The real reason why artists and photographers stay broke: Closing the sales and marketing gap

Today on the podcast, we're going to do some general talk around sales and marketing and also talk a little bit about the MVP. The MVP is the minimum viable product and that is the smallest version of your product of your service, of your big idea that you can put out into the world so that people can see, they can touch, they can taste, they can smell, they can decide whether they like your stuff or not. Now, the reason why we're going to be looking at these things today was because I got a message from a listener of the podcast and his name is Bolu Corey.

So excuse me, really interesting name. I mean, I've met lots of Bolus and I've met a lot of lots of Corey days, but I didn't know it was possible to have a Bolu Corey day. So unique name. Nice one. And yes, since I'm a bit pressed for time, I figured, let me just make this podcast recording, respond this way and then Bolu, you can listen to it because my schedule is tight today, so I'm not going to be able to call you for a chat.

So yeah, that's it. So today we're responding to a listener questions or a set of listener questions. Now, if you like these sorts of things, talking about sales and marketing and career and things like that, how to find customers, how to improve your business, how to improve yourself, then this podcast is for you. So make sure you subscribe on Spotify, YouTube or Apple or any player of your choice. My name is Tara Shema Ayede, I'm the host of the show.

And if you would like to reach out in the same way that Boluk already did to connect or questions or queries, collaborations or whatever, then call, send a text message or a WhatsApp message on 08064662140. Also making today's recording at home. So there's going to be some noise in the background. It's a weekend wife. He's home. She's watching game shows. The kids are watching game shows with her and, you know, to just running all over the place as kids like to do.

All right, so background. Bullock already. He's an artist. Yeah, let me just leave it like that. He's an artist. He's not quite 30 yet. And I sense that there might be some hang ups there. So let me tackle that thing first, OK? Now there's a lot of pressure to blow before a certain age. And I understand, you know, perfectly well because I didn't marry when I was I didn't marry when I was young. I mean, like now my kids are still primary school, just, you know, pre junior secondary school.

But meanwhile, my own younger brother, I'm older than the Dubai two years, his kids are in university. So I understand the pressure when like you're watching the clock. Yeah. OK. I'm 25. I never hammer, I never marry. OK, I'm 30. I never hammer. I never marry. OK, I'm 35. I never hammer, I never marry. I understand the pressure. But realistically speaking, the best you can do is the best you can do. Don't put yourself under immense pressure because it makes the journey even harder.

Just realize that you know where it is that you need to go. There are a couple of things you need to learn. There are a couple of skills you need to acquire. Do your best to learn. And acquire those skills the best you can. Then also take your grounding. Take your identity, especially for those of us who are Christians. Take it in your faith. You're a child of God. You know the hand you've been dealt is the hand you've been dealt.

If you play it well, it's all good. If you don't play well, well, it's all good any which way. So don't be looking at the fact that you're 25 or that you're 30 or that you're 35 or you're 40 or that you're 50. There are some people who secured the bag at 20. You know, glory to God, there's some people who secured the bag at 30. We're happy for them. There's some people who secured the bag at 40. It's all good. There's some people who their container lands are 50.

It's all good. There are some people who blew at 60. It's all good. Any which way, it's all good. But the journey can be tough. So let's calm down and let's not put ourselves on that. Too much pressure. If you're looking at us, I'm 25. Next year I'll be 2634. Next year I'll be 35, man, that's that's, that's a lot of pressure. You just take it easy. Just chill. So don't be looking at the clock too much, just looking at the things that you need to learn and see how you can acquire those skills not just quickly,

but efficiently, you know, to take you to the to the next step. So young men, and they're also babes, Please don't put yourself under pressure. Is 1 girl on LinkedIn. Don't call her name. She's absolutely blowing up and you know on and on about how you know she's 22 and everything you know, and it's all good. You know, it's all good, but don't be looking at people like that. And you now be feeling somehow I see this babe, she's 22.

She don't blow me. I'm 34. She she I no get that's not the way to look at it. All right. So, yeah, this is not a motivational podcast. So let me go. Excuse me. Let me see if I can answer his questions. OK, so first thing, Balu, in the messages that you sent, you know, you didn't have one question per SE, or two or three. You spoke about a bunch of stuff. So I'm trying to tease out a couple of issues. So it's not as if there's one big question I can answer.

