This transcript was generated from the episode audio and may contain minor errors.
All right, let's talk about licensing digital art to cruise lines. This is a fun little segment or a fun episode within the first $1,000 segment. Today, we're going to hear from a digital artist who licenses their artwork to cruise lines for use on TVs and digital displays, presumably throughout the cruise ships. So you get to hear how this unique niche turned into a successful side hustle led to the artist earning their first $1,000 and beyond. So as I noted, this is part of the segment we call your first $1,000.
How did someone make their first, well, $1,000? How did they get to that point? Not their first $100,000, their first $1,000. So today let's go to Becky in South Florida. And by the way, a lot of our stories do get to $100,000 just to be clear, but we like to focus on that origin point.
So Becky, again, digital illustrator, and her work kind of gets snapped up by a cruise line. Well, she actually makes it happen. It doesn't just happen magically. So let's hear from her how that happened and perhaps give somebody else an idea out there. I'll come back at the end with a few words of wrap up.
Hi, I'm Becky, and I'm an artist working in a few different mediums. I've been creating digital illustrations and animations for years, mostly for fun and an occasional freelance gig, but I never thought about selling my art in a more commercial way, until one day I stumbled into a niche that changed everything, licensing my digital art to cruise lines. The idea came about completely by chance. A friend of mine who works in the cruise industry mentioned that cruise ships are constantly looking for fresh and engaging content to display on their in-room TVs and digital signage around the ship. This includes everything from serene landscapes and travel-themed art to abstract animations that enhance the onboard experience.
I decided to dive in and reached out to a few cruise lines to see if there was any interest in licensing my work. I created a portfolio of my digital illustrations, focusing on pieces that would fit the cruise line aesthetic, calming seascapes, vibrant underwater scenes, and dynamic animations that would catch the eye on larger screens. Most of my contacts went nowhere, but to my surprise, I got a response from one of the smaller lines. The buyer was interested in using some of my artwork on their in-room TVs as part of the background content for guests. It wasn't a massive deal at first, but it was a start and I saw real potential in it.
The first deal I made was for a set of six digital illustrations that would rotate across the ship's digital displays. When I negotiated a licensing fee for the exclusive use of these pieces for a certain period, I charged $200 per image with the rights to display them across their fleet of ships for one year. That initial contract was worth $1,200, and it felt like a huge win. Not only had I earned my first $1,000 for this new niche, but I also realized there was an untapped market for digital art in these kinds of environments. Cruise lines are always looking for unique, calming visuals to enhance the guest experience, and digital art fits the bill perfectly.
After that first success, I reached out to other cruise lines, showing them my portfolio and the work I had done for my initial client. This helped me land two more deals in the next six months. What made this side hustle particularly exciting was that once the artwork was licensed, the maintenance was minimal. I didn't need to produce physical pieces or handle any shipping logistics. Everything was digital, and once the cruise lines had the files, they could simply display them as needed.
One of the key things I learned from this process was the importance of understanding licensing agreements. Each contract was different. Some cruise lines wanted exclusive rights to the artwork for a specific time period, while others were fine with non-exclusive licenses, meaning I could sell the same artwork to multiple companies. This gave me flexibility in how I priced and negotiated deals. Since earning my first $1,000, I've continued to grow this side hustle just slowly.
The two initial companies have become repeat clients, and I've also expanded into other industries like hotels and wellness centers where digital displays are used to create atmosphere. The great thing about this business is that it's scalable. Because the artwork is created and licensed, it can be reused and repurposed for multiple clients. All right, big thanks to Becky, and I should say as well to our listeners, happy Thanksgiving week. We've got Thanksgiving coming up in just a few days, so I do want to say how grateful I am to you.
Thank you for being out there. Even our non-American audience, Thanksgiving is one of the few US holidays that I kind of look forward to. I'm not a big holiday person, but Thanksgiving is always fun, so I just want to say I'm grateful for you. If you have a question or an update about your hustle, sidehustleschool.com, this is episode 2,886. Excited to go into December here in just another week or so.
I hope it's been a good year for you. If not, let's turn it around, and I'll be here every day with a new episode always free. My name is Chris Guillebeau. You're listening to Side Hustle School. From the Onward Project.
