This morning I received some very negative feedback for my red wine print on notonthehighstreet.com and here it is...
I got this for my Mum for Mothers Day and must have bought it in a hurry as I assumed it was framed. £27 for a print is ridiculous! I can’t believe that I’ve paid that type of money for something like that. I will think twice before using notonthehighstreet again. Look carefully before you buy, make sure you know exactly what you’re going to get. Very disappointed.
So I'm having a rant on my blog to get it out my system before I leave a reply! So this person obviously
‘bought it in a hurry’ because they couldn't even be bothered to read the description! It clearly states in the first line that it is an un-framed print and then even go on to say ‘that my prints fit off the shelf standard frames’ you can read the description yourself
here. Also in bold (which is not really allowed on NOTHS) I've put
‘Frame is not included in the price’!But what hit hard most was ‘I can't believe I paid that type of money for something like that’. Like what, she hasn't even seen the print as I posted it directly to her mum, I even went to the trouble of even including a gift receipt even though she didn't request one! So she expects a LARGE print, mounted, framed and delivered for £27! Obviously seen as she didn't read the description she doesn't even know how and where it has been made. You want mass produced then go someone else!
Is there anything else I could have done? We as artist are encouraged to take lifestyle photos showing them framed to sell our products which when you sell on sites like Etsy and Folksy never seems to cause a problem. The way NOTHS operates means most people don't get they are buying from independent artists and makers and the buyers are in the most case a different audience than other indie selling sights. A large percentage don't bother to read the descriptions!
I'm not the only seller to get negative feedback like this on NOTHS and I thought I had sort of prepared myself but I was still extremely annoyed! I've sold loads of these prints for Mother's Day on NOTHS so there may be more bad feedback yet to come!
Get this! On Friday night at 10pm, two days before Mother's Day I had an order on NOTHS for a Mother's Day card, they requested Express Delivery guaranteed for Saturday, a total cost of, wait for it... £16.45. Crazy right? Of course I declined the order, I couldn't suddenly drink a red bull, sprout wings and perform a delivery miracle!
Don't get me wrong I've had some lovely feedback on NOTHS but in most cases people don't tend to leave any feedback at all. Which I take as meaning they were happy enough with the product they received, people are more likely to leave feedback on a non indie site when they aren't happy!
So what am I saying? If you are thinking of selling on NOTHS then don't? Not at all, there are plenty of people who make a living through the site, but take time to consider if your products are right for their market! It may be the case that you can design a specific range that will sell well!
The biggest sellers on prints seem to be ones produced on a computer that can be personalised! It takes a lot of time and effort to produce a personalised letterpress print which I don't think the time factor that goes into them will be appreciated on NOTHS. Do I sell my soul to the devil and and digitise my wood type and print them off on a computer, after all I have to make a living?
As usual your comments good or bad are appreciated, maybe I shouldn't use my blog to have a rant? But I am proud of what I make and the way I make it!
On that note I'll end my rant, grow a thick skin, head off to the workshop and get inked up and ready to roll! Oh and have a bottle of red wine ready for tonight ;)