So Baluka, really my advice for next time, you know, you're reaching out to someone, you want them to help. It's OK to give the background. It's OK to give the context. But just make sure you have questions. OK, So this is the background. So therefore my question is 123 so that the person can help you with 123. If you give a background and you wait for people to tease out stuff, you know, to be honest, I'm going to take the time and tease things out because not only do I want to help you because I like to give value to everybody who comes across my path.

I think that your story and the issues that you face. Are the same kind of issues that other people face and so there'll be some value you know with me making this as well because other people will learn from it and grow from it but the other people like let's say you had down with his phone number you boss down with him. I don't think down with the would have responded because it's like man this is plenty and then he's thinking about you know down to be thinking oh OK,

you know I need to go for echoes union. I need to go and do this. I need to go and build this port. I'm fighting with new Peng. I'm doing this. And then you know he won't answer, but then you give the. Background and then you say so so therefore down with it. My question is 123. You know, down with it can now respond and say on issue one, do this issue 2 do this issue 3 do this. By the way, I'm not saying me, I'm down with your mates.

I'm just you know, you get the point. So you say you're not getting anywhere. I understand. I understand perfectly well. That's the reason why I started making this podcast. There are too many people. You know, you are an artist and I consider you to be my brother because I keep saying that my primary constituency is wedding photography because that's where I started. So I consider you my brother. You know, we're from the same.

I mean, yes, I use a camera and you use a brush, but essentially we're the same. I started making this podcast because too many of my brothers and sisters were not getting anywhere, but they always felt as if it was the technical stuff that was holding them back. So if they're artists, they're thinking about how they can import canvas from Italy. Canvas from Italy is not your problem. If they're photographer, they're thinking about getting a bigger camera with more megapixels.

Megapixel is not your problem. The reason why the artist in Nigeria is not getting anywhere today is because he lacks sales and marketing skills. Bam, full stop. In the car yesterday, I was listening to a documentary with my kids. It's a podcast called Who's Smarted and it's for kids, you know, real nice. So for those of you who have children, just download it. You know, nice podcast, simple episode, short, short, short, 20

minutes. You know, you and the kids be learning nice things on the move. You know, it's a nice way to build relationships with your children. You know, you guys listen to podcasts, you just stop. You discuss, you have your own opinion. They will have their own opinion. You learn interesting things about the world, you know, So, and we're talking about Michelangelo and Michelangelo's patrons and how he started off in business.

Of course you will. Look already you know who Michelangelo is. Now, for other people listening to the podcast, Michelangelo was a Renaissance painter. He was contemporaries with Leonardo da Vinci, you know, also the painter and the inventor. So it was nice to listen to this sort of thing. But basically what I'm trying to tell you, Buluco Renee, is that it's not today, since the Renaissance, as in, you know, hundreds and hundreds and hundreds reaching like thousands of years, it has been a problem.

I'm an artist, how I would shop, how will I pay bills? I'm an artist. I want Mary, how will I do it? I'm an artist. I want build house, how will I do it? I'm an artist. I can't be broke forever. What's the way forward? So this problem didn't start with you. The problem is not going to end with you. Photographers, painters, sculptors, you know, they will always wake up and be perpetually broke because they don't know that the thing that they need to make them move forward is sales and marketing.

So my brother, you listening to this podcast, you're on the right track. Don't really listen to my stuff. Listen to other stuff as well, especially other artists who in you know that you know who are successful. Listen to their stuff because you hear, you know, one or two things about how they started selling their pieces, how they network to success. You never know what are you on the right path listening to this kind of material, how to sell and how to market yourself.

So the reason why you feel like you're not getting anywhere is because you're lacking when it comes to sales and marketing skills. That is the very idea. That is the main thing that made me start this podcast. If you don't believe me, those of you who are listening to these things, skip scroll. You'll be hard because I have over 1200 episodes here. Scroll all the way to episode 1 and listen. You will hear that I'm not lying.

