Portrait Artist Forum - View Single Post - Where to go? How to reach my potential clients?

Joan Breckwoldt · 12-01-2003, 10:53 PM

Hi Sophie,

I have a suggestion that you might find helpful when talking about prices. I think that if you have someone who calls you then that is great! Direct marketers hope for only 1-2% return on mailers. My suggestion would be to try and NOT tell them the price over the phone, to try and meet with them and show them the quality of your work. I live in Houston and people pay over $1000 for a photograph at some of the photography shops in town. There is so much more involved with painting a portrait, this may need to be explained to the potential client. If nothing else, you've shown them your work and made personal contact and maybe at a later date they'll come around to thinking a portrait is 'worth the money'. Or maybe after they shop around, they would come back to you after they realize the going rate for portraiture.

I do understand it's difficult when someone is on the phone and they ask you outright what your prices are. I suppose the right answer would be to hedge, but I doubt I could do that. Maybe you could give them a wide range of prices over the phone if they insist. I think the goal of the phone conversation should be to set up a meeting where you show them your portfolio.

I hope this helps, I used to do free-lance graphic design work and I think the same principles apply. When I got a call from the yellow pages, my goal was to set up a meeting and get to their office and show my portfolio. I also never told anybody "I don't know" when they asked me some technical question about printing, etc. I would always tell them I needed to check and then I would get back to them. I always had to guide the client and practically TELL them what they wanted, I found most of my clients knew almost nothing about having brochures printed and letterheads and logos designed. 90% of it for me was acting like I knew what I was doing.

Good luck. Keep posting, I enjoy hearing how you are doing. What do you mean by "making pictures" with this latest commission you have from the auction winner. I've thought about donating a portrait to an auction (or part of one???). I would like to hear how it goes.

Joan

12-01-2003, 10:53 PM	#15
Joan Breckwoldt Associate Member Joined: Nov 2001 Location: Houston, TX Posts: 504	Scary prices! Hi Sophie, I have a suggestion that you might find helpful when talking about prices. I think that if you have someone who calls you then that is great! Direct marketers hope for only 1-2% return on mailers. My suggestion would be to try and NOT tell them the price over the phone, to try and meet with them and show them the quality of your work. I live in Houston and people pay over $1000 for a photograph at some of the photography shops in town. There is so much more involved with painting a portrait, this may need to be explained to the potential client. If nothing else, you've shown them your work and made personal contact and maybe at a later date they'll come around to thinking a portrait is 'worth the money'. Or maybe after they shop around, they would come back to you after they realize the going rate for portraiture. I do understand it's difficult when someone is on the phone and they ask you outright what your prices are. I suppose the right answer would be to hedge, but I doubt I could do that. Maybe you could give them a wide range of prices over the phone if they insist. I think the goal of the phone conversation should be to set up a meeting where you show them your portfolio. I hope this helps, I used to do free-lance graphic design work and I think the same principles apply. When I got a call from the yellow pages, my goal was to set up a meeting and get to their office and show my portfolio. I also never told anybody "I don't know" when they asked me some technical question about printing, etc. I would always tell them I needed to check and then I would get back to them. I always had to guide the client and practically TELL them what they wanted, I found most of my clients knew almost nothing about having brochures printed and letterheads and logos designed. 90% of it for me was acting like I knew what I was doing. Good luck. Keep posting, I enjoy hearing how you are doing. What do you mean by "making pictures" with this latest commission you have from the auction winner. I've thought about donating a portrait to an auction (or part of one???). I would like to hear how it goes. Joan