An email lands in your inbox praising your latest landscape painting. The sender mentions your brushwork by name and expresses a deep emotional connection to the piece. Your heart leaps. Finally, a collector who truly gets it.
But as you scroll to the final paragraph, the tone shifts abruptly. Suddenly, they are asking if the physical painting can be minted as an NFT. Or perhaps they mention a convoluted payment arrangement involving a third-party shipper and an overpayment check. Your dream sale just evaporated into a digital mirage.
As automated bots become more advanced, scammers are generating highly personalized but fraudulent purchase inquiries designed to manipulate your desire for a sale. You must learn to separate genuine interest from AI-generated noise and build rigid systems to protect your business.
The Ego Trap
Scammers know exactly what artists want to hear. They use AI bots to scrape your website, pull the title of an available piece, and generate a long, flattering email.
It feels good to read. Wow, my work really resonated with them. But this flattery is a calculated weapon.
The scammer is leveraging your emotional investment in your own art. They want to lull you into a false sense of security, making you far more willing to jump through their administrative hoops when the payment phase begins.
Spotting the Subtle Red Flags
While artificial intelligence is getting smarter, these automated scripts still leave a trail of clues. You just have to know what to look for when vetting a new inquiry.
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The NFT Pivot: The buyer claims to love your physical painting but suddenly insists on purchasing it exclusively as a digital token.
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The Uncanny Cadence: The language is overly formal, slightly unnatural, or lacks the typical brevity of a real-world buyer.
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The Wrong Name: In their haste to run a mass script, the bot addresses the email to someone completely different, exposing the automated nature of the scam.
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The Logistical Nightmare: They cannot use standard payment methods and require you to pay an external shipper from an overpayment they plan to send you.
Establishing Strict Payment Boundaries
When you reply to a suspected bot or scammer, keep it entirely professional and strictly on your terms. The moment they attempt to push you into a corner, hold the line.
I recommend building a standard reply template that outlines exactly how you do business. Provide no wiggle room for their convoluted schemes.
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Standardized Invoicing: State clearly that you only accept secure, verified payments through standard platforms like PayPal, Stripe, or your gallery’s direct processor.
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Zero Exceptions: If they claim their accountant only cuts paper checks for moving companies, immediately walk away.
One Final Takeaway
The quality of these AI scams is still surprisingly low, but it is going to get much better. Scammers will soon be able to imitate the exact tone of your best collectors with frightening accuracy.
The only way to survive is to rely on rigid systems rather than intuition. If an inquiry demands you do something you don’t want to do, simply refuse.
Question for Readers
Have you received one of these AI-generated scam emails recently? How do you personally vet the collectors who reach out to you online?
I have basically quit offering any originals online because of this. 99% of responders to my websites are this. If they want something I tell them where print on demand items are available. (as you say, a rigid response) They then all vanish. Meanwhile I do sell from galleries and to a few collectors that are actually known to me or each other. I don’t think I have missed any actual sales by this response. The walk-ins to galleries and known collectors appear to be my best customers
Ditto!
I suspected one was a scam but found she wasn’t since she didn’t choose or try to buy any of my paintings. I answer courteously telling inquirers we require actual telephone discussion and directing to my website instead of taking time to try to figure out what each inquirer might be interested in. For the scammers who then try to bypass the in-person telephone requirement, silence is my response. For the shopper claiming “incompetence,” I directed her to other artists who might have painted the scene she wanted, and advice how not to sound like a scammer to them.
I had that experience half year ago. Somebody wanted to have digital show of my paintings as NFTs giving me info what to do. May be there were some good intentions but it was not really transparent.
I decided to learn myself how to do my paintings as NFTs. I placed them as NFTs like 4 of them, very limited. They on OpenSea/de-saas/and priced as original works. When I contacted those guys who wanted to do the digital show, they responded ,oh well we work on another platform,can you change etc.
The truth is if somebody wants now can buy the NFTs .no tricks,no scam.
I had also more but one was a guy who wanted to buy my work but wanted me to ship it first to his father and then he will pay me later because he on the boat, and can not do transactions. Etc,etc
I’ve had many of these scammers myself! I respond with everything is available for purchase on my website, no NFT’s or crypto.
Dollars only. This usually stops them and I don’t hear them again. Sometimes they might ask why don’t you take NFT’s and I don’t respond.
We need to keep our spidey sensors on alert at all times. I’ve had many of these inquiries. As soon as I mention (if I bother to respond) how to pay or ‘look at my website’ you can almost see them running away.
