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Artist Alley General: Lists For Days

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last thread: >>9382434

>NEW! Frequently Asked Questions
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1PpDyjw2LDxbupdvHMNsBUOBVB66Lzwf44RM1You1GDA/edit?usp=sharing
>Resources
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/10uNmynwRn6CRc-OMqCeXmJwCNnEnd-vYi-7AQzSx74I/edit?usp=sharing
>Taobao/Alibaba services (broken link)
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/14zGSegr0b-429wZq5_xdMbE9hpLcXg8fqqe0OxnU2Yo/edit#gid=0
>Artist Spreadsheet
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ESQ-1h4IRUivbGNaxJFxXyDU1lSv26xTmMdH0sDX7sU/edit?usp=sharing
>How to order from Vograce (now with video on how to set up files)
https://docs.google.com/document/d/18UxKnpgrmeb82NnW5e4YIEX-eZ3zHt178Mp6i0A5gME/edit?usp=sharing
>Convention List (WIP)
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/13o7hD5xS3sDqVptnTVGUlRae3ovEE-vPPST_QOrQwtM/

A-Kon scary long lists, new discord channel, more drama, more salt.
>>
Has anyone ever had an instagram user with a decent following advertise your shop? I'm sending this one person with 40k followers a $30 item to show off on his account and mention my Instagram and etsy account. Think it'll get me much attention?
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>>9395048
Yes and yes. I didn't actually gift them the item, though. I just had a very cute and bubbly customer, so I asked her if she wanted to exchange Instagrams. She ended up having 100 fucking thousand followers and promoed me without me even having to ask. It was awesome. To this day I still have a lot of followers from her, and I would say it's a service I'd pay for too. Network with your customers, anons. You never know who is secretly e-famous.
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>>9395077
This! Didn't quite get a 100k person, but I've had quite a few 5k account customers do stuff like this.

I've contacted a few people about sponsoring them but they never responded to me so I guess it's a no >:
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What do you usually wear when doing tables? I'm seeing way too many people in just t-shirts and jeans behind the table at shuto. It's a special event, I kind of pictured more people would dress up.
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>>9395142
I really doubt most customers will care what you wear, but I agree with jeans and t-shirts looking sloppy. You can be comfortable and cute at the same time. I usually wear a sundress and a cardigan with some comfortable flats. It looks much better than jeans and a t-shirt and you're still comfortable throughout the day. I know quite a few artists who wear cosplays, which attracts customers but is going to get real old, real fast after the first hour. I speak from experience.
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>>9395034
Why don't you focus on drawing those other characters who you actually like then? This is purely anecdotal but I do see enthusiasm for Chris and Phichit (among others) but they still seem under-represented in fanart/merch because everyone is trying to squeeze onto the Victuuri bandwagon.

This is just a smaller scale version of the "Will I sell better if I draw [huge popular fandom] or [tiny niche fandom]?" question and the consensus on that here always seems to be that it can go either way because huge popular fandom = tons of competition whereas tiny niche fandom = the hardcore fans are excited to buy because you're the only one drawing it.
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>>9395142
Mori or casual lolita. Sometimes girls will say I'm cute and I've never gotten creeped on by guys, plus I'm generally warm and comfortable for the whole day.

Barring that I'll do nicely fitted normie shit. I think that if you pair jeans/t-shirt with a nice accessory and outer layer it looks fine as well.
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>>9395167
Not a reply to the anon you're replying to but just some general advice. Don't force yourself to draw super popular characters if you don't like them. If they're the current FOTM, someone will have cheaper merch than you. Someone else will have better merch than you. Another person will be a bigger fan than you. Obviously if you like the characters, draw whatever the fuck you want, but understand that the big money isn't going to come from fans of characters that have way too much merch. It's going to come from fans of characters that are so desperate for merch that they'll buy 20 of one keychain design because you're the only artist that even bothered to draw their husbando.
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>>9395167
Maybe I already did and drawing those two would round out the cast since it might seem incomplete otherwise. For the record, these would be for buttons and I have my own button maker, so it's not a big investment into something I dislike.

95% of the time I can't stand main characters and their love interest, even if I enjoy the series as a whole.
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>>9395142
I really struggle with this as a guy. I feel like when girls dress up at their tables it looks nice/cute, but when I dress up, I just look way too formal/businessy and out of place. And if I go down the animu T-shirt route, I just look like a slob. I just want to look nice, approachable, and not sloppy.
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>>9395214
My approach to this is argyle sweaters, a step between too businessy and too casual. but this is because I'm a huge fucking dweeb and already have a closet full of argyle sweaters.
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>>9395142
Most customers don't care what you wear. I've gotten compliments while wearing lolita but wearing just jeans + t-shirt has never once impeded my sales.

A lot of artists pull all-nighters or otherwise spend a lot of time on con prep in the week leading up to the con so I don't fault them for not having the energy to dress up nicely the day of. Personally, I get cold really easily (more so than the average person) so wearing skirts/dresses to a con is an ordeal because I have to remember to bring blankets to cover my legs or wear winter leggings even if it's super hot outside. It's much more trouble than it's worth.

I tend to dress up nicely if it's a local con because I'm usually just commuting from home and have access to my closet. If I'm traveling, I'm already stressed out from packing to travel so I most likely won't bother with fancy clothing. You also underestimate the power of graphic tees. I've noticed that wearing fandom t-shirts often helps start conversations with customers. I think they offer a casual approachable look and most customers are happy to engage you as another fan.
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>>9395214
Casual button up shirts go a long way, esp. if you have a t-shirt on underneath and layer it.

Maybe look up some casual men's fashion shots on instagram? I get that it may be a bit much for a con but shit, I know I'd at least double take or chat up with a well dressed guy about his art over some dude with a pinup spread over his chest.
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>>9395238
>Most customers don't care what you wear.
>You also underestimate the power of graphic tees. I've noticed that wearing fandom t-shirts often helps start conversations with customers. I think they offer a casual approachable look and most customers are happy to engage you as another fan.

This and this, I personally don't care how you are dressed even if it's some gamur/animu shirt, longs you're not smelly and that your clothes are clean with no obvious stains. If you are dressed nice, cool whatever. Some people dressed to suit what they sell, which makes sense to me but you don't have to.
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>>9395142
i wear my cosplay usually
it's a good conversation piece and a good way to attract customers. especially if your cosplay is within the fandom pieces you are selling
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>>9395142
I enjoy artists who also cosplay? That way you can geek out about one of their fanarts & the series too. Usually another thing that gets people to your table.
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>>9395244
in most circumstances I'd agree, but for a con full of generally unfashionable weebs... Better to just wear a graphic T and have a good conversation starter than to be fashionable and a little out of place, IMO
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>>9395142
Usually just a plain shirt and a nice cardigan, and simple makeup. I've cosplayed before at local cons and I found it very uncomfortable so I prefer not to. I try not to dress too fancy but I also don't want to look like I fell out of bed. Also I love to layer since it can get warm or cold very fast.
>>
My partner and I (male and female) sometimes wear our kigus at the booth since its sub zero temps in those rooms. Never had any issue since we are both generally approachable people.
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>>9395142
Most of the time I'll cosplay since it's a hobby of mine as well (not too concerned w/ whether or not it attracts customers, I just love cosplaying) but if I'm not in cosplay I'll try to just put together a trendy outfit/wear stuff I like but is just a tad bit too flashy for my daily wear.
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>>9392991

Have they announced hours and I just missed that part or have they not given out the schedule yet? I booked Thursday - Sunday for my hotel but I don't know if it's a full Thursday day or the few hours it was last year.

>>9394152

I'm an avid itabagger but only for official merch. I'd wager that it's more of a casual crowd who will buy stuff in AA for an itabag.

>>9395142

It usually boils down to Friday lolita, Saturday sports anime cosplay or more lolita, then Sunday yaoi shirt.
>>
At the end of the previous thread, I asked about J-con. I went ahead and bought a vendor table since it's cheap-ish and I'm desperate...but they didn't even ask for a url/portfolio of your work. You just pay and you have a table. That's all. That's a bit concerning.
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>>9395559
Well it's a vendors table not an artist alley table, that's the normal procedure
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>>9395458
I wish the AAs I've gone to were cool enough to wear kigus... often it's so dang hot and not great airflow
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>>9395567
They advertise it for artists too though, even having a picture of an artist with a print wall on the vendor page.
>So, you’re an artist, huh? Or maybe you make music? Perhaps you even make fancy soap! Weapons? Skateboards? Plush?! That’s pretty cool. So you make all these things, but don’t have anywhere to sell them? False! You can buy a vendor table and sell your many awesome wares here, at J1Con!
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>>9395515
RE: A-Kon hours-

No one knows the exact hours yet, but Thursday is a full day this year. They're still working on all of the schedules. They let the panelists know about this already. I'm guessing artists and dealers will know first once they do figure that out, though.
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>>9395330
>>9395182
>>9395142
I wear either casual lolita, punk, or visual kei. I feel it's very important I dress up, but I'm also selling J-fashion items to the J-fashion crowd and selling a J-fashion image. People like to feel they are buying from the 'real deal'. I think it matters less if you're selling fanart/prints.
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>>9395142
I generally just put on something a little nicer than usual for conventions. I'm a girl and usually ill wear a patterned dress, but sometimes I get really lazy on the last day and just wear a fitted graphic tee (I personally feel like the ones fitted for women are much nicer than the general baggy ones since they fit your shape) with jeans. A cardigan on top usually hides any sense of "laziness" since outerwear implies you put some thought into your outfit.

I think men have it more difficult, since theres not as wide of a range of men's clothing. If a guy is behind his table in a suit and tie (I've seen it before), it just seems really awkward because it kind of gives off a businessy rather than casual vibe. I think in the case of an anime convention, underdressing is more acceptable than overdressing. But don't come in a shirt with grease stains on it or something.
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>>9395592

Well glad I asked off for Thursday. I hope they do set up Wednesday night 'cause then I could just go after work and then get there early Thursday. Free parking space will be helping out a lot. Thanks for the info, anon.
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>>9395515
>>9395592
>>9395634
I'm guessing none of you follow A-Kon's Twitter or Discord? They posted the info on both.

