You’ve just received an email enquiring about your art, you feel a rush of excitement, they want to purchase a painting! At least, that’s what you think; it’s what you want to believe and nine times out of ten you have no reason to question it. Today we are focusing on that tenth time, to ensure that you aren’t being taken for a ride by some international key-jockey swindling people out of artwork.
Shout out to my mate Will for modelling - he’s legit… promise!
There are a few subtle cues to look out for when receiving orders by email. Independently, they might not mean anything, but collectively they can paint a picture of nefarious intentions.
The multi-purchase order
This pushes the overall value of the order up and is less frequent than singular sales. Generally, people who buy a number of paintings will ask for a deal; note if they haven’t done.
Price
If someone is trying to con you they will go for your most expensive artwork, so be more vigilant as the value goes up.
Shipping abroad
Generally, these people operate from foreign locations, from Malaysia to the U.S.A. Have they asked for a shipping quote?
Rushing
They need the paintings as soon as possible, because it is for a birthday or some other special occasion. They often try to rush you, so you have less time to consider their intentions.
Poor spelling
Bad grammar isn’t often associated with people who purchase high-value luxury items.
Payment
All seems fine until the last minute when there is a problem with their bank and they ask to send you a cheque in the post. In one case they tried to con an artist using a pretend escrow system with a real bank’s information, they stated that the bank would release payment on receipt of a shipment tracking number.
Delay in payment is the most obvious red flag when you are being scammed, but by this point you will have been dragged through an email exchange for a few days and made all the preparations for shipment. Some artists in their innocence and hope, will overlook these signs and post before receiving money. Which brings me to one simple rule: Never, ever, ship an artwork without receiving full payment first, by bank transfer.
With this steadfast rule, you may ask why I bothered to write out the subtler, potentially innocent things to look out for. Well, to save you time and emotional energy. It can be very deflating and irritating to spend time getting shipping quotes, writing considered emails and getting your hopes up. So to prevent you having to go through the motions for no reason it is important at the outset to ask questions and state facts. Here are a simple few that will save you time and energy, their responses will be very telling of their intentions.
How did you come across my website? It always helps to know how people found me.
Just so you know, I ask for full payment prior to shipment via bank transfer, unfortunately I cannot accept PayPal or cheque.
I would write about the reasons that I don’t accept Paypal but an excerpt from this article says it better than I ever will:
Disputed charges: The main risk to sellers is the ease with which customers can dispute charges. Customers can claim that goods never arrived or that you did not deliver what you promised, and PayPal seems to assume that the customer is (almost) always right. You can plead your case, but you’ll need solid proof to get PayPal to decide in your favor.
This risk is not unique to PayPal. Customers can also reverse credit card charges easily. However, for whatever reason, PayPal seems to have a reputation for being especially difficult to work with. Perhaps that reputation is well-deserved, or perhaps there is just a vocal minority.
Getting sales online should be a joy, so observe these rules and avoid the online baddies. On a positive; if you do get one of these chancers dropping into your inbox it’s a milestone that you have reached a level worth scamming!
As with all my articles, I love a discussion, so please leave your own thoughts and experiences in the comments below!
Happy creating,
Tom