The old adage “If it looks too good to be true…’ still applies.
I just received an email like this this past week. I did a little investigating on the person before responding. Facebook posts had different dates, my first go-to. So, I sent a reply and asked which piece caught their eye. I read somewhere that the bots are unable to respond to questions that require details. The reply revealed it was a definitely a scam.
I probably get 4 or 5 a week. They are all a little different (those bots learn fast!) but at this point I delete almost all requests like this. Maybe I miss an opportunity, but it isn’t worth my time. Anything that doesn’t use your name in the salutation: ignore and delete. If it uses your name but sounds so much like other emails you have received: delete. I belong to a few artist organizations whose contact lists have been hacked, too. And all those emails soliciting me to exhibit at prestigious art fairs all over the world… it’s a pay-to-pay scheme. Sorry to be negative, but it is such a waste of time, energy and optimism.
And my personal favorite. The rich looking lawyer who enters the gallery , finds a piece that is JUST right for their weekend party. puts down the deposit cheque for an on approval viewing in their home for the weekend. Amazingly the piece is returned Monday morning by staff saying it just did not fit!!! Meanwhile it smells of smoke and food odours which require a cleaning. IF the work meets the party guests approval the offer to purchase is ruthless with possession being 9/10 of the law. Upon refusal to play the game the work must then be picked up at their convenience and your expense.
Goes on every day in the gallery business. NOT ALL SCAMMERS WORK THE INTERNET SOME DO IT TO YOUR FACE.
Similar to the high end dress business but there the return is usually trashed.
I’m so sorry this happened to you, Richard.
You would think that people who had a high net worth would be a bit more responsible.
I find it amusing, albeit a time waster, when they contact me using my website contact page and then ask if I have a website. Oh, and do I have work for sale? I respond that everything I have available is on my website they just visited with the sale value and ability to buy directly and only through my website cart. The response almost always comes back about NFTs. I respond that I do not do NFTs. I have seen some artists put on their website homepage that they do not deal in NFTs. I wonder if that has cut down on the NFT inquiries. Or, is that a waste of time, since the bots seem oblivious of context? The other response is the scammer with the convoluted payment scheme. I politely tell them I only deal through my website merchant cart and only with credit/debit cards due to the high number of art scammers in the market place. Using a third party is protection for both buyer and seller. It stops the conversation cold.
I get those things too often. I have found a quick way to sort them out though. Tell them you only handel sales inquiries in person or over the phone and ask to schedule a time to talk.
This is the one we get most often in Oregon. Even at our local galleries. The language is always the the same. – anniversary/birthday gift and $3000-$5000 to spend. One guy wanted me to send him photos of everything in the gallery. Ha!
Greetings… I am Nelson from Lafayette, Colorado. have been on the lookout for some artworks lately in regards to I and my wife’s anniversary which is just around the corner. I stormed on to some of your works which I found quite impressive and intriguing. I must admit you’re doing quite an impressive job. You are undoubtedly good at what you do.
With that being said, I would like to purchase some of your works as a surprise gift to my wife in honor of our upcoming wedding anniversary. It would be of help if you could send some pictures of your piece of works, with their respective prices and sizes, which are ready for immediate (or close to immediate) sales. My budget for this is within the price range of $1000 to $4000.
I look forward to reading from you in a� view to knowing more about your pieces of inventory. As a matter of importance, I would also to know if you accept a check as a means of payment.
Regards.
Yep, I find these ones hilariously awkward. A fun read.
My favorite right now is some variation of “is this available?” 🤣 If the person wanted it he it she would just go ahead and buy it.
My normal response is to direct them to my website where they can purchase a piece. If they say they want a commission I give a brief explanation of my commission process and point them to a write up I have online that describes my commission process more completely.
If they actually send me some source photos, I create a mockup in Photoshop of the painting I believe they are looking for and explain the payment requirements (50% up front) and 50% when complete. Generally these are real but recently someone asked, sent a couple images and a video of the scene they desired. I mocked up a painting idea and never hear from them again. You never know.
April, you might be able to vet out tire-kickers if you add a modest but nonrefundable ‘design fee’ up front to cover your time creating the mockup. Then if they decide to move forward with the project, you credit the design fee toward the total and then split the remainder into two 50% installments.
This worked very well for me. Tire kickers simply walked away without wasting precious studio time and people who were serious almost never hesitated.
