How to Pitch Your Surface Pattern Design Portfolio

I’ve talked a lot about why you should be pitching your surface pattern design portfolio, the number one reason being that there’s really no good reason to wait.

Today I’m giving you some hot tips on how to pitch your art to new clients. Many of my students join my course and have been working on their design portfolio for months and even years, not feeling ready to pitch. I’m here to tell you friend, you are READY! ??

Of course, I dig much deeper into the details on how to pitch your portfolio in my Start Your Surface Pattern Business Course, but here are a few tips to keep in mind as you send out your work:

How to Pitch Your Surface Pattern Design Portfolio

1. BE RELEVANT

I know it’s a drag but before you send out a pitch, you have to do some amount of research on the company you are reaching out to. If I came up to you on the street and said “Hey, you look like you need a ham sandwich!” and started giving you options on what toppings you could add to said sandwich, I’d better be VERY confident you’re not a vegan, right?

It’s really the same concept with pitching. Don’t send your simple geometric artwork to a company that primarily uses exquisitely detailed art. That’s wasting everyone’s time and feels more like spam than an actual pitch.?

2. BE BRIEF

I wrote a lovely summary at the beginning of this blog, but I’d bet 50 bucks you scanned down to the numbered headings. Why? We ?? like ?? the ?? headlines.?Since you won’t have a headline in your pitch email, keep the text of your email super short and scannable. Sorry friend, no one cares about how you used to be a pharmacist and then had a change of heart and discovered SPD when your dog ran away.

Think about how can you help the Art Director you’re pitching to and approach your email from that perspective.

3. BE EASY

Along those same lines of being brief, your pitch email should be easy enough for a 4th grader to digest while playing Nintendo Switch at the same time. The art should be clearly formatted, your contact info should be on every image, and you should have a very clear call-to-action at the end of the email with something quick potential art buyers or clients can do to let you know they are interested.

And there ya have it - three basic tips to kick-start your email pitches. It starts with knowing who you’re pitching to, keeping it short, and making it super easy to contact you.

Now that you know what to write in your emails, but you're probably wondering how to pick the perfect art to send along with it, right? I got you - click here.

THE BLUEPRINT TO GO FROM PATTERN FANGIRL TO PAID CREATOR

Making your surface pattern dreams come true does not have to be complicated or intimidating. I created the Start Your Surface Pattern Business course as a master plan for you to get focused, ditch the fear, and start pitching your work today.

HERE’S WHAT ONE OF MY BRILLIANT STUDENTS HAD TO SAY ABOUT THEIR RESULTS FROM THE COURSE…

“This course is worth it!?I was a working surface designer for several years before taking this course and I learned a lot.?Elizabeth does a great job of teaching practical ways to reach out to brands and land new clients.?I followed a few of Elizabeth's tips from the course and landed a new client that paid for the class entirely within a few short weeks.?I am now reaching out to new brands regularly and growing my business in ways I never would have expected.?I can highly recommend this course for any surface designer who is ready to make money and grow.”

-Corinne Wells, Illustrator & Surface Pattern Designer

Ready to monetize your passion for pattern? Click here to learn more about the Start Your Surface Pattern Business course

This article was originally published on ElizabethSilver.com - How to Pitch Your Surface Pattern Design Portfolio