Paint Profit · Chapter 2: Show Off Now that you've mastered a couple of basic woods and you have...

Paint Profit

Powerful methods for building the right clientele and getting paid what you’re worth.

By Norman Petersen

Copyright © 2013 by Norman Petersen and PerfectWoodGrain.com. All rights reserved. No part of

this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, or

mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system.

'Paint Profit' Copyright 2013 Norman Petersen Go to Contents

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Contents

Paint Profit..........................................................................................................................................1

Introduction....................................................................................................................................3

Chapter 1: Become great...................................................................................................................4

The most powerful thing you can do..............................................................................................4

Amazing work that no-one else can do..........................................................................................4

Pro-Tip............................................................................................................................................5

Chapter 2: Show Off...........................................................................................................................6

Choose and plan your promotional work very carefully.................................................................7

Promotional projects. The rules.....................................................................................................7

Chapter 3: Branch out........................................................................................................................9

Chapter 4: Meet the right people......................................................................................................11

Tips for getting with the right crowd.............................................................................................11

Chapter 5: Pricing your work............................................................................................................12

Your art is a privilege to own, not a financial burden...................................................................14

Chapter 6: Written agreements only................................................................................................15

Chapter 7: Internet Marketing..........................................................................................................17

Blogging.......................................................................................................................................18

Social media.................................................................................................................................18

How long should it take to do all this? ........................................................................................19


Introduction

Painters tend to struggle between making art and making money. As artists we often find ourselves

thinking “Business is boring, I just want to paint cool stuff!”

Because running a paint business is a potentially infinite subject, I've tried to stay focused on a few

highly effective, unique and little known principles that have made a difference in my business.

Ideas I've learned from others and developed out of my own struggles, experiences and

successes.

After nearly 20 years of professional painting practice, I've noticed that quality faux wood grain

information can be very difficult to come by.

For example, there are virtually no other systems for learning realistic wood grain in the car painting

world. It’s mostly unrealistic kits, stencils, a weird printing thing that requires special machines and

gear…

To my knowledge, the Perfect Wood Grain Mastery Course is the only professional level wood

graining method that bridges the gap between the faux painting industry (where virtually all faux

wood grain info comes from) and custom auto painting, wood working, crafting, fine art and more.

A work in progress: One of the wonderful aspects of digital publishing is that it can be easily

edited and improved. For example, Perfect Wood Grain Mastery has gone through two major

rewrites in under two years. These improvements were inspired from coaching sessions with my

talented readers.

To learn more, or if you have questions or concerns, please check out my blog, where I create

and share valuable information on this vast subject and you can post comments and questions.

Your input will help to improve this ebook.


https://perfectwoodgrain.com/posts/


Chapter 1: Become great

The most powerful thing you can do...

...for your business, for a number of reasons, is to become GREAT at what you do.

The only way to achieve this is by learning an effective method, practicing until it's second nature

and then adding your own unique voice. A common mistake that many artists make is they learn

the basics of a technique, start taking paid work and then never improve. This can lead to

diminishing profit over time.

Your customer is not an authority on your work. There will always be someone willing to pay

you for your work, even if your technique and skills are so-so. This is because customers are often

not experts. They see some pin-stripping or flames and think “wow, that's really cool!”. But if they

were shown several examples of great flame work, they might not be so impressed.

I'm not saying that you should stop taking work. We all need to earn a living. I'm saying you should

always be improving your skills.

Practicing and developing your techniques and concepts will result in unique, amazing work that

no-one else can do. Did you catch that?

Amazing work that no-one else can do

We've all seen artists or craftspeople who are so

great that everyone wants their work. Perhaps a

phenomenal tattoo artist, car painter, musician...

They have a totally unique style that everyone

wants. Their name starts to spread and pretty soon

everyone's talking about them.

I'm a jazz music geek so I'll share a relevant story

about saxophonist, Sonny Rollins. In1959 Sonny

was a young musician playing in New York. He was

successful, made a few records with great players.

He was getting steady work and getting paid.

But he wanted to move to another level. He could hear something special inside himself that he

wanted to develop. So he stopped performing. The story goes that for three years Sonny would


go to the Williamsburg Bridge at all hours where he could focus and practice without bothering

anyone or being interrupted. He took the time to develop his skills and find his unique talent.

