some advice to artists that take commissions-

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alpacasovereign's avatar
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okay so i don't know it kind of concerns me that a lot of people both here, da, wzl, fa, etc don't really know?? like?? basic artist etiquette... people aren't perfect but i see people do things you shouldn't be doing on a daily basis.

doing these things is a surefire way to lose business- doing them repeatedly pretty much guarantees it after a while. so here's just some.. advice? i guess?

1. DON'T. SPEND. YOUR CUSTOMERS. MONEY.

seriously, if you ask for payment up front? your customers are trusting you to not steal from them (yes, you ARE stealing from them) by paying you up front and the moment you spend that money and can't give it back to them, you break that trust and it deters people from commissioning you in the future. and for me, oopsies doesn't cut it, it shows you aren't responsible enough, or have enough willpower to resist buying yourself something tempting- it definitely shows a lack of professionalism which is one thing a lot of commissioners seek from artists, because after all, you are handling their money.

if you have a backup method, that's fine! i myself don't have much in my actual paypal a lot of the time, but i could supply refunds from my bank account if i needed to. if you don't have a backup source, you shouldn't be spending the money you haven't actually EARNED yet.

2. DON'T TAKE ON TOO MUCH WORK IF YOU CAN'T HANDLE IT, AND DON'T KEEP PILING WORK ON TOP OF WORK WHEN YOU HAVE OTHER PRIORITIES.

i know for myself i get really stressed when i have too much to do. i take 1-2 commissions a week, sometimes more if i feel i can handle it. don't give yourself enough work for more than one list, if you need a second list, there's probably a problem.

if you're comfortable and work well under those pressures, that's cool too. but if you know you can't, don't do it, it'll save you time and the headaches for both you and the commissioner, trader, whatever they may be. if you have stuff to do, get that done first before taking on more stuff! it's only logical to work through a queue that way, but different strokes for different folks, everyone works differently.

3. DON'T DO PERSONAL ART/ADOPTS IF YOU HAVEN'T EVEN TOUCHED YOUR COMMISSION QUEUE.

working on personal art is fine and dandy, but remember, people will begin to feel forgotten if you aren't on top of things and showing some sort of activity. working on other things and not once touching your to-do list lets people know that you have no interest in working on their stuff, really.

i like this method: do a commission, then do a personal work, and keep a pattern going. not only do you not have to bind yourself to your work, but you're letting people know you're getting shit done, which is good! it's like a reward system, which can also motivate instead of deter you from doing your commissions.

4. KEEP COMMUNICATION GOING- DON'T IGNORE YOUR CUSTOMERS. REPLY AS SOON AS YOU CAN.

this is something that bothers me. if you don't keep your customers aware of updates, delays, what have you, it can really ruin their chances of commissioning you in the future. if there's a problem? speak up about it. but also don't go into mega detail. no one has to know you had just attended a party and got drunk and couldn't draw, for example- keep it simple, and to the point, and keeping your customer updated at least once a week or two is always nice, just let them know you're sorry about being slow or something. people understand, we aren't machines, but you can't fall short of communication, that's what makes or breaks commissions for me, anyways.

and if someone contacts you about their commission? try to reply as soon as you can. people see the note's been read and can get antsy and feel ignored if you don't reply in a few days.

DISCLAIMER: i am not claiming to be some sort of god and claim i'm 100% right and "u should listen to me or fuck u", but just some things to think about when you take on commissions.

also of course this can go both ways in terms of commissioners and the artist but this is mainly for artists

also don't be a dick in general when doing commissions either
© 2014 - 2024 alpacasovereign
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BabySenpai's avatar
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