What I learned while prepping for San Francisco Comic Con

Main thing I've learned is that prepping for a three day conference to sell your art takes a ton of work. Luckily, Lyla Warren has been coaching me through this whole process. Thanks Lyla – you rule.

Greeting cards printed by Smartpress

I printed greeting cards at Smartpress on the recommendation of fellow artists. Their free paper samples, easy to use website and high quality prints made them a solid choice. Options for printing multiple versions in one print run enabled me to print 6 different cards. Cost for 300 came to about $1.50 a card, including an envelope. This included shipping.  

Packaging from ClearBags

ClearBags provide plastic sleeves, mailing envelopes and other products useful for packaging prints and crafts. Their prices are reasonable and the quality seems good so far. 

Prints from Static Medium

Following a printer attribution detail from the Signalnoise web store, I found a print shop called Static Medium who specialize in gallery quality digital prints. They ended up being an excellent choice. I printed 200 8x8 prints (10 different pieces). Cost came to about $5 a print. More expensive that printing at home, but far less hassle.

Display

I got most of my display stuff at Target and Home Goods. Lyla recommended I use a box to display my prints. I printed the stories of each Poofy to reside in the back of every print and sticker. I've found that people get more excited about the art when they read the bios of each Poofy. 

Poofy stories! Included with every print, sticker, card or mug.

Poofy stories! Included with every print, sticker, card or mug.

Adorable mini chalk board

Adorable mini chalk board

Little box for storing my prints.

Little box for storing my prints.

Framed Poofy prints

Framed Poofy prints

Business cards

I originally got some super nice business cards printed at moo.com. However, I learned that giving away business cards is a strong form of customer engagement. This meant I had to find a place where I could get a large quantity printed for a bit cheaper. I used Vista Prints. I can say that their website is not the most fun to use, but the price is good if quantity is the goal. Moo.com is superior for high quality cards. 

Come to San Francisco Comic Con

For those in the Bay Area, San Francisco Comic Con is this weekend, June 8-10. I'll be at booth A11 in Artist Alley with Lyla Warren and Little Brigade. Hope to see you there!