This is what started this journey. Too many photographers are broke. Too many painters are broke. Too many video people are broke. Sales and marketing skills, that's the way. Then you say you don't have money for big plans. OK, no problem. This is where minimum viable product comes in. There are people in different kinds of businesses, different kinds of sectors, people who want to do big things but their money is holding them back.

The thing is, if you wait until you collect all that big money before you will start, I mean, who knows? Who knows how long it will take to arrange the big money. So what people do in other industries is this. They come up with a minimum viable product. A minimum viable product is the smallest version of your idea that you can introduce to the market. So you can be collecting some small coins and be saving or so that the market when I give you feedback whether this thing is working or not.

So if you're an artist and you come with some revolutionary groundbreaking painting technique, don't want paint 100 pieces and then try and sell you paint 1. You see how you can flog it in the market If it works the next time you try to you sell two of them. The next time you make 4, next time you make it. That's the idea behind MVP. What is the smallest idea? But too many artists. You want to go all go all out, go all big, rent the studio space, put AC, get all the canvas, stock up 5060 of your pieces there.

You know it's good to have all those dreams and you will get there. But for now, take it slow. MVP minimum viable product. What is the smallest version of this? My wonderful idea that I can put out into the market, let me be making small coins or let people show me. Let the market show me that this idea is valued or not. So you should be thinking MVP, minimum viable product. So you have big plans. What is the smallest version of your plan?

There you can just start now. One example that I gave, I gave this example because this name pay me, really, really paying me those ago young lady. What she wanted to do was she had this idea that she could create a website, so an app in the logistics space that will be matching truckers in Nigeria with people who need trucking services. Now. The moment she said it, I was like correct. The reason why I could say correct was because trucking is a problem in Nigeria.

My brother and I, we used to do, we used to export charcoal. And of course, you know, you get all the consignment in the Bush. You need a trucker to take it from the Bush to the port. Now when people are fresh, it's a huge nightmare. Which trucker do you know? You don't know any trucker. OK, There are different companies. Which company is a good one? You have absolutely no idea. So I thought it would not be. I thought it was not a bad idea for somebody to enter that space to say, you know what, just like how with Uber, you know, taxis,

you know, blah, blah, blah, you can do something on that same scale for trucks. But of course that kind of thing will be capital intensive. And of course, you know, the girl didn't have money. My rights to how was yeah, money is necessary. And at some point you have to start talking to investors to make this thing work. But in the meantime, MVP, minimum viable product, what you can do is Excel sheets. You can use Excel sheet to manage this thing.

You have your database of truckers, you have your relationship with trucking companies, You have everybody's whatever on an Excel sheet. And then what you do is you just mediate the demand and supply. Put this thing out there, people call and manually hand by hand, you are connecting. People call this person, WhatsApp, this person, you're doing the hand by hand. Number one, you will get small coins #2 you will even figure out is this a problem that is even worth solving?

Because I thought it was a good idea. But it's possible that Nigerians don't give a hoot like they don't care when it comes to trucking. Perhaps Nigerians are OK with, you know, you go to the garage and start negotiating one-on-one with the truck driver or whatever. It's possible that Nigerians don't care. But The thing is, you never know until you start. So that's a conversation we had. Then a couple of months later,

like, hey, babe, what's up? How you been? This your idea? How's the thing going? She said, Oh no, now I started an NGO, Something, something, something, something, something. And the thing really pained me. It's like, poor girl, she got scared. She got scared. So she didn't start MVP. If you're looking at how big, big, big, big, big, The thing is, you'll never start to start small. Facebook did not start big was him. And you know, depending on who you listen to him and the Winklevoss Bros and you put together this small thing, your classmates are using it.

OK, now the faculty is using it. OK, now the department is using it. OK, now the university is using it. Let's see if we can enter another university. It's like that from faculty to faculty, from university to university. And then before you know it, Facebook is all over the place, small, small, small. What is the smallest version minimum viable product? So all of you with big plans that require big money, please always be thinking MVP.

