Increasing prices - do you increase previously priced items

Has anyone increased their prices since starting with DPW? And if so, do you go back and raise the prices of pieces that are still available for sale or do you leave them at that original price?

Hi Marilyn. I have increased my prices this year on new works. I have decided not to increase the prices on previous originals. I paint smaller to keep prices attractive but also to keep me afloat. Hope this helps.

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Not sure why you are asking…I don’t increase, if has not sold at the price it is set… And I do set prices higher on newer pieces like Dwight. And painting small works so you’re not painting for free is always a great idea.

And if a piece is around too long or I have become a better painter and don’t like what I did I usually move it to ebay and make it cheaper!

I think it’s completely up to you. After looking at your work, I think you would be more than justified in raising the prices on older pieces you think are worth more. There are always new shoppers. Just because they have not sold in this venue in the past doesn’t mean they would not sell for more at another time or place.

That’s very true. I had a sold a painting I thought for too little but it was an offer… The woman sent it back to me, saying it was too dark for her decor. (Her monitor problem I assume.) I resold it at twice the price only a week later, and that woman glowed about it. So…yeah, ya just never know. The answer to every question as to who what where why art sells is this: “Ya just never know!” Haha.

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I normally start out showing pieces on DPW. If they sell, I’m happy. If they don’t sell, I will then often put them on hold and put them in other venues (local gallery, competitions, etc. When that happens, I have to frame them which is an additional expense (and often a big one). So, I increase the price. If it’s going into a competition and I have to pay a fee, I increase the price to cover the fee. If I have to ship it framed to get to the competition, I increase the price to cover the cost. I also increase the fee to cover all those costs (which haven’t gone away), when I remove it from hold and put it back in my active DPW inventory. If it sells at one of the other venues at the higher price, I update the price for my records and mark it sold on DPW.

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Thank you for the details re: your pricing process. I have struggled a bit with this scenario especially since there is such a wide gap between the pricing on DPW and the work in the shows I have just begun to enter. Do you concern yourself or find that buyers will find your work on DPW is less and not understand the reasons for the difference in show prices?

I don’t. I assume that most folks “shopping” on DPW are looking for a bargain. If they like my work when first posted, they purchase it and get a great bargain but then they are responsible for the shipping, framing and such. Best not to wait. Of course, if someone contacted me and asked me to remove a frame, I could deduct that cost because I could reuse the frame and glass for another painting later. Removing the framing/glass would also bring down the cost of shipping.

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