Hi there! I’m designer, metalsmith, and educator Megan Auman and I teach artists and makers how to profit from their creativity. I firmly believe that art, craft, and design make the world a better place, which is why I hate to see artists and makers undervaluing their work.
Whether that’s underpricing, burning out, or not marketing or selling to their full potential because they “don’t want to bother people,” I want to see artists and makers ditch the guilt and fear and start making real money from their work.
Here at Artists & Profit Makers, I share business advice I’ve learned running my eponymous jewelry line over the past seventeen years – everything from pricing to wholesale to product photography to yes, sales and marketing.
But more than that, I help artists and makers bring their businesses into Alignment so you can build a business that makes you money AND makes you happy!
In either case, I’d invest it in long-term tools, both hardware (a great camera for product shots, a laptop that doesn’t overheat every 2 hours) and software (newer Photoshop, video editing, etc).
But $50,000? I think I wouldn’t accept it. The number is freaking me out 🙂
(which shows how uncomfortable I am with spending big sums, I guess. Something to work on!)
What would YOU spend it on?
Tara – that’s so funny that $50,000 is freaking you out. I was originally going to throw in the number $500,000.
I have some very specific ideas of what I’d spend it on, but I want to hear some other people’s thoughts first before I skew everyone’s opinion with mine. (But let’s just say that I would have no problem spending $50k.)
First on the list a brand spankin new camera, raw materials, an assistant for help with packaging, book keeping, etc. and house cleaning services for doing my dirty work.
Some other good investments for me would be an actual office/studio, marketing/advertising, a craft show set up, and TIME 🙂
At this stage, I would spend 1/4 on tools, like software and the other 3/4 on marketing my business. i would use it to boost the marketing that i’m already doing and work on new avenues.
I probably wouldn’t spend it any different if I had to pay it back as I’m conscious of how money can be used up quickly.
Advertising!! I would love to have more money to put into advertising right now! Maybe not all $50,000 🙂
If I had to pay it back, I would be much more hesitant to accept the larger sums- after all, what would I do if my business didn’t pan out? Luckily, I don’t think I’d need $50,000, much less know what to do with it. Were I to receive $5000 or even $500, I would launch a new business selling patterns. I’ve had grand ideas for this one in my head for ages, but, as best as my research shows me, am no where near being able to afford the start-up. I would buy some new equipment and software as well, and get to work!
I would (top 10 list):
1. Book a private session with Tara Gentile.
2. Buy a new camera.
3. Hire an assistant.
4. Buy a ticket to Rich + Happy + Hot Live (Marie Forleo).
5. Hire an accountant.
6. Open my own eco-friendly boutique here in Panama.
7. Invest it.
8. Hire my own personal webmaster.
9. Go a bit crazy with my supply shopping list.
10. Buy a photo editing software that I loved.
Product, product and more product. The amount of funds would just determine how much gets made. But it would allow me to expand my range, so I have more of a presence and allow me to grow my brand.
Obviously the larger amount would allow me to do a few other things like spending money on marketing and equipment.
Ultimately extra funds would just allow me to do everything that’s already in my business plan – but a bit earlier!
With 50,000, I would sign a lease to get into a studio/showroom space, set up a salary for myself and hire a web designer to help me develop a more custom website for my brands and upgrade some equipment that is getting a bit worn out. Oh! and pay down some of my credit cards, as those have functioned as the credit-line for my company.
With $500, I’d advertise
with $5000, I’d advertise and do more product development & take time to research better materials… though $5000 goes fast.
with $50,000, I’d move our home studio to a new space, and jump for joy.
If I knew I had to pay it back, it would be real life, and called a business loan or a line of credit…right?
If someone handed me $500 right now, I’d probably turn in my two week’s notice at my agency job, get my LLC, buy Quickbooks, and start working for myself right now. My “business” is currently circling the runway, waiting for the control tower to say its okay to land. I’m tired of putting it off, but I want to make sure I step out on the right foot. I don’t think I can ever “be ready,” in the same way that one is never quite “ready” to have children, but I do think there’ll be an “aha! let’s go!” moment. I’m on the edge of my seat for it!
$5,000 would definitely get me off my butt and into business. Software and set-up fees … even a couple months of rent and bills! Hahaha.
I would totally pay it all back if I had to, with a grateful heart. I’d be out of this office and at home with my family doing what I want to do—how could I not want to pay back such a gift?
$500 – supplies
$5000 – renovate my home office space
$50,000 – quit my day job, hire a professional bookkeeper and website designer, increase marketing efforts and have a go at craft shows
Ahh… to dream.
Totally agree! i would do exactly the same thing!!!!!!!!!
For $500.00 I would upgrade some equipment.
$5000.00 I would hire a PR company and try to get my jewelry on some superstars!
$50,000- A dream come true! I would build a eco-friendly studio that I could work in, teach classes, and have a gallery space.
I am considering taking out a small business loan next year to build on my property but it will be no where near $50,000. I don’t mind paying it back. Interest rates are low!
