On the heels of last week’s post about the importance of systems link to last week, here’s a system framework inspired by a question from Kerry Thompson.

What do you do after you’ve finished a work?

©2011 Kerry Thompson, Café Friends Nursery. Acrylic on cotton canvas, 61 x 77 centimeters

Finish the Details

The work shouldn’t be considered complete until you do the following with the physical piece.

• Sign it!
 Sign your art wherever you can, and however you do it best.
  
• Add the date on the front, back, or underneath – where and when it’s appropriate for your medium. 
Many artists don’t like to date their work on the front because it doesn’t look as fresh. That’s fine, but date it somewhere. Dating is a way that helps you claim credit for copyright and will be used by the curator that mounts a retrospective of your work in 30 years.
  
• If appropriate for your medium, make an identification card for the back that includes the complete credit line: Name, title, media, dimensions, and price. 
This is enormously helpful for venues.

Document It

• Record details in your inventory database. 
Don’t let that artwork out of your site until you have done this.
• Have artwork photographed, or do it yourself if you have the proper equipment.
• Name image files according to your standard.
Images are easier to find if they are all named in the same manner. I suggest starting the file name with your name:
  

lastname-abbreviatedtitle-imagesize.jpg

• Add the image to your inventory record for that piece.
• Resize images to three or four standard sizes that you use most often.
Create a digital file folder for each artwork and differentiate your digital images using your naming convention. This takes some time to do now, but it will save you time and frustrations in the future. 

Using the example above, your image files might look like this:

hart-redsky-600.jpg
hart-redsky-300.jpg
hart-redsky-72-300px.jpg
hart-redsky-72-200px.jpg

• If you’re in the U.S. file a copyright claim if this is part of your practice.

Tell People About It

• Blog about the work. 
Be sure the complete credit line is visible with the image, and that viewers will know it’s for sale.
• Edit the text from your blog into a descriptive sentence that you can use on your website or social media profiles.
• Add the descriptive sentence to your inventory database.
 When you do this, the sentence will always be with the work, and you can copy and paste it with abandon.
• Upload the image to your website. 
Double check to make sure that your name and credit line is visible whenever the image is enlarged.
• Upload the image to any online sales venues you use. 
(Etsy, RedBubble, etc.)
• Share your newly completed work on social media sites.

What did I forget? Please leave a comment below or send a tweet to @abstanfield.

Systems can save your butt, but only if you work them as they were intended.

What needs to get done that isn’t? For example:

• You’re not updating your contacts database often enough. Every time you go to send a mailing, you have to spend a couple of days adding names.
  →You need an efficient system for collecting names in a timely manner.

• You’re missing important deadlines.
  →You need a system for recording, reviewing, and meeting deadlines.

• You’ve neglected your blog.
  →You need a system for capturing ideas, writing drafts, and editing posts.

System Components

Most systems need:

1. Defined results: What do you want to happen?
2. Software or paper & pen to record data.
3. Identification of other people involved and their tasks.
4. Clear articulation of the steps and how they build on one another.
5. Commitment to a regular check-in (e.g. Thursdays at 10 a.m.).

It’s that last item on the list that is often the kink in the process.

Systems Check

Systems don’t work by themselves. You have to work the systems.

You must be committed to the system you put in place, which is why my system might not work for you. It has to be a good fit. You must turn any system into your system.

If you discover that your system is flawed, change it! Find out which component isn’t working for you and give it a tweak.

If you catch yourself saying, “I’m not good at X or Y” or “I’ll never be able to Z,” do a little digging. Is it because you don’t have a trusted system?

Do you have a good system you’d like to share? Has it been difficult to create a working system for some aspect of your art business? Please leave a comment below.

If you’ve been procrastinating something, identify it. Give it a name.

After you’ve confessed, you can trick yourself into completing it. Here are some tricks that have worked for me.

TRICK – - – > Identify your motivation.
Why is this task on your list in the first place?

How will your life be better as a result of completing it? How will it bring you peace of mind?

TRICK – - – > Adjust your attitude.
Starting a task you don’t enjoy with a bad attitude is a recipe for failure.

Instead, look at it differently. If you don’t like packing and shipping artwork, think of it as preparing to share your art with many new people. Imagine their eyes as they connect to your art.

TRICK – - – > Take one step at a time.
“Redesign my website” sounds more than overwhelming.

Instead, focus on the first action required. Create a site layout, research designers, or write the text for your About page.

TRICK – - – > Block out time on your calendar.
Create time and space to get something done.