Hours of the Alley :
Weds June 7th : Setup 5pm
Thurs June 8th : Setup 8am
Thurs June 8th : Hours Open 2 - 7 pm (Optional this year)
Fri June 9th : Hours Open 10am - 7pm
Sat June 10th : Hours Open 10am - 7pm
Sun June 11th : Hours Open 10am - 5pm
Artists will be allowed in 30 mins before, and 30 mins after.
Check-in must be done by Friday at noon, and setups completed by 3pm.
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>>9395670

No I don't. Thanks anon, this really helps! I'll plan for Wednesday night setup to get everything done so I can take it easier Thursday.
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Noob here, do you usually pay the person who is helping you run your table? I mean if they aren't an artist and are there with you the whole time to take care of sales while you do commissions.

How do you deal with the awkward moment of them saying you don't have to pay them because you're friends, but you feel bad because they pretty much did retail all weekend long for you, yet you barely made enough to break.
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>>9396187
Generally you talk about compensation BEFORE they help you with your table, so they know what they're getting into and can agree to it or deny it then.

Some people pay their helpers, and some people say hey, I'm giving you ride + Lodging + registration in exchange for help with the table, and you can enjoy the con on down hours for free.
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>>9396187
I always based payment on sales/profit and usually no matter what we made I treated them to a nice meal after the con wrapped. If you didn't make much maybe take them out later when you can make up the costs as a thank you?
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So uh, I've been seeing this post being shared on my feed, was anyone planning on doing artist alley at Newcon? The more I hear about this con the shadier and more scammy it seems. I'm going to take it off my con circuit.
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>>9396288
Woah this is fucked up, I would not want to sell there.
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>>9395515
Off topic, but it isn't just casual baggers who buy fanfare stuff for bags. If it is cute it deserves a place, it makes a great little conversation starter! Plus those who have less popular husbandos or waifus will always try and buy up whatever they can. You can be a serious bagger but still love supporting artists, encourage it.
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>>9396187
If its a big convention, i'll sometimes give a my friend a bonus like some money or go out to eat or something. Otherwise, I paid for their ticket, travel, hotel, and sandwiches/snacks, so thats usually enough.
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>>9396187
I pay for their badge and food.
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>>9396187
My main table helper considers the badge as her payment for the weekend, but I always buy our food as well. I also let her take her pick from leftover merchandise after the con is over, although she's never taken more than three things. I am blessed.
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>>9396288
Sold there once in 2016, it's a total bust drama or not. Would not recommend, even for locals. The attendance is just too incredibly low and they shaft the artist alley in a completely different building seperate from the convention/main hotel.
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Can someone direct me to an artist that has a cool chibi style that's NOT actually chibi? I'm looking to stylize my art, but I don't want to copy someone else's signature thing, but some inspiration would be nice.
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>>9397021
Not really sure what you're asking, do you have any examples you can show?
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>>9397062

Like this cute (eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeehh..kinda) but isn't TOO chibi. Like the little dot eyes instead of the huge anime eyes.
>>
What's your opinion on people bringing their kids to AA while they're selling?
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thoughts on c2e2? i got offered to purchase a space in either the dealer/retailer or industry section but 1-2k a booth is pretty damn high. i sell cute girly anime weeb art.
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>>9397188

Good. "Mommy look! I want that for my room!" $$$$$$$$$$$$$$ Profit. I love kids.
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>>9397188
Poor kids must be so bored. I read one comment on AANI about someone who'd been conning with their baby since 2 m/o and why would you do that to yourself... or your baby...
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>>9397188

Nope. Leave them at home. It's really not fair to the kids and I'd imagine they're a distraction for you as a seller. I'm against bringing kids to cons in general since most of the time it seems the parents are dragging the kids along and not the other way around. I've never understood why you just wouldn't get a sitter and have a kids-free adult day or weekend?
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>>9397188
Fuckin nightmare. I tabled next to a friend who brought her kids and it was the worst tabling experience of my life. Little shits spilled stuff everywhere, couldn't sit still, had to eat every 14 minutes. She couldn't even keep her merch clean, apparently the baby threw up on one and she washed it but didn't dry it completely. Merch she was trying to sell. A. Fucking. Nightmare.

A different con, I saw an artist bring a kid with peanut allergies, and they put up signs all over the table forbidding anyone who had been in the same room with a peanut from coming near the table. There was plenty of room behind the table for the kids to stay away from customers. What do they do if the kid has to use the restroom? Did they hire bodyguards or something? Maybe don't bring your kid to an event with tons of people if this is a problem?

If the kid is old enough to occupy their own time and be a functional helper, I don't have a problem with it, but if they need any kind of management then you shouldn't mix tabling and child rearing.
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>>9397124
It's still chibi. You don't really understand what chibi means, it just means little, and applies to any character that has small/cute/childlike proportions. There are a lot of different styles of chibi but it's all still chibi. You could try asking for less shiny desu or simpler chibis.
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>>9396346
Personally, I'm a bit of a purist and like to have my itabags be all official merch. I do think people who stick to fanmerch aren't as intense, since acquiring fanmerch is less of a hassle than official merch. On the other hand, you're right: some people with less popular husbandos/waifus will ressort to fanmerch. And in the end, there are still many people who put fanmerch on their bags (and it's their bags so their business).

Just adding on though, that even if I only put official merch on my bags, I buy a lot of fanmerch too to just decorate my space (I love the series so much, there can never be too much).
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>>9397124
>>9397335
>>
>Otakuthon tables $200 this year
Is it even worth it.
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>>9397124
>>
>>9397124
Another one
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>>9397124
And...
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>>9397335
Last one.
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>>9397350
You're awesome. Thanks!
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>>9397349

Attendance didn't even grow that much last year and sales are meh. So not really.

I'm still going to apply...
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>>9396187
Depends on the con/their current money situation, because they actually just love sitting at the table regardless of whether or not I offer them stuff. I'll at the very least always pay for the badge and either food or buy them something from the dealers room, but for an upcoming con I'm paying badge, partial travel (we'll both be flying), and food.
>>
Has anyone ever done local arts and craft shows in malls/schools or one day "comicons" that are usually really small and ghetto? Does it bring in a few extra bucks?
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>>9396187
My helper is my wife, so.. I pay for everything, including a nice dinner each night for the two of us.
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>>9397667
i do a tiny shitty one day comic con that happens more than once a year in my town. i get 100-300 from it each time
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>>9397345
Hey, I replied to your comment in the Itabag thread to keep this one on topic.
>>9397673
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>>9395214
Maybe a jacket or a sweater over a casual tee?
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>>9396187
If they are only checking up on me/working less than 5 hours they just get badge. If they are working for me for 50%+ of the con, I cover all expenses (food, hotel, travel, badge). If they are working 90%+ of the time and I'm working less than 50% they get a comission on top of expenses.

I'd like to start paying hourly for people who I don't give a comission, but I'm not quite there financially yet.
>>
>>9396288
>>9396332
>>9396965
There's a whole seperate thread on this
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>>9397667
I love the small one day cons because no hotel woo. If they keep the table price low and I can drive there and back in the same day I always do 'em. You won't make as much as a big con, but generally it's low effort and you can occasionally make it really big since a lot of the attendees to smaller cons aren't used to having access to artist alley stuff
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>>9397667
I just did a one day con at a college. It was surprisingly nice and my sales went well.
>>
Anyone else have a really slow month this month on etsy / with general online sales?
>>
Are mailing tubes usually expensive? I'm looking for short tubes with large diameter but all I can find are pricey 2"x26". Is there a good place for mailing tubes? I'm tempted to use the free USPS triangle tubes but they don't seem sturdy.
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>>9397761

Yeah. I guess when I opened my shop I was hitting all the holiday shopping but this month has been dead compared even just to February where I was still getting one or two sales a week. Hoping it picks back up soon since I want some of this stock gone before con season!
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>>9397349
otakuthon does mid/low level sales for me. it's on the same rank as conbravo desu. they have too many tables imo.
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>>9397188
they should get a sitter. you're at work, we're at work. please treat the alley as such. i hate children screaming behind me while i am trying to sell my art. i'm not there to socialize with your 2 year old.
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>>9397784
Yeah I went from 50+ sales a month to just 2 this past month ):
Is it cus it's tax season or something
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>>9397761
yep, it's super noticeably like, a third of what i made february and january, if that.
>>
>>9397826

Has anyone ever experienced a boost in sales in April and May once refunds go out? I've only had my shop since November so I'm pretty new to the ups and downs from month to month.
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>>9397761
First 3 months of the year are always my slowest months.
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Uhhhhh
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>>9397682
Oh I didn't even notice, I just wanted to give people a heads up :/
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Aren't the Pokémon ones just sprite rips, some of them recoloured? Why are all the comments so supportive...
>>
>>9397956
i like the mom and pops trying to be hip with the jive manning this booth. i could show this to my dad and he'd get starry eyed
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>>9398142
People on AANI have shitty taste, that's why. I see tons of garbage get plenty of likes and comments. It's kind of sad when you see pro-level artists (but not an anime/game fanartist, but like the concept artists or fantasy illustrators who sometimes post) post in AANI and get no response and then shit like this gets tons of responses.
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>>9398142
They 100% are, I dislike her/the brand so much. People are fucking stupid, especially in AANI. They'd never support art theft, unless it's super cute and they can wear it I guess.
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>>9398142
This is apparently the trend now on AANI
Ripped pokemon sprites HOW NOSTALGIC
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>>9398142
They even used the same surfing pikachu rip as the other artist
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>>9397956
pls no
>>9398142
>Why are all the comments so supportive...
Some people don't understand what stealing is.
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>>9398142
Because sprite rips are fine in AANI [/sarcasm] haven't you seen any of the perler threads

As a pixel artist it pisses me off -.-
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>>9398356
>[/sarcasm]
>-.-
Is lurking a lost art?
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>>9398356
I remember seeing some Perler sprites and shadow boxes using official art get slammed on AANI at one point not too long ago, and they're always sharing Teechip theft stories so I was just surprised how much love this person was getting in particular.
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>>9398379
I'll type in whatever style I want
(>'-')> <('-'<)

sage for OT
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>>9398142
kek an admin turned off commenting on her post and she's mysteriously left the group. Looks like the rest of her shop is ripoffs too, Neko Atsume & MLP traces. Garbage.