So you want to build that app that will transform Nigeria and you require millions and millions of naira to develop this thing. No problem, I agree. But in the meantime, what is the smallest version of this idea that you introduced to the market that you show that this thing can work? You'll be any some small coins. The point is not the coins. The point is to see, are people even interested? Do they even like my stuff?

Do they feel my ish? That's the main thing. So Bulu Curry, the main thing first is your artistic, you know, your style, your flair, are people even feeling yourself? That's the main thing we need to figure out now. Grandiose plans, big plans, yes, it's good, but now you know, put out a couple of pieces, it's that simple, 1-2 pieces and then see how you can sell it. MVP. It's time for big plans. We'll get there. So bully, you don't have money for startup.

Of course it makes sense because as an artist you definitely need money for supplies and equipment. You go buy brush, you know, you buy palette, you buy solvent, you buy vanish, you buy canvas, you buy paper, you buy sketchbook, you know, you buy all those things, you know, I did find out. That's the reason why I know so small, you know, But that was a long time ago. Then of course, there's also studio setup, you know, you keep up your place.

Then you also need lighting, you know, color corrected lighting, correct lighting, you know, So I understand, I understand. But The thing is, I want to go and just do some small mathematics and from what I've found, brush palette, you know, canvas paper, I added up all the numbers is looking like 155 K to about 300 and something K, of course, depending on quality, because not all cameras is the same quality. Not all paintbrush is the same quality.

But sure, if you must rush it to start is looking as if one 5300 and you know, 40 something K you will start. That's something you can save all for. That's the reason why on this podcast and also on my radio show where some people call in, I tell them, have you heard of bootstrapping? Bootstrapping just means you're growing this business from your own savings or you're growing it from your small profits. You make 10,000 naira profit or something.

OK no problem. You remove 4000 naira 2 flex the remaining 6000 naira, put it back into the business as as bootstrapping or you save. So stop looking at how big the the mountain is in front of you. Start saving. Except if I did my research wrong, you know, 150, throw it out for the something key. You don't start. Of course, that is my nose. My nose says studio setup. My no studio setup. Now, there are a lot of us who work from home because rent is expensive.

I used to have a studio, but then by the time my first mom was born, I thought about it. Back then, diapers. I used to think diapers was expensive because then, you know, me and my wife, we used to use the expensive stuff. We used to use Huggies. Yeah, used to buy the expensive stuff back then. Huggies was 7000 naira for a cartoon. And then my my video guy Shagun used to laugh at me, say you people are for me, Big boy Abby,

big boy, big girl is OK, is OK. So you should spend 7000 on diapers. And then my studio space was costing me about 30,000 a month. And I thought about this thing. I'm spending 30,000 a month and half the time I'm not even there. So what's the point? And I closed it down as is. Then I've been working from home. If there's a need for a meeting, a presentation or whatever, I use a Co working space. So we look already the money for studio.

You don't even need it right now. I don't know what your family situation is like, Bob. In this part of the world, parents love and support us. So if you say Popsy, I beg. Let me colonize this corner and let me keep my easel here, my canvas, my something. I beg. Just leave it. Popsy, I beg. Just give me, like, one year. Let me be strong first. Let me just get this thing off the ground. Your parents won't mind because in this part of the world, you know, that's what we do.

Yeah. Things I'll be rough in the West. I remember living in Scotland where those guys, they're harsher. Once you turn 1617, you quarrel with your pops, your pops, you say get out of my house. You're a man. Go and do your own thing. I say, I say you people. When I hush gone small quarry, you just kick your children out of the house. But here it's not like that. Just tell popsy. Just tell mom. See, I beg mom. See this small space.

I beg you, just let me have this small place for like 6 months, the guest room, this corner of the guest room. Let me just keep all my material here. They won't mind. They will support you. They say my boys trying to do big things. They will even be proud of you. So see how you can arrange 300400K studio setup. Ignore studio setup. From now you can be painting from home. All those ones that the chemical smell really bad.

Wait until everybody goes out of the house. Then you now do that painting before they come back. Open the windows, you know blow the fan, you know blast AC, you know air up the place. I'll be arid the place, but that's about the money concerns. Well, just remember MVP minimum viable product. What is the smallest version? Let's push that out studio space. Don't worry about that for now. You 300 to 400 K that you need, you know, savings or borrow from moms and popsy.

