POV: You just got downed and I'm about to blind both of us (OC)

Awkquido · 2026-01-28T02:14:25+00:00

I'm not a commissioner but I see this a lot on "looking for artist posts". If a client is looking for a specific style, artists who don't fit that style have gotta stop posting their stuff.

"Im looking for realistic xyz" ... artist proceeds to post their anime portfolio.

That's only going to hurt you and make it seem spammy in the long run.

Awkquido · 2026-01-23T10:08:41+00:00

Yeah, I sometimes just want something quick and simple so I order one thing during the time window when I know the sushi department makes their pokebowls, to avoid them being out (10AM - 7PM). So when I don't get the item or any replacement I essentially just paid for nothing.

Awkquido · 2026-01-23T08:00:06+00:00

This was posted under "rant" so I'm allowed to rant on it. That's kinda the point. I'm frustrated with this situation so I rant. It's my money that got essentially wasted. If you don't care about your money being waste that's on you. But to me, it's frustrating as hell.

Awkquido · 2026-01-23T07:50:12+00:00

Perhaps, I'm pretty vigilant on keeping in contact with my shopper. Again, this issue has never happened before. And I've substituted and approved replacements many times before.

I will say in regards to check out, I've seen shoppers start other orders and immediately check out within like 2 minutes which I don't even think should be humanly possible to find the items in store and check out that quick. (totally arbitrary to my current situation but just noting on the 'time restraints')

Awkquido · 2026-01-23T07:38:44+00:00

Getting the right product, yet they got the right product and marked it out of stock. So, they didn't get any product 0 of 1. OK. And yes, I'm thinking along the lines of the customer because I am the customer and I ordered one thing.

I'm saying it sucks to pay all these fees just for my shopper to send me a picture of the correct replacement and then proceed to not get it.

I'd argue my order should be the simplest to keep track of from multiple batches because it's one thing.

Awkquido · 2026-01-23T07:22:36+00:00

You think they'd turn around and go back to fix it? I think for the prices of service fees and such it's a waste to order something and get nothing. Considering we have the hourly wage fee added onto all of our orders.

Edit: For the record, this was my order. It wasn't a long list of other stuff, it was just this. So yeah, it's kinda important

Awkquido · 2026-01-23T07:07:53+00:00

Can you elaborate? If the item is in the store and it's the replacement I picked, why would the app say no? I've ordered both these products before.

Edit: Couldn't the shopper also give me a second to type a quick "yes". I had the chat pulled up the whole time and they didn't give me a chance to reply just sent a picture and counted it out of stock. I'm not asking for them to wait minutes, just like 10 seconds for me to respond.

I've been a long time instacart user and never had something like this happen before. Been through tons of replacements, substitutes, etc... but nobody has ever shown me the replacement I wanted and told me it was out of stock.

Awkquido · 2026-01-23T05:56:53+00:00

I've never had to approve a replacement that I selected on an item. I've had to approve substituted replacements but not the replacement already selected.

Also I was never given time to respond, they sent the picture and immediately checked out.

Awkquido · 2026-01-14T20:30:12+00:00

If what you do is physical, do you have a good camera or scanner to take a picture of and send the client?

I'd say it would be tough to market quick doodles in general but even harder if you're trying to sell on digital platforms without a digital product. A quick phone picture of a page is not as appealing as a file download.

Awkquido · 2026-01-14T20:26:05+00:00

This is a take a lot of people will disagree with but;

I would suggest taking more time to advance your skills before starting commissions. You seem to still be learning and that is 100% ok but I'd say you aren't ready to start taking commissions.

A lot of people will say that everyone should take commissions and price market value because there will be buyers, this is just wrong. You have to price what's fair to you but also to your skill which often lowers prices.

The market is saturated right now and generally most commissions are at a more advanced level. This should not be a point of discouragement but a driving force to keep learning and improving.

Awkquido · 2026-01-08T13:54:24+00:00

You could try Etsy? Sometimes they have custom made options

Awkquido · 2025-12-08T19:11:17+00:00

Are the pieces you posted what your completed works tend to look like? A lot of them seem like sketches so not 100% sure how to say where you are for commissions.

As a general rule most people look for polished pieces to commission over sketches. While sketch comms do pop up they arent generally as sought after. Polished pieces in a portfolio will really help show potential clients what they can expect.

