Events

LET’S GET READY TO RUMBLE! Curious about turning your creative practice into a fully-fledged small business?  This fun and friendly workshop will cover all the essentials you’ll need to get the basics right and avoid some of the most common pitfalls for creatives as they enter the world of self-employment and freelancing.  You will learn all the following, with a focus on the arts and creative industries :+ Making a plan for your start-up journey+ Understanding ABNs, structures, business names and licences+ Getting ready for the money+ Preparing for the market+ Where to go for more (free) help. What do I get?  All participants of this workshop also receive:+ Lifetime access to a Dropbox folder jam-packed with resources+ A Creative Business Start-Up Checklist+ A One Page Creative Business and Marketing Plan+ The option of more one-to-one advice from a creative business specialist.All questions are welcome in this relaxed, safe and inclusive workshop. Participants are also encouraged to share their own experiences and network with their fellow practitioners. Who is presenting?Emmie Hallett has one foot planted firmly in each world – the arts and small business- and loves helping people turn their creative work into a business reality. She has been […]

The starving artist is a pervasive idea, and in reality many creative people struggle in self-employment because money is a constant battle. This isn’t always just due to lack of funds. Creative practitioners sometimes need the basics of business money and financial literacy explained in a way that is easy to understand. This online workshop helps to bridge that gap in financial literacy with an entertaining and real-world discussion of money that makes sense to the artistic brain. The most common financial questions that creatives have are answered, including:+ How do I weather the ups and downs of creative income?+ Do I have to keep working for free?+ What should I charge? How do I work that out?+ What’s the deal with cash flow and budgets?+ How do I invoice? How do I enforce an invoice?+ What’s the deal with tax, and what is cloud accounting?+ Where can I go for more help? This online workshop will be relaxed and informal. You can ask all the questions you have never been able to ask before and will have ample opportunity to network and get to know each other. Ideal for: This workshop is tailored specifically to creative people who are (or […]

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH ARTS UPPER HUNTER Working out what to charge for creative products and services can be a colossal challenge. Where to even start? Pricing for Creatives is a practical workshop that covers the basics of figuring out the price point for creative work, including calculating costs and understanding what the market can bear. Pricing for Creatives is vital for anyone struggling to understand the value of their own work, and how to share that value with others.   Participants will also discuss the larger issues of:+ Understanding budgets, including the value of time;+ The psychology of pricing;+ Where cost and price overlap and intersect;+ Understanding the marketplace (and market research); + Creating loss leaders and more. What do I get? All participants of this workshop also receive:+ Lifetime access to a dedicated Pricing for Creatives Dropbox folder full of additional resources and workbooks to help continue the learning after the workshop;+ Access to additional free webinars to supplement the material covered in the workshop;+ The possibility of further one-to-one business advice, mentoring and support from one of our creative industries business specialist advisors.All questions are welcome in this relaxed, safe and inclusive workshop. Participants are also encouraged to share their own experiences and network with their […]

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH ARTS UPPER HUNTER Creative businesses often need help to brainstorm all the possible ways to diversify their income streams (especially now!) and become more financially sustainable. Diversify Your Creative Income is an interactive workshop that allows participants to discuss the various general ways that creatives can make money (including services, goods and passive income), and includes practical exercises to help brainstorm those ideas. This workshop examines:+ Identifying your Core and Complementary Skills;+ The Minimum Viable Offering;+ Using a Skills Audit to inspire ideas;+ How to identify a ‘good’ idea;+ Helpful resources and more! What do I get?All participants of this workshop also receive:+ Lifetime access to a dedicated Diversify Your Creative Income Dropbox folder full of additional resources and help;+ Access to a dedicated webpage full of links and resources to help them get ahead in their creative business. Who should enrol?This workshop is ideal for recent graduates, freelancers and anyone struggling with time, work and creativity. It’s also relevant no matter what your profession – filmmakers, writers, designers, visual artists, musicians, composers, dancers, performers – everyone can benefit from a quick introduction or refresher to the basics of time management and setting goals. Who is presenting?Monica […]

HOW MANY WAYS CAN YOU THINK OF TO MAKE MONEY? Creative businesses often need help to brainstorm all the possible ways to diversify their income streams (especially now!) and become more financially sustainable. Diversify Your Creative Income is an interactive online workshop that allows participants to discuss the various general ways that creatives can make money (including services, goods and passive income), and includes practical exercises to help brainstorm those ideas. This workshop examines:+ Identifying your Core and Complementary Skills;+ The Minimum Viable Offering;+ Using a Skills Audit to inspire ideas;+ How to identify a ‘good’ idea;+ Helpful resources and more! What do I get?All participants of this workshop also receive:+ Lifetime access to a dedicated Diversify Your Creative Income Dropbox folder full of additional resources and help;+ Access to a dedicated webpage full of links and resources to help them get ahead in their creative business. Who should enrol?This workshop is ideal for recent graduates, freelancers and anyone struggling with time, work and creativity. It’s also relevant no matter what your profession – filmmakers, writers, designers, visual artists, musicians, composers, dancers, performers – everyone can benefit from a quick introduction or refresher to the basics of time management and […]

