Recently I interviewed Scott Hull, an agent for illustrators who, when you ask what he does, says he, “links creativity to the corporate world." We talked a lot about how illustration has changed and who the new “art buyers” are.

He shared some interesting information for creatives and illustrators—especially when it comes to selling themselves to art buyers and agencies.

Scott believes that we’ve fallen short in marketing creative services and that what the new art buyers care about is: What value are you going to bring to me? How are you going to make my life easier?

So how can a creative sell themselves? 

Scott says: An illustrator can talk about the value they bring and the potential return on investment over stock illustration or photography. 

He also suggests emphasizing turnaround time. "The illustrator has the training and sense to convert concepts into a visual translation in 3-4 weeks. This is probably one of the biggest sales tools I have found.”

In this interview, Scott also shares his thoughts on: 

• Students coming out of art school, what should they do? 
• Can an illustrator directly approach an art buyer?
• Can an illustrator learn enough about ROI to persuade corporate decision-makers? 

Listen to this 14-minute interview on the Marketing Mentor podcast.