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I used to compile business plans back in my corporate days. These plans were basically fat, shiny binders bedazzled with rainbow charts and stuffed with sunny spreadsheets describing the annual fiscal resolutions of my department. Each salesperson would put in their anticipated revenue, admin would counter with anticipated costs, and there'd be a ton of back and forth until we got a net black number that we could send up to the execs. This is how we kept our jobs every year.
At the end of the year, we had to report on whether or not we met that plan. There was usually so much staff turnover, product change, and department restructuring that the plan and the department who created it in January bore no resemblance to the results delivered at the end of December but that was okay. After all, we had excuses—look at all that turnover, change, and restructuring!
You don't really get that when you're a self-managed business of one. Productivity is fairly constant and there aren't any major restructuring or product changes. Year in, year out, it's me doing what I do.
I started doing business plans for myself a couple years ago. Unlike the big binders of my past that no one ever really read, my own art business plan is a terse list of bullet points. Here is the one I drafted for 2012:
1. Create House brochure, get it printed, distribute to Real Estate offices.
2. Prepare for "Neighborhoods" show - summer/fall readiness with postering
3. Enter work in 1 FCA show and do ongoing Call for Entry research
4. Write an Art blog
5. Update website - add Resume, Publicity pages
Reality?
1. My crack Graphic Design team (Me) made some great brochures. They're sitting in a box in my studio. Now I just need to get the lazy-ass Marketing department to compile a distribution list and send them out. Oh, wait: I'm Marketing.
2. Manufacturing never did produce enough work for my "Neighborhoods" show. I better speak to them. Oh, wait, that's me, too. It's great – and necessary – that my product line sells but if I'm going to have enough for a show, I have to do a dedicated show-only run. Unfortunately, I'm a little short-staffed. Maybe some productivity seminars will help?
3. My Proposal department managed to find a few interesting Calls for Entry but only got into one FCA show. Disappointing; I should mention them - I mean Me - to HR, which is also Me.
4. No art blog, unless you count this one here. My Communications department has been underperforming; time to restructure Me into Marketing.
5. The website is up to date. Me-the-Webmaster was reasonably on top of things. Maybe I should move Me to Communications?
Sometimes Management needs to cut everyone some slack.
My ongoing goal, of course, is make enough money to survive. That's about two or three painting sales a month, which I do. The way I do it — and this is the part of the plan that stays the same every year — is to keep working on these four states of development:
(1) Have paintings "out there" getting exposure,
(2) Expressions of interest and potential sales,
(3) Commissions in the queue, and
(4) Paintings I'm finishing that are sold or potentially sold.
This is my idea of the artistic sales cycle: seeding, cultivating, growing, harvesting. "Seeding" is doing some kind of charitable giveaway that you hope will pay off down the road. This is where the more visionary Executive role has to keep pushing everyone on.
But, man, it's tough when the whole staff wants to call in sick or take a mental health... month!
So fellow pros and self-starters, how do you do it? Do you plan? Do you do an end of year review of that plan? What does your annual picture look like?
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I do year-end bottom-line financials (how much my gross/net was, my expenses, marketing, and assets) to see how things are trending. However my goals are never tied directly to dollars, but instead into business development; I see the dollars as a mere indicator, not a goal. I'm constantly re-tooling what I do based on what I'm experiencing from season to season. Since you're one person, you have to figure out what you're going to focus on and who are the clients that will generate the most income. After establishing that, focus on increasing markets and diversifying clientele. So I usually ask of myself (informally).
1. Who is my market, who are the clients, and how much can they afford? Those are the first question I always ask, as it informs me #2.
2. What are the services I offer?
3. Who is my competition and how do I compare in terms of quality and cost? What scenarios will potential clients choose them or me?
4. For future reference, what can I do to reel potential clients that fell through in, is it worth it and are they clients I really want?
5. How long is it going to REALLY take to develop this shit before I give up and switch gears?
I do this for each market I venture into, then choosing how much time and money I invest and figuring out how to get the most bang for every dollar I put into growing the business. I play it by ear, constantly fine-tuning things. I also believe in knocking two birds out with one stone so am known to overlap my marketing - between servicing professional services, fine art, and on the rare occasion, design work. The biggest thing has been making it easier for people to find me (so get to hopping on that blog and other social media!). So I'm helping them help me...help them. When you are your own brand, that saves a ton legwork.
I'm introverted so putting myself out there isn't natural, and have had to learn how to sell without becoming one of those annoying sales people. Honestly, I couldn't live with myself if I went down that road, however not wanting to live in a cardboard box has been a true inspiration.
When it comes to business development I've developed the philosophy of surgical strikes over tactical nukes (yup only an American would use weaponry metaphors). So I don't put a lot of money in broad advertising campaigns, and personally find it's ineffective and expensive. I target individuals whom I perceive would need my service and cater my message directly to them. It's a longer process but I've been surprised how successful this has been. The first year and half was very difficult. Negative income first year, barely made a profit the second. However, an investment of precise targeting, increased network, growing portfolio, and persistent online presence made it into a viable living at about the 2 year mark. I'm certainly not out of the woods yet, but the last 24 months I've been making more than I did when I was employed. Completing my first five years (18 months to go) will give me a good sample to pull from.
I guess the issue, for me, anyways is the sacrifice you make. I'm always have to do SOMETHING; breaks are few and far between. So while I do have a pretty good social life, attempting to have some sort of relationship just isn't an option right now until things really get off the ground.
Sorry this is so unfocused and rambly. It's past 6:00 am and I should probably sleep. I would love to get to the point where I'm not business owner, photographer, designer, marketer, client relations, web dude, graphic person, social media consultant, copywriter, and accountant.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us.
One of my artist friends has a show every year regardless of how many pieces he has to show. One year it was five pieces (!?) and another year it was a dozen. Some years it's more. Thing is, he's been doing it forever and everyone comes out for the party. It's an established ritual.
Maybe the trick is to use the words "Open Bar" in the advertising posters.
Part of the reason I quit my previous animation company was because I was unable to handle all the corporate paperwork and business planning I was required to do in my last years there. I was hired as a production designer, but when the company experienced a sudden growth, all the team leaders - including myself - was told to handle the business side of things apart from our usual creative work. However, in the end most of us ended up doing more paperwork than real creative work. Suddenly being thrust into the field of business and financial planning, I found that I was drowning in it. This went on for a couple of years and I was doing worse and worse. Frustrated, I quit the job, in despair and with no confidence left.
As a person who is looking to emerge independent into the world, this journal entry is encouraging to read. But there's just so much to learn! The pace is so fast, I always feel that I'll be left behind.
Many of those whom I had spoken to told me that exposure/self-promotion is the first and most important thing. A useful place to start would be facebook, where contacts can be easily made. Even so, I still don't know how to even go about it. It's hard to get rid of my employer-employee, fixed-salary, dependent mindset.
I also struggle the most with self-promotion, probably because I'm still working on losing that employer-employee dependent mindset. I also have a hard time "selling" myself because I really hate what I perceive is the manipulative part of sales. I can only sell something if I believe in it.
Then again, sometimes that's the very root of the problem -- my self-confidence, or lack thereof. It helps to have a niche and a lot of supportive friends!