That's a good thing. Also about this part of the world. If you borrow 300K from Popsy, he will give you after like a year or two. If you're struggling and say Popsy, I beg that 300K. He will say, my son, don't worry. Don't worry. It's OK. I'm not saying defraud Pops you. I'm just being real with you. Yeah, You'll borrow money from Popsy. He will say yes. I expect for it to be paid back. It's not as if he expects for it to be paid back per say.

Per say. You know, he just wants you to learn that nothing is free and he's trying to help you, trying to, you know, build you to become a man so you can borrow from, I'm saying policy if it's possible. Then he also said art is emotional, that people have to feel the art to buy it. And you're absolutely correct. Good. Now this is your first lesson when it comes to sales and marketing. You said you have been listening to the podcast for a couple of weeks.

So I hope you've come across this where I talk about the ICP. That is the, excuse me, ideal customer profile. Ideal customer profile. Who are the people that we should be chasing after? Who are the best people who will feel this thing? Don't feel hamstrung by the fact that, you know, emotions are evolved when it comes to art. Rather, spend your time focusing on targeting, chasing after the right people. Funny enough, is something I've spoken about over here on the podcast, somebody talking to me trying to sell me some cubist stuff.

I'm not a Cubism guy. I'm more of an impression. Isn't, you know, an impressionist kind of guy, you know, So Picasso and all that, Like I don't feel all that jazz because I look at him like, and this is something that the child can do in my own opinion. I look at them. I'm like, man, this, this thing is infantile. No skill here. In fact, a lot of times I see it because I'm like this Picasso, the guy don't bow all over.

Like the guy is just the scopes that is using all of you. So if you're a cubist artist, don't waste your time talking to boys like me. I will never buy. And by the way, even though I like impressionist art, I will never spend money to buy an art piece. Never. Because in my own opinion, I think those things are overpriced. So I think you're spending time talking to too many people like me who will never buy art. Or your art is one thing and you're wasting time talking to people who don't get it.

Don't try and educate somebody on why you're art is good or your technique or whatever. Decide from the beginning targeting ICP ideal customer profile. Who is the ideal customer? Them and only them. Talk to them only don't talk to average Joes like me. Don't. So try and figure out your ICP. How will I figure that out? That is very, very simple. I made a broadcast episode about that yesterday. I showed you how Joy in Port Arcot, how we're able to use Google Gemini, play around with some prompts and come up with a hit list.

Come up with a target list is the same thing. Use these AI tools. I'm a Nigerian painter based in Lagos. My style of art is this, that, that, that, that blah, blah, blah, blah. I want to start my career or build a business, you know, in this space. Who are the kind of people who typically enjoy XYZ kind of art? Bam, send it. The thing will now start giving you some things. Oh, congratulations. Welcome. Now that you're starting your business, you should be looking out for these sorts of people,

the kind of people that like this kind of art, cubist art, impressionist art, this art that art, this, this, this dot dot dot dot dot. From the criteria that he gives you, you will now start getting a mental picture of where you you need to look. For instance, if it says people who are art lover, see, this is me just making stuff up, so don't quote me on this. For instance, if it says, for instance, that the people who love art in Nigeria are typically members of the diplomatic corps and the diplom,

the diplomatic community, then your answer is there. It now means take your paintings and try and see how you can be entering British Council, British High Commission, American High Commission, Nigerian Embassy, Denmark Embassy and then all these places where people hang around or start trying to approach what was it called, art museums and you know, stuff like that. I'm just saying that you sit down with your GPT and you play around a bit, you will get some ideas of, OK, this is where I

need to start heading because I suspect that Corey, you're talking to some *** like me who will never buy art. So forget all the emotions that are involved. You cannot get somebody to. It's OK. It's like this. Am I laughing? You know, my wife likes Amala. Me, I'm a pound and young person, you know, stop trying to sell Amala to pounded young people. Stop trying to sell pounded young to Amala. People just don't work. It does not work.

