Benefits of Licensing Art
By law, artists and intellectual property creators (writers, painters, illustrators, musicians, photographers, designers, software developers, and others) are protected under copyright law immediately after the intellectual property (artwork) is created. One of the rights granted to artists is the right to license the use of our artwork for the purpose of commercial gain, and the right to prevent other third parties from using the same artwork. Licensing provides many benefits to those who commission and use intellectual property (artwork) as well as to the artist.
- Your business will benefit from a continuing working relationship with an artist.
- Your company image will benefit from the protection of the artist's copyrights.
- You will benefit from saving money by only investing in the usage that you need and not in usage that you will never need.
- You will benefit by working with a professional artist who follows professional standards and values your image.
- You will benefit from an artist who has the incentive to create art that goes above and beyond your needs.
Your Business Will Benefit From a Working Relationship
Just like any business there are different levels of artists. A professional artist utilizes professional business practices and business models. This ensures that we will be around to serve you on future projects. The goal of any professional artist is to develop a long term relationship with his clients. An artist should care about his client's business as if it was his own. Because of this we will work with our clients to make sure our work delivers results above their expectations. We want you to use our artwork on everything you need to promote your business. By only providing the rights you need at any given moment with the option of purchasing future rights, you are able to stay within your budget. A relationship will evolve between you and Sarno Photography & Graphic Design™, as we become a team to promote your business and stay in touch to ensure the project is working for you.
Your Company Image Will be Protected by the Artist's Copyrights
Artists have the right to prevent others from using our work. Artists that follow professional practices work hard to protect our copyrights. We take the proper steps such as documenting and registering our work to prevent others from improperly using it. This added protection is passed on to our clients as well. We can prevent our client's competitors from using the same images as our clients. You will benefit from having Sarno Photography & Graphic Design™ indirectly fighting for you if anyone uses the same artwork that you are using without my permission.
Artists who do not follow the licensing business model do not take the proper steps to protect their copyright. Many see no need to. Therefore, you are not protected. Companies may steal the artwork for their own use, essentially stealing your company image. Nothing could be more harmful to your company image then having another company improperly using the same image.
You Will Benefit by Saving Money
Not all photographs are used from a typical photography shoot. Usually only a few are chosen. You also will only need to use the design and photos for a limited time period and in a limited market. Do you really need the rights to use an image on a billboard in
You Will Benefit from a Professional Who Values Your Image
As mentioned earlier, artists do not all have the same skills or professional standards. Therefore, some artists compete with each other on price alone, some by including all rights for their hourly/day rate. You have to ask, is it a better value if the project does not accomplish what is intended? A project which does not deliver results, not only wastes the money paid to the artist, but also the additional money paid for printing, the media buy, and for the professional you will need to hire later to do it right. Do you want the image of good enough? Or do you want an artist who cares to take pride in his work and goes the extra mile for you?
Artists who follow the industry standard business model of licensing, highly value our artwork. Professional artists take great pride in our work and your results. We know that by doing an excellent job, you will want to license our image for many other projects. We have the incentive that you will see the value every time you profit from our work. The value an artist places in his artwork then transfers to your business and is apparent to your customers. You will benefit because your customers will see your value.
You Will Benefit from an Artist Who Goes Above and Beyond
Copyright laws were created, and still are intended, for the benefit of society and not just for the creator of intellectual property. Our forefathers knew that society needed art and wanted to make sure artists had the means to create art. By giving artists the right to license their work, artists have an incentive to create more inspiring work.
Artists work hard to create images that communicate your marketing message to your target audience, images that deliver results, images that are so far beyond what is expected, that you will naturally find additional uses for them. In this way everyone benefits. Artists are rewarded for our hard work with additional usage fees and you benefit from increased sales.
Licensing is Getting Easier
Artists are now taking greater steps to make the licensing business model even easier for artists and their clients to follow. The PLUS coalition has created a website to illustrate the benefits of licensing for licensees and the benefits of licensing for licensors along with a glossary of licensing terms.