Rockstar Mentor

Episode 062 You Have 30 Seconds to Make a Good Impression

Have you ever had an opportunity present itself to impress a "mover and shaker" in the art world, a gallery curator or an influencer and you don't not know what to say, or find yourself rambling on and regretting not being prepared?

Everyone, including artists should have an elevator pitch that will knock the competition out of the park! Polish up the skills you need to have the best 30 seconds to impress and be the art Rockstar that you are!

For the full summary of these show notes visit me at http://rockstarmentor.com/blog and http://rockstarmentor.com/podcasts

Please visit our website to sign up to be on the front lines of amazing information and free downloads that I have prepared especially for you. http://rockstarmentor.com

Visit me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/crushitmentor

Visit me on Instagram: http://instagram.com/rockstarmentor

To support via Patreon is greatly appreciated! https://www.patreon.com/rockstarmentor

Need art supplies? Shop on Amazon!

To learn more about me, my art and colorful product line, visit Sonya Paz through my artist website, http://SonyaPaz.com

Thanks to "The Brush Guys" they can be located at http://thebrushguys.com they offer the best in all things brushes for all mediums and amazing specials on art supplies. Save 5% on your online order, use promocode: ROCKSTAR  

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Episode 061 the nitty gritty on return policies and how to protect yourself, your art and your sanity!

If you are selling your art and you don't have policies in place you are doing yourself and your business a disservice.  This podcast today will help you think outside the box on where your policies are and what you need to do to incorporate them into your business.

For the full summary of these show notes visit me at http://rockstarmentor.com/blog and http://rockstarmentor.com/podcasts

Please visit our website to sign up to be on the front lines of amazing information and free downloads that I have prepared especially for you. http://rockstarmentor.com

Visit me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/crushitmentor

Visit me on Instagram: http://instagram.com/rockstarmentor

To support via Patreon is greatly appreciated! https://www.patreon.com/rockstarmentor

Need art supplies? Shop on Amazon!

To learn more about me, my art and colorful product line, visit Sonya Paz through my artist website, http://SonyaPaz.com

Thanks to "The Brush Guys" they can be located at http://thebrushguys.com they offer the best in all things brushes for all mediums and amazing specials on art supplies. Save 5% on your online order, use promocode: ROCKSTAR  

Support the show

Episode 060: Fan Mail Questions and Answers!

We are tackling questions today from Janet in College Park, PA question on how to have fun developing your art business. Jeff from Columbus,OH on keeping extra art supplies that are not being currently used. Should I save or sell and how to deal with this. We also have Sriptii from San Francisco who asks about email newsetter providers, Constant Contact or Mailchimp, what is better based on her budget for just starting out.   UPDATE: Mailchimp allows a free account for 2000 contacts.   Thanks everyone for your questions and let me know how I can help further.  For the full summary of these show notes visit me at http://rockstarmentor.com/blog and http://rockstarmentor.com/podcasts

Please visit our website to sign up to be on the front lines of amazing information and free downloads that I have prepared especially for you. http://rockstarmentor.com

Visit me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/crushitmentor

Visit me on Instagram: http://instagram.com/rockstarmentor

To support via Patreon is greatly appreciated! https://www.patreon.com/rockstarmentor

Need art supplies? Shop on Amazon!

To learn more about me, my art and colorful product line, visit Sonya Paz through my artist website, http://SonyaPaz.com

Thanks to "The Brush Guys" they can be located at http://thebrushguys.com they offer the best in a

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Episode 059: Commission follow up, how to keep them coming back.    If you are fortunate enough to secure a commission from a collector  then I congratulate you! This is the first step in building a really amazing relationship with you and your collectors.    This is the first step in creating and building a relationship with collectors who love your artwork. I'm gonna give you the five top reasons why it's important to follow these basic rules.    1) Enthusiasm. Your customers are connecting with you because they want artwork, a creation made by you.  If you are enthusiastic about this process it will resonate with your customer and they will be excited too. More chances for them to refer you.   

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Episode 058 - You lost all of your Art and Photographs!  What do you do?

All I can say is that you BETTER back your SH** up!