So if you are a purveyor of Amala, only look for people who like Amala already and sell the Amala to them. Stop wasting time trying to educate pounded young people to like Amala. Stop it. You're wasting your time. So forget all this emotional whatever. There's an ideal audience. There's a target base for the kind of art that you produce. Use AI tools, try and figure out who these people are, where they hang out, and then start chasing them and only them.

I don't talk to people who don't. Don't bother trying to educate people. Then he also said some stuff about people taking you seriously. I understand. I understand there's a way that we look at young men in this part of the world, especially people we know, you know, like you don't have money. I understand it perfectly. I remember when I finished from Greg's, Saint Gregory's College, SW Ecoe. That's how we say it. You know, the sound cool.

And then my wife would say, SW Ecoe. How shut up. Is Oberlin there Any. That's besides the point. Oberlin there. Southwest Korea. No problem. I prefer to say SW Ecoe because we were gentlemen in Saint Gregory's College and I was the deputy senior prefect there. So when we finished now and I passed my exams, I had that there was meeting of all boys. So I dressed up, looked sharp because I was the deputy senior prefect now.

So I suppose represent an entire boss because you know mom, she only had one car at the time and of course she used the car to go to work. So I enter boss and arrived and I came for all boys meeting and I walked straight to the hall, Charles Taylor Hall. That was where the meeting was going to hold. Then I saw my house master there. I said good evening Sir, good evening Mr. you did now what brings you here? I stood with my full chest as a young blood that I was then like I'm not carrying 19 years old.

I stood with my full chest. I said I'm here for all boys meeting and then my house master laughed. Is that Mister you did? When they say old boys, it's not old boys like you that they mean. Now first of all for him saying that he was stupid, because when the young man steps forward and says, you know I'm here, I want to assume my place amongst the committee of men. What you do as an owner man is to say, correct, young man, you are growing up, come and sit with the elders.

That's what you say. You don't say that. Who are you waiting? You carry waiting, you all. Now when we say men, we're looking for men of timber and calibre. You, you're too small. Go away. So first of all, he was an idiot for saying that. But anyway, I was a child, So what did I know? Me. I turned back with my head bowed and I left. So I understand perfectly well that people will look at you somehow and they won't take you seriously, you know, because behavior you not get, money you not get, car, you not get.

So I understand perfectly, but The thing is there's nothing you can do about that. So you just take yourself seriously. Make sure you have a sales process, Be assertive in the sales process. Always set the agenda for conversations that you are having. That is the best that you can do. The person that will take you seriously, they will take you seriously. The person that will take you seriously, they won't take you seriously.

So like me back then, if I had small courage and I looked at my house master and decided to do strong head, I just bulldoze my way inside the hall, The people that would have taken me seriously, they would have taken me seriously. The people that would have not taken me seriously, they wouldn't have. So some people would have said, who is this small boy? But I know that there would have been some wise people there that would say the small boy, he's ready to roll with us.

He's ready to fulfill his responsibilities as a Gregorian. There's some people there that would have said a young man, confront, confront. We can't do anything about those people who won't take us seriously. It's not in our control. So just do as I said, you, you need to come up with your own sales process. You need to figure out a way to set the agenda when you're having conversations with people. And that is the best you can do.

If somebody takes you seriously, good, roll with that. Make progress. Anybody who doesn't take you seriously, you say to hell with those MFS, to hell with them. We don't need them. We know where we're going. You know, you flow with people who flow with you. It's not simple. Somebody's not flowing with you X them. But all these kind of things get you down. People taking you seriously or not, it's their loss. When you now blue, they will not want to associate with you.

It's like that. Like me. No, I haven't even blown. I haven't blown yet. But because the podcast is getting more visible Before people that used to say, hey, what's up now, we should do something together, they'll be cheating me. Now they don't. They heal me. Small, small, it's like that. It's normal. So you also spoke about support. So excuse me, I also spoke about support and my brother. See, I'll be honest with you.

This support game is hard. Having a patron is hard. So I don't even tell people to start that hustle at all. Because the problem with this, especially for artists, finding a patron or a benefactor, somebody who's going to give you money out of the goodness of their own heart, those people exist. But the problem is once and look, this is Nigel. Once anybody identifies A patron or a benefactor, too many people will be on his case.

