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Don't sell yourself short!

10/10/2011

2 Comments

 
I was selling at a show this weekend. The vendor next to me had her items priced very inexpensively. One of the things she would say to her customers was, "I'm a bargain hunter so I get my supplies cheap and I don't charge for my time." Grrrrr!!! Why wouldn't you charge for your time?!?!? This is one of those things that many of us do as artists. We undervalue ourselves. Maybe we think of our art as a hobby
so it doesn't have value in the marketplace. Or maybe it's that we don't think we are good enough yet. Or maybe we just don't know what to charge. Whatever the reason, we should never think that our time has no value.

Think about this: If I make items from found objects that cost me nothing and I don't charge for my time, then if I use my booth neighbor's thinking I should give my work away for free. Not! Besides, every time an artist undervalues their work, it adds to the public perception that art is only worth the materials that go into producing it. We need to change that attitude. And, we want to be paid what we're worth, right?
2 Comments
Dean Robinson
12/9/2011 01:14:54 pm

That vendor is what's wrong with craft shows. She hasn't found out that by her low prices she's actually losing sales. The reason is that a potential customer will look at her work and wonder "why are they priced so low when the same piece of work by another crafter is priced so much higher?" So the potential customer doesn't make any purchase because they simply can't figure out what's going on with the pricing.
Next to me a vendor said: "Oh, I just love making things. I don't care about the money." Well, I do. I'm trying to make a living.

Reply
Loretta
12/11/2011 05:25:54 am

Hi Dean!

That is a great point. Pricing really low ends up hurting all the other crafters.

I know there are many confusing methods of pricing your work. Come up with something that works for you. And, be sure to include a wage for yourself. Try asking, "If you had to pay someone to do the work you do, how much would you pay them?"

Yes, I know, I've heard that argument of, "I just love making things." Well, we all love making things. We wouldn't be artists and crafters if we didn't. And, if we don't charge for our time and other costs of creating our product, we are not just giving our work away, we are losing money in the process. This is not a sustainable business model.

I think I'm going to go raise my prices!

Reply



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    Loretta Alvarado, Fiber Artist

    About the Author

    Helping artists and crafters improve their sales, one word at a time.

    Loretta Alvarado is the author of several business for artists books. She spends most of her time in her studio making art and writing. But you can sometimes find her on Facebook.



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