$500 I’d easily spend on tools but $50000 hire a book keeper/accountant and a PR pro, rent a larger space and hire an organized and sales-savvy assistant (entirely my opposite!)
Oh, to dream! Advertising, equipment upgrade, a private session with Danielle LaPorte, a work space of my own, hire a bookkeeper and a PR person. I’d have no trouble spending the $50,000!
With $500 I’d get supplies & equipment: a flippy video camera and some fabric.
With $5,000 I’d get more of the same: camera, new laptop, LOTS more fabric & related supplies (notions, etc), plus some consulting/biz coaching
With $50,000 I’d be doing all the above, plus renting studio space for sure. I need space and sunlight so badly!!!
If I had to pay it all back I might not take the 50 grand, though. That’s a scary sum to owe.
Similar to Valerie I would:
$500 – new tools and supplies
$5,000 – Apply to (and get into!) more higher end shows (and hire someone to help with them)
$50,000 – both of the above – only in greater quantities, more advertising, new garage doors for my studio, a van, and take some awesome new workshops!
$500- I have a nice camera and still can’t get the photos I want so I would hire a photographer. One look at my site and you will see why.
$5,000 add on a room so I could have more space, my husband and I share a room right now. Also advertising
$50,000 wow, I am not sure, better machines, new website, more advertising and help a few people that I know are trying to get established in their shops.
With $500, I’d get some things framed and get them to a gallery! That’s what I did with the last couple of hundred of dollars I made.
With $5,000, I’d do some serious advertising. And I’d be able to print every image I’d like to see in person (it is agonizing to wait until I can afford it). Oh, and a laptop so I could do all of this on the road. I always prefer using a desktop, but right now I have to bum my husband’s computer when we are traveling and can do only the minimum tasks to keep everything running.
With $50,000 – well, I’d have to sit down and make a real plan. But boy would things go so much faster, I think. Trying to make a little biz work without much capital is a slow road. I’d also find someone to do my taxes, a lawyer, and someone to coach me through it all.
If I had to pay it back, though, well, I guess I would have already gone out and gotten the loan. Staying debt-free right now is pretty important to me, though I can see how much faster everything would happen with a cash infusion.
with 50grand I’d invest in upgrading my business to mass produce some of my best selling items. I’d rent a space, have molds made, hire a team to pour and fire…etc.
(that’s the nutshell version)
right now I’m doing it all myself and i’ve hit the proverbial ceiling.
There are big dreams on expanding my art career, My first priority would be to hire a proffesional to write grant proposals in order for me to gain additional funding to do project research and development and hire fabricators for public works.
Next I would hire a office assistant to enter computer data ie: quick books, maintain current inventory status, keep current with my portfolio, and images, and research and submit applications for exhibits, and shows. Also…. determine the best suited trade shows and conferences for me to attend to boost my art career.
Finally I would purchse a commercial building (cheap) to house my studio.
I think , I need more money and would hire the grant proposal writer 1st.
Such an interesting question!
$500: Advertising and supplies (the price of silver is killing me)
$5000: New software like Photoshop CS5 and a new professionally designed website
$50000: I’d do all of the above and hit up the gem shows in Tucson next February. Then, I’d come home, take some classes, work on new products, and apply to as many craft shows as I could handle. And I’d hire an assistant.
500- I would buy a camera + equpiment for doing better video.
5k- I would start hiring staff (online, contractors) and probably rent a place to work so I could be out of my house more!
50000-I would start my second business idea and hire staff.
Oh, money, why are you wonderful and so bad?
So, if I received…
$500
I’d hire a helper for the next few weeks, part-time.
$5000
I would buy a huge tool for the business.
$50,000
I would buy a building in my hood, and set up shop and gallery….and stop renting. Who am I kidding? That won’t buy anything. Okay, i’d spend it on tools, and marketing.
$500,000
Um, i’d buy a building in my hood, and….
500.00 – buy a button coverer (I’m not sure if that’s what it is called)
5000.00 – Pay for accounting services
50,000.00 – Invest in my 100-year old house that is my studio (furnace and plumbing). Invest the rest.
$500 gets me an interAustralia plane ticket, where I can then participate in festivals and events (I’m a performance artist/producer). Though right now $500 will come in handy for the registration fee for the Erotics conference I’m presenting in February!
$5000 gets me airfare and partial expenses for my dream trip to San Francisco – 3 months of creative and professional development, exploration of gender/sexuality/culture, and a mind-blowing experience. I’ve been planning for a little while now and really airfare’s the biggest hassle!
$50,000 gives me a year’s worth of living & creative expenses, plus enough to put in an interest-heavy account, plus the ability to support other creative people with their projects. It also makes great startup money for productions since those tend to be cost-heavy. And more travel! I could go around the world with the leftover money.
Oo, I’ll play!
$500 – Same as what I always do whenever money comes in: invest in developing and printing new stationery products to build my range and inventory. Or buy an airconditioner so I can actually survive my first Australian summer in my tiny upstairs home office!
$5000 – Buy a new camera so I can take more professional product photos and everything I need to set up my first market stall.