The worst part is I think the glitter pokemon pins look really cute. If they were actually official merch they'd be great.
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>>9398531
I don't think she "mysteriously" left, she probably got booted out.
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>>9395142
I always wear Lolita or cosplay and it's funny because people do not recognize me in normal clothing. I walked past so many people in normal clothing and they don't bat and eye, but when I dress up/ throw on a wig people are like "omg it's you!"

I sell a lot of cute stuff so it's only natural to dress the part. I don't feel comfortable working my table in anything else.
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>>9398291
>>9398285
>>9398142
where the FUCK is everyone and their mom getting their pins made?

I just saw like 10 posts in a row on twitter wtf
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>>9398554
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>>9398622
it was a rhetoric question, take the stick out of your ass
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>>9398662
Didn't fucking sound like a rhetoric question but continue being mad that anon didn't spoonfeed you.
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>>9398693
lmao , lrn2read spazzhead, u mad
>>
>>9398662
Are you retarded anon, you worded it as a source question. Not a rhetorical one.
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>>9398700
lrn2phrase first. I'm not even mad considering I already do enamel pins as a regular part of my inventory and I'm not the anon who originally responded to you. Have fun pretending that wasn't a source question though.
>>
>>9398554
Search in the archive.
>>
For anyone who doesn't mind answering, how much of your sales come from prints? And of that, how many come from fullsize 11x17s and how many come from postcards?
About 65% of my sales come from prints, and about another 5% is postcards. The other 30% is charms/buttons.

Just poking around to hear what other people's statistics are, since I'm wondering if I'm being too print-dependent with my merch. It really started to hurt during ALA, where people weren't buying prints, and my sales took a hit.
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>>9398733

Hey, anon, I usually make about 50% from prints, randomly split between full size and smaller depending on convention audience, and the other 50% from a random assortment of other rotating merch (stickers, lanyards, pouches, charms, memo pads, sketchbooks/notebooks, bookmarks, etc.)

Ironically, while I've been trying to move towards being more print-focused because it's what I actually want, I was at ALA, too, and my print sales completely tanked there. Like worst print sales have ever been for me not counting my first AA ever where I barely had anything to offer. I'd like to believe it was just a weird con, but I feel like it was probably a good reflection of recent trends, so I'm back to neglecting prints, ugh.
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>>9398733
The artist next to me at my most recent con had smaller scale $5 prints, and vinyl stickers. He sold about 20 of the prints in one day and a bunch of the stickers.
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>>9398708
>>9398711
are you seriously arguing about a rhetoric question? how autistic are you lol

you cant read tone, congrats, do you want a medal
>>
>>9398818
>He sold about 20 of the prints in one day and a bunch of the stickers.
So like $125 in sales? Not sure if you're trying to say he sold a lot of prints or basically none.
>>
>>9398819
>doesn't know what rhetorical questions are
>arguing tone on the internet
>being this stupid

>>9398733
I don't keep meticulous track of my inventory by items so I don't have specific numbers, but it's about 50% prints for me as well. Surprisingly, my print sales didn't really drop at ALA? But to be fair, I mostly sold my non-anime prints at that con. My usual con best-sellers like OPM weren't really moving at all. I think I was also one of the few artists there with a huge selection of Western fandoms so my print sales didn't hurt too much. I've noticed that having a variety of fandoms tends to save my ass at cons that go badly for my friends.

I've actually gotten rid of postcards altogether because I've seen anons here recommend it. And it definitely has boosted my overall sales. The thing with postcards is that, if you put them out, people will definitely buy them - but if you don't have them, people will still buy your 11 x 17 prints. So it's less profit overall even if you sell a decent chunk of postcards. My table partner and I noticed this at a recent con. She had postcards and I did not. Even though we were making similar amounts of sales, she ended up with less money because people would spend $5 on her side for a postcard and then $15 on my side for a print.
>>
Blatant samefag anon: rhetoric is a noun. It's a rhetorical question. If you don't even know the words you're trying to use to argue, it's probably time to stop, unless you want to sound like you're a stupidity person with an idiot question.
>>
>>9398733
Actually around 10-15% of my sales are from prints. Most of my sales come from smaller accessories (charms, stickers).
>>
>>9398733
About 90%+ of sales are from prints. I wish some of my smaller things would sell more but can't complain because posters are more profitable.
How do I advertise to customers my smaller stuff as well as my larger posters? I don't want them to compete but people would stop dropping cash after they pay $30 for posters.
>>
>>9398840
>>9398831
You guys get so #triggered for being called stupid lol
>>
>>9398935
Maybe make a poster-sized advertisement showing the artwork for your smaller merch? I know a lot of people (especially ones who do really quick runs of the alley because they want to get to other places at the con) miss what's on the table because they will often only look at what's up on the board instead of waiting for the crowd in front of the table to clear.
>>
>>9398535
thank you, cpt obvious
>>
What have you guys been using for your stickers? I'm torn between using high quality sticker paper or committing to vinyl.
>>
>>9399249
if you want to seriously do stickers, use vinyl. i love vinyl stickers.
>>
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I've been hesitating if I should ask or not, because I know it comes down to preference and I've seen some of the low quality skill sold in AAs, but do you think I'd have an audience for art like this? I'm super apprehensive of doing AA again because I never did well before ( >>9396187 here)...and I'd feel like shit hearing artists talk about how they would make 1k-3k+ at the end of a con and I wouldn't even make 500.

Of course, that was a couple years ago when I was trying to sell my shit chibi art, but recently I got back from Japan where I was working for a shop and drawing him cats/rabbits like this for him to print on clothing, and they sold a lot.

I can't help but to feel like I'm such shit tier though compared to how good other people are and I have no idea why the Japanese people liked this crap I made.

I'm contemplating about trying to sell *just* the cats/rabbits art in AA's, but I also know how hard it is to get people to want to buy original art too.

Have you seen anything similar (mono-style/theme) from people who did well in AAs?
>>
>>9399340
I really like this, it reminds me hangry and angry and some of the h.naoto shirts.

Honestly it comes down to marketing. I think you could do well if you put this on shirts.
>>
>>9399340
Not my thing but I think there's a market for it
>>
>>9399249
Recently switched over to vinyl and I would never go back to regular sticker paper. The difference in quality is pretty noticeable
>>
>>9399340
I feel like there would be a market for this at furry conventions, although it's not an avenue I personally have experience in.

(Sage for less than helpful)
>>
>>9399341
>>9399348
>>9399352
Thanks for the feedback. My idea was to start out selling them postcard size and seeing what designs were/weren't popular and then think about putting a couple on shirts.

Since money is my biggest challenge right now, are there any cheap printing sites for shirts? I checked over the .docs files, and spoonflower has me concerned due to the comment about black appearing gray, as I use mostly black.

I'm a bit iffy about digitalartwear bearing of the turnaround time.
>>
>>9399340
Sorry anon, personally I would not see this art working out as well as other artists in AA.I'm sure someone would buy this kind of artwork, but you won't be making mad cash unless you really know how to sell them. Original art is hard enough to sell as it is.
>>
>>9399361
I agree but fanart in this style might sell decently enough.
>>
>>9399340
Honestly, if I saw art like this at a con, I would find it super cringey. You might find an audience in people who might buy it for like ~ironic bad art~ purposes? I've seen people who do mono/limited color palette prints and did well but these need to be executed way better. The facial proportions on these are especially egregious. The eye/nose placement is way off for them to look aesthetically pleasing.

If you struggled to make $500 in the years past, I would say you should take some time to polish your work before attempting AA again. Also, consider doing fanwork with your originals on the side because I don't see you being able to rely solely on originals if you want to make money. The quality just isn't there yet but it's something you can work toward if you're set on creating your own brand.
>>
>>9399367
I disagree. There are a ton of people who do chibi fanart and their style/execution tends to average better than what the anon posted. The chibi market is saturated and their style execution is really subpar for it to be truly marketable.
>>
>>9399371
desu I thought that's what they were going for? Honestly, most chibi art looks the same to me so I guess I don't notice the differences as much as someone else might
>>
>>9398831
Out of curiosity, did your friend have the same print in different sizes? I've been considering postcard size prints but of different/simpler subjects than large prints, so I've been wondering if that also cannibalizes sales.
>>
>>9399340
you need more color. Its just going to look like a black and white wall at an artist alley.
>>
I'm going to an art show next month and I've made up some sticker packs (same anon that was asking about them before). How much would you guys charge for 3 vinyl stickers (all around 2in)? I made up packaging for them as well, if that factors in
>>
>>9399409
Given the way they're talking about their art I don't think there's any sort of intentional "bad art" going on here. It sounds to me that it's the limit of their skill.

There's a pretty big difference between intentional execution versus compensation for what a given artist is simply unable to do. Most people fall into the latter category and that's what determines their "style".
>>
>>9399340
Im gonna be realistic with you. Definitely not trying to hurt feelings, we're all artists here.

I personally do not think this would sell in Anime AAs. Theres lots of people doing mediocre chibis, what they have ahead of you is they draw fanart. Youll probably make about as much as you did before, unless you brainstorm some incredible comps, I see 700 or so being your upper limit (with onsite commissions)

However, heres what I recommend. Try out the furry art community. I noticed that in general, they're pretty flexible with skill level if you have a unique looking aesthetic (This is my assumption and could be totally wrong.)
I suggest trying out online markets first, like get a furaffinity (or whatever they use) and try to do commissions. Not for the express purpose of making cash, but just to test the waters. If you feel like your art goes over well there, try to get a table at one of those furry fiestas or bronycon. If you dont do well there, then I suggest stepping back and SERIOUSLY try to improve and develop your style further. After two years or so, give it a shot again.

