How to: Start taking Commissions?

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This is not a real tutorial, but it should help some people who just started out or are about to attempt on taking commissions.

It has been requested for a while now, but I wanted to wait until I felt "decent" enough with my own pricing / rules and also the demand for my coms. I'm mostly focusing on the common mistakes.
This journal does not cover how to take payments, invoices, fees etc. Please do your own proper research with the payment method of your preference.

THERE IS A SUMMARIZED VERSION AT THE BOTTOM!


MOST COMMON MISTAKES


I'm sure that almost every artist is guilty of at least one of these things.
Please try to avoid all of them for your own and your customer's comfort!


1. WRONG GOALS


- Goal #1: Fast Money
Well, of course you are taking commissions to get money. What else??
However, many people believe that once you open coms, there will be quite some demand and everything will just work as well as for the other artists. And that's rarely ever the case.
Money is the reason to take commissions. But without patience, you will be disappointed.

- Goal #2: 
Fame / Popularity
I honestly don't know how fame and commissions have anything in common, except or that many popular artists will have higher prices more limited slots and a higher demand???
Definitely not a good reason to start taking commissions before you're ready.


2. CHEAP PRICES


You have low prices already or even lowered them and people still don't want your art? That's completely OK.
It takes time until customers come, especially when your audience was used to only getting free art from you - why would everyone suddenly want to pay?

I have an entire journal about my opinion on pricing. #3 of the journal is especially directed to people who undercharge.
You decide on your prices, but please charge AT LEAST minimum wage.

3. NOT SAYING "NO"


Know what you're capable of and never accept anything that would be too challenging for you - skill wise or time wise. You will not miss out, I promise.

- When being uncomfortable
Sometimes you're just uncomfortable with the commission itself. It can be the character, the background, the scene, anything. If you don't think you can do it for skill- or personal reasons, say NO instead of working on something for hours that you are unhappy with or even feel bad about. You might even end up not posting it. Was it really worth the money?

- Unrealistic deadlines
Don't say you can make it in time, if you can't.
It happens that you have to make a customer wait because life gets in the way, but it shouldn't happen too often. Don't even be attempt it if the timeframe is impossible to you.

- Overwhelming to-do list
Only take as many commissions as you can handle to prevent yourself from overworking.

PLEASE DO NOT HESITATE TO DECLINE COMMISSIONS OR TO NEGOTIATE!
Ask the customer if they would still pay a different price, if they would be happy if you took out the part that made you uncomfortable, offer them alternatives.
If they still don't want it, at least you tried. Or just say you don't want to do it right away, if you really don't feel that you would do it well. There will be more chances in the future, really.


4. HIGH EXPECTATIONS


It pretty much sums up all of above.
If you have expectations that things are going to be fast and easy, you WILL be disappointed. That's just how it is.
Instead, just try to stay relaxed even if there is no demand at all for months. Eventually, customers will start to build up over time.




SOME TIPS


For Starters: Just offer commissions on the side.
Work on your own drawings as always without actively pushing commission adverts and if someone happens to want a commission, you will be ready.
It will prevent you from being discouraged right away. After some time has passed, you can of course make more money with coms and some can even make a living out of it! Just don't give up too fast :)

- Set realistic deadlines.

- Pricelist with examples.
You can use journals, weebly.com, tumblr, etc. to get a pretty layout with all your prices and what you can offer.
This will make commissioning you much easier.

- Clear rules and a fill-out form with everything you need.
Both come in super handy and you don't need 5 notes to find out what exactly your customer wants.

- Public to-do lists make you more trustworthy.
It is not a must, but I recommend it. trello.com is a great site for simple lists.
Bonus: You can keep your customers updated without messaging them directly.

- Accept payment upfront.
Or right after the sketch got approved. This will prevent you from getting scammed.
Please don't do "half-payments" unless it's a very expensive piece, you will lose money on transfer fees and chances are high that your payment will be delayed or won't come.

- Communication is important. Be available!
Your instructions should be as clear as possible to prevent misunderstandings. And just ASK if you are unsure about anything the customer asked about.
Best scenario would be to respond within 24 hours. If you are a busy person in general who responds late, make it clear before they pay you.

- Ignore selfish people.
Be it that they shout at you for charging money for art, complain about every single detail in your drawing, want you to immitate someone else's style, etc., there is no need to pay attention to those.
IF they happen to be a customer and paid already, you should always refund them instead of just blocking in the middle of the process.

Loyalty discounts.
This is just something I do, but I have my loyalty discount for people who commissioned me more than once for certain styles within a time period.
It's up to you, if you want to give them discounts or not but it's my way to tell them that I appreciate their support and interest.  Also, many of the old customers stay!

ALL OF THAT SOUNDS MORE DIFFICULT THAN IT IS, TRUST ME!

Simplest Divider by limitless--wingsSimplest Divider by limitless--wings

SUMMARY


- Charge decent prices.
- Don't have high expectations (fast money, popularity)
- Don't be discouraged too easily and don't give up!
- Say no to stuff you're uncomfortable with.
- Deadlines and to-do lists should stay realistic.
- Everything written in bold from the section "Some Tips"
- Stay patient and have fun ~

Simplest Divider by limitless--wingsSimplest Divider by limitless--wings

The stuff I wrote down all came from personal experience and I'm surely not the most popular artist but I do have a lot of experience with commissions - good and bad.
I hope this will help out at least some of you out there.

Feel free to share your own tips and experiences!
Thanks for reading ♥


Simplest Divider by limitless--wingsSimplest Divider by limitless--wings

THE " HOW TO"-SERIES:
How to: Closed Species
How to: Understand "high" prices
How to: Start taking Commissions?
© 2015 - 2024 MrsRemi
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Sakumira-Agashi's avatar
Thanks for writing this! This helps me a lot.