The result? One music magazine called his first post-bridge album “one of the greatest albums

from one of jazz's greatest musicians”.

He created a sound that no one else had. The result has been a long, prosperous career with

millions of adoring fans. He gets to choose the kind of work he does, who he works with and how

much he gets paid.

Lucky for us, wood grain painting is much easier to master than jazz. You don't have to spend

three years in isolation and you don't have to stop taking other work.

You do need to develop your own “voice” in order to get noticed.

Most custom car painters are only making dashboards and trim look “wood like”. Artists who take

the time to find and learn the best methods that will allow them to create stunning, realistic,

memorable wood grain projects are rare.

You can get to that point by setting aside 90 minutes or so a day to study, practice and perfect your

craft. If you're consistent, you'll soon have a skill that nobody else has, people will seek you out and

you'll be able to profit from it in ways most artists never achieve.

Soon, you'll reach the level where you can see that piece of finished wood on a table top or dresser

and mimic its most beautiful features, allowing you to build a business that people talk about.

People will see your work and freak out!

Pro-Tip

Pay attention to specific species (Oak, Walnut, Cherry...) but don't try to master them all at once.

Choose two and get very good at them. I suggest basic Oak and Cherry because they're very

different, relatively easy, look great and clients love them. Do a few projects and then start adding

more kinds of wood to your arsenal. Learning the basics on a couple of wood types will make other

woods much easier to master.

Of course you need to make sure people see your new skills. We'll cover that in the next section.



Chapter 2: Show Off

Now that you've mastered a couple of basic woods and you have some truly stunning samples, it's

time to show your new skills to the world. This is crucial. It's how people will find out about all your

effort.

Do a high-profile project. When I decided to add hand painted signs to my painting business, I

went to a new local business owner who was still using a basic banner sign and offered to create a

permanent sign for her. All she had to pay for were materials and the city permit.

The shop was located at a busy intersection where lots of people would see it.

I collaborated carefully with her to develop a design that worked for her business. She was grateful

and allowed me to create something unique and amazing.

From that one job, I got lots of work: More signs, cars, interiors, furniture and other work. All

paid. One free project leading to many paid projects.

Find a show-off. Look for car buffs and collectors who go to a lot of shows and events. People

who love to display their cars. If your samples are great, they'll be happy to let you do a wood grain

job for them.

I'm not talking about small repair work, but full restoration or custom projects including

dashboards and trim packages or full-on woodies.

You need to do work that can't be ignored. A promotional project should be the most amazing part

of the car when it's done.


It was important that my sign project be high profile (location) and if we hadn't agreed on a design

that showcased my skills, I would have found another project.

Warning! You'll get barraged by people who want you to do free or cheap work. They'll say

something like, “I have a lot of connections and if you do this job free, you'll get lots of high paying

work”. It doesn't work that way.

This is an area where I have some painful experience. Early in my painting career, I did

promotional projects that got me no work. I didn't do my research.

Promo sign detail: Faux antique tile, Walnut and Macassar Ebony. The board and tiles are flat, painted in the

Trompe L'Oeil style to appear carved, cracked, distressed...

Choose and plan your promotional work very carefully

Random projects for cheapskates won't bring you business and will often be a frustrating waste of

time.

The right project can get your work in newspapers, magazines, blue ribbons at car shows and the

most valuable marketing of all, word of mouth.


Promotional projects. The rules

• Must get exposure to lots of people because of location or viewings at shows and events.

• Must be a showcase of your unique skill in a big way. No small projects.

• Must allow control over design, color, technique... It's okay to collaborate with the project

owner, but if they're a control freak who won't let you shine, pick another project.

• Details must be in writing so there's no confusion as the project progresses. See Chapter

6.


Chapter 3: Branch out

Before my first sign project, I hadn't painted any signs but I knew I could do something

awesome using wood grain and other painting skills. I also hadn't done much custom car work. A

collector saw the sign and asked me to restore his car. This is how I realized just how much the

custom auto world loves wood grain. Can you imagine painting custom signs? If you can do

flames or pin-stripping, you can letter. If you can letter you can paint a sign.

What about furniture? I can promise that when the word starts to spread about your wood grain

skills, people will ask you to paint custom furniture.