Greetings Rockstars,
I cannot tell you how many times I've spoke to business people who have made the mistake that they always regret. Not backing up your work, I am not only talking about artists and photographs of the world but I'm talking about your bookkeeping, your database is your back ups your finances your documentation, spreadsheets and the list could go on.

If you don't have a lot of documents to back up, you could very well get away with getting a thumb drive with for whatever size yuo need, 4MB, 8MB, 32 NB or whatever to keep your data current, but if in the event of any type of loss, whether it's a theft a fire and that thumb drive goes missing (or better yet left inyour pants pocket, then waches... cmon... you know we have all done that one time ot another) then you are going to be in a world of hurt and regret. There are so many ways to back up your information now to keep it safe and the good thing is when you backed them up you also have access to them from other devices... for instance Carbonite, this is saved my butt on more than one occasion, and I'm also able to login and grab a file AND if I'm out of town and I need to access something then voilà there it is in my saved a cloud folder.

Two years ago my computer was acting strange and I took it to my local computer fix-it crew and they determined that my secondary drive where I keep my documents was failing, it had become corrupt the warranty had expired on that hard drive two months prior and NONE of the data was recoverable. Any ordinary day this is would've put me over the edge to probably have been on the brink of madness, but I know that my back ups were being conducted on a daily basis with my cloud service back up service which I use is Carbonite.
I also use dropbox so that I can share information with folks that I'm doing commissions with, working with other clients on branding projects, transferring files from one computer to another effortlessly and not having to have a thumb drive on hand all the time, and AGAIN... in fear of losing it no doubt. I love thumbddrives I think they are the best invention since the smoothie, however... they can easily get misplaced rather easily. Let me ask you a question, how many times have you gone to a clients and left your thumb drive in their computer or have mistakenly gone to Staples, OfficeMax or to get things printed and have accidentally left it there, or in the pocket of your jeans and it's gone through the wash, I will tell you that crap happens yes it does and when it does it's a big giant bummer.

I know that there are a ton of old-school artist and business people out there who don't want to rely on having cloud services back your stuff up, then you should be able to also get back up services that will take care of you if in the event of an emergency.

I had a really great conversation with an incredible business associate of mine, she's always on the ball she's got her orders documents in order she's always on top of everything and keeping yourself current on technology and we started talking about back ups and she said "oh yeah I back up all my files into another drive on my computer" and I asked her where if ever her computer was stolen or if there was a fire what would happen to that information and she said " I suppose it would be lost as well".

I encouraged her to connect with a back up service, the following Monday that's exactly what she did. Let me tell you Rockstars the reality is $60 base minimum a year will save your butt do all the work for you and you don't have to worry about it it takes 15 minutes to set up. Now of course, depending on how many files that you have to back up and you all know that photographs take a tom of room up so that back it could take anywhere from a couple of hours to a couple o

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Rockstar Mentor Podcast - Episode 057

Episode 057 - Persistence pays off
Baking, designing or painting your way to success!

Are you an artist or creative person that wants to learn how to make a living doing what your passion is with a no frill, straight to the point and reults driven program.... then the Rockstar Mentor is for you! I am your host Sonya Paz and I am a fine artist living in Northern California who has been a successful published artist, licensed artist, self represented artist whose art designs have been used for dozens of promotions and products, events, concerts, restaurants, music CD covers, marathons. I've had my art appear on TV shows and my art products have been licensed, and have also been collected by celebrities around the globe. I am so very excited to bring you the Rockstar Mentor Podcast.

Rockstar Mentor is THE podcast and mentoring podcast to provide you the confidence to kick some serious butt with your art or creative business. Do you like money? Do like and desire success? Do you want to know how to create products from your art? Do you want your brand to knock it out of the ballpark and make a difference in peoples lives? If you desire to make a living, real money, (you now....the green stuff) and to make a living doing what you love then this is the podcast and program for you! I also want to tell you that YOU are the rockstar, we are not talking about me, we are talking about YOU!

Are you more than just an artist, perhaps you are an ace with baking and decorating cakes, you're a floral designer with the need to blossom into a lucrative and popular floral business, you have the "know how and are the true talent with your craft" but you lack in some business sence, then Rockstar Mentor is for you. Anyone in a creative job..... Actually you can be in any sort of entrepreneurial job and truly benefit from the Rockstar Mentor podcast!