When you see the time scheduled on your calendar, remember that it’s a commitment you made to yourself. Don’t ignore the task just because you’d rather be doing something else. Remember your motive.

TRICK – - – > Set your timer.
Make a game of completing a task by promising to give it 15 or 30 minutes of your attention.

Work hard to beat the clock before time runs out. This creates momentum, so allow yourself the flexibility to keep going after the timer buzzes.

TRICK – - – > Get out.
Fresh scenery can provide a fresh perspective.

Sit down at a coffee shop to write your thank-you notes. Visit the library to research your next series instead of staying at your computer. Go to any other room in the house to journal in preparation for your artist statement.

After you’ve tricked yourself and conquered your procrastination, give yourself a treat. How do you reward yourself?

Guest blogger Luna Jaffe offers 4 money-savvy tips for artists on Finance Fridays during the month of October.

We’ve formed a bad habit of excusing our spending by saying “it’s a write-off.”

You shouldn’t spend money you don’t have.

And you can only claim a deduction if you have income!

You don’t need Write Offs you need Right Ons!

Did you stay on top of your bank balances this week? Right on!

Did you save a percentage of earnings? Right on!

Did you make notes on your receipts? Right on!

Money-Savvy Benefits

Avoiding the write-off excuse will force you to be more honest about what you can afford to spend on your art business, and lead to increased profits and savings.

©2011 Luna Jaffe. Luna is the CEO of Lunaria Financial, Ltd. Her background as a professional artist and psychotherapist richly inform her work helping clients achieve their financial goals. She offers investment management, financial planning, money coaching, and classes.

Securities and advisory services offered through KMS Financial Services, Inc. Member FINRA/SIPC.

Guest blogger Luna Jaffe offers 4 money-savvy tips for artists on Finance Fridays during the month of October.

Make Notes

Write a note on every receipt if it’s not completely evident what the expense was for. Also write on your credit card and bank statements so you remember what you paid for.

The IRS loves notes, paper trails, and supporting documentation.

Going to visit a client and want to write it off? Attach info about the client to the receipts for the visit: their address, what you talked about, and how they paid you (if they did).

If you attend a conference or seminar, attach an agenda to your receipts. If you are spending 10 days in Hawaii, but only have documentation that 3 days relates to your business, then the IRS will call the other 7 days vacation—and your hotel, food, and car will not be a deduction.

Instead, document that you were painting each day or talking with galleries. Keep these together and the IRS should have no question that you were doing business.

Money-Savvy Benefits

Peace of mind! If you get audited you can sit in the corner and meditate rather than wringing your hands and sweating profusely.

You’ll also avoid fines and penalties, and feel good that you handled it so well.

©2011 Luna Jaffe. Luna is the CEO of Lunaria Financial, Ltd. Her background as a professional artist and psychotherapist richly inform her work helping clients achieve their financial goals. She offers investment management, financial planning, money coaching, and classes.

Securities and advisory services offered through KMS Financial Services, Inc. Member FINRA/SIPC.

Guest blogger Luna Jaffe offers 4 money-savvy tips for artists on Finance Fridays during the month of October.

Anything Is Better Than Nothing

As you seek to become more financially aware, it’s important to save a percentage of every dollar earned FOR YOURSELF.

If you make your deposits or have a banking day once a week, simply transfer a percentage to a savings account.

How much? Aim to save 10-20% of your earnings, but any small amount is better than nothing.

Even if you end up needing your savings down the road, at least you are creating a healthy practice of saving. Remember, too, to save for taxes in a separate savings account.

Money-Savvy Benefits

You are building discipline, and valuing yourself.

When you need to pay for a workshop or a trip or just give yourself a bonus, you’ll have the money to do so.

©2011 Luna Jaffe. Luna is the CEO of Lunaria Financial, Ltd. Her background as a professional artist and psychotherapist richly inform her work helping clients achieve their financial goals. She offers investment management, financial planning, money coaching, and classes.

Securities and advisory services offered through KMS Financial Services, Inc. Member FINRA/SIPC.

Guest blogger Luna Jaffe offers 4 money-savvy tips for artists on Finance Fridays during the month of October.

Small Steps

Check your bank and credit card statements daily or weekly to avoid surprises and remain money-savvy.

You can use the online tools offered by your bank or try the free access at Mint.

Look for anything you don’t recognize or disagree with (like fees!) and follow up.

Note items that have cleared in your check register.

Money-Savvy Benefits

The more often you check, the less cumbersome each session will be. These small steps add up.

You know where you are with your financial health, which allows you to make more conscious decisions about spending and saving.