Point is, painting a sign earned me

profits from industries I'd never

even considered working in.

I'm currently working on a custom

bicycle that will feature some

painted wood grain. If history is any

guide, that bike will not only get me

more bikes, but work in other

industries as well.

Maybe painting furniture or

signs doesn't excite you. That's

not the point. Doing a few projects

outside of your specialty will gain

exposure for your business you

wouldn't have otherwise gotten.

You may even find yourself

enjoying it. I'm guessing that one of

the following project types will

appeal to you:

• Furniture

• Kitchen and bath cabinets

• Doors

• Flooring


Faux cherry doors, case, base and crown. Glaze colorsadjusted to harmonize with bamboo floor.

• Small gift boxes, toys, decorating accessories

• Walls

• Anything you can imagine that might be cool to wood grain

Pick one or two of these to wood grain and make sure people see it.

Faux tile lettering with Trompe L'Oeil cracks, grout and modeling on faux Walnut


Chapter 4: Meet the right people

Jim Rohn said, “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.”

I know that if I spend a lot of time with people who drink a lot, I won't get much done, even though

I'm not a big drinker.

If I hang out with my professional friends, the conversation tends to be very smart and challenging

and I'm constantly learning new stuff.

A retired friend has an amazing vocabulary and I learn something new every time I talk with him.

If I spend a lot of time with negative people, I'll tend to think more negatively.

When I hang out with positive people who want to improve and grow, I have more energy and

tend to be more productive.

Professionals will tend to know other professionals, so spending time with them will increase your

exposure to people who spend money on nice things.

Tips for getting with the right crowd

• Keep a list of art owners and collectors (custom cars...) you know and send them updates on

your business, new skills, projects... (see chapter 6 for more on this)

• Do you know successful painters? Invite them to lunch, coffee... with the intention of sharing

business ideas.

• Throw a barbeque and invite your best customers, brightest friends and associates.

• Take business classes or workshops at a local community college and make a point of

meeting people who are also growing their businesses.

• Go to shows and talk to collectors. Get contact info and send them pics of your work.

• Create Facebook and Pinterest pages for your business, watch for people you want to know

and develop relationships with them. More in chapter 6.

• Join clubs related to your field and attend their meetings.

• Share your expertise and skill with others who are starting out. What you give comes back

around many times more.


Chapter 5: Pricing your work

I’m going to share how I relate to and communicate with

customers about fees for my work and how I comfortably

charge what I feel it’s worth.

Do not be alarmed

Sometimes, when they ask that unavoidable question; “how

much does it cost?”, my answer causes facial expressions

and sounds resembling “The Scream” by Edvard Munch, the

famous painting that just sold at Sotheby’s auction house in

London for a record setting 119.5 million dollars!

Of course that question is going to come up and when it does,

you need to be prepared with an answer that will help your

customer feel confident in the value of your work, while getting you a fair price for your work.

I'm glad you asked!

It’s an issue that won’t come up unless they love your work and they’re seriously thinking about

buying it, so don’t shy away from it, be grateful for the question.

This conversation tends to start with the customer seeing your work online, in a portfolio, at a

show… Then, they inevitably say something like, “I LOVE what you do!”

So again, stage one is, “I love your work”. Stage two is “How much does it cost?”. And as I

mentioned above, stage three is sometimes “Oh my gosh! That’s a lot”.

To this I respond in a very specific and powerful way, but I’ll get to that in a minute.

Hey honey, look what I bought!

First, lets give some thought to the psychology behind why people spend big bucks on art. This

is a complicated and multi-layered topic that has gotten a bunch of recent attention due to the

auction of “The Scream”.

When a wealthy homemaker commissions a mural for her formal dining room, or a car collector

hires you to wood grain a 1939 Packard, they’re thinking about how it will look, for sure, but often

overlooked are the social implications of the buying decision.


The Joneses are gonna freak out!

Of course she’s thinking about how the dining room will feel and look when the mural’s done, or

how the Packard will have the glow of rich

wood inside… But as a business person, it’s crucial to

understand that, perhaps even more-so, she’s

imagining what her friends, family and associates

will think of her new acquisition and her ability to

afford it.

To put it crudely, she wants to show off. I don’t really

think of it like that, because I don’t begrudge or judge

people for their wealth.

