Selling Art Work ?

[NikGrey]

A customer has asked if he can buy the design I made for his Mugs:

2798

As he has the opportunity to have some of his products branded at the factory.

Just wondering what to charge for this and other things to be considered ? He is a friend of mine and brings me a lot of work.

Anyone else been through this?

[Andrew]

If you did the design for a mug run then I am assuming your time to produce it was costed into the job. If he brings you a lot of work then I would let him have it for free. He will see it as a favour and I am sure that will result in a further increase in work.

[funkey monkey]

The main thing you have to look out for Nik is the image in that design of the pipes and if that was royality free as there may be a copyright on that unless you took the photo then you already own that copyright.

As for the way to sell the design on you have two choices!

1: Sell the rights outright for a single fee!

2: Sell them a licence to pay a fee each time they use it!

As for a price only you know what it's worth and if you sell it outright they could change all the text to fit another company and it will be them getting the benifit as the copyright owner.

Welcome to the world design and copyright ownership!

[RogerC]

I agree with Andrew.............your customer is a friend and friends help each other out. He brings you business so what you gain in 'selling' might be lost in other ways.

[socialgiraffe]

If a customer asks you to design a mug then the artwork is considered theirs as they have contracted you to design it as well as print it, so technically speaking its not yours to sell :-)

If he gives you loads of work let him have it and in actual fact go one step further and tell him its already his anyway! Without being disrespectful to your design I do not think its going to win any design awards so its not as if you need recognition for it.

Just ask him to recommend you to his mates as that will pay far more than any finances you are paid from the design..

[funkey monkey]

[QUOTE=socialgiraffe;88980]If a customer asks you to design a mug then the artwork is considered theirs as they have contracted you to design it as well as print it, so technically speaking its not yours to sell :-)
QUOTE]

I have to disagree with that unless they supplied the images used as the design is Nik's unless there is a contract to say the finished design/artwork is there copyright?

[socialgiraffe]

unless there is a contract

Not correct, I used to think it was this way, but went through it all with the legal department of a publishers I used to work for. It all comes down to what the customer asks for. If they ask you to design and print a mug then they are contracting you to design the mug and employing your services as a designer. This means the copyright is transferred to the purchaser once the bill has been paid. In much the same way if a commercial artist or photographer is contracted to take photographs of a product, the copyright is passed over to the person who contracted them to do the job.

It is a bit of a mine field and you are certainly right about the images used and you would certainly need to establish who owns them before anything else as they are key to the design elements

[funkey monkey]

Not correct, I used to think it was this way, but went through it all with the legal department of a publishers I used to work for. It all comes down to what the customer asks for. If they ask you to design and print a mug then they are contracting you to design the mug and employing your services as a designer. This means the copyright is transferred to the purchaser once the bill has been paid. In much the same way if a commercial artist or photographer is contracted to take photographs of a product, the copyright is passed over to the person who contracted them to do the job.

It is a bit of a mine field and you are certainly right about the images used and you would certainly need to establish who owns them before anything else as they are key to the design elements I see and know where you are coming from because they changed how pro photographer's now can't own the rights to the photos they take unless the person or persons sign the rights over to them

[mrs maggot]

i agree with social, if a customer asks me to design a t shirt/hoodie/ mug whatever, then the design i produce is for them, i ask them to ensure that any current logo they may want incorporating is theirs to use - but once i have done it, it is theirs. I do however not release the files to them, and have made a charge for doing so when one person wanted to use someone else, luckily for me, the order went wrong and i still have the business.

you could simply ask him to acknowledge your company in providing the artwork and as others have said, let him promote your business for you, by keeping a good relationship