$50,000 – Wowee, that’s a lot of money but I would have no problem spending it! All of the above, plus I would outsource my bookkeeping and product assembly, hire a web programmer to improve my SEO and create my own e-commerce function, and commission artists to produce illustrations for new wedding invitations.
Thought-provoking post for sure. It has reminded me to look back over my business plan and goals.
$500 – buy new sewing machine
$5000 – hire someone to work the new machine, part-time as I develop new and old products
$50,000 – work on plans for wholesaling product, doing the events to showcase the wholesale line, invest some and not touch it!
Hire more people
Hopefully all these plans would produce more $$ to keep everything growing and make paying it back an easy task!
Well this is what I would do if I had all that Money
$ 500 – Art supplies and couple of art/marketing workshops I want to do.
$ 5000 – A nice Camera to take pictures of my art works and my inspirations , Photo editing S/W, a website , good books,participate in shows,hire someone to help me with some housekeeping, more of those art/marketing workshops..
$ 50000 – Rent/ own a Studio ,hire someone to help me with studio/accounting and invest the rest..
Hmmm…did I miss anything??
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Not sure how I missed this, but I want to answer this question before I move on to the next post.
$500 – buy a new laptop
$5000 – same as above, but also buy a tumbler, larger E3 Etching system for more etching at the same time, take some classes and workshops in other locales across the country
$50,000 – quit my job, then do all the above. Hire someone part time to handle business aspects so I could focus on creating. Develop my line of jewelry. Pay for a Firestarter session with Danielle LaPorte.
I would gladly work out a plan to pay it back. And I would also work out a plan to pay it forward so someone else could have these benefits.
Thank you for the thought provoking post.
Enjoy the day!
Erin
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With $500 invest in building an application, probably an iphone app of some sort.
$5000 – I would hire a marketing expert short term to help me learn how to market my business.
$50,000 – Would advertise for a co-founder 🙂
Ooh. My favorite topic!!
$500 would always just buy fabric. That is the best return on that kind of money
$5000 would buy fabric and pattern grading and photography+postage
$50,000 would buy a line launch at Portland Fashion Week and a spot at market AND cover my first round of production
$500 would be no fun but helpful because it would go straight into my credit card.
$5000 would be fun, because it would pay off my credit card (and this is important, because it’s really costing me).
$50,000 – I would buy casting equipment and set up a studio that would fit all of my equipment and stations, and that I would be comfortable in, and that I could have customers actually come into (I have to duck in some places to miss the beams overhead – wouldn’t want a customer smacking their noggin). The money would allow me to explore new areas of jewelry that I haven’t been able to dive into yet due to $$. What fun that would be 🙂 I would also work on marketing in the process, and make new plans for growing my business.
I would also get a massage.
What a great question. Funny but I just spent $5,000. I did borrow from our line of credit to do it but I decided to stop waiting to sell more stuff before I had money to spend. Having cash flow let me have a plan finally. I had a website designed for $2,600 and I’ve made $300 in sales the first week because of the new site. I have started advertising – $500. I bought a new Nikon – $500. I had a logo designed $400 and bought digital elements from iStock for my site, newsletters, etc. I invested in more stock and replenished supplies – $1,000.
$50,000 – built in storage and large equipment (washing machine, dish washer dedicated to my business) – $3,000. Part time help to increase productivity $15,000. $2,000 more advertising a year. Giveaways with my brand like Tshirts, knitting bags, etc. because knitters love stuff like that. $3,000. Industry focused get togethers and shows $7,000. $10,000 for stock so I can increase sales more steadily. $10,000 sitting in the bank to fuel more growth. Thanks for asking! Its made me realize that I have a plan and I should make it a more formal document, dd in sales to see if they support the expendicture theno see if I can raise the 50k.
I have a list of things I would get, no mater the amount;
1. Laptop
2. software( accounting, embroidery, PDF)
3. coaching sessions
4. website
5. New equipment
I would invest any thing left over so I have operating expenses for a longer time.
Thanks for the chance to share.
Oh my…so many choices!
The top on my list is a digital cutter for my chipboard albums! I am already looking into one of these, so I could get one a lot sooner with the extra cash 🙂 And I would buy this whether it was a gift or a loan.
$50,000…I’d open a shop selling my own scrapbooks as well as doing consignment for other crafts. This would be my ultimate dream job! I’d have a harder time doing it if I had to pay it back…that’s a large sum of money! But if someone wanted to be uber-giving…I’d do it in a heartbeat 🙂
I would first spend it on advertising.
After that, maybe entry fee’s for show’s or booth fee’s?
I would definitely buy some supplies too, what type of supplies would depend on if I was receiving $500, $5,000, or $50,000.
If one of the larger two amounts, I would definitely do a major electronics upgrade.
Would I purchase different if I was borrowing? At the $500 & $5,000 levels…no. At the $50,000 yes. I would invest a portion of the money to generate my payback.
Superb blog you have here but I was curious if you knew of any community forums that cover the same topics talked
about here? I’d really love to be a part of community where I can get comments from other experienced individuals that share the same interest. If you have any recommendations, please let me know. Thanks!