An honest assessment

[Lacey Lewis]

Thanks for the reply and wonderful advice, Alexandra.

I was all set and ready to post my oils starting at $1,000 but then my husband suggested that I start at $500 until I get one or two commissions at that level and then raise my prices by the beginning of the year. It's so stressfull! I keep arguing with myself about what I should post on my site, I mean I haven't afterall, yet added the 6 new works. But I don't want prospectives to devalue my work, either.

I definately do not want to devalue art and bring the overall market value down! The advice you quoted from an art consultant gives me something to think about as I am going through this.

Just as I was typing this, I thought about a guy I just e-mailed about exhibiting my work in his bookstore/gallery and what his reaction would be to my prices. So I raised them all to be between starting at $500 and starting at $1,000. I feel better now, but my head is still spinning!

I'l let you know what my thoughts are once I straighten my head out. Maybe I'll slowly raise until the beginning of the year or when I have added 5 more works, whichever comes first. Hmm...

[Brenda Ellis]

Here's my thinking:

I don't want to bring the perceived value of oil portraits down by charging too little. But then, I'm not a seasoned professional either.

I've decided to charge $500 for a head and shoulders portrait and go up from there for full body or backgrounds.
I have made peace with raising my prices from the advice I got from Cindy Procious who suggested that by raising my prices, those folks who already have work by me have somethign that just increased remarkably in value.

My clients know I'm relatively new to portraiture and it's my name that is a discount deal right now. But by the quality of my work, they can see that my name will begin to mean more over time as I increase my mastery of this art. I would hope to leave them with the impression that they did get a good deal and this art they now have will indeed increase in value as time goes by and as I raise my prices and build my reputation.

That's my thinking anyway, for now. Anything could happen to cause me to change my mind and have to adjust my strategy. I don't know if I'll ever make a living at this; I just enjoy it so much that I want to do it.

The other consideration is repeat customers. If I do a commission for someone at $500 and 6 months later they want another portrait of their other child, they might not appreciate paying $800 for "the same thing". If I start at $500, I have to be willing to increase my prices gradually. I would be wary of giving repeat customers "deals" as they might come to expect it every time and want another $500 portrait when my work now costs $1500.

That's my two cents worth. (Or $500 worth.)

[Molly Sherrick Phifer]

I agree with the camp that suggests starting higher. My thinking is that often when you start at a "bargain" price, the consumers you are reaching are a completely different segment of the population than you might appeal to in a higher range. IF that is so, then when you raise your prices, you'll be marketing to a new group "from scratch", so to speak. One (wise) person told me, "Don't start out selling a bargain product, unless you want to sell a whole lot of bargain products!". I mean this in the nicest possible way.

Here's another thought. If you are concerned about how/when to raise prices, then you could start out with the $500 portrait advertised as a temporary deal off the regular price. Publish the prices you are aiming for , and show your short-term discount. Then folks won't be stunned by a hike. Also, you may get repeat business more quickly!

Great topic, by the way.