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How to Set the Perfect Price for your Artwork

Whether you’re trying to make a living as an artist or simply looking to make some extra cash, selling your artwork is all about choosing the perfect price. It can be difficult to select a price that respects the value of your art and the time you spent to create it without alienating your potential customers. Keep reading to learn some practical tips for pricing your art.

Based on previous sales

For established artists or emerging artists with a constant sales margin, the best way to rate their work is based on past sales. Providing documents that you have sold for comparable purposes (medium, size, or similar topic) works consistently for the amount you are currently charging. Not only is this a great way to justify the price, but it also creates instant credibility. This is how galleries support their prices. The sooner you can use this model, the less you have to worry about justifying pricing in the future.

Use of the real estate model

Another way to evaluate your work is to compare it to similar pieces on the market. Check out the other artists in the same geographic location (if you're in California, it's probably best not to compare yourself to someone in New York), use the same medium, sell, or focus on similar topics. You can also see artists whose resume and reputation are comparable to yours. See what they ask for (or what they really get) for their work.

Work and material

Another option that works well, especially if you are starting out, is to base prices on your time/work and materials. Be curious about the cost of materials (i.e., carpets, poly bags, frames, etc.) as well as the working hours of each individual piece. You pay respectable hourly wages, increase material costs, and that is the price of your work. For example, if your materials cost $ 15 for a particular piece and you work five hours at $ 20 an hour, the total price is $ 115. While the price you ultimately charge should always cover material costs, you should never add or add a separate "material fee" for a product you sell.

Size of work

A clear and objective way of pricing your work is based on size. You can calculate a fixed rate for works of the same size and gradually increase them. Suppose 5x7s were $ 10, $ 8x10, $ 20 and 11x17s, $ 40 and so on. You can also calculate your prices per square inch. For example, a 5x7 would be 35 square inches. At $ 25 per square inch, this is $ 8.75. An 11x17 at 187 square inches, also at 25 cents per square inch, would be $ 46.75. For example, use different network prices for different media. Canvas, paper, cardboard, etc. to ensure that you cover your materials and labor. Always make sure that you understand the price difference between two plants of the same size, e.g., B. can clearly justify by topic, medium, or process.

If you still have questions ...

If you're still not sure how to rate your work, or if you've slowed down, you can be brave enough to ask those interested in your art, how much they would spend. This should give you a clear indication of how your prices are compared to others.

What not to do

And although it is known that this is happening, try not to value your work based on personal attachment. If there is a piece that is difficult to see for some reason or that you are emotionally invested in, it is probably best to keep it away from the market. The trend would be overpriced, which could devalue the rest of your work. Pay attention to the messages you can send to evaluate your work. If someone doesn't share the same passion as you for a particular job, you may be wondering why the prices of your other job are so low.

Other farewell tips

It's a good idea to offer your art in many price ranges so that almost anyone who falls in love with your work and can afford it and take a piece home with you, never comes back and buys later. And while it's best to be as consistent as possible with your prices, don't be afraid to adjust if you keep up with supply and demand. If you find that you are selling faster than you can create, increase your prices. If you sell too little, try to reduce it. You'd rather do your job than dust in your garage, right?

Tips for pricing 

Trying to evaluate your work is one of the most difficult tasks. To do this well, you have to remove the emotions about your creation and consider it a commercial product. Next, you need to objectively evaluate the comparison with other similar artworks, consider why they should cost more than some and less than others, along with what your customers can afford, and ultimately develop a pricing structure.

Before deciding on a number, you must understand all the costs you will incur in order to benefit from the sale. Some market artists may have their own reproduction equipment or vendor agreements that allow them to sell works at a price they cannot.

Understand your costs:

You need to know the cost of creating or reproducing your work. Do not underestimate the time you spend on other important processes. If you do the replication yourself, it is simply the cost of the materials and the time it takes to change over time to create the work.

If you want to outsource the reproduction of your work; To do this, use the cost you will be charged. It is important to make sure that your quality meets your standard as it reflects your work. Although you need to set a price for the best price, the cost is not always the most important factor as the partner has to meet your needs.

Don't forget shipping charges, sales taxes, and credit card processing fees. If you do not understand the cost structure associated with these fees for your transactions, your margin will be significantly reduced.

Re-entry of operating costs:

Try to include a certain amount to cover creation costs for the first time and cover other running costs (advertising, website hosting, photo equipment, film). Finding this number is a good guess that will change over time as you improve your account.

Profit margin:

You do this with all sales. Each person has to decide what their pricing strategy should be. For example, you may want to set lower prices to make more money while developing your product. The alternative is to value your work higher and earn more per unit. It is a very good line because it does not want to convey to collectors that their work is not of great value. However, he wants to keep prices high enough to upgrade his work for the collector base. Kobold does not want to drown his collecting base or prevent it from developing or growing.

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