Today I received a form submission from someone who visited my old site and filled out – well, sort of – my extensive contact form for people requesting book illustrations.
The name on the form said “Lost Opportunity”, the person didn’t give any information but did leave a note, “I would have been happy to have paid a couple of bucks for your artwork, but there was no way that I could, and what’s with this form? You want my blood type too? You just missed an opportunity …”
Well, yes – and no.
There was a time when I was building an inventory of cartoons and clipart for people to purchase, but the whole idea of trying to guess what people wanted was overwhelming – and with the rise of clipart sites that would be foolish for me to compete against. My art stands on it’s own, and since the services I provide are personable and unique, I don’t have to compete with them. In fact, I have no problem referring people to those sites – or even to my ever growing list of artists and illustrators.
What I learned though – is that at least one person would like to purchase from my site. Okay – I can do that. What do you need? What are you willing to pay? How would you like to use it? Let me know in the comment field below …
The other thing I saw is that my detailed form may be turning people off. It’s there for a purpose – really. It was an attempt to inform people ahead of time what to expect and to help clarify their thoughts about their book illustrations that they wanted. (In the old days, people actually didn’t mind being more thorough in regards to their responses.)
However, the days of giving information up front is gone – my form needs to be replaced by a simple one that says, “hey, call me … let’s chat”. (After all, I hadn’t really thought of it much, but most people prefer to talk it out anyway.) Okay – you win on this one. And yes, what IS your blood type? Better yet, tell me what dream you’re building that you couldn’t find what you needed.
Lost opportunity? Nah. That sarcastic form submission was timely and super appreciated. I learned a lot. On the down side …. 1. You only want to pay a couple of bucks for original artwork 2. You want it fast and easy 3. You don’t want to tell me what you need.
On the upside … 1. You found me and took time to look around. Thank you! 2. You wanted to buy. 3. Your time is valuable and filling out a long form feels too much like a contract – so you’d rather not.
By the way, my phone number is plastered all over the place … call me (720) 295-7409
