Nancy on tue 28 nov 06
How do you decide what your pieces are worth? Yes it depends on the
area you live in, the economics, the value perceived of what pottery is
and how good you are. What makes a piece worth $10 from one potter but
another gets $300 for the same type of piece...is it the name, the
reputation? ....
I have seen pieces that I would have thrown in the recycle bin or
smashed for the children's stepping stone classes I do in the summer and
they are being sold for hundreds to thousands of dollars from someone
else. I had a somewhat interesting private conversation with a clayart
member about this subject and is it true that society values a name more
than a good product?
I may be opening a can of worms here but it's one of those things that
wanders through your conscious and I thought it'd be an interesting
topic and could shed some insight how society in general values pottery.
Nancy
Snail Scott on wed 29 nov 06
At 05:19 AM 11/28/2006 -0500, you wrote:
>...is it true that society values a name more
>than a good product?
I think it's mostly a matter of people not
trusting their own judgement. If it's a
piece by an artist whom other people think
is pretty hot, then they can feel assured that
it's worthwhile. Furthermore, they can become
a participant in the 'club' of people who
own that artist's work. It's flattering to
place yourself among the connoisseurs of good
taste, and you know that you are because all
the other folks who bought that artist's work
agree.
Another artist may be equally good, and produce
work of equal merit, but without the 'stamp
of approval' of being well-known, their buyers
must trust their own taste, unsupported. That's
not so tough when it's a $20 bowl at stake, but
for a $200 bowl, even the wealthy want some
assurance that it's worth that.
Name recognition is that assurance.
That's independent of the 'club factor', of
course, for which name recognition is absolutely
essential. Some buyers seek the assurance, some
the prestige, and many probably seek both, even
unknowingly.
Fortunately, there are collectors who trust
their own judgement. There are also those for
whom the thrill of discovering a talented new
artist is greater than joining any existing
'club'.
-Snail
Sheryl McMonigal on wed 29 nov 06
Nancy,
when I was a painter and doing quite a lot of shows one of my mentors told
me when I asked how to get the prices he did. he said it was wise to price
your stuff high at the beginning because it is harder to continue marking
your stuff up once it is sold low price. also choose wisely your venues to
place your work. also he told me that most of the time folks will buy
higher priced stuff because of the perception of value. that peice must be
valuable because of the price. most of my pottery go to the category of
artsy instead of functional although alot of my stuff is functional. I
choose my shows and galleries wisely. I like the shows where you are juried
in and sometimes those don't pan out. I believe the maddest I have been is
at a juried show. the booth space was outrageously high but was also
supposed to be high end. my medium size vases are 250. well they put this
guy beside me and his were 50 and he sold out and I well bombed very badly.
his vases were bought greenware and he did crystalline glazes that he didn't
even mix hisself most of the folks that bought his stuff didn't bother
learning he did make the vases.
something else I have learned is that no matter how nice your stuff is ,
if your booth is not laid out invitinglyy no one will come in to get a
closer look. also if your gallery does not get good traffic or your prices
are not comparable to others it is not a good choice. when doing shows I
also try to sell lower end stuff such as whistles or rattles it gets them
in. now on the note of web sites, I had one last year by the way and paid
good money for it from a grant I received and it sucked. I closed it down
because first impressions are sometimes lasting. make sure your site
doesn't take long to load up, glares on pictures are not good, keep it
simple to maneuver around.
and details pay attention to the smallest of details, your business cards,
mailers brochures, how you display your stuff. most of all look
professional in all aspects of your business. i even wear very specific
clothes when I deal with my customers.
now what not to do. don't panic if you are slowing in sales and slash
prices in half assuming others at the show is in your price range. how do
you get a name by being out there consistently having your pieces consisent,
doing your own thing not someone elses, and smile demurely when folks
chatter about your outrageous prices act like well I know but that's what
folks are giving me for my geniusness.
sheryl
----- Original Message -----
From: "Nancy"
To:
Sent: Tuesday, November 28, 2006 2:19 AM
Subject: Valuing your products
> How do you decide what your pieces are worth? Yes it depends on the
> area you live in, the economics, the value perceived of what pottery is
> and how good you are. What makes a piece worth $10 from one potter but
> another gets $300 for the same type of piece...is it the name, the
> reputation? ....
>
> I have seen pieces that I would have thrown in the recycle bin or
> smashed for the children's stepping stone classes I do in the summer and
> they are being sold for hundreds to thousands of dollars from someone
> else. I had a somewhat interesting private conversation with a clayart
> member about this subject and is it true that society values a name more
> than a good product?
>
> I may be opening a can of worms here but it's one of those things that
> wanders through your conscious and I thought it'd be an interesting
> topic and could shed some insight how society in general values pottery.
>
> Nancy
>
>
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melpots@pclink.com.
Bunny Lemak on wed 29 nov 06
I have also wondered this. I have been at shows where I have my prices
too high, and not too many sell, then the next show I lower them and
either they sell like hotcakes, or not at all! What is up??
I guess you should start out high - you can always lower a price.
So, Snail-
Just HOW do you get into that "club"????!!!!
Bunny
Snail Scott on thu 30 nov 06
At 03:51 PM 11/29/2006 -0500, you wrote:
>I guess you should start out high - you can always lower a price.
>
>So, Snail-
>Just HOW do you get into that "club"????!!!!