Good luck anon. What you have on your side is your critical view of your work, which will stop you from losing money. Lots of people worse than you still try to do AAs and come out broke and blame it on the crowd/fandoms/whatever. If you ENJOY artist alleys and want to do a few for fun, go for it. But i wouldn't recommend this being your fill time gig.
>>
>>9399340
Your work has quite a few issues. You're trying to draw adult torsos on chibi legs. And everything is too defined to the point of being obviously american lineart (defining lines inside legs/knees/arms/face 3/4th views).

Those arms are far too big, and the torsos need to be scaled down.

Look up a different style of eyes/mouths and work on them further.
>>
>>9399409
Not all chibi art is the same though and there's still skill that goes into drawing them. You can compare anon's chibis to any of the ones that were posted up thread and see the clear anatomical errors. This is a case of learn your basics before you attempt to stylize.

>>9399414
She had a mix of both! Her postcard-only art tended to be single-character focused, headshots or AU outfit ideas. She also had some of her older posters available as postcards and people definitely picked the cheaper alternative when possible. She didn't make postcards of her new prints because she knows it cannibalizes her sales. Her postcard-only art still ate into her sales considerably. What I would suggest doing for postcards is to group them into sets and only sell them that way instead of individually. Like if you did postcards from the same series, etc. It still forces customers to spend more than $5 at your table while taking care of that pesky "I don't have room on my wall" problem.
>>
>>9399340

First of all, kudos to you for having the courage to post your stuff and ask for feedback.

If this is the kind of style and art you want to go for, then I'm gonna say "you do you," but there are some fundamentals you need to work on, and you need to keep in mind your audience is never going to be as large as somebody with more variety in content/style or fanart.

I would really suggest at least working on facial proportions before you try to put your art out there. People are much more forgiving of weird body anatomy than they are weird facial proportions/feature placement, so if you can nail down faces, you'll be looking a lot better. Find some Japanese artists who have a chibi style that you like, and really analyze it.

Where do they place the eyes? How do they keep their heads looking 3-dimensional? How are the facial features lined up with one another? How do they simplify their bodies--what do they choose to exaggerate? By taking a look at what they're doing compared to what you're doing, it might help you identify some of the fundamentals you're making mistakes on.


Or just start doing furry cons and cashing in on commissions for furry porn.
>>
>>9399340
Your stuff sells well in Japan because they will wear/like anything that looks 'edgy'. I just watched a video where they interviewed people in English tshirts to see if they knew what it meant and the answer was always no. The shirts had really stupid English sayings. I think the art looks cool for that sort of thing , but in the US people are a lot more picky about what they buy/wear.
>>
Whenever I hear about Vograce, everyone says to go with double acrylic board. Damn, does their single acrylic board ones really suck that much?
>>
>>9399361
>>9399371
>>9399415
>>9399427
>>9399457
>>9399480
>>9399561
>>9399650
Thanks for all the feedback, it's much appreciated. I know I have a huge need to improve, and I'm always trying to get better. I guess I'm still stuck in limbo about what to do. If anything, I'll just go with 1-day shitty cons to see how stuff goes.
>>
Has anyone experienced bad chipping with their Acorn press charms? Two of my friends placed orders for charms and they have really bad chipping with them just days after receiving them. One friend even had the printing come off while assemble theirs. I placed an order with them before, but now I'm afraid of continuing.
>>
>>9399866
i've never had a problem with them chipping before, but lately a few of my customers have mentioned that. i'm not sure how they've treated them, if they've put them somewhere that it's natural for them to get some wear for example, but it does worry me too...
>>
>>9399824
the double acrylic/paper sandwich is just the cheapest. i do double sided single board clears w/ an epoxy coat and they're fine
>>
What's best for putting all your stuff on a business card? What if you have the same name on all social media. Would you just put /[name] and then the social media icons? Or List one site and then put the other icons?
>>
>>9399340
I like your work, and used creatively I would consider buying it. You might try doing more pastels or classic lolita colors ("Alice in Wonderland" style sells well) to help make them pop. Just plain black and white can be tiring for the eyes.

Also, you could definitely use the "I was a designer in japan" to your advantage. Make stuff more similar to what you used to do, maybe even ask the guy who used to sell them for some tips on how to format them on tees or things like skater skirts or tights (making them repeating patterns). Then put a big ol' disclaimer under your name that says "Designer for Japanese brand ______" and weebs/jfash junkie's will eat it up. If your work looks like jfash - it will sell.
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>>9399950
Thanks. I've been trying to play around with colors a little bit...work up the "edgy" bs. I know it's dumb, but if 15 year olds are willing to give me $5 for it, then whatever.

I'm really conflicted about being open about the store where I worked at. While I know it would give me an advantage to show off the clothes and everything, I have noticed how some people will email people's employers to harass them and/or try to get them fired for whatever reason. I would feel so terrible if that happened to my director, because he's well into his 80s and such a nice old man.
>>
>>9399854
Since you've been such a good sport about the (quite frankly scathing) feedback, I took the responses in this thread and broke it down as a possible tool for you to use in your considerations of AAs.

There were 14 responses (I think I counted one response as both maybe/no), broken down into yes, maybe and no:

yes (100% will buy) - 2 (14%)
maybe (50% will buy) - 4 (29%)
no (0% will buy) - 8 (57%)

Ignoring the 0%, the average between yes and maybe comes out to around 22% chance that someone will buy your artwork in its current state, which is around $220 of $1k, $440 of 2k and $660 of $3k if those were numbers of average sales at a given AA.

I do believe that this number is in reality higher because this is a thread full of very specific people (artists) and your audience will be wider than just that. If anything, it might help you to use this to gauge how much you're willing to invest in a table and event for when and where you choose to sell. Best of luck to you!
>>
>>9400002

Anon, I am sorry to be so harsh, but it is time to stop doing and start thinking.

Go find popular artists who have prints with simple backgrounds or patterns and see what they do. You don't have to have a lot of skill to make a nice, complementary background, but you can't just start throwing random shit in there and hope that something good comes out of it. Don't reinvent the wheel. See what successful people are doing and learn from them.
>>
>>9400019
Thank you sooooo much, this break down is actually really helpful to me!

Yeah, I think I'll just start out doing one day "conventions" with free tables or below $50 that are near me at colleges and such until I get better and have a clearer direction.
>>
>>9399922
I think it looks better when it's the name and then all of the social media icons. It's pretty self explanatory and I've always thought it looked cleaner. If I was able to use the same name on all my accounts, I definitely would change my business cards
>>
>>9400033
Do you have any examples of what you think looks good/clean vs a badly designed card?
>>
>>9399854
No problem Anon. I'm honestly somewhat impressed at your drive. Taking critique in stride is a great quality.

Since I'm going to be gone for the rest of the night and don't want to drag on topics, feel free to email me ( [email protected] ) if you want someone to give you more specific/guided critique. What does appeal to me immediately is your choice in fashion for these characters, which definitely (in m eyes) shows you have the ability to create neat designs, and thus lots of room for growth. Looking forward to hearing from you, if you decide to send one.
>>
zap quality just keeps getting shittier and shittier don't it
>>
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>>9400039
I'll do some searching for some more but here's a quick example of what I usually like (it's really personal preference but there are some basic design elements that should be taken into account). The less clutter, the better. If you have one website that you update frequently, make sure that's the focus.

The easier it is to read/find information, the more likely I am to actually check out the social media accounts.
>>
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>>9400002
This is bad anon. I don't know what else to tell you. Monochrome art can sell well. Simple chibis can sell well. But whatever grunge brush you used in the background for these look terrible and you've made your design busier than it needs to be. This is like the aesthetic for weebs with no taste back in the early 2000's.

If you're going specifically toward apparel, you need to look at what sort of weeb apparel is popular right now in AAs. As much as I dislike some of the artists that are in this collage, their apparel design is stronger than yours. If you're into "edgier" fashion, you can even draw from menhera as inspiration. Right now, it kind of seems like you're trying to start something without doing research about your market. The Japanese and American markets are very different and the general public vs. an AA crowd are very different audiences.

I mean, no one is stopping you from doing AAs right now and you can, but I honestly think you will be losing money.

>>9400019
I would be very surprised if this anon could make $220 profit after all their start up expenses. (table cost, production cost, etc). Especially if they're doing this at small cons where profit margins tend to be smaller. Sorry for being a party pooper but you're being too optimistic.
>>
Yeah a mutual of mine recently ordered from zap and besides the order taking serval days longer than was promised, the quality was god awful
>>
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>>9400039
An example of not so great to me. The artwork is nice but the websites aren't listed in a way that makes them visually appealing. The lines are too close together, the font isn't that easy to read at such a small size.
>>
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>>9400039
I'm a sucker for simple black and white but another one that I like
>>
>>9397769
have you tried uline? they have a shit ton of mailing and shipping supplies.
>>
>>9397769
>>9400088
Don't use Uline. They're overpriced and mix politics with their business. Whatever money you give them goes toward supporting super conservative/socially regressive political action.

Try Papermart or Amazon.
>>
>>9400090
wow I did not know that. thank you for the info.
>>
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>>9400092
No problem. They have a long history of donating to anti-LGBTQ legislation. And they also think warehouse employees don't deserve lunch breaks. If you check their company reviews on Glassdoor and other workplace review sites, female employees are required to wear skirts only - even if they're warehouse workers. Their CEO is kind of nuts as you can tell from this newsletter that they send out to customers and plaster directly on their website.
>>
>>9400049
>>9399866
Holy shit. Is there a vendor that doesn't completely suck? I'm willing to spend good money on my merch. My customers deserve better than this bullshit and so do I.
>>
>>9400095
Wait, they send this stuff out to their customers? It's one thing to donate to support your political beliefs; it's another to shove them at unsuspecting customers in a business newsletter.

