You want what when?

It was a recipe for potential disaster with a client. A recent occurrence:

Our client had finally picked up a collection for an upcoming catalog after a week’s worth of back and forth modifications with the artist. We all allowed ourselves a big sigh of relief – till the next shoe dropped: they wanted the production work done asap, by the artist, and it had to be uploaded in the next few days. But her booked-up schedule would not allow it. The project was in danger of falling apart but we managed to work out a compromise by splitting the work with the client and getting it done.

Production work is the layout and finalizing of all aspects of the product, sometimes to fit customer templates, to make files that are factory (print, sculpt, cast, whatever the process is) ready. Depending on what the process is, this can involve fronts, backs and sides, borders and backgrounds, even 360 degree views which include tops and bottoms.  Layers, bleeds, design positioning, Pantone color matching – it is very detailed and time consuming, and it has to be done right. And it was rarely done by the artist, but instead was the domain of the production people at the factory – of course that was then and this is now and my, how things have changed.

It’s important to know what will be involved in delivering files for a project before you make a commitment to do it. Not many companies require this type of “production ready” art, but it does seem to be popping up more often as client staffs have been reduced and manufacturers continue to look for ways to cut costs. We got caught up in the aforementioned situation because they had changed their policies and somehow we missed it. (It really makes you appreciate those manufacturers who will take the art “sketched on a napkin” and run with it...) The question becomes not only WILL you have time to do it, but also will it be WORTH your time to do it? Give that some consideration, because laying out the production files for a giftware line, or a paper tableware collection, or even a line of greeting cards can be complicated, tedious work - it can take many hours to get it right and would cost hundreds of dollars to hire it out.

So just how much are those royalties going to be?

Now What?

I just received a really cool new set of designs from one of our artists, something that I had not seen before – she took a whimsical … wait a minute, I can’t tell you because it IS new and fresh. Several client names immediately popped into my head who are candidates for this, so as I am planning to send it out I am thinking “what can she do next”…

We launched a new property called Life Is Country™ and the licenses are continuing to stack up nicely. We had just made a great deal for an apparel line and were having a celebratory glass of wine on the lanai when we caught ourselves talking about Now What… as in which of our artists has the next big thing ready to launch? Seriously, it’s what we do (some people might suggest that’s a lack of focus but what do they know).

A fine artist may spend months on a painting getting every highlight and every brushstroke just right, but in our business you will be hurrying to finish a set of (cards – ornaments – figurines – tableware – take your pick…) so you can get to work sketching on that new set of (cards – ornaments – figurines – tableware) that you were thinking about while working on the previous ones. Not you? It’s the nature of the art licensing biz, and to make a career of it you will need to be thinking several steps ahead. I know successful artists in this field that plan their year in advance with lists of categories and products they intend to work on, and then methodically work down the list in between client requests. They always have an answer for Now What (and a portfolio full of new art).

The forums are active with people asking questions about Surtex and what they should be doing, how they should be setting up this or that. Sure, it’s an exciting time getting prepared, but I can guarantee you that most of the experienced people in this business have left Surtex planning in the dust already, they might be tying up a few logistical loose ends but most are looking far past it and thinking Now What…

So what are you going to do next?

A Map in the Sand

If you do much reading about business trends and what is going on in that world today you will soon notice that there is a relentless drumbeat for people to throw off the corporate shackles and try their hand at “Entrepreneurship”. With a capitol “E”. I am, of course, all for it but in some ways it is kind of amusing – sort of reminds me of Art Licensing with all the coaches, endless articles and forums, groups and advice, even business founder match-up services….and it is all on the upswing. 

But I digress. I read an article today called “The Worst Businesses to Start This Year”, you can read it here. It is not exactly an in-depth examination but does have great examples of a few changes in the world of commerce that should get you thinking. What happened to these industries? Who saw the changes coming and managed to find a way to disrupt the status quo, or at least profit from it? What will be the next established industries to undergo upheaval?

In addition to the listed categories, I would add a few additional ones that are a bit closer to what we do. Given the changes in our world I think these also could be bad choices for a new endeavor:

Graphic design firm

Scrapbooking store

Web design company

News-stand or Bookstore

Print and copy shop

Any more to add? Where does art licensing fit in with this? What do you think?