Being successful is doing what you love and how to achieve this and make a living in it. Make a living creating your art, get it out there, provide inspiration, real life strategies, this is the show that will hepp catapult you in the the art world! I have been making a living from selling my art for almost over 15 years. It is easy? well it's not called ARTWORK for nothing. Yes, there is work involved, there is awesomeness involved, and of course there is dedication and tennacity involved.

Some of the questions that I hear from many artsits is that you are afraid to jump in with both feet. Are you suffering from stage fright? Trust me, I know and understand that this can be quite crippling for many artists, especially since many artists are introverts and do not want to take the leap.

Are you planning on selling online at the beginning...? Perhaps your artwork will be amongst many others on art selling sites like "fineartamerica.com" or "etsy.com", artnet.com, shopify.com etc, where do you start, how many items to list, why should you take custom orders and when do you take them, what do you include in your bio? I have over 50 episodes here to help you jump start and give you the kickstart you need to rock it in the art industry. I have done it all.... and more!

What is holding you back?

What is your story to tell?

What success stories would you like to hear about others and their success?

How do you get your art for licensing deals and promotions?

What are the resources that you will need to help you?

I have done it all in this art business and I can help you, I want you to be successful in selling your work and seeing some real results doing so!

For the full summary of these show notes visit me at http://rockstarmentor.com/blog and http://rockstarmentor.com/podcasts

Please visit

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Rockstar Mentor Podcast - Episode 056

If you have ever heard that term: "You get what you pay For", then you will know the importance of working with professionals for all of your photographic and production needs.  

Last weeks episode 055 featured an interview with Mike Chambers of Picture Element which brought many listeners to ask some really valued questions. After last weeks episode, I received questions, specifically from Patty from Memphis, TN and Charles from San Jose, CA. inquiring of the importance on the quality reproductions.  Sometimes cheaper is NOT always better for many reasons, archival, depth, details, color and so much more. Listen t last weeks episode to hear that interview.

For the full summary of these show notes visit me at http://rockstarmentor.com/blog and http://rockstarmentor.com/podcasts

Please visit our website to sign up to be on the front lines of amazing information and free downloads that I have prepared especially for you. http://rockstarmentor.com

Visit me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/crushitmentor

Visit me on Instagram: http://instagram.com/rockstarmentor

To support via Patreon is greatly appreciated! https://www.patreon.com/rockstarmentor
Need art supplies? Shop on Amazon!


To learn more about me, my art and colorful product line, visit Sonya Paz through my artist website, http://SonyaPaz.com

Thanks to "The Brush Guys" they can be located at http://thebrushguys.com they offer the best in all things brushes for all mediums and amazing specials on art supplies. Save 5% on your online order, use promocode: ROCKSTAR    

Support the show

Rockstar Mentor Podcast - Episode 055

I am excited today to have Mike Chambers of Picture Element on the show to talk about photo reproduction, high quality scanning and preparing your images for making prints and limited edition prints. Learn from a professional in the art and photographic industry. Mike brings many years of experience and has worked with artists back in the photo development/dark room days, so he knows his stuff!

Capture the true essence of using quality materials and processes to elevate your art business for making reproductions to increase your visibility of your work and create products.  Picture Element offers more than just scanning services, they have an assortment of services for artists of all levels; scanning, printing on canvas, photography workshops, framing, stretched canvas, print finishing and more!

To reach Mike Chambers of Picture Element in the Northern California Bay Area.

Picture Element
2405 De La Cruz
Santa Clara, CA 95050

Toll Free: 866-969-0084
Tel: 408-969-0084
Fax: 408-496-6345
PictureElement.com

Many thanks to Mike for being on the show today!

For the full summary of these show notes visit me at http://rockstarmentor.com/blog

Please visit our website to sign up to be on the front lines of amazing information and free downloads that I have prepared especially for you. http://rockstarmentor.com

Visit me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/crushitmentor

Visit me on Instagram: http://instagram.com/rockstarmentor

To support via Patreon is greatly appreciated! https://www.patreon.com/rockstarmentor
Need art supplies? Shop on Amazon!


