The 4 Words That Transformed My Art Licensing Pitches.
The topic that I get asked about more than ANYTHING in my facebook group, in emails, and on Instagram is pitching. I think that for many artists who are new to art licensing, it is the most intimidating and mysterious part of the process, and I can absolutely see why. Pitching your art has this sort of unspoken weight of being something big and scary. But, the truth is that its actually not at all. In fact, I find pitching to be one of the more exciting and easy parts of art licensing.
The thing is, you have to be ready for (and expect) rejection when you pitch your art. It’s just part of the process, and every single artist gets rejected some of the time. But learning to deal with rejection is not the point of this blog post.
While you don’t have control over how your pitches will turn out, or whether or not someone ultimately wants to work with you, there are things that you can do to increase your odds of getting a positive reply back to your pitches. So, what can you do?
When most artists think about sending a pitch, I have found that their focus tends to be completely foucsed on their art and how their art looks and how their art will be recieved. And, fair. Your art is what you are trying to sell, so you are right to be focused on that.
But, what if you also pitched them other things, at the same time as you are pitching your art. I know, I know. What the heck am I talking about? Let me explain.
When an art director, or design lead, (or whomever it is that you might be pitching to) chooses to work with an artist, it’s very likely that they will be working directly with the artist in some respect. And if not directly, almost certainly others on their team will be. And, just like you and I, they probably want their job to go as smoothly and easily as it can, whenever possible. For an art director, things that make their jobs easier would include artists who are easy to work with. Who meet deadlines. Who are flexible, and communicative, and accomodating.
You need to let them know that you are those things. That you will be easy to work with. That you can help them out when they are in a pitch. And the easiest way to do that is to simply tell them.
“I’m a fast worker.” These four words have been magic for me. Now, you really do need to be a fast worker if you are selling yourself as one, but I am :) You can also include things like…
“I’m happy to do custom work.”
“I’m eager for opportunities.”
“I’m willing to be flexible.”
There are many things about yourself as an artist that I bet are excellent selling points, beyond just showing them how wonderful your art is. So, tell them how wonderful YOU are to work with. What are the things about you that make working with you really easy? I know it’s hard to talk about yourself, but if you can learn to not just pitch your art but also YOU as an artist, your pitches immediately become more effective.
Here are some things you can think about leveraging in your pitches to sell yourself
Timing: Are you a fast worker? Do you have a flexible schedule? Are you available immediately if need be?
Accommodating: Are you open to custom work? Are you ok to make edits to existing work?
Insight: Have you worked with similar clients before? Do you have experience in their particular market? (i.e. a mom with little kids if pitching to a kids brand- this is my go-to!)
One of my favorite stories that I talk about in my upcoming live workshop is how I landed my first fabric clients exacly 6 minutes after pitching them, and why I think I got such a quick reply! I share the actual email I sent them and how I used these exact techniques to sell myself!
I would LOVE to hear it if you try this in your next pitch you send - please let me know!! I love hearing from you guys, I have gotten SO many email lately about my blog posts and it makes me so motivated to keep writing them! Send me an email if you liked this post or if you have ideas for future posts!