Just DON'T Do It

There was an interesting story this morning on NPR about a lawsuit filed by Ray Teller of the Penn and Teller magic duo. He had registered the copyright for a magic trick (called Shadows) back in 1983, however another magician has misappropriated the secret and is not only using it on stage but offering to sell the secret of the trick to anyone willing to pay 3,000 dollars. Teller has filed a suit in US federal court to stop him.

Apparently even magicians can’t make copyright thieves disappear…

  

Counterfeiting has increased 10,000 percent in the last 20 years, roughly along the same timeline as the rise of both the internet and overseas manufacturing. Some shocking figures about counterfeit products from the International AntiCounterfeiting Coalition (www.iacc.org):

-  Since 1982, the global trade in illegitimate goods has increased from $5.5 billion to approximately $600 billion annually.

-  Approximately 5%-7% of the world trade is in counterfeit goods.

-  Counterfeit products cost U.S. businesses $200 billion to $250 billion annually.

-  U.S. companies suffer $9 billion in trade losses due to international copyright (IP) piracy.

-  Counterfeit merchandise is directly responsible for the loss of more than 750,000 American jobs.

- The Food and Drug Administration estimates that counterfeit drugs account for 10% of all drugs sold in the United States.

- The Federal Aviation Administration estimates that 2% of the 26 million airline parts installed each year are counterfeit, which equals approximately 520,000 parts.

- Hundreds of thousands of deaths worldwide are known to have resulted from the use of counterfeit drugs, however the actual number may be many times that.

How is it possible that the counterfeit trade is heading toward a trillion dollars? Unfortunately the answer is relatively simple – demand. Consumers want cheaper goods, suppliers are willing to cut corners and all are willing to turn a blind eye to the problems that they are responsible for creating when they deal in counterfeits. Everyone laments the rampant copyright theft in today’s world but then they knowingly buy knock off purses, fake Rolexes and download music without paying for it. Every purchase or download perpetuates the problem. 

It may seem like an insurmountable problem but every person can do their part. We decided long ago not to participate - we do not buy knock-offs or bootlegs, we do not download music that we did not pay for, we do not swap tunes with our friends and we do not understand how anyone who is in, or wants to be in, a business like licensing can justify doing it either. Our personal refusal may not stop that factory owner from stealing more designs, but someday everybody’s might…

The Good Oops

She may as well have told me I had a third head. “You have a serious case of pneumonia” is what she said. Really? Pneumonia? Who gets pneumonia? That’s what mothers use to scare their children, as in “you’ll catch pneumonia if you go out without a jacket”.  It’s the scourge of elderly people and nursing homes. I had just spent the last 4 days alternately shaking with chills or burning up with fever (8000 feet up the mountain in a walk-out ski condo…sigh…so much for my Spring skiing) and it continued when I got back home. We thought it was the flu. Oops, big Mistake.

“Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new” -Albert Einstein

That was NOT the type of new I would recommend, however things are on the mend now, thank you. It got me thinking about mistakes, however. There’s an old proverb that states if you don’t make mistakes you don’t make anything, and believe me I’ve made some doosies in my time (I think I hear my accountant hooting with laughter…). Studies have long shown that “active learning”, more commonly called trial and error, is a far more powerful tool than learning by rote, and information learned that way is retained much longer as well.  Changing your mindset about making mistakes can be of great benefit – try to look forward to what you will learn from them, and recognize that the fear of making one may be paralyzing you into inaction. Waiting until you have your collection, portfolio or story absolutely perfect before sharing it may hold you back more than you can imagine.

One of the few guarantees in art licensing is this: very often the person you send or show your portfolio to will not be interested/won’t like/has no use for/ your absolutely perfect designs. This is why in many ways it’s a numbers game. We send out hundreds of designs to targeted clients and the “hit” percentage is in single digits. We have put together large presentations of art (by request), uploaded them into our YouSendIt account and later see that they never downloaded them. It’s the nature of the biz. I am NOT suggesting you forgo doing quality work in order to shovel more onto the market, but you need to find that balance between “striving for perfect” and “good enough to send”.  Clean up your work, dump the deadwood and get it in front of someone. Think you made a mistake? Good – now convert that information to your advantage, learn from it, build on it and get it out there again.

What did you goof up today?

All I Really Need to Know I Learned from Shark Tank

We LOVE this show. If you haven’t seen it, go to ABC or Hulu and watch some episodes, check out the fan blog (inthesharktank.com), and while you are watching think about how what you do, as a licensing artist, is parallel to these poor hopefuls being chewed up by the Sharks. The real lessons you should take away from each episode are not so much related to the product concepts (although some are quite good) but rather can be gleaned from how the investors react and the questions they ask.

