WAN's Affiliate Program 4 Organizations – the Brainstorming Page

The idea I have is simple – and the power of it relies on your awareness of the programs and services WAN [Working Artists Network] offers its members.

I’m learning bit-by-bit how to simplify the message, so here’s my newest attempt at outlining what WAN offers…

WAN is an empowerment program for artists in any genre, who are committed to creating a stable, profitable and thriving indie or small business. WAN aspires to serving artists in three distinct ways to meet its mission:

1. Provide a safety net for they and their business – for both their personal and professional life;
2. Offer business training courses, workshops, presentations and the like to give artists real-world tools to building and running a great business;
3. Work in an advocacy and championing role for independently employed artists.

WAN already meets some of the needs represented above, by offering:

1. Discount and savings programs for health, vision and dental; a dedicated, local, insurance broker to walk artists through the health insurance maze in Oregon; discounts on alternative healthcare through local clinics (naturopathic, chiropractic, etc.); life insurance; loans and ther funding options; etc.
2. Round Tables with presentations by, and Q&A with, experts and artists who’ve experienced success in specific areas (eg. Social media marketing, Getting published, Intellectual Property, etc.); Workshops that focus on developing real-world skill sets that dig in deep (marketing/sales, WordPress mastery, article marketing, bookkeeping/accounting, etc.); the Guerilla Exhibitor 6-month intensive business building program; etc,
3. I serve on the Small Business Advisory Council working directly with Portland City Commissioners and the Mayor, as well as representatives from the Portland Development Commission. Our job is to make certain that small business interests are adequately represented with regard to the city’s policy issues (including budgeting). I am the only business owner who represent artists and creatives in those endeavors. I also lobby for funding on a state level.

Additionally, to offer even more services and value, WAN partners with organizations to expand what’s available to artists with agencies like the Small Business Development Commission, MercyCorps NW, Fractured Atlas out of NYC, and others. AND I’ve created the Preferred Provider network of professional service providers in areas like accounting, marketing, PR, sales, back office management, etc.

WAN’s Membership Levels are designed to reflect the stage an artist is in with their business.

• BASIC is for the artist just dipping their toes into the small business pool. They are in the “considering” stage and are more in exploration mode.
• START-UP is for the artist who is clear they want their art to be their livelihood and lifestyle, and may not be in a position nor ready to make a full-time commitment to their emerging business.
• PRO is for the artist who is fully committed to building their arts-based business and puts in what might amount to a full time job in the arts – even if they are still holding down a day job.

The monthly fee commitment goes up as the level increases: BASIC is $4.95/month; START-UP is $19.95/month; and PRO is $39.95/month. [You will find the Pricing Matrix at the end of the body of the e-mail so you have an idea of the pricing for workshops, round tables, etc.]

My shopping cart vendor offers an Affiliate module. With it I’ve created an Affiliate Partner program. People or organizations who sign up to participate in the Program receive commissions for anyone who registers for classes, events, memberships through their affiliate links.

That’s where WAN is at the moment. I and many of my colleagues and the current members of WAN are confident of the caliber of training and services WAN offers. (Like Jackie Babicky, an advisor at the SBDC who is also a member of WAN (she has a book she’s written and placed with an agent); or Julie A. Fast, best-selling non-fiction author who has been a participant in WAN events and is also a workshop facilitator and Round Table participant.)

HERE’S WHAT I THINK IS THE (OR ONE) NEED-NEED-NEED

• Artists need to know how to conduct business so they are successful in realizing the dream of working in the area of the arts they love in a way that works for they and their families. WAN offers programs and services designed FOR artists and creative-types, facilitated by service providers who love and know how to work with artists and creatives;
• I need to build the membership in WAN so the people who need these services are aware of them and using them to their benefit, and then I have a larger group to sample and work with to identify issues, needs, etc. that I can leverage in my advocacy work, AND I eventually make a living doing one of the things I love! And,
• Arts groups and organizations need to find more reliable streams of income that are NOT dependant on funding from the government or other bodies who dispense funding to the arts in very specific ways.

THE OPPORTUNITY IS TO SHARE RESOURCES. Which leads us to our WIN-WIN-WIN: the Affiliate Partnership program can provide for all three of these needs.

For example, what if for every artist in your organization or group who became a member of WAN through your link resulted in your organization receiving a 15-30% commission? Every month for as long as that artist maintained their WAN membership!?

Or maybe your group would choose to pass along some of the savings to your group members and retain only a small portion of the commission itself (say 15% savings to the member and 15% deposited into the Org’s Affiliate account)?

Or what if someone found an announcement for an upcoming ½ day workshop on your website, and they registered through your Affiliate link, and your Org received another commission?

That’s the idea I have…

What do you think? Is this something that would benefit your Organization? Are these services, classes, and the advocacy something you think your membership would value? Can you think of other ways of using this Affiliate program?

This is the first round of thinking and I’m sharing it with about a dozen people who responded to my request. I’d love to get your take on this by, say, this coming weekend?

And if you think you’re ready to go with something like this, I can get you started by sending out the link to the application and get you in the system so we can start testing the Affiliate set-up offered by my shopping cart company…

Again, THANK YOU for stepping up and offering to help me develop this idea into something that will be a GOOD thing for us all…

Here’s the Matrix, and after that my contact info and maybe a bit more gratitude…

Your feedback and enthusiasm is so important to me…I’m so looking forward to it!

My best to you,

A.

Adrienne Fritze, founder

Working Artists LLC | Where Artists and Art Matters^TM
in the Carton Service building @
2211 NW Front Avenue #302
Portland OR 97209
503-349-6075 | www.workingartistsnetwork.com

For Artists & Creative Pros: Check out The Guerilla Exhibitor^TM – a course for artists and creative professionals who mean business. http://www.guerillaexhibitor.com

Also for Artists & Creative Pros: Announcing the Working Artists Network – a membership program offering guidance re: healthcare options, event liability insurance, discounts on supplies (office and art), access to micro and small loans (from $500 to $50,000), and more. http://www.workingartistsnetwork.com

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