PRESENTED IN PARTNERSHIP WITH ARTS MID NORTH COAST Networking Tips and Techniques for Creatives is a surprisingly fun event designed to encourage creative people to get to know each other, while acknowledging the horror, and sharing a few tips at the same time. While it’s a vital skill in the creative industries, many practitioners consider networking to be the stuff of nightmares. Networking Tips and Techniques for Creatives combines education with the opportunity to practice in a safe and friendly environment while embracing the discomfort of the whole process and having a laugh. Tips that will be shared include:+ Success is before you start – preparing before the event;+ Mastering the art of the introduction;+ Overcoming shyness, awkwardness and the urge to run away;+ Dealing with difficult people;+ Getting the all-important follow-up right. You'll learn how to network in the first half of the session, and practice your skills in the second half. What do I get? All participants of this workshop also receive:+ Lifetime access to a dedicated I HATE NETWORKING Dropbox folder full of additional resources and workbooks to help continue the learning after the workshop is over;+ Access to additional free webinars to supplement the material covered […]

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH ARTS MID NORTH COAST Government funding, grants, awards and procurement are often held up as the holy grail of a successful arts business, but this revenue stream also takes hard work and patience. After all, there’s no such thing as ‘free money’.Funding Guidelines for Creatives showcases the basics of writing, winning, and acquitting any kind of funding, as well as making plans and preparing for your funding future. In this down-to-earth workshop, participants will learn more about: + The different kinds of funding available;+ Creating a Funding Folder and Grant Calendar;+ Researching funding and considering applications;+ Writing the Proposal – and avoiding the common errors;+ The Acquittal Process – and how to recover from setbacks;+ The five main ways to ‘fail’ at funding. Resources, examples and templates will also be provided for a variety of funding applications. This workshop will be relaxed and informal. You can ask all the questions you have never been able to ask before and will have ample opportunity to network and get to know each other. Ideal for: This workshop is tailored specifically to creative people who are (or want to be) self-employed in some capacity. It is ideal for recent graduates, […]

THE BASICS OF STARTING AN ONLINE STORE Selling online and using e-commerce can be overwhelming at first, especially for creatives – where to begin? This beginner’s course is ideal for any creatives who have products or services ready to sell, but no idea how to get their online sales set up. With a focus on the arts and creative industries, this workshop will cover:+ The pros and cons of selling online+ Preparing for the basics – bank accounts, cloud accounting and stock management+ Choosing an eCommerce model+ Understanding the Customer Experience+ The legal checklist+ Marketing your Online Store… and more! At the completion of the workshop you will have:+ Lifetime access to a Dropbox folder jam-packed with resources+ A One-Page Creative Business and Marketing Plan+ The option of more one-to-one advice from a creative business specialist. All questions are welcome in this relaxed, safe and inclusive webinar. Participants are also encouraged to share their own experiences and network with their fellow practitioners. Who is presenting?Lillie Brown is a freelance marketing strategist and Marketing Manager of Creative Plus Business. Lillie works with small to medium creative businesses to devise and implement marketing and social media strategies that are easy for creative […]

HOW TO MAKE THE TIME FOR EVERYTHING? This workshop answers the age-old question – how are we supposed to find the time to run a creative career, pursue our arts-based practice, and have a life as well? This fun and informal workshop discusses practical strategies to help you keep all the juggling balls in the air. Participants will also discuss the larger issues of:+ Setting and keeping goals;+ Staying motivated and understanding procrastination;+ Recognising self-sabotage, and;+ Finding the balance between being creative and making money. What do I get?  All participants of this workshop also receive:+ Lifetime access to a dedicated Time Management dropbox folder full of additional resources and help;+ Access to a website full of additional free resources.The workshop is relaxed and informal, you can ask all the questions you’ve never been able to ask before, and participants will also be given ample opportunity to network and get to know each other. Who should enrol? This workshop is ideal for recent graduates, freelancers and anyone struggling with time, work and creativity. It’s also relevant no matter what your profession – filmmakers, writers, designers, visual artists, musicians, composers, dancers, performers – everyone can benefit from a quick introduction or refresher to the basics […]

Networking can be nerve-wracking, but not when you have experts to help you! Designed to encourage creative people to get to know each other, our Creative Business Networking event will acknowledge the scary nature of networking, while teaching you how to get it just right. Creative Business Networking combines education with the opportunity to practice skills in a safe and friendly environment, while embracing the discomfort of the whole process and having a laugh. You might even have some fun. Some of the fabulous and friendly Creative Plus Business facilitators will be in attendance, saying hello and sharing one (or two) of their nifty networking tips to help you learn how to live your best networking life! What do I get? All participants of this workshop also receive:+ Lifetime access to a dedicated NETWORKING Dropbox folder full of additional resources and workbooks to help continue the learning after the workshop is over;+ Access to additional free webinars to supplement the material covered in the workshop;+ The possibility of further one-to-one business advice, mentoring and support from one of our creative industries business specialist advisors. All questions are welcome in this relaxed, safe and inclusive workshop. Participants are also encouraged to […]