Hey Reader

You know that feeling right after a licensing deal closes? That little high where you think, okay, I did it — and then almost immediately, the anxiety creeps back in. Where’s the next one coming from?

Here’s the thing — you already have a huge head start on your next deal. It’s sitting right in your inbox, in the form of a client who already said yes to you once.

This week, I’m talking about the part of licensing that nobody covers enough: what happens AFTER the deal. Because that’s where the real business lives.

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Olena Kuznietsova – Marine Adventure Nautical Without the Cliché Pale blue ground, sailboats, anchors, life rings, scattered shells — this could easily go full "beach house gift shop" and it doesn't. The restrained palette and loose illustration style keep it feeling fresh. She's selling exclusive colorways at $35 each, which is a smart licensing model worth noting. Airy Toss Repeat Generous breathing room, varied scales, nothing fighting for attention. Easy to print, easy to recolor, easy to place in a collection. Great for Kidswear, Coastal Home & Summer Licensing Children's apparel, beach bags, bedding, stationery. Clean, commercial, and ready to work. Show them some love on IG

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Tip #1: The 'Second Sale' Strategy: Turn One Licensing Deal Into a Long-Term Relationship

Here’s something I had to learn the not-so-fun way: closing a deal doesn’t mean keeping a client.

Most designers — myself included, early on — treat every deal like a standalone event. You pitch, you sign, you deliver, you exhale. And then you go back to cold-pitching like that client never happened. But that’s leaving serious money on the table.

The first sale is always the hardest. A manufacturer or art director has taken a chance on you. They’ve seen your work hold up through the process. The trust is already there. The barrier to a second deal is dramatically lower — but only if you stay in front of them.

Here’s the simple follow-up framework that actually works:

1. Send a thank-you note within 48 hours of delivery. Not a form email. One or two sentences that feel human. Mention something specific about the project.
2. Flag your calendar 6–8 weeks out. That’s when their buying cycle likely starts again. Send a quick “I’ve been working on some new pieces in [their aesthetic/category] — would love to share a preview when the timing is right.”
3. Send a seasonal ‘new arrivals’ update. Not a newsletter blast — a personal note. Two or three pieces that feel relevant to what they bought last time. Subject line: “New work I thought of you for.”

The goal isn’t to be pushy. It’s to be present. Art directors are busy. They’re not going to hunt you down for a second deal — but if you show up consistently with relevant work, you become the easy choice.

Tip #2: What to Do Between Licensing Deals (So You're Never Starting from Zero Again)

The feast-or-famine cycle is one of the most common things I hear from designers, and almost every time, it comes down to the same cause: outreach only happens when the pipeline is empty.

When you’re busy, you stop marketing. When the work dries up, you panic-pitch from scratch. And the cycle repeats.

What breaks it? Staying warm between deals — even when it feels like the last thing you have time for.

In the week after a deal closes, do these five things (none take more than 30 minutes total):

1. Add the client to your CRM (more on that below) with their aesthetic, what they bought, and the date
2. Send your thank-you note
3. Note their typical product categories and flag whether a seasonal follow-up makes sense
4. Add a calendar reminder for 6–8 weeks out
5. Take 10 minutes to jot down what worked about this pitch so you can repeat it

Between deals, your job isn’t to land new work — it’s to maintain the warm relationships you already have. That means one personal outreach per week to someone already in your contact list. It doesn’t have to be a pitch. It can be sharing a piece you thought they’d like, congratulating them on a product launch, or just checking in.

If you’re building toward a licensing calendar, aim to structure your outreach around seasons: pitch spring/summer work in fall, fall/holiday work in late winter. [licensing lead time varies by manufacturer and category — this timeline is a general guideline, not a hard rule.]

Your Licensing CRM: A Dead-Simple Client Tracking System in Notion

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I’ll just say it: tracking your licensing relationships in your head is a full-time job your brain didn’t sign up for.

If you’ve ever had to scroll back through months of emails to remember the last time you contacted someone — or forgotten to follow up with a warm lead because life happened — a basic CRM (client relationship management) setup will change how you work.

And you don’t need to buy anything fancy. Notion’s free plan (as of 2026) is more than enough for a solo designer — unlimited pages, full database functionality, no paywall for individual users.

Here are the fields to set up in a simple Notion database:

1. Company Name — who they are
2. Contact Name — the actual human you talk to
3. Last Touchpoint — date of your last email/message
4. Deal Status — Active Client / Warm Lead / Cold / Past Client
5. Next Follow-Up Date — the most important field. Set a date every time you make contact.
6. Notes — what they typically buy, aesthetic preferences, anything personal that helps you write a better email

Once a week, spend 10–15 minutes in this database. Sort by “Next Follow-Up Date.” Anyone coming up in the next 7 days gets a personal note that week. That’s it. That’s the whole system.

One gotcha: If you add collaborators or team members to your Notion workspace, the free plan caps at 1,000 blocks total. For a solo designer tracking clients, you won’t come close to that limit — but it’s worth knowing if you ever share the workspace.

If you’re a spreadsheet person, Airtable works beautifully for this too — it has stronger relational database features, though the free tier is more limited than Notion’s for solo users.

Until next week — keep creating! 🎨

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