And calling a law requiring lunch breaks unbearable... Hoooly shit.
>>
>>9400066
besides milkbbi every artist trend featured in this collage needs to fucking die. the worst fashion trend of this gen
>>
>>9400088
>>9400095

OH GOD FUCK ULINE
>>
>>9400081
An easy way to improve this one would be to take the picture off the back.
>>
>>9400113
Woah there, anon. Autism Awareness Month isn't until April.
>>
>>9400113
Can I ask why except milkbbi? I don't have anything against these artists, but I noticed that in most threads where users condemn this style/these artists they usually say milkbbi is okay. Not trying to start shit, just wondering if he's a genuinely good guy, if so I'd like to support him.
>>
>>9400066
Upper right is actually pretty nice and I'd definitely wear it. Artist?
>>
>>9400142
Not that anon, but I think it's because milkbbi did that sort of style first and then Yoshikigirl/Weeb Trash Clothing jumped on the train and started making watered down copies.

I don't like milkbbi either actually. I know I'm gonna get called a butthurt SJW or whatever but I think it's kind of shitty for a white dude to be mixing Japanese, Korean, and Chinese characters on his designs and making money off of it. Just speaking as an East Asian. If you're gonna use a foreign language in your art, just use one instead of mixing a bunch of languages up for #aesthetics. It looks bad, and that's not how those languages work anyway?

What I don't get are omocat/milkbbi comparisons. I don't like omocat either but their styles are pretty distinct from each other.
>>
>>9400147
It's omocat.
>>
>>9400152
Recognized the label/logo after the fact but thank you! I know a lot of people disagree but I do really like omocat's work
>>
>>9400100
Just go with Vograce and get double clear acrylic (they can even do it on clear charms so your stuff won't scratch.

Now, if you REALLY want to go all out, you can actually get offset charms from these folks: https://mfgyp.en.alibaba.com/

They're super hard to break and scratch but it will cost you quite a lot.
>>
>>9400169
>Vograce
That's one I'm never ordering from again. Their charms have chipped on me, friends, and customers too.
>>
>>9400173
What I mean is that they can now sandwich your clear charm prints in between two layers of clear acrylic. The only way to chip that is to actually break the acrylic off.
>>
>>9400142
If we're talking personality-wise, he's a super sweet dude and so is his boyfriend. I haven't seen any bad attitude or general ugliness from him and he brands himself well. He keeps a good face so I like him a lot even if I don't care for his art. I personally haven't seen anything bad about him.
>>
>>9400169
Vograce is the last you should suggest if what the original requester wants to prioritize is quality. I would say 1 out of every 5 charms I get from them arrives horribly scratched up to the point where it's unsellable. (I still use them because even losing that many to manufacturing mishaps, it's still the cheapest option.)
>>
>>9399866
>>9399881
If you know anyone that has had issues, could you request them to contact us with details? (Material used, time order was placed, etc.)

We were made aware of a couple isolated incidents with one of our specialty materials where the printing delaminated from the acrylic. The manufacturer blames one of the mold release agents used in the process and we've since had to add an additional step in cleaning and preparation of all of the specialty acrylics to account for the offchance that it happens again. Of the cases we were made aware, we had reprinted and reshipped to compensate accordingly.

Charm durability is a high concern of ours both as producers and consumers, we definitely want to know about any issues like this as soon as they arise!
>>
>>9400203
I'll shoot them the message. Thanks!
>>
>>9400173
i've got an epoxy coat on my charms and i haven't had any chipping issues since. they're $1.50 - $1.20 a charm depending on quantity (i also get 2.5" charms for ref) and it's still gonna run you cheaper than most places.
>>
>>9400100
In terms of quality, every Ink It Labs charm I have bought/traded has lasted and looks amazing. I really like how thin their clear acrylic is and how close the cutlines can get to the design. I ordered from Chillypig and I liked the fact I can get a opaque white gradient on them, and none of my pieces ever had a defect. Although, all of my double sided designs were similar to each other and someone here has mentioned they thought the extra white they offer was too thin. They both have high MOQ and are pricey.

I'm 99% sure >>9399866 's friend was in the same group order as me. I'm disappointed because Acornpress's printing quality has actually noticeably improved/gotten crisper when I compare it to what I ordered a few months ago and I really love designing with their specialty acrylics in mind, but this latest order had a lot of odd bumps and specks embedded in the ink.
>>
>>9400247
Inkit charms are amazing quality, the only thing that sucks is their holes. Because their border is thinner and their holes are bigger, they tend to break from their holes. I've had so many of their charms do this while everything else stays intact
>>
>>9400095
>State of California- Stop!
Kek'd. The awful Trump cookie on the bottom is the icing on the shit cake.
But in all seriousness, the CEO is a complete nutter and uline products are ridiculously expensive anyways.
>>
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>>9400100
Voting inkitlabs as well, there's a reason they are the most expensive yet still in business. Charms are very "you get what you pay for", and if you can afford it Inkit is basically the top of the line.

>>9400274
Have you tried telling them this or defining your own cutlines? I always send them files with custom cutlines (i use illustrator) and i make sure the loop connection to the main charm part is nice and thick.
>>
Why do so many artists not put their name or artist name on their work?

feelsbad when you can't find their info if you forget to get it at con T_T
>>
>>9400359
because I hate having my watermark/sig on there? I personally feel like it's ugly even of it's small/unnoticeable. And if someone's paying to for one of my prints then I want the artwork to be at its best in a way.
>>
>>9400359
I put my watermark on some prints but not others, depending on the art. Sometimes if it's a very bare/minimalist print there's just no where i can fit it that looks good. When it's more busy i definitely put it in there for this EXACT reason, people often share photos of my prints to friends and then not credit if they can't find my watermark, but with it they are far more likely to credit and link back to me.

When it's a print w/o watermark though i always make sure to put my business card in the sleeve!
>>
>>9400129
>not liking shit designs=autism

what are you fucking retarded?
>>
>>9400142
milkbbi doesnt follow the anime culture and does its own thing, the others are try hard

a better example:
- you can wear milkbbi in public and it can pass as normal wear

-you wear omocat/yoshiki shit, youre auto an anime fan
>>
>>9400447
No, you absolutely can hate shit designs. I hate the designs too. It's the needs to fucking die part that makes you an autist.
>>
Generic question is generic.
What's the best way to start getting into AA and content to create?
Sailormoon, pokemon, mlp, disney and adventure come to mind as good ways to create some "base" content but should one go for prints or charms or badges more?
>>
>>9400359
I have had artists sign some prints which I thought was a good way to prevent this but always including a business card works just as well
>>
>>9400359
I write mine on the back, though I give people business cards when they buy something. People lose business cards super easily.
>>
>>9400462
If you can't figure that shit out, you need to consider why you want to do it.
>>
>>9400066
Lmao so many unoriginal artists are beginning to jump on this fad, it's such an eyesore to see at cons. I love apparel in AA, but it's becoming harder to find actual wearable shit despite there being more artists making them.
>>
>>9400462
I don't do AA, but as a regular buyer I say just make stuff of fandoms you're passionate about, especially if they're reasonably well known. Even some niche stuff might get attention. There's just nothing more awkward than striking up a conversation with an artist only to find out they haven't actually watched xyz and they only made merch of it because it's iconic.
>>
>>9400462
JSYK, this kind of question usually doesn't go over well. It's a question that is based on opinion, and sales experience, both which some people don't like sharing.

There is no base stuff. Just draw what you like. Two of the prints I had when I went into my first con with a print of a niche char i liked from an anime that was popular a year ago, and a print of something super mainstream (think attack on titan.) Niche print sold out, mainstream print sold 2. Just draw what you like. If what you like happens to be fotm or a classic, cool. At least youll enjoy drawing it even if it doesnt sell well.
>>
>>9400314
Ooooh no, this are other people's charms that have broken off. Inkit is honestly too expensive for my budget ATM so I'll go with chilly pig because I can't illustrator for shit lol
>>
>>9400090
Seconding Papermart. Stuff I get from them is quality and prices are good. Shipping is fast and cheap too.
>>
>>9400066
What is the actual name of this genre?
>>
>>9401122
I've heard it referred to as "weebcore". I know some of omocat's stuff actually is used by the menhera community in Japan though?
>>
>>9400462
Feeling generous this morning.

http://www.artistalleysurvivalguide.com/
http://howtobeaconartist.tumblr.com/
http://chrisoatley.com/sabotage-sale-artists-alley/
https://design.tutsplus.com/articles/so-you-want-to-be-a-convention-artist--cms-24924

I'm not gonna say all of these are 100% correct, but it'll give you somewhere to start since your question is so generic.
>>
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>>9400451
The fucking die is directed towards the trend and not the artists

Are you honestly telling me you want to see more of this around? I sure as fuck don't
>>
>>9401137
This stuff is a J-fashion style called menhera. I love it, it's great, and honestly I don't see very much of it. There's certainly people trying to emulate the style and failing, but yes, I would LOVE to see more legitimate menhera and yumekawai.

Also really, fanartists picking on what other artists choose to draw? Come on.
>>
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>>9401146
>>
Do these sound like alright prices for bows? I'm worried they might be high but some of them are kind of difficult to make, haha.
2x3 in $3-5
6x9 in $5-8
8x11 in $10-12
>>
>>9401602
I recommend rounding the numbers so like
5, 10, 15
>>
>>9401602
What material? Any embellishments? Are they on clips, headbands, etc? Just saying 'bows' doesn't mean much.
>>
>>9401615
Oh that makes sense!
>>9401641
You're right, my bad! I tend to use casa satin for plain bows since I love how it feels, but sometimes I use higher quality quilting cotton or just flannel if I think the design is really cute. I have some fancier bows with pearls and lace and the such and my two bigger sizes have a layer of batting in them to make them cute and fluffy. But I do use some of that shitty fandom quilting fabric for the smaller and medium bows. My biggest size is on a headband since clips are a bit finnicky, but the smaller two use duck bill clips.
>>
>>9400868
I watch and like all those. Mostly I'm just trying to figure out some base fandoms to get a solid start then move into niche stuff.

>>9401128
Thank you!