I consider it my job to assist people in acquiring

beautiful things (like my art) as a way of sharing that

wealth with others.

My job is not to be concerned about what others can

or cannot afford, it’s to decide what my effort, talent

and skill is worth, then to be totally clear and confident

when communicating the value.

The confidence I project helps them feel confidence about their purchase.

So when she puts both hands on her face like “The Scream” and declares, “That’s a lot!” I don’t

react or apologize and I certainly don’t lower the price. I smile and say calmly and confidently-

“That’s what I have to charge in order to do what you love.”

Then I gently change the subject back to what got us talking in the first place: Their project. The car

or the mural or the hand painted sign or the kitchen cabinet doors… This helps her remember all

those social and personal reasons she wanted the work done in the first place.

Your invitation, please

One crucial aspect of this is that you need to be having this conversation with the right people

(see previous chapter). Do you think Sotheby’s lets just anyone in for record breaking auction


https://perfectwoodgrain.com/faux-wood-super-powers-10-reasons-why-you-should-get-them-part-1-of-3/



events? No way. They make sure that the right people from the right segments of society are

present.

Just like Sotheby’s, you need to be sure that your work is being seen by people who can afford to

pay top dollar for the privilege of owning it.

Did you catch that?

Your art is a privilege to own, not a financial burden

A privilege that’s afforded to fortunate people; people who will benefit by owning it, not feel

burdened by it. This is a crucial mindset of wealthy people and those who work with them. I’m

guessing that the Sotheby’s auctioneers aren’t embarrassed when they take bids in the tens of

millions of dollars. They understand that they’re providing a valuable service to their customer

base.

Do the folks at Sotheby’s make price concessions when the winning bidders come to pay the bill?

No way. Will those buyers hesitate to make final payment? Not at all. They’re too excited about

showing their new treasure to family and friends.

Do some market research. Until your name is well known, you'll have to bill at a rate similar to

other painters. But when you start doing some truly amazing, high profile work, people will be

willing and eager to pay more.


Chapter 6: Written agreements only

You might be wondering what contracts have to do with making more money. In fact, not getting

written agreements before beginning work is one of the most

common mistakes that artists make is. Not just inconvenient, it can

cause your business to fail.

Nearly every time I hear an artist/contractor complaining about not

getting paid for their work, it comes down to an issue that could have

been avoided with a good contract.

Here are some examples of language I include in my agreements

• 100% of material costs paid in advance.

• 50% of labor paid in advance, next 35% paid at half way point of project. Last 15% paid

upon completion and prior to delivery of piece, return of vehicle...

• Delays, labor and/or material increases due to forces beyond my control shall incur

additional fees, to be paid prior to completion of project.

• Change orders incur additional fees

• Warranty of work for a specified period of time not including material failure not caused by or

beyond my control.

Does any of that sound scary to you? Many artists are afraid to hand clients this kind of paperwork.

So how do you get over that fear? Simple; make sure your agreements protect both you and

your clients.

Most people won't even question your contract. If they do, tell them that it's written to protect

both of you and explain the details.

If they won't sign it, don't do the work. Thank them for their time, move-on and forget about them

because they WILL rip you off. No matter how big the deal is, they're not worth it.

Verbal and hand shake agreements are not legally binding in any first world region for a reason;

they're useless. The harsh reality is that not requiring written agreements is unprofessional and

diminishes serious craftsmanship.


Remember our high-dollar customer from a few pages back; the nice lady who gladly pays for

valuable work? She expects, no, requires you to perform professionally. If you try to get her

business based on a wink and a hand shake she's going to hear alarm bells because the pros in

her life use written agreements.

Process outline: Write down each step of the project so the customer has a clear understanding

and sense of security about your process. Including a process outline in your contract will help

them relax and give you talking points on your progress.

This outline also helps you get organized in advance. If there's a dispute or confusion about what

you're being paid to do, you can remind them of the agreement they signed that explains, in detail,

what they're paying for.

There are many resources for contract language on-line. Once you've created a basic contract,

have an attorney or legal aid who understands legal language for contractors look it over and

suggest crucial improvements.