Like, see, like, take me now. If let's say when I hammer. Now, if I decide to bless one artist and say, oh, you want to come up, no problem. Just take this 10 M and sort yourself. What do you think will happen next week? Two more people will come and meet me. Let's say I get you for them 55. What do you think will happen next week? Four of them will come. So yes, benefactors are there, patrons are there, they're overrun.

So in my own opinion, don't play that game. But if you must play the Patreon game to promote your art, no problem. There's a tactic people used to do back when I was in Lagos. I don't know if they still do it. It's kind of hit and miss and I know it to be mostly like a Yoruba Lagos thing, although I've seen some of it in Mac OD 2. But it's like this, all you do is you identify somebody that you think is a patron. They now give them a gift.

It's deceitful by the way, because you're giving them a gift in the hope that as you give them that gift them too, they will appreciate you. So like in Lagos, what they will do is, you know, you now get these big canvas, you know, maybe like 60 by 40 or something. You now paint the guy's picture. They're really, really imposing, look really nice. You now deliver it to the guy. You say, Sir, I just seem I agree to you.

I just want to appreciate you. You just give the person. The hope is that the guy will see this painting and say wow for me and then the person will give you something. Hopefully the thing will make sense. The problem with this tactics is that The thing is hit and miss because I have met people who tried it and the thing failed woefully, woefully. You make the thing, you give it to the person, the person says, ah, thank you very, very much,

God bless you. Is it OK Sir? You are looking at yourself awkwardly. It's OK Sir, I'm going no, no problem, no problem, thank you very much, thank you very much. And they now leave empty handed. Then the money and the time and everything that you spent producing that painting for the guy, The thing is just wasted. So it's a tactic that I've seen in Lagos, but just know it is hit and miss. So if you want to try that looking for patrons, no problem.

Come up with a list, let's say 10 people, people who you think are wealthy art enthusiasts, then that is what you're going to do. Appeal to their ego, paint things that you know, put them in larger than life terms, in grandiose terms or whatever. And you know, hopefully people will give you some some things at the end of the end of the day. But like I said, I don't like this tactic at all. I would not recommend it at all.

But if you want to play that game, the patron game, just know that they play that. What? My assumption is that you're in Lagos, so I'm sure you've seen other artists who play that game. So that's the game you play. But you must play that game. Be realistic. In my own opinion, give yourself one year. Don't make a painting for one person. You think it doesn't work and then you say, ah, this thing doesn't work, give yourself one year.

But if you ask me, if you are my younger brother, I will tell you, don't even play that game. We should be trying to sell our paintings from the beginning outright. Then you kept saying that I have my own problem. See, language, language, language, language. Hustle is hard. Growing up is hard. Becoming a man is hard. But language, we don't say things that make our jobs more difficult. So I have my own problem and my own problem.

You're not talking about it the right way, my brother. So you are not the problem. The problem is you don't have the playbook, you don't have the cheat code, you don't have the system code, you don't have the map. That is the problem. You are not the problem. Let's not be talking about ourselves like that. Now. Money would they find? It's just money. There's no need to get so deep and so psychological about this. You are not the problem.

The problem is you're looking for the mind map. You're looking for the playbook. You're looking for the Expo, that's all. So the problem is I don't have the Expo yet. I don't have the CHEAT SHEET yet. I don't have the system yet. I don't have the map yet. That is the problem. The problem is not you. So keep looking for the playbook and learn the skills more. Please do not assume that you are a problem then. As for the emotional things you spoke about, you know some things don't work.

Your energy changes see my brother that's one thing you need to know it's it's normal happens to everybody now never change that was to everybody. You open your phone, you hear pinging is big money. Your emotions rise and then sometimes you look at your bank account. You don't like what you're seeing your emotions fault. It's just normal, which is the reason why I keep saying that for the Nigerian entrepreneur, we ought to be systems based,

process based, so that whether we are feeling happy, we are doing the same steps every single day. Whether we're feeling sad, we're doing the same process every single day. So whether I make money, So if one million hits my account now, I will still make podcast episodes. If 10 million hits my account, I will still make podcast episodes. If I want my account and all I see is 1 naira, I will still make podcast episodes.

