes you request. When a client is in a big hurry, it’s actually to your advantage. You hold all the power, as they need you to move fast.
Never agree to a deal that you don’t fully understand or that is vague and confusing. Correct this by writing out what you do understand and then outlining your questions to your client. Get clarity by asking your client to explain those points that you don’t understand. Do not feel bad about asking questions; it’s a poor reflection on you if you don’t get clarity on everything.
Never try to negotiate with someone who doesn’t make the decisions. If the person you’re dealing with says “I have to go ask my boss now if he agrees”, insist that you deal directly with the person making the decisions. Don’t fall for this game. It’s a negotiating tactic.
Don’t fall for the, “but it’s great promotion for you” line. When negotiating a business deal, the price you are paid should have absolutely nothing to do with how well the product will sell or how many famous people are involved or anything else that is irrelevant. When a client uses this line, ignore it.
If the deal feels bad or turns your stomach, don’t agree to it. Don’t be afraid to walk away. You are not obligated to agree to something you don’t want. A bad deal is a bad deal.
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Payment Policies
Every good business has an established payment policy. Yours should, too. Having a strict payment policy, communicating it clearly and sticking to it, will avoid misunderstandings with clients.
Three powerful payment policies that keep us in business are:
For commissions and projects we require a 50% installment payment to begin the work and the final balance is due on the day of completion.
For existing artwork and products, payment is required in full at the time of purchase.
For existing artworks priced over $2,000, we offer payment plans.
Having an established payment policy avoids the possibility of being stiffed on payment, which is something that happens to every artist at least once. If it has never happened to you, you have either been lucky or you are a very savvy business person.
I have talked to scores of artists who have complained that a client disappeared without paying, after the artist provided the art. This never happens when you have a good policy in place.
The most effective payment policy is simple and it works beautifully: A 50% installment payment is due up front, before you start the work, and the full balance is due upon completion of the work.
For digital art, we send the client low res files to see the finished product, and then we send the high res files upon receipt of final payment. For tangible artwork, we ship or deliver the work after payment is made. For wall murals and live events, we require final payment on the day of completion.
This policy enables us to move quickly from one project to the next. Receiving final payment signals us to provide the artwork, and then the project is complete. Once a project is done and paid for, we can move onto the next one. I don’t ever want to have to worry about getting payment later, after the fact.
When dealing with companies overseas, I require payment by bank wire transfer. A bank wire transfer is a standard method of payment for overseas transactions and the main benefit of it is that it cannot easily be reversed or refunded. An international bank wire transfer will cost you, the receiver, a bank wire fee of about $25-$60, depending on your bank. Keep this in mind when invoicing your client, so you can add a bank wire fee to their invoice.
I am very careful not to send art or high res files to an overseas client until after payment is made. If you are not paid properly by a company overseas, it is incredibly difficult to track them down for payment. A bank wire transfer can take three to five days to show up in your bank account, so if the client is on a tight deadline, they may need to pay extra to their bank to have your wire payment expedited.
My second best payment option for overseas would be Paypal, as it is instantly received in your Paypal account with little to no wait time. However, a Paypal payment can be disputed by the client later.
Your payment policy should be clearly communicated to your client in the first conversation, when you are discussing their project. One way to communicate this is to say, “I’m excited to work with you. This is how I work; once I have an understanding of what you need, I will send you a price quote. I will need a 50% installment payment to get started.” Your proposal, price quote or agreement will include the details of your payment policy.
When an individual collector commissions Drew for an original painting, we require a 50% installment payment before Drew begins the sketch work. We send the client photo updates of the work in progress, and when it’s complete, we ask for final payment before shipping the work to them.
When doing wall mural projects, we require 50% to schedule the date and buy the supplies, and then the final balance on the day the mural is completed. We don’t leave the mural site until after we are paid. We make sure the client knows to expect this, and we remind them days in advance to have our payment ready. I have never had a problem being paid for a mural project on the last day of painting, as I have communicated my expectations to the client many times during the process.
When working with companies for illustration work, we handle it in a similar way. The client is updated of progress along the way, and once the work is complete, we send them low res images to view. We send the final, high res files to the client after they have paid in full.
Our proposals with companies include a pricing section that reads like this:
PRICING AND PAYMENT: $6,000 total. A 50% installment payment of $3,000 is required to begin the work. Final balance is due and payable upon completion, and no later than ten days following completed date. Artwork will be provided upon receipt of final payment. Late payments incur late fee of $25 each week that payment is not received.
MONEY IS A COMMITMENT
Paying money up front equals commitment by the client. Once we receive their commitment in the form of a payment, we add their project to Drew’s schedule and we commit our time and materials as necessary. The installment payment is our “green light” to move forward on their project.
We didn’t always work this way, though. We learned the hard way. When I first started working with Drew, I was inconsistent with my payment policies. I would not always require an installment up front and sometimes I would deliver the art without final payment. Eventually, I realized that I was wasting a lot of time making phone calls to clients asking for payment. Most people eventually paid, but it added a lot of stress on me to chase the money down.
Then, one incident happened that changed the way we worked with clients forever. Drew was commissioned by a very large clothing company. They hired him to create an artistic map of one of the Hawaiian Islands. The art was going to be used for apparel and accessories. They were on an incredibly tight deadline and needed it yesterday. We felt that there was no time to get an installment payment from them, it was such a rush. If I knew then what I know now, I would have told them to overnight the payment to get Drew started on the sketches. But we were young and inexperienced! Drew began the work without any payment. He put in three days of drawing up sketches for them as the art director at the company kept making changes and asking him to revise it. Then, the art director stopped calling. They had changed their campaign and decided not to use a ma
p after all. We sent them an invoice for the work Drew did for them, and they never paid us. I made numerous phone calls trying to get paid, and hit a brick wall every time. It’s nearly impossible to be paid after the fact by a large company.
I was incredibly upset; we just lost two thirds of our income for that week. Our son was a baby at the time and cash flow was crucial to paying our expenses. Losing three days of pay was a financial strain on us. I vowed that it would never happen again.
We learned from our mistake, and since then have required 50% up front and the balance when finished. We use this policy on everyone, even friends and family members.
Some artists are uncomfortable asking for an installment payment. They fear that the client thinks they don’t trust them. But there is more to it than trust. The installment money generates cash flow, which enables you to put the proper amount of time and materials into the beginning phase of a project.
Most of our commissions take two to three weeks to complete. Without an installment payment, we would not have the cash flow we need to pay for daily expenses or to cover the cost of the canvas and paint.
The installment payment is a promise from your client that they are committed to the project, enough so that you should put your money and time into it.
HOW MUCH OF AN INSTALLMENT
SHOULD YOU ASK FOR?
Many artists require 50% up front. Some artists require 30% up front.
For larger deals, you may want to break the payments into three equal payments. For example, we just closed an $18,000 illustration deal with a company that we had never worked with before. They have had trouble with this project in the past, as they had numerous artists work on it but none were able to produce what they wanted. To allow them to try out Drew’s concepts in the form of sketches first, we formulated a different payment plan that allowed them to not continue should they not be pleased with the sketches we provide. In our written proposal and agreement we divided the $18,000 into three payments. The first installment is $6,000 to get Drew started on sketches. If they are happy with Drew’s concepts, then they will pay another $6,000 to move onto the next phase, creating the illustrations. Lastly, once the illustrations are complete, they will send the final $6,000 and we will then send them the high res files.