Try viewing your licensing partners as investors in your product (your designs), because in a very real sense that is exactly what they are. When you cut to the core of it most investors are motivated by one of two things:  the chance to make money (greed) and the concern about losing money (fear).  A licensee is going to be on this same page – you are asking them to invest their time and money in your business, and while the benefit for you is obvious is the benefit clear for them? Greed and fear dominate. Are you sparking one of those, and which one is it?  The idea here is to evaluate what you are offering to see if it could make it through as a start-up presentation to an investor. It goes without saying (but here it is…) that you need to have a good quality product to even begin the pitch, but assuming you do and you were standing up there in front of those sharks, you better:

1. Know your concept and your target market cold. How do they interact, who are your competitors, why is your product better or unique? (And if it’s not better or unique, why are you there at all…)

2. Pitch the right people. Companies have no use for ideas they cannot execute, so don’t waste their time. Know who makes what before you start talking. If you don’t know, ask.

3. Be prepared for questions and alternative scenarios. Have an answer for whether or not you will make changes, or let them make changes, if you will sell outright, can you do additional patterns, what about a flat fee – think about all these and more ahead of time rather than on your feet.

4. Connect with your investors. Shake their hands, make eye contact, smile and joke with them, make it a person to person pitch, not a person to a corporation pitch.

5. Respect their expertise. You may not enjoy their questions or comments but you need to acknowledge their experience, try to understand their concerns and have appropriate answers.

6. Go all in. Investors and licensees alike want to work with someone who is dedicated to their craft and passionate about their ideas. Be clear about what you do. Tentative doesn’t cut it.

7. If the deal does not make sense for you, walk. While everyone wants to get their business off the ground you don’t want to do it at any cost. Know enough about your field to set realistic expectations and to know a bad deal when you see one.

One of the keys to success in this (or any) business is the ability to see the world from your customers’ viewpoint. It’s about them, not about you. Spend a little time thinking about what your presentation looks like from the other side and you have a lot better chance of making that connection.

Get Out of the Middle

Most people in this industry don’t know that in a previous life I was a boat dealer and yacht broker. I owned and operated a multi-location brokerage that sold both new and used vessels; we handled a number of high end lines over the years, and yes, occasionally I do miss it. In the world of boats there are literally hundreds of boat manufacturers, and it can be very confusing trying to sort out who makes a quality boat, an exceptional boat or - most important when you are 20 miles offshore - a crap boat. It is difficult because the lines are blurred between the great majority of the manufacturers when it comes to quality; there are a handful of exceptional builders, a very few crap ones, and a whole bunch of builders in the middle turning out a decent product that could be characterized as a good boat. The bar is set pretty high when it comes to “average” in the marine industry.

I tell you this because the thought struck me the other day that there is a sort of parallel situation when it comes to licensing artists and particularly the artist/agent question.

There are a large number of artists out there looking for agents, and many are having a hard time of it. We usually get several inquiries a week but the pace seems to have ramped up as of late, and now it’s not unusual to get more than one in a day. We try to answer them, and when we can would prefer to craft an answer that goes beyond a simple “no”, but that takes time that we don’t have, so unfortunately we can’t always respond.

But back to our analogy. We see a lot of submissions from a lot of artists, and this is how it plays out: there are a few exceptional ones, a surprisingly large number of crap ones, and a whole bunch that are stuck in the middle doing work that could be characterized as good. Of course the problem is that “good” doesn’t cut it in this business anymore – it may get you a few small licenses but it is not likely to get you representation. The conversation goes something like “Hey, look at this / So what would we do with them? / I don’t know, could maybe get a couple of licenses for cards-bags-other paper stuff… / Yeah, probably not much more, too bad.”

This is where the difficulty lies for so many of the artists seeking representation - even if they have decent art skills. Every successful agent already has the ability to pick off the “low hanging fruit”, all those quick and easy projects that come up every day, so we don’t need another person whose work is “good enough” to do that. We want to open that email or portfolio, see something so new and so fresh that we would say “Wow, come look at this!” and immediately start talking about what products it could work for, what clients would like it and how much fun it will be bringing it to the market. That is where you want to be, but of course the frustrating part is that no one can tell you how to get there, you will need to discover that path for yourself.

Oh, and along the way, don’t forget the next question is still “so what would we do with it?”….