March 15, 2010

ACE Newsletter

Where are you in your business plan right now?

"If you do what you've always done, you will get what you've always gotten."

 
There is no doubt that these are frustrating times. But it is not just the "economy." The times are also changing. And the combination of a number of individual factors have meshed to create a time of seeming instability, anxiety and negativity. It's a good time to remember that you cannot always change what is happening around you. But you can change how you react to it!

I chatted with an artist the other day who was driving across his state and stopping at every gallery and framing shop to show his prints. His prints were amazing. Many were created in pre-giclee days when Serigraphs were the premier print. Hand pulled in 18 different colors, they were a labor of love, concentration and dedication! He had also progressed to giclees and had a number of them as well. The point was that what he used to do was ship out 50-75 serigraphs orders a week wholesaling at $150-$200 each, to retail outlets who in turn sold them for $600-$1,000. But slowly,  the market began to dry up. It was not the economy. It was the times.  The past 10 years have seen industries change dramatically.  How many artist today would even create serigraphs (or etchings)? How many small print stores are still on your block? How about Photography stores? How many sign painters who still hand letter? And on another scale....how many cars still have stick shifts in them? How many people can drive to a destination without GPS? How many people need to get home to make a phone call? Are there any pay phones left?

So the point is that everything changes whether we wish it or not, and as an artist, you have to be aware of these changes. You need to be able to adapt your techniques, your attitude and adjust.

And that is why you need to know where you are in your business plan! For everyone who has been following us, you know how we continually put an emphasis on the importance of making out an artist business plan and sticking with it!  There is no doubt that January is considered the month for premium motivation but  for those new to this information, anytime is a good time!

March is a big month because you are nearing the end of 25% of the year! That's food for thought isn't it?  Now if you are on target with your plan, then the next three months should be mapped out. Because you have your plan, you have been far more successful than the artist who does not!  One big reason is because the artist with no plan is lacking the direction, thus the necessary  perseverance that self representation requires. It is too easy to try something once or twice and then give up. But if your plan requires you to stick with it for a month or three months then you have a better chance of seeing positive results!

And what about the artist whom I was chatting with? He was a delight to talk with.   There was no gloom,  doom or despair in his conversation. He was a positive man who was matter of fact about the changes that time had brought to his art form. He knew that his old way of doing business had stopped working. Many of his retail outlets had or were closing. He had stopped at malls and stores who had framing shops and galleries closing right and left. But, undaunted, he was persevering. And he was finding success by following his 2010 plan of leaving the studio and going door to door to the venues to whom he used to sell online and via catalogues and discovering new ones. He smiled and told me it was hard work but what he had always been doing stopped working so he had no choice but to try something new!

A lesson for us all and an attitude for success. That artist will be fine.

Until later,

Theresa and Steve