>>9400914
Thanks for the opinion, it's just daunting I guess to go in with "nothing" and I'd like to try building up a groups of things that will at least look familiar to people and attract attention.
>>
>>9401653
Careful about using fandom/licensed fabrics as those are technically bootleg when sold. (Only meant for personal use)
>>
>>9401859
Well damn. What are the chances I'll get in trouble while selling them at a con?
>>
Sorry if this is a dumb question, but how would one go about making stickers at home? Or would it be better to order them from somewhere and if so where? I tried checking the FAQ but I didn't see anything about stickers.
>>
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>>9401859
>>9401942
Nope. The anon is wrong. Licensed fabrics are covered under the first sale doctrine. You already paid your licensing fees when you purchased them. Resale of licensed goods is fine.

Some cons might have rules against it (off the top of my head, I know that NDK in Colorado doesn't let you sell crafts made with licensed fabric) but most cons don't care. Legally, you are covered. BootlegAnon, do some research before giving other artists wrong advice.
>>
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>>9401952
More info on this just for reference.
>>
>>9401952
>>9401958
?? Then why does fabric.com say this on nintendo fabric

> Licensed by Nintendo to Springs Creative Products, this cotton print is perfect for quilting, apparel and home décor accents. Colors include black, brown, navy, grey, green, red, lime, blue, orange, yellow and white. This is a licensed fabric and not for commercial use.

What do they mean by it is a licensed fabric and not for commercial use?
>>
>>9401988
"Don't buy bolts of it from Joann's so you can sell it by the yard to other people"? I think it restricts sales of the fabric and the design, and not the things you actually make out of it.
>>
>>9401988
Those restrictions are not legally binding. You did not sign anything. You just need to make it crystal clear in your listing that whatever product you've created is not an official product. For example, you can say "bow made with licensed Zelda fabric" - you cannot say "Zelda bow".
>>
>>9401948
Buy blank sticker sheets, print, cut.
>>
>>9401988
It's to discourage people from buying the fabric in bulk for commercial purchases. It's so a company doesn't buy up the fabric, sent it to a manufacturer, and start selling say ball caps or flannel style pajama pants using the material.

If you are just using it for small time crafts, Nintendo likely isn't going to care even if you are selling them. It's really to deter huge manufacturers from buying it all up, and riding off Nintendo's fame.
>>
>>9401948
I have vinyl sticker paper and a Cameo but you can handcut them if you have the patience
>>
>>9399500
Thanks for the tip about packaging up postcards! That's actually a great strategy for maintaining better prices for the table.

Following up on the concept, has anyone noticed if having multiple prints of the same series affects sales negatively/positively?

I know for things like Overwatch/LoL/etc. having single character/small group prints is likely a good thing for sales, but I'd love to hear about people's experiences with fandoms that don't necessarily have that sort of built-in advantage.
>>
>>9398831
Thanks for your response!
I added postcards to my stock about last year and have noticed an increase in my profits from when I had just prints. A lot of my pics that got really popular on tumblr I have in postcard form, since theyre too sloppy to be full print size. I appreciate the advice, though! Really interesting information.
>>
>>9403095
I have three individual character prints from Tokyo Ghoul. One of Kaneki, one of a supporting character with a big fandom, and one of a guy from the second series (RE:)
When TG was more popular, all three sold well. Kaneki attracted younger people (like ~13 years old), and the older crowd liked the other two characters. All three were always among my best sellers at every con, and did not impact each other in sales.

However, contrasting that to my experience with another series (Steven Universe.) I drew two individual character prints, and one always did really well and the other did okay. Then, I introduced a group print that had those two + three more characters, and sales for the two individual prints came to a complete halt. I'll probably only sell maybe 5 of the individual character prints a con now, everyone chooses to buy the group print (Note: This didn't hurt sales because the group print sells far above what the two individual prints sold at)

So, bottom line in my experience, individual character prints are great. I specifically mentioned Tokyo Ghoul and Steven universe because I know both were/are really big and idk if something that popular also would fall along the lines you mentioned. I'd say my overall observation though is group picture prints>>>individual characters, just in my experience.
>>
>>9403145
I keep forgetting to delete my email, fuck, sorry. Sage for stupid.
>>
Sorry if this is a dumb question, I've never been to a convention and would just like to know about the legality of this. Is it common for artists to sell fanart and other content containing copyrighted characters at conventions? What is the legality of this, and is it enforced? Do cons allow it? Does anyone care?
>>
>>9404141
it's illegal, and enforcement depends on the ip owner and the con
Some people care but most don't
>>
>>9404197
I'm assuming cons themselves don't care or bother to police it?
>>
>>9404222
Cons treat it as a gret area. Basically they turn a blind eye to fanart unless the IP owner brings the hammer down in the AA. Usually people don't have issues selling fanart in the AA, it's online where IP owners tend to beat down fanart. Especially companies like Funimation.
>>
>>9404141

So one thing you should note is that while you can sell fanart, some cons are not banning you from labeling that fanart with the series title. This is mostly in response to Funimation, who has been known to go around AAs and tell people to take down labels and to cover up logos (I have seen this only at big conventions where their lawyer is present, fyi). You should never sell anything with a copyrighted logo really, but some people just put a sticky note over something, like the Scout Regiment logo from AoT since it's on the uniforms.
>>
>>9404266

*now banning you, sorry for the typo
>>
>>9404255
>it's online where IP owners tend to beat down fanart
Do you have any examples of this? I see plenty of people on dA selling fanart for example, as commissions.

Thanks for all the responses btw guys.
>>
>>9404274
The above mention funimation has become notorious for becoming really hard hitting on their IP. Primarily it's on sites like etsy where they have stuff taken down.
>>
>>9404266
>>9404255
>>9404197
>>9404280
gotcha, ty
>>
>>9404274
If you check out AANI (the facebook group) there's a list of people who have gotten C&D's- Search "Fringes without benefits." It's a massive compilation of online C&D's from merch producers.
Once again, it's online sales that are usually the issue. Have been selling in person for years and have never gotten faced by someone asking me to take something down (However my friend was once, by Disney.) Just tread carefully.
>>
>>9395233
ew
>>
>>9399340
It's ugly
>>
>>9404352
>>9404365
Anon, contain yourself to the feels thread instead of sperging out in unrelated threads.
>>
>>9404141
https://youtu.be/xKBsTUjd910
>>
Does anybody have any other good Alibaba manufacturers aside from Vograce & these guys https://mfgyp.en.alibaba.com/ for any sort of merch they can share? I've been messaging several companies, compiling prices & MOQs. Unfortunately, alot of them are out of my range.

Also, I'm curious what the average sales turnout is for you guys at most cons if that's something you're comfortable sharing. I'm starting out and want to know what to be shooting for.
>>
When you attend smaller cons or craft fairs for normies vs. bigger anime cons, do you lower your prices? Or keep them consistent?
>>
>>9404737
You get what you pay for. Don't cheap out expecting to get a good product. Exactly what are you looking for anyway? Did you message the people on the doc?

>>9405095
Normies get my online prices. Anime conventions slightly lowered prices because weebs are some cheap motherfuckers.
>>
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Cause yknow, it doesn't matter if people died as long as you get your money's worth in the end
>>
>>9404737
>I'm curious what the average sales turnout is for you guys at most cons

A con with over 2,000 people I'll make $1,500 to $3,000. A one day con with ~1,000 people I'll make around $500 to $1,000.
Some cons are total flops though. I've done a few where I didn't even make $500. Also, the first year of doing AA I never made over $1,000 at a convention. Took time to see what sells and get more established.

>>9405095
I keep the prices, but much more willing to negotiate and offer deals to people.
>>
>>9404737

Look at the results of the artist alley survey that Kiriska does every year to get a good general idea of average sales for various cons/artists.

Also, it's not helpful to just get a random anon's sales numbers and use that as something to "shoot for." For example, if you're just starting out, it would be pretty stupid of you to set your goal at the profit level of an artist who might have been doing this for 5+ years.
>>
>>9405111
They still have a right to be mad about bad customer service though. Yes the situation sucks A LOT but the company still could've done a better job communicating.
>>
>>9405113
Regarding being established, this is something that's always made me wonder a bit. I did AA for several years and have always had abysmally low numbers of followers on social media (well under 500), but noticed sales spikes (up to $1700, still low but high for me) as soon as I expanded the number of things I had available for sale (which was still low compared to everyone else).

I don't think I was ever established despite bumming about the same AAs for ages.

How much does being established actually matter versus amount of items available/quality of art when it comes to sales?
>>
>>9403145
Really appreciate your input, thanks for breaking it down like that. Basically it sounds like it's highly dependent on the given fandom/series and whether or not it lends itself to multiple prints through characters and/or settings.

I had been considering multiple prints of older/niche series, so it's very helpful to hear how it's worked out for you.
>>
>>9405174
Almost nothing, some of the best sellers at AA don't have any/very limited social media presence. For me personally my following has had almost no impact and if anything i get followers from cons and not the other way around.
>>
>>9405111
nice self post susan, no one is going to pat your ass for being a passive aggressive cunt

btw when are you going to post your YEARS of donation receipts that you boasted about? ACLU doesn't count
>>
>>9405191
You know i do lurk these threads but i'm not stupid enough to self post right lol idk who screen capped it but i'm flattered you think about me so often.
>>
>>9405191
which ones susan????
>>
>>9405191
are you seriously trying to defend jaxxy
like youve looked at her art before right
>>
>>9405240
I don't know or care about jaxxy, but after seeing some of the crazy racist skimlines-esque shit shattered_earth has tweeted I'm really not inclined to defend them, either
>>
So, coscards. Do people even use them any more? Would they be willing to commission someone to design them?