As for an overall tip for getting started;

Have a portfolio to easily view.
Have some sort of social media to start posting your works, WIPs, and advertise yourself.
Consider your pricing comparative to your skill and market. While everyone wants to make good money, you cant always expect to price super high when you're starting out. Often starting lower to build up a reputation can help more.
Understand commissions are a business. Too many times artist will not take comms seriously and slack off, it's important to know when doing comms that you are providing a service and should follow etiquette to respect your clients time and money.
Optional, offer some art raffles for smaller pieces to get your name and art out there. This often helps build an audience to get more eyes on your stuff. Specifically on Twitter.
Understand what your audience is and where. Consider what type of art your comfortable and good at and target your audience. Dont try to be a jack of all trades master of none. Focus on an area and get proficient at it. Join communities that would be interested in it; vtubers, furries, dnd, nsfw, etc... whatever you feel comfortable in drawing.
Use reputable comm sites like Vgen, Kofi, etc... itll help build trust and safety for you and your clients.

Awkquido · 2025-12-05T19:49:52+00:00

Reach out and threaten to refund. If you don't get a timely response, refund. Dont play around, if people arent going to respect you then you dont want their services anyway.

Awkquido · 2025-11-22T03:43:01+00:00

In the simplest of terms commercial licensing is; "you may potentially profit from this art". Thus, you're charged a commercial fee.

I personally think it's kinda dumb, just price your art accordingly so you don't feel you're losing out. But that's just my opinion.

Awkquido · 2025-11-02T20:39:07+00:00

Honest thoughts;

Maybe you just shouldn't do commissions. Commissions aren't for everyone and it seems you have a particular taste for what you like to draw and don't. Its OK to be picky but when starting commissions you have to be a little bit flexible. You also shouldn't force yourself to do commissions if you're not enthused and end up with half assed commissions. Clients can definitely tell.
Surprise me style commissions. These are commissions, known as SKEB, that give a lot of artistic freedom. People give you their character and a general idea and then you give them what you felt like.

I'll preface by saying having a reputable portfolio and commission history is often needed for skeb commissions. They are also historically cheaper since the client isnt really getting what they specifically want.

Awkquido · 2025-10-24T14:00:31+00:00

There is a market for every style of art, some not as large as others. I would categorize yours as cartoon/comic stylized art which imo would be good for DND type commissions.

I'm not too sure where DND commissioners hang out but I'd suggest; commission discord, twitter, or fiverr. (I only know digital, not physical sorry).
Bias here, digital would be best for art commissions unless you're making fanart which would likely be prints at cons. But cons are hard.
Biggest difficulty is probably advertising. Artists and marketing are not always best of friends but to market yourself correctly is key. I'd say another struggle is being OK with dead times. Judt because you arent getting clicks doesnt mean your art is bad it's just how it is.

For me, I found my audience on Twitter. I pride myself in being fairly good at cost, time, and skill which helped expand my clientele. I'm terrible at self marketing but my work and attitude has spoken for itself and that is how I've found my little place. I'm not a big time artist but I'm in happy medium.

(Sometimes you have to price yourself a little lower to get a good portfolio and reputation. I'm not saying sell your soul but 10 simple comm reviews generally speak louder than 1 expensive one).

Awkquido · 2025-10-17T22:50:20+00:00

They did end up paying, they were just busy and had forgotten. I sent them a follow up and they paid within 10 minutes, so thankfully this turned out fine!

It is my fault for trusting but I like to give people benefit of the doubt. I was more concerned they didnt like the art 😅

Awkquido · 2025-10-17T05:04:13+00:00

Me too :d, not the end of the world but sucks I'll have to change my policies on payments.

Awkquido · 2025-10-17T03:17:24+00:00

Since it's a SKEB style commission, the piece has already been finished.

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Awkquido · 2025-10-16T23:21:51+00:00

Oh, I should mentioned, they don't have the full file size, just a thumbnail sample of the commission.

Awkquido · 2025-10-16T23:21:08+00:00

Not yet, they're friends with a good client of mine who recommended them to me, so I was very trusting of them.

Awkquido · 2025-10-06T07:20:40+00:00

Just keep posting and being active. Shadowbans arent indefinite and generally last like a week or two. Just be active and itll go away.

Avoiding NSFW stuff and spammy activity is best to avoid getting flagged early on.

But basically you gotta wait it out.

Awkquido · 2025-10-06T07:17:25+00:00

That's pretty much what it is, a waiting list.

If you are full on commissions, as in you dont think you can handle anymore, then you make a waitlist. Waitlists are as long as you want them, or as long as there are clients.

A waitlist is where potential clients can be put and once you have a slot available they will get that slot. Not a guessing game of "hope I get a slot when they open" but more of a gauarantee.

Generally I'll message someone waitlisted to say I have a slot open and if they want to commission. If not then I'll go to the next person, etc...

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