I should take this as a straight line to
paraphrase that "I wouldn't want to be a
member of any club that would have me." ;)
My professional career has not been one
that I would hold up as an example. I've
made a lot of dumb mistakes and missed a
lot of opportunities. While I was in grad
school last year, I actually did a lecture
for the undergrads in the program on "How
Not to Manage a Gallery Career" based on
my own past example.
I have learned a few things, though.
One thing I have come to believe pretty
strongly is that it's a bad idea to start
with high prices and plan to lower them
if it doesn't work out.
For one thing, if you are asking higher
prices than the norm for similar work,
it makes you look either arrogant or
amateurish. Neither of these traits is
likely to make people return to your
work in the future.
Second, it's a bad idea to undercut the
customers you've already got. If you sell
a few things in that high price range,
then you've sold to people who were
willing to shell out extra for something
that they (rightly or wrongly) thought
was worth that little extra. If you then
reduce those prices, making the same work
available to others for less, you've
just told those first customers (who
could have been your most loyal fans)
that their judgement was crap. And for
work that's pricey enough to be called
collectible, every piece that you sell
at a lower price devalues the work
you've already sold.
For coffee mugs and the like, these
issues are pretty minor. Not selling at
$25? Sure, try $20 at the next craft
fair. But for work that's trying to
claim a higher status, it matters very
much.
Of course, too low a price can signal to
the buyer that it really isn't worth
much, and it won't sell regardless, and
the better galleries won't be interested
in representing an artist who doesn't
seem to take their own work seriously.
But generally, no one is unhappy to have
acquired a piece they love and then see
your prices rise. They can tell their
friends what a shrewd collector they are,
to have discovered you 'on the rise'.
If you are selling faster than you can
make it, then raise your prices. Never
lower them, at least not for comparable
work. If you get into a price structure
that seems too high, look for a new
sales venue that can support those
prices, or try making a new line of
work that can be introduced at a
slightly lower price without undermining
the old work. The reasons for dropping
sales can be myriad, and may not be due
to price alone.
Pricing is a bitch.
-Snail
Ivor and Olive Lewis on thu 30 nov 06
Dear Nancy,=20
A couple of generations ago I was employed as a clerk who had been given =
the task of calculating the labour costs for making springs, as part of =
my eduction to become a Time and Motion Engineer. Part of Company =
Philosophy was to meet the following requirements
1 The Customer always got a fair deal and was never cheated.
2 The Company made sufficient income to cover all costs including =
contingencies, market research and product development as well as make a =
fair profit on Shareholder Investment.
IF your calculations show this to be the case and you are following an =
acceptable management plan then your prices are right. If not then you =
need to investigate.
Beware of being influenced by price tags that seem stratospheric. Until =
the "Sold Sticker" goes on then an object is worth nothing.
This always seemed to contradict what I was told later by the Vice =
President of an American Company that the price should be fixed as high =
as the market would stand. I asked how this was determined. To =
paraphrase the answer, I was told to put an unrealistically high price =
on the goods then reduce it until it started to sell.
Best regards,
Ivor Lewis.
Redhill,
South Australia.
Pamela Regentin on thu 30 nov 06
I have always asked the opinions of gallery owners who are carrying my work. They have the best experience of what is selling and for how much, in particular in their own area and gallery. Of course the galleries want you to come in with your own prices in mind but if I am really stuck for a price on something I always ask for their input as to "lower?" "higher?" and they pretty much always give it accurately.
Years ago I had a relative who owned a gallery in a tourist town. She decided to carry my work but she pretty much tripled or quadrupled my prices and got the most fabulous amounts for pieces that I never could have sold for such. She told me how once she was unloading her car and had a small bottle I had done and sold it to a client right there for $100 before ever getting it into the gallery. {{sigh}} It was great while it lasted!
Pam
---------------------------------
Access over 1 million songs - Yahoo! Music Unlimited.
Lee Love on fri 1 dec 06
Shimaoka's advice is not to start high. He told me it is easier to
increase a price than it is to lower.
He thought my initial prices were too high. But he was
comparing me to his usual 20 year old apprentices that were just
starting out while I had been a potter for 10 years before I studied
with him. The Japanese graduating apprentices were given
inventories of previous graduation shows as a guideline for their
prices. They slowly increase their prices every year or so, as the
demand for their work increases.
Check out the galleries, craft fairs and shops where you
would like to sell. Look at work like yours made by people like you.
It will give you an idea of what the market is.
--
Lee in Mashiko, Japan
http://potters.blogspot.com/
"Let the beauty we love be what we do." - Rumi
"When we all do better. We ALL do better." -Paul Wellstone
Kathi LeSueur on sat 2 dec 06
Bunny Lemak wrote:
>I have also wondered this. I have been at shows where I have my prices
>too high, and not too many sell, then the next show I lower them and
>either they sell like hotcakes, or not at all! What is up??
>
>I guess you should start out high - you can always lower a price.>>>>>
>
I strongly disagree with lowering your price. Anyone who bought a piece
at the higher price will feel like a chump. Instead, start out lower. If
things sell very quickly raise the price a dollar or so. If they
continue to sell briskly raise the price again a little bit. Eventually
you will find the optimum price that you can charge. A price that the
item still sells well at but not one so high that it stops sales. And,
all of those peope who bought at the lower price will feel like they got
a bargain.
Kathi
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