How about regular business cards for artists?
>>
>>9405247
skimlines?
>>
>>9405330
Take a look on lolcow /snow/ she had her own thread for awhile and now there is a new active thread bitching about crazy artists where she is often talked about.
>>
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>>9404274
I'm always hesitant to post the doc here because some find it amusing to deface it.

tiny url com/aanidoc
>>
>>9405374
Remove first space and add period before com

Thanks spam filter.
>>
>>9404529
Interesting video. Thanks anon.
>>
As someone who's taking the jump from local cons to flying to a convention for the first time, I'm wondering what type of checked in luggage/size you guys use to fly? I'm currently using a hand me down 24" cloth suitcase for cons, but I'd like to upgrade to a larger hardcase since it seems sturdier for flying.

Also, do you guys split your merch in your carry on, or just ship stuff directly to your hotel/con center?
>>
#CommonSense
>>
>>9404737
Not in homeland<
#Security#
>>
>>9405545
When I was working for a vendor. My boss had us put our stock and booth supplies in heavy duty cardboard boxes. I believe they were the 16x16x18 ones. As long as they were under 50 pounds we were fine.

Also, I used to use a folding/collapsible hand truck. I'd strap the boxes and carry on to it with bungie cords. Then, after the boxes were checked in. I strapped my carry on(a small rolling suitcase) to it. Then when I got on the plane. Unstrapped my suitcase, loaded that on first, then the hand truck on top. It was small enough it just slid right on top of everybody's bags. Nobody ever gave me any issues about the hand truck, and one person thought it was a folding bike.
>>
>>9405545
Anon, it would probably help if you said what kind of artist you are. Like if you're primarily a print artist, your luggage needs are going to be way different from a plush maker.
>>
>>9405213
>admitting you lurk here
>still being passive aggressive
you truly are a retarded sjw cunt
>>
>>9405108
I'd like to find Alibaba alternatives to all merch including those listed on the doc. I'm looking for prices lower than Catprint, getmeds, etc.

Aside from general goods, I'm looking for a company that can produce figures and plush toys if I can give references or 3D models. I'm not trying to cheap out per say, I just think China is capable of good work at a good price if you can find the right company.

>>9405113
Thank you for the figures and advice, I'll take them into consideration along with Kiriska's survey stats as this anon suggests >>9405114
>>
>>9405669
you aren't going to find better places for plain prints (Since you cited catprint) just so you know, unless you print industrial amounts. local printers are already 60-40 cents per print, and sure you could get them for less over seas but you aren't remembering that shipping will charge you up the ass. What costs $10 to ship here will be $100-200+ form china and you're probably not going to see a benefit until you are ordering hundreds of copies of the same print. and placing orders into at least the thousands
>>
>>9405555
Huh, I'm actually surprised the boxes are 50" linear inches, since I hear that most airlines are okay with anything under 62"
>>9405630
I'm primarily a print artist, but I've been branching out into accessories like charms, buttons, and lanyards. I store them in those clear boxes with clasps to keep everything stackable and neat. My main worry is how well it'll survive with rough handling and if I should pack differently when flying
>>
What is the AA at CTcon like?
>>
How do you deal with a customer who always compliments your art and purchases prints every con you see them, but you're pretty sure is trying to hit on you?
>>
>>9405835
straight up tell em to fuck off
>>
>>9405835
You have a suspicion, but they're either bothering you or they're not. If they are, make sure you have good evidence to prove why you told them to fuck off in case it comes to bite you in the ass. If they're not, don't worry about it?
>>
>>9405835
Keep being nice to them. Its business. If they ask you then be honest with them, but theres no reason to turn down business on a hunch.
>>
>>9405835
>>9405900
A lot of customers I have are just awkward and come off as flirting when they aren't. And honestly whatever. If they ask you on a date or for your number you can politely turn them down. Otherwise give 'em the benefit of the doubt that they aren't flirting. And honestly, a little bit of flirting isn't so bad to deal with.
>>
>>9405835
Ugh, I have a customer that gets real thirsty at my table whenever I go to cons without the bf. I just try to keep a professional distance and don't ever let up on it. Get stone cold and make the situation awkward for him/her if you need to.
>>
>>9405835
Treat them like anyone else. I try to treat my regulars nicely.

>>9405864
that sounds extremely excessive. Nothing wrong with having a crush on someone or flirting.
>>
>>9405111
>aw man my grandparent died
>Susan: okay but you know that PEOPLE DIED IN NANKING YOU PRIVLEDGED WHITE CIS HET v_v!!!

>Susan logic
>>
>>9405868
>>9405900
>>9405913
>>9405931
>>9405943
Thanks for all the advice! I'll try to keep it all in mind this con season! It's hard for me to turn away business even though he isn't very good looking. As long as he doesn't actually ask me out I think I can put up with it, it's nice to know others have had the same problem too!
>>
>>9405213
>ignores donation/charity question

Is susan learning from trump? These tilting tactics are amazing
>>
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Hey seagulls,
I want to make enamel pins but I really can't justify dropping that kind of money before being sure my designs will sell. What do you think?

Any opinions or feedback would be appreciated!
>>
>>9405985
I would only consider buying the top right, personally. It's by far my favorite and I really like it!
The other two I could take or leave, I wouldn't be butthurt if I bought all three as a set but the main thing bugging me is the composition of the top left, she's really not kissing where the skeleton's lips would be so smooching just below the nose is a little jarring to me. I like the overall direction you're going though so I would say definitely keep going anon!
>>
>>9405985

Yeah, people would buy them. Top right looks a bit like Stocking though so maybe consider tweaking the hair. Morbid/gore/skulls + cute girls/animals/flowers tends to be pretty safe subject matter, not particularly original but if it sells, who cares.
>>
>>9405985
link to art page?
>>
What's a better con to sell at, youmacon or nekocon?
I'm local to neko but it's always been kind of meh in terms of sales so I'm wondering if it would be worth it to try to nab a youma table instead.
>>
>>9406463
If you generally have the budget for out of state cons then I'd say Youma.

I've never been to Neko myself, but I have a lot of friends who go and they've all said it wasn't great. I do pretty well at Youma, though.
>>
>>9405985
Top right is the only one worth making into a pin. Bottom doesn't really have any direction and left is boring.
>>
>>9406020
>>9406029
>>9406610

Thank you anons! I think I'll go for opening preorders at my next big convention after making those changes and cutting the bottom one. I prefer sets of three, but oh well.
I'm also going through Alibaba to get these, and if people are interested, will post a review later.

Yeah, I went a bit on the generic side for these designs but hopefully they do well enough so that I can start making more unique designs.
>>
A customer bought something from my etsy shop, I shipped it out with a tracking number. I misspelled the number and the customer emailed me today, so I gave it again correctly and took a photo of the receipt. The tracking says it was delivered on the 22nd but he says he didn't get it.

What do I do from here if it doesn't show up for him today? I have heard sometimes USPS can scan packages too early. He also lives in an apartment and I asked if it was possible if the mailman put it in a different box, or the box wouldn't fit in his mailbox so maybe they sent it back to his local post office.
I'm really anxious about this because I've never had a problem before and I am not sure how etsy handles these things. With shipping the item came out to $62.
>>
>>9406625
>The tracking says it was delivered on the 22nd but he says he didn't get it.
tell the customer to call the post office and talk to neighbors.
>>
>>9406540
thanks for your response anon, I think I can afford the plane tickets + hotel for youma so maybe its worth taking a risk. I never make more than 2k at neko anyway (if that) so I dont have much to lose.
>>
>>9406625
>the mailman put it in a different box
that can happen.
>>9406625
>The tracking says it was delivered on the 22nd but he says he didn't get it.
I think if that happened to me, it is now between the customer and post office thanks to their "proof of delivery" message.

Perhaps next time pay extra for RESTRICTED DELIVERY = only THE customer can sign to pick it up and MUST sign to pick it up. Eventually it'll end up back at the Post office where they must go down themselves, stand in line and pick it up since the postal delivery must bring it back at the end of the day and leaves a note.
>>
>>9406639
>>9406800
He's replied but he hasn't called, says it's up to me or he needs a full refund. Closed by now. Told him to wait a few more weekdays(many people claim their packages were marked as delivered but did not show up for a few days) and sent him the USPS form for lost/stolen packages. If he wants to escalate it, he can. There was $50 insurance on the package that comes with priority shipping but the etsy forums are saying it doesn't count if the package was marked as delivered.

I'm going to ask for signature required for apartments for now on. I work for UPS and packages get lost/thrown/slid under and on top of any and everywhere. If USPS is anything like our warehouse then I really would not be surprised if it just wasn't delivered yet.

>PS. If you ship bubble wrap envelopes through UPS expect them to get shredded by our dividers, which destroys hundreds a day.
>>
>>9406863
>says it's up to me or he needs a full refund
nope. You shipped it, and can prove it was delivered. Tell him if he wants to go any further that he has to call the post office himself and if that doesn't work, talk to neighbors. There is not much that you can do, but a lot that he can.

I've had this issue several times. Every time the package was either a day late, or it was put in the wrong mail box and they talked to their neighbor and was able to get it.
>>
>>9406863
>>9406893
oh, and also, if he tries to leave a bad review because of this, report the review and Etsy will remove it. Reviews are for shops and items, NOT for rating the shipping company.
>>
>>9406893
>>9406904
He emailed again very irate and says he forwarded the issue to his attorney. I don't know what the hell is wrong with this guy since he doesn't seem to have done anything over this but email me. No Etsy claim so far either despite I've told him twice now he can open a claim with Etsy and/or call the post office/file their missing/stolen package form for investigation.

I'm going to email Etsy since if he really wants to make this a legal matter then they're going to be involved too.
>>
>>9406915
>says he forwarded the issue to his attorney
lol, what

You are in the right here, if he doesn't want to listen, just ignore him honestly. You have nothing to worry about, he is just acting like some of those people who go to a McDonalds and scream about how they are going to sue because they didn't get their hamburger quick enough.

>I'm going to email Etsy since if he really wants to make this a legal matter then they're going to be involved too.

Let him do something first. Just stay calm and don't start anything, let him.
>>
>>9406940
True, thanks. I do hope the package shows up and I would be cool with a partial refund but not with how he is acting now. I guess I will just wait to see if I get a letter in the mail.