Chapter 7: Internet Marketing

This is another vast subject. Take it from me, I've been studying and practicing internet marketing

for years (between paint projects). I follow

a couple dozen top bloggers and

marketing experts. Every day I learn

something new.

Again, we just want to paint cool stuff, not

sit around in front of a computer all day,

so this subject causes groans of pain and

fear from many craftspeople.

There simply are not enough hours in the

day to be an internet marketing expert

and a full time custom car painter, so I'll

focus on what I consider to be the most effective online tools for the average artist.

Email marketing: The brilliant marketing expert Seth Godin refers to your email list as a

Permission Asset. He means that people give you permission to contact them with valuable

information, ideas and new products. The opposite of this is called spam.

For example, on my blog, I often give away free chapters and lessons for wood grainers. In

exchange, my community of custom car painters, faux finishers, woodworkers, craftspeople,

house painters and fine artists give me permission to contact them with stuff I think will help

them paint amazing faux wood grain and tell them about my products for sale.

The secret here is to only give truly valuable stuff away and only send truly relevant and valuable

emails to your list.

Collect email addresses from every customer at car shows, meet-ups, from friends and family...

Again, let them know that you won't spam them and that you'll only send useful, cool stuff.

When a customer says they don't use email, ask for a physical address to send them a newsletter.

It costs more but you can just print out the stuff you're sending in email so there's no extra writing.



Blogging

This is one of your primary vehicles for sharing information about your expertise.

Think of it like an ongoing show. You're standing there and someone comes up and asks about the

amazing pieces and samples you brought to show off your work. Imagine the questions they might

ask and write for your blog as if you're answering that persons questions. Your readers will mostly

be beginners, so write about basic topics. There are no stupid questions, so there's no subject too

simple for your blog.

I recommend WordPress for a blogging platform. You can build a free blog at Wordpress.com.

After your blog content grows, get a hosting account and start using the more customizable

Wordpress.org software. If you already have a hosting account you can instal Wordpress there,

often for free.

I recommend HostGator for a hosting account because of their phenomenal, award winning

customer service- Click here to see hosting plans.

Make sure your blog has an email sign up form. Believe it or not this is a common mistake

made by beginners.

Social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook is are all temporary and you have no control

over your content. Imagine Facebook gets sold and changed so much that no-one uses it anymore.

You'll lose all those contacts and all that content.

But your blog and your email list are yours to keep no matter what happens to Facebook. So

use the other platforms to drive people to your blog where you can collect email addresses.

Social media

Create a simple Facebook page for your business and ask customers, blog readers and Facebook

friends to join. Your Facebook page is also a permission asset so the rules from email marketing

apply: Valuable, relevant posts only.

But there's more flexibility in content type. The posts can be short, light and fun. Save the big stuff

for your blog. Post pics and short comments of current and past projects and use Google to search

for relevant sites, blogs... and post those on your Facebook page. One post a day is enough. Put

links to new blog posts to your Facebook page.

Another currently valuable tool is Pinterest. “Pin” pictures of your work and stuff you like to your

own pin-boards, follow other members boards and share it all.


http://pinterest.com/

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http://secure.hostgator.com/~affiliat/cgi-bin/affiliates/clickthru.cgi?id=mechawear

And of course there's Twitter and Google+ and about a hundred other social media platforms. Don't

worry too much about all this. If you blog and Facebook reasonably well you'll get business from it.

How long should it take to do all this?

These tools can be a huge waste of time, or powerful business builders. Apply self-control to avoid

the time waste.

Blog, 30 minutes a day: Think of your blog as a journal of your work. When you do a new project,

take a few minutes to write about it. No new project? Post about an old one. New to the business

with nothing new or old to write about? Return to chapter one and while you're becoming great,

blog about the process.

Twitter, 10 minutes a day: With Hootsuite or other Twitter software you can schedule tweets for

the future in 10 minutes a day. Tweet stuff your followers will like and about your business.

Facebook, 10 minutes or less: Posting a link to your most recent blog post, a couple of pictures

or a link isn't time consuming.

Thanks for reading! I'll be writing on this and more related subjects at my blog where I share tons of

cool, free stuff and you'll find an enthusiastic community of wood grainers.

Happy painting! Norman Petersen



Paint Profit · Chapter 2: Show Off Now that you've mastered a couple of basic woods and you have...

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