To learn more about me, my art and colorful product line, visit Sonya Paz through my artist website, http://SonyaPaz.com

Thanks to "The Brush Guys" they can be located at http://thebrushguys.com they offer the best in all things brushes for all mediums and amazing specials on art supplies. Save 5% on your online order, use promocode: ROCKSTAR    

Support the show

Greetings everyone!  

I had the opportunity to attend Genesis 4 (aka G4) this weekend in San Jose for the G4 gaming competition this past. This event brought in gamers from all over the globe including Sweden, Japan, Canada, Germany, Mexico and thousands from across the USA.

My son Ryan had not only been a gamer at past events, this time he was a vendor selling his own brand of tshirts through his business Game Over Customs as a vendor at this event. He also makes custom stickers, game controllers and other items. There were a several vendors at this event selling their own drawings, digital art, keychains, tshirts, buttons, designs badges etc. One thing that we noticed was that there were a lot of artists that were not connecting much with this audience, mainly becasue they were new to this style of selling. A frew of them had their own Etsy.com shops or Facebook shops, but not al all familiar with the face to face selling of this style of vendor event.

When I got to Ryan's booth, I reconfigured their booth to be netter merchandised, created better visuals, risers, inventory, POS area and got the banner hung in a more prominent location. It's these small details that make the difference. From that point he was front and center to start getting more traffic and allowed customers to see his products better.  He was personalizing the custom gamer tags on the back of the shirt with his customer plotter and heat press.

Ryan mentioned to a few of them that I was a professional artist that not only sold my art and products to the masses, but that I also had this free podcast to help artists like themselves. Some of them approached me to see what RockstarMentor.com was all about.  They were so glad to know that there was a resource, a friendly and approachable resource where they can learn how to achieve selling directly to the customer.

There were some pretty well known gamers were sporting his awesome custom shirts; Mango  @C9Mang0, @TKbreezy @VS_NickRiddle @TYSK @TaiMai @yukun and more.

See more images from the event here: https://twitter.com/GameOverCustoms

If you are an Anime artists, digital artist, anime avatar creator, pop culture artsts etc, you will benefit from our podcast.  Rockstar Mentor is for ALL artists for all genres.

For the full summary of these show notes visit me at http://rockstarmentor.com/blog

Please visit our website to sign up to be on the front lines of amazing information and free downloads that I have prepared especially for you. http://rockstarmentor.com

Visit me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/crushitmentor

Visit me on Instagram: http://instagram.com/rockstarmentor

To support via Patreon is greatly appreciated! https://www.patreon.com/rockstarmentor
Need art supplies? Shop on Amazon!


To learn more about me, my art and colorful product line, visit Sonya Paz through my artist website, http://SonyaPaz.com

Thanks to "The Brush Guys" they can be located at http://thebrushguys.com they offer the best in all things brushes for all mediums and amazing specials on art supplies. Save 5% on your online order, use promocode: ROCKSTAR    

Support the show

Greetings friends and listeners, Sonya Paz here with the Rockstar Mentor podcast and I want to wish each and everyone out there a fantastic happy new year and I hope that you are all rolling into the new year with optimist and awesome creative energy  I feel optimistic and hopeful for an amazingly creative new year. I want you as an artist to be empowered and to really flourish and excel with your art business and I am so glad that you're here with me today.    Today I'll be setting the record straight on when is too long to create custom work for your customer?  When your client/customer tells you "tale your time" what is the magic number to get this work completed?   Listen up to this episode to get the scoop on why it's important to not take too long on getting your custom work and commissions completed.   For the full summary of these show notes visit me at http://rockstarmentor.com/blog

Please visit our website to sign up to be on the front lines of amazing information and free downloads that I have prepared especially for you. http://rockstarmentor.com

Visit me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/crushitmentor

Visit me on Instagram: http://instagram.com/rockstarmentor

To support via Patreon is greatly appreciated! https://www.patreon.com/rockstarmentor
Need art supplies? Shop on Amazon!


To learn more about me, my art and colorful product line, visit Sonya Paz through my artist website, http://SonyaPaz.com

Thanks to "The Brush Guys" they can be located at http://thebrushguys.com they offer the best in all things brushes for all mediums and amazing specials on art supplies. Save 5% on your online order, use promocode: ROCKSTAR    

Support the show