I will follow my system come rain or sunshine. If it's raining, I'll still make podcast episodes. If it's sunny, I'll still make podcast episodes. I also tried to do outreach, reaching out to people every day. If things are good, I will still do my outreach. If things are bad, I'll still do my outreach. If I'm happy, I'll still do my outreach. If I'm sad, I'll still do my outreach. Create the system, follow the system.

That's why the emotional role coaster is normal. There's UPS and there's downs. Welcome to the human condition. Nobody is immune. Nobody. So Bullock already, like I said, you know, you said a lot, there was lots of issues. There was no business question per SE that I could tackle. So this has ended up becoming one of a more like a motivational issue or something. But one thing that you can learn from the traditional sales and business perspective is this idea of the MVP Minimum Viable product.

What is the smallest version of your idea? Take it and then start selling it, start promoting it. In promoting it, pay attention to another concept that we use a lot in sales and business development. That is the ICP, your target market, your ideal customer profile. Who are the main people you should be chasing? Focus squarely on them, then let's see what else. MVPICP. What else? Yeah, so I think that's just it. But honestly speaking, patrons,

don't look for patron in your beg. That game is hard, but if you must do it, don't try only on one person. Just come up with a list of 10 and give yourself like one year before I say the thing doesn't work. Then your startup capital, 300 K, 340 maybe 400 Max should be enough to get you going. Save up for it or borrow studio space. Don't worry about that. Now Beg mom. See. Beg popsy. They will allow you one small corner in the house or your bedroom.

Yeah, you can use your own bedroom. Move things around, you know, declutter if you can find a few feet in your bedroom, that's it. You begin, you start. By the way, it might not be safe to be sleeping in the same room where there's solvents. So if you convert your bedroom to be your studio space, then maybe you start sleeping in the living room instead because it's not good because solvents, you know, can. And when I was living in Kano is then I realized that boys, boys like to sniff solvents.

I didn't realize that until I got to Kano. I was crazy. You see young boys, young boys sniffing glue, sniffing solvents and getting high for one day. Because then I was, that's when I was a baby lawyer. So I came out of the office, I was supposed to go to court and I saw two of them. They're working like zombies. Their eyes were vacant. Was the weirdest thing I had ever seen. You see a human being walking upright and they're walking towards you, but you look in the eye and it's as if there's nobody there.

The eye is black. Those guys were high as as in anyway, bottom line, if you convert your room, don't be sleeping where the sovereigns are before you become addicted to sniffing insolvents don't want to add a drug, drug addiction to your problems. So that's it. But like I said in the message, if there's any specific business questions you know ask, let me know and I'll tackle that for you. But me responding to you this way is because I'm low on time,

so let me kill two birds with one stone. Also, it's because there are other artists out there who need to hear this. Artists, photographers, painters, sculptors, you will need to hear. You will need to hear sales and marketing is the way forward. Land sales, land marketing. That is the difference. Land sales, land marketing. All those other people who are blowing right now, this guy, what's his name, the postmodern artist, you know, Banksy them,

them. And then who again? This one. I caught the pig in half and then put diamonds all over it. What's his name? I can't remember. All those boys, The reason why they are living the life artists. What artists? They get yacht artists, they get penthouse, is because they know how to sell and to market themselves in order to promote themselves. That's the way forward. This hungry artist thing is a lie from the pit of hell.

We all don't have to be hungry artists. We don't. Anyway, Michelangelo, that's what we were listening to yesterday, me and the kids. Michelangelo was able to make it. So don't worry, Yousef, you will make it. If some people have made it, you can make it too. We'll get there, don't worry. So that's it and that's all. Thank you very much for listening to today's podcast episode. For those of you who like to come here for hardcore sales and marketing stuff, sorry about today's soft motivational episode.

Doing it tomorrow, we'll get back on track. So that's it. Thanks for your time and attention. If you would like to connect, then call, send a text message or WhatsApp message on 08064662140. I'll be in touch.