Poster advice outsourcing a printer im new to this

[Sean Schock 006]

So im working on this poster deal for my friends band The Devil Makes Three
they sell out the local all ages venue and i think if this poster can happen
all parties involved could make some money and there would be a cool
collectors item at the merch table. So this is the deal ive worked out.
does this sound reasonable to you? Im trying to find a local printer so we
wouldnt have to pay for shipping but if that doesnt work out im wondering
if its worth it?

Event is on 10.22.09
Most of the art is done, but not done enough to post here.

18x24 3 or 4 colors run of 150 ill credit whoever prints it. on the poster.
I would like the cost to be around $650 and we would split the profit
3 ways between me,the band and the printer. If every poster sells for
$10 thats around $284 per party involved.

If they dont all sell, we split whats rest 3 ways.

If the gig sells out (it will thats a sure thing) thats almost 600 people through the
door, so it would seem that the odds of this working out are pretty good.
I need to confirm this deal with the band they may want a bigger cut
which i completely understand if it wasnt for them noone would be gaining.

Thanks in advance,ill go premium i promise! i have
been able to countless times but i always forget but im totally on board now
MOST of you are very nice folks and MOST are great printers/artists.

Thank you!

[squeegeethree]

What's the question? ALWAYS go local when you have the chance. There are only positives in my book if the talent is there.

[Sean Schock 006]

The question is does the cost seem reasonable and does the split seem fair?

Sorry if that wasnt clear its been a long weekend.

[JustinHelton]

I think you should just find an artist who prints their own work that may want to do it. You pay them, then you and the band split your profits....then the artist gets paid, and hopefully you get paid as well...and yes if you got some local talent, then thats the way you should go...but if not, Im sure there are plenty of great people on here that would be able to do this job for you....good luck!

[mikeage]

Are you shelling out $650 for a shot at making $284?
That doesn't seem like a good business plan.

[scrojo]

if you have a $650 budget you should be able to get a 3color done and have the printer paid in full. it's unlikely a printer will gamble part of his fee in the hopes of recouping dependant on your sales unless you've built up a long personal relationship (....... even then it's still unlikely ).

also, i'm thinking that an all-ages venue might not be great for sales. i could see you going the whole night without making a sale. just an assumption, no personal experience. maybe someone else here has some wisdom on the all-ages sales front.

2¢:

* check with band first ! work out that aspect of the deal before anything.
* check with venue. different venues have different rules when it comes to selling band merch. a lot of clubs today take a percentage of the sales. if you show up planning on selling and haven't agreed to the venue's policy beforehand....... you could easily get booted with a big stack of posters.
* take it down to a 2color print and the run down to 50-100. pay the printer in full and tie up that end. if the poster sells out, great, a success. if it bombs....... you bought yourself a relatively affordable lesson.

[ZOMIC]

I agree on scaling down the run....especially if this is your first time and ppl dont know your work/face..I'd say 50-100 sounds right, more on the low end.

All ages clubs can be tough but rewarding. You've really got to try and gauge the audience beforehand if possible. Do your research! Talk to the promoter. They have a good idea of what they're bringing in.

If you know ppl are going to want to hound the band afterward you may want to suggest the poster as a merch item to get signed.

Best of luck!

[steve w]

If you came to me with that crap, I'd never stop kicking you in the balls.
Keep your schemes to yourself. Pay the printer. When you get the posters,
not after you sell them.

[halfmassive]

In my experience local all ages shows don't have the greatest poster sales, unless they are really cheap. The kids who we play for don't always see the value in a screen printed poster for $15-$20, but they always seem willing to fork over $5 for a offset poster. From my band's experience all ages shows tend to sell a few more shirts than 21+ and 21 and over tend to sell more posters - granted these are all pretty moderate (100 - 200 or so person shows) and local (mostly chicago burbs). I also don't think we've really made much money selling posters, we always end up with extra, but I don't mind because I do all the work and make them primarily for myself, the band and close friends and if others want a few - great.

If you want to give it a shot I'd agree with others and scale down a bit or print up a non-date specific tour-type print that you can sell at future shows too.

but that's just my experience - do whatever the pros tell you to do, they really know their shit.

[Nicholas Wilson]

for us 150 18x24 3 color prints is 517.50, 4 colors is 627.50.

You could just pay us that, and then keep all the profit!

Making your printer assume risk of you selling the prints is totally bunk. It never works out. The printer has actual material costs, and would be putting themselves out in actual goods AND lost time, not just lost time that an illustrator or designer would spend making the poster.

Pay the printer in full, then you get to upcharge and make a profit!

Putting the printer's credit on the poster is cool though.