You are Worth Every Penny! Why Cataloguing Your Collection Is a Financial Game Changer
- My ARTIST ARCHIVE
- May 6, 2020
- 3 min read
“But is it really worth it?”
It’s probably the one question that we hear the most often. “We love the idea of a catalogue, it sounds amazing, it will make our lives so much easier… But, is it really worth it - financially?”
The answer, “YES! Because you are worth it! Your things have value, your time is valuable, and your legacy is important.”
Every Manager, Business Manager, and Assistant understands the benefits of a catalogue, immediately! It saves an Artist time, it saves them money, and it alleviates frustration for EVERYONE! However, sometimes the upfront cost can cause some initial hesitation and Artists question when or if they will see a return on their investment.
For Artists, cataloguing their career assets is a long term investment, that if planned correctly, can start working for them right away. There's an upfront investment, but once it's in place, the benefits and opportunities are endless. We’ve talked about many of these benefits in previous posts, but in case you need a quick refresher, here is a list of nine reasons why establishing a catalogue can be a great investment in an Artist’s financial future and legacy.
Saves Paid Time. Establishing a catalogue saves an Artist’s Team members (paid) time retrieving items, and can also save in travel and retrieval costs. Pulling items takes time, and time is money. When things are unorganized, it’s often very hard for an Artist's Team to quickly and easily track things down. A catalogue establishes a system for items to be easily and systematically retrieved at a moment's noticed.
Storage Costs. When an Artist begins cataloguing their collection, they start to review what they are actually storing. Throughout this process, many items are removed, tossed, sold, or donated, and removing items can save an Artist a lot of money in monthly fees depending on the size of what is being stored.
Access & Service Fees. Some facilities charge clients to access their belongings or require warehouse personnel to pull boxes from storage vaults and racks. When items are unorganized and are hard to track down, these costs can add up quickly due to frequent access. An organized catalogue can make retrieval quick and easy, and save on these costs.
Sales & Opportunities to Monetize. A catalogued collection helps an Artist and their Team know what an Artist has to work with. Whether they are looking to sell something at auction, or utilize their belongings for other career opportunities, a catalogue expedites and simplifies the sales and creative process.
Donations. An Artist’s belongings have value, and an organized collection gives an Artist and their Team an overview of items to choose from when donation opportunities arise. Donations are great tax deductions, which is why after a catalogue is established it’s often incredibly beneficial to have a collection appraised.
Appraisal Process. Appraisals can be expensive, but they are also necessary when valuing a collection. They are useful for registrar documentation, legal purposes, donations, and for insurance. An organized collection can expedite the appraisal process, saving an Artist time and money.
Insurance. A catalogue helps an Artist determine exactly what they have and where it is located. This information is imperative for insurance policies.
Damage, Disaster, Theft. Simple remote review of a collection makes it easy to note missing and damaged items quickly for insurance documentation and can aid in determining who last accessed a collection when items are missing.
Alleviates Embarrassment. While this is an unusual benefit of a catalogue, it is a HUGE benefit. As many legacy Artists have not had consistent Teams throughout their entire career, sometimes career pieces and memorabilia are moved, donated, or processed under different management, and the supporting paperwork is not easily found or is lost. A catalogue aids active Team members in understanding what items are still in an Artist’s possession. It also saves an Artist’s Team from having to request sensitive backup documentation on items that are no longer under the Artist’s care.
As you can see, a catalogued collection has many uses, and it is worth every penny because it has the potential to save and make an Artist money as the years go on. It is a long term investment, that will be a valuable tool for an Artist and their Team over the course of their evolving career.
Until next month!
Your Friends
@ My ARTIST ARCHIVE
P.S... Have questions? Wanna hear more about our services or speak to someone regarding scheduling an appointment. Send us an email @ info@myartistarchive.com or fill out the form on our CONTACT page!
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