©2011 Luna Jaffe. Luna is the CEO of Lunaria Financial, Ltd. Her background as a professional artist and psychotherapist richly inform her work helping clients achieve their financial goals. She offers investment management, financial planning, money coaching, and classes.

Securities and advisory services offered through KMS Financial Services, Inc. Member FINRA/SIPC.

Say thanks just because your heart is full.

Be nice just because it’s Monday.

Like a page on Facebook because you really like it – not because you expect someone to like you back.

Follow someone on Twitter because you want to follow their tweets – not because you want them to follow you back.

Tweet about someone else’s accomplishment just because you know how nice it is to be acknowledged.

Send a personal note to someone who bought your art just because you like them and appreciate them – not because you are asking them to buy more.

Share because your heart is full.

Give a gift just because you wanted to make someone smile.

Expect nothing in return. Do it just because . . . because it feels good to be generous.

You think you’re doing artists a “favor” by “giving us exposure that we can’t get ourselves.”

You want us to pay a monthly fee for your nothing-else-like-it (ha!) online art gallery, enter your art competition for exposure, design your new logo for free, or purchase booth space at your event. You promise “exposure” in return for our art or our money.

Think again.

Artists are all kinds of tired listening to lines like these. We know how the world works and we know you’re trying to make money by – in part – using our art.

Let’s Be Partners

We’re trying to make money, too. Acknowledge that. Acknowledge that we have something you want in the form of talent and ideas. Acknowledge that we are valuable to you and your business. Acknowledge that we have gifts.

Don’t pretend we can’t see past your motives.

Don’t present your idea like you’re doing us a big favor in the form of “more exposure for our art.”

You’re using artists to help you make more money. That’s fine, but be honest about it.

Why not try something radical and create a partnership?

Why not treat us as equals as you would with other business relationships?

Instead of: “I’ve got a great idea that will give you lots of exposure for your art” . . .

Opt for: “I have this great product. I’d like more people to buy it and I think you can help me. How can we work together so that we both benefit? What do you need right now?”

This is not only an honest approach, it’s a keystone for a stronger relationship. If we like you, we’ll help spread the word. If you’re just another salesperson, we’ll figure it out.

A lot of people want our money or talents and we seem to be disappointed more and more frequently. Signing on for “promised exposure” hasn’t yielded great results to date.

We’re tired of it. We’re not dumb. We see through the marketing speak.

Prove It

Give us the numbers. You want our money, art, and talents? We want cold, hard facts.

We’d like to see a screen capture of your Google Analytics in detail.

We want to see your click-through rates from your email marketing campaigns.

We’d like to know exactly how you’re going to promote your art competition: advertising, mailings, frequency, etc.

We’d like to talk personally with 5 highly satisfied customers.

We’d like to know precisely how many people walked through your doors during your last exhibit and how much art (in $$) was sold.

Any other smart businessperson would demand these statistics. We are smart businesspeople.

Stop making promises. Start showing us results. If you don’t have the results, be up front. Tell us why we should take a chance on you. Make your case.

Let’s Talk About This

I’m feeling feisty and hope this post starts a conversation. I receive these pitches just like you do. They come to me when people want access to you via this blog. They want me to write about their great new product or service for artists that will give you lots of exposure.

Most of them are well-meaning. They don’t know what they’re doing. They don’t understand that I’ve heard it all before and get pitched to several times a week.

Others are just bad at what they do. They’ve obviously never looked at this blog. They just know it ranks high and that it has “art” in the title.

One poor, genuinely nice guy last week got an earful when he pitched his idea to me. Normally I wouldn’t even bother responding. But I sensed authenticity in his email. I just told him he needed a different approach – that artists are tired of hearing about promised exposure.

Was I right? Are you tired of hearing about promised exposure and not seeing results?

Best practices are just that. They’re what we aim for.  They’re what I share with you in my book, on the Art Biz Blog, and in my workshops.

But they’re not always what we can do right now.

Ann Scott, Summer Storm. Oil, 26 x 40 inches. ©The Artist

Best practice: Get complete contact information from each person as you encounter them: full name, email, snail mail, Twitter, Facebook, and so forth.

Best practice: Post to your blog at least three times a week.

Best practice: Send a monthly newsletter.

Best practice: Create a business page on Facebook and update your fans every day.

Best practice: Keep your inventory, calendar, and task list on your computer for quick searching and easy organizing.

Someone decided what best practices would look like in his or her world. If you dig deep enough, you’ll find another “expert” who has a different set of best practices.

Pay attention to your reality to decide what your best practices should be.