The other thing that worries me is if he goes through his bank for a charge back. Not sure if he is smart enough to try though since just calling the post office seems too hard for him to grasp.
>>
>>9406975
With the tracking number saying it was delivered, there really isn't much he can do.

Good luck anon, we all have to deal with annoying customer every once and a while.
>>
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Shit like this kills me.
What are they even selling?
>>
>>9406992
In an earlier email he said he received 'plastic costume horns' that day, so I figured he meant that he ordered them somewhere else and that was the only package he got. Now I understand he is saying that the tracking number I gave him was for those plastic horns and wants the tracking number to the 'real' horns.

I don't know what he is talking about.I sent him a large pair of very real(aka off a dead sheep) horns for a costume. I want to ignore him but I asked for him to take a picture in case he did get the item and just thinks they're fake which I think may be the case now, unless he really did order plastic ones from someone else.

I've been selling shit and art online since 2005 but my Etsy shop is new. This is my first actual 'problem' so I'm just frazzled. Thanks again. I'm just going to get to the bottom whether or not he did get the horns, and is just an idiot if he did get them and thinks they're fake.
>>
>>9406915
>his attorney
This guy has to be lying, there's no way he involved an attorney for a $62 purchase. He sounds crazy.
>>
>>9407028
Sage for being mildly off topic, but I sell promotional products to Realtors as a day job, and they have certainly involved their attorneys on $50 purchases before. Some people are just petty.

But more likely than anything, he'll do a charge back on his card.
>>
OK unfortunately he doesn't think the horns are fake, he just ordered a pair of fake ones from someone else and a pair frome at the same time, and only got the fake ones apparently. Still we are just going to have to wait a few more weekdays to see if it pops up or not I guess.

>>9407040
On the slight chance I did have to go to court I can afford a lawyer but having never been involved in any sort of legal issue I have no idea if it'd be worth it especially since he's in FL and I'm in NH.
>>
>>9406915
USPS has some claim dept. one can file for such events. damaged and lost etc. There is no way a customer can file against a seller once a packaged has been marked delivered - the attorney will have to clear the USPS obstacle first. Sorta starting to sound like the customer could be pulling a scam on you to get money back. Stick to you guns that its been delivered and have his attorney deal with USPS lololol. As far as I read you are clear of any wrong.
>>
>>9407139

There's a chance that he's completely lying to you about not receiving them, and saying he forwarded it to his attorney and so forth is a tactic to scare you into refunding him or sending a second package to avoid trouble. For some reason a lot of online buyers think etsy is the same as amazon and if they throw a fit they get free stuff or money back, they don't care if it hurts the artist. His tactics sound a lot like that usual bullshit, could be why he hasn't opened claims or gone through proper channels.

Like other anons said, you've got your proof and you're in the right. You could offer him a discount off a second purchase or something if you're feeling generous, but you're not obligated to refund him if everything's lined up on your end. He's not going to sue you, a lawsuit requires some proof that financial damage was done against him, a lawyer or court would take one look at the case and throw it in the garbage.
>>
>>9407167
>a lot of online buyers think etsy is the same as amazon
you got that right...amazon bends over backwards and then some in dealing with returns. From what I heard the sellers get screwed over after reading the amazon sellers forums - amazon just instantly pulls money out from the sellers account in handling returns.
>>
>>9407155
>>9407167
I'm sticking to my guns. I know a lot of people pull the lawyer bs, was just thinking of the worst outcome so it doesn't hit me like a truck if he actually went through with it.
I even sent him a screenshot of the tracking progress and a link to it and thinks it's my fault it's 'wrong'. He is clearly delusional.
>>
>>9405669

So for prints, if you have a local print shop that isn't a FedEx or Staples, sometimes they'll be really after your business and give you a great price. My first year doing AA I went with my local Alphagraphics and got 110lb cardstock tabloid prints for 60c each. The next year I fully expected to get the same price and was pretty surprised it had doubled, if not tripled. I was able to negotiate down, but by year three they were pretty much like "Our prices have increased." So maybe not a fully viable long term option unless you're good at haggling, but I have gotten steals on printing from local places and it's worth checking out. Plus, they're more likely to be able to accommodate a last minute print run (if small). What I also found out is that while the first year they did my 100+ prints within an afternoon, they needed a whole week the next year.

So it's a mixed bag, but still worth looking into.
>>
>>9407183
Yep. Amazon holds onto the money before taking their cut and giving you the rest. Also, I tried posting products on there for a business I worked for (we sell a couple hundred million dollars annually), and Amazon's 15% cut, coupled with needing free shipping to be competitive, made it not even worth our time to try to compete.

>buy widget for $6 from supplier
>price at $10
>Amazon takes $1.50 and we spend $3 on shipping
>net loss

Amazon is only alive because it's so popular with consumers that it's basically suicide for some companies not to use them. This is why so many companies still try to sell products through their own websites.
>>
>>9406615
I'd definitely be interested in a review. I've been looking at getting into enamel pins but it's hard to find people talking about their experiences.

The open mouth of the skull seems a bit weird to me. If it's sitting in her hand I would assume the jaw should close. It looks a bit floaty.
>>
>>9407347
>What I also found out is that while the first year they did my 100+ prints within an afternoon, they needed a whole week the next year.
I did my tour of duty at a kinkos/fedex back in the day to pay my dues and what I've seen is - depends who you talk to - a quiet gem in the rough can be a wizard behind the counter running the machines, while often the smart talkers (cough*day crew* will do it the legit way - take a number etc) just eye out someone that's helpful and don't be pushy about it, and that person will do your shit if it's not really busy since. Honestly, just watch out for the manager though they could be okay about it but often if they are also new will frown on it. Basically everybody there can do it all, it's just whom is entitled for production (hide behind the counter babysitting the copiers avoiding helping the counter.

Also if you find out who the other supervisor is, they tend to be typically little more laid back and don't give 2 shits if the floor person will run your hundreds of prints that night, to him/her it's just the same business - daytime crew can be stuckup because it is the policy to take things in a order and honestly it is more crazier daytime desu. Just never rat out who did your stuff to another worker though it'll just piss them off, had a couple entitled turds that expect it just because you got the special service.
>>
I'm doing my first order through Vograce, they have asked for payment upfront (before we agreed on keyrings and I haven't sent them any files for mockups), is this normal?
>>
Also Vograce have asked for payment via Paypal outside of Alibaba and for me to send them a screenshot. Sorry I'm new to all of this, don't want to just blindly send money to an agent in China without knowing what I'm doing.
>>
>>9408265
This is par for the course
>>
>>9408265
I usually send my files in my initial inquiry email but yes. I think they'd only ask you to pay through alibaba if you contact them through alibaba (bc service fee etc) but I've only done transactions through them through email/paypal.
>>
>>9408346
Even when I message them through alibaba, they always end up asking me to send my files/payment to their email address.
>>
>>9408278
>>9408346
>>9408430

Thanks guys for the tips, will be moving ahead with the Vograce order once I work out how many pieces I want.
>>
Just came back from a one day convention with, I guess, ~1,000 people. I made the same about of revenue at that convention than I did at AWA.
So if anyone was wondering how bad AWA is, that should put it in perspective.

Also, this is the 5th convention in a row where it has rained during load out. Ugh!
>>
>>9408253
>>9408265

Please be kind and read the faq, or kill yourself
>>
>>9408605
Can I ask what you made?
This happened to me as well, I made $900 at awa and than made the same amount at a one day local college con.
>>
>>9408897
AWA I made $1409, $913 after expenses
Annicon I made $1415, $1335 after expenses

For clarity, Annicon IS a free convention to attend, so people have way more money to spend, but for only around 1,000 people and 50 other vendors, I did really good there/really bad at AWA.

Just more proof that attendance count means literally nothing.
>>
I need some advice.
An artist has posted some of their WIP on a local group that are clearly just perler bead ripoffs of game sprites. How do I gently tell them this isn't right? I get the feeling they're going to go on the defensive since I won't be anon and I sell fanart
>>
>>9409090
No need to be gentle about it. Just tell them that if they plan on selling the perler beads then they aren't allowed to do it if they're just ripping off sprites. They're more than welcome to make perler beads from designs they created, fanart or not. Just because you draw fanart has nothing to do with it. You drew it from scratch, they just copied a design pixel my pixel.
>>
>tfw you want to just utterly destroy this person on AA, but you can't cause your Facebook name is just your name so you have to come to /cgl/ to point and laugh.
>>
>>9409388
I don't feel as though my prices are too steep anymore at least. That lineart example is reminding me of a meme, but I don't know which one.
>>
>>9409388

Oh gosh I just saw this post and realize it's that girl who spent 10 hours on that blue monstrosity she posted on WIPW. I'm getting tired of her stuff along with the girl who keeps posting the Batwoman garbage.
>>
>>9409388
please don't tell me the artist is above the age of 12.
>>
>>9409488

In college and apparently studying art.
>>
>>9409540

...Oh. Oh sweet baby angel, no. Nooooo.
>>
>>9409540
You remind me of this classmate back in college, both of us studying fine arts and practing this and that, and I learned that she drew her own comic and attended cons to promote/sell at... and by god they were awful. It's like nothing from drawing classes struck her right. You would look at the characters she drew and clearly the hands are both right hands.
>>
No one's gonna mention Weebtrash asking for pricing vs artsmoo so they can become a middleman for their chinese printers?
>>
>>9409388
If you're bored check out her Vimeo it has some godawful animations on it.
It's actually hilarious.
>>
>>9409605
>It's like nothing from drawing classes struck her right.
hmmm....speaking of drawing classes, has anyone ever sold fan-art figure sketches - charcoal on 18x24 for example at cons?
>>
>>9409640
What are you talking about?
>>
>>9410196
>fan-art figure sketches - charcoal on 18x24

This sounds fucking stupid
>>
>>9409640
What bothers me more is her designs are direct ripoffs of characters costumes.
>>
new thread >>9410330
>>
>>9409540
oh boy... a lot of art colleges accept anyone who is willing to pay for tuition. Some people get better, other people go abstract...
Thread posts: 340
Thread images: 36


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