I have a standard polite but quite firm reply that usually gets no response, but hopefully isn’t too off putting to any genuine potential buyer. I copy and paste it.
Thank you for your interest in my artwork. Please visit my website to see what artworks and prints I have available and use the purchase forms if you decide to buy
https://www.margaretshawartwork.com/artwork.php
https://www.margaretshawartwork.com/photography.php
Please note some original pastel / charcoal artworks are not suitable for shipping so can only be collected.
Also note my terms of service. In particular, I do not sell my artwork as NFTS and my payment method is an invoice using a card to make payment.
https://www.margaretshawartwork.com/terms-of-service.php
This has occasionally has led to a further dialogue about why I don’t sell my art as NFTs which can be interesting and usually my response is respected – maybe there are some genuine NFT people out there.
However a recent one was very convincing, acknowledging the scammers and fully explaining NFTs. It was a good explanation but re-affirmed my belief that for me NFTs are pointless, You may as well use AI to generate a digital image, then manipulate it with other software. After some mails back and forward, the last one asked me to visit his studio in Germany to discuss things. This prompted a little more research which led me to find that the name and avatar on the messages was supposed to be from a German artist who apparently had been reported as having died recently – when he hadn’t. From what I can see this very talented gentleman is 92.
https://www.contemporaryartissue.com/gerhard-richter/
Maybe this one was a real enquiry but it got too aggressive for my liking and only stopped when I sent a curt reply that I was not selling my artwork as NFTs and not to contact me again. I also blocked and reported the email address.
I find that this post re-shared on my social media stops the messages for a short while – ironically produced using AI with a little more work added with another electronic media..
https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=1321918009916839&set=a.435689008539748
Finally I think I should explain that whilst looking professional my art is my passion. I am in the fortunate position of not having to live off my artwork sales which allows me allot of freedom to follow and explore any artistic path I choose.
Like Richard Dixon said, bots are not the only way people try to scam us.
While I worked toward building a body of oil paintings, I painted murals. Most clients were a dream to work with and never questioned my policy of paying half up front even before I put them on the calendar, and the rest at the BEGINNING of the day I was to complete their project.
Yet I had a client take my proposal home and return it to me signed, but with some of my terms crossed off and her own terms written in the margins. That’s when I discovered that she was the daughter of a woman who’d hired me three years before and had managed to wrangle a major price reduction. Her mother was the very reason I changed my payment schedule and why I never signed a work agreement until the client agreed to my terms and signed.
I simply and professionally explained that I do not change those policies for anyone….that I respected her decision not to hire someone who required up front payment. When she pushed back on that I kept a friendly tone but said I was clearly not the right muralist for her project but I hoped she could find someone she could work with more comfortably.
I have a script I use now… I thank them… ask them what drew them to my piece and what they love about it. Then I proceed to tell them the pieces can be purchased directly through my website if interested and that is the only way I sell my work. I also am upfront sharing I don’t do NFTs because the nature of my work is meant to be seen and enjoyed in person. I have only had two NFT collectors question me on this … that is it. I receive requests weekly… so I just take a moment to respond and it weeds out the bad apples from trying to scam me! 🙂
I tell them “I’m sorry but I do not deal with NFT’s or any other digital currency. I tell them ” You can only buy my originals or prints through my secure Website with my secure payment portal. I tell them, I do this not only to keep my business secure but also for their benefit so they won’t be scammed. I apologize for any inconvenience but that is my policy. I finish by saying If they change their mind in the future please feel free to reach out to me.
I’ve had several of these in many different forms. I send them to my website to buy. Offer to have a phone call to discuss any details if they need after they chooses which artwork, then reach out with contact form. I’m frustrated because they somehow get my phone number which is not on my IG or website!
OMGosh, Jason, incredible timing for this! One of these just landed in my box today. I usually ignore them, but I like your idea of building a professional template answer for this sort of thing. Thank you.
Jason, talk about timing. I rec’d an email inquiry for a sculpture of “mom”. Client could not provide a cell phone number because he was a busy surgeon. I asked him to send photos of mom, which he did. In the form of a “secure one drive folder”. All I had to do was log in.
First red flag was that the email showed up in my spam box. 2nd was that everyone has time to make a 1 minute phone call. 3rd was how perfectly it was worded and presented. And 4th flag- I asked for jpg images, which never arrived.
Yes, as everyone I get a ton of these. They only seem to come thru on F.B. and Meta messaging now.
They are always easy to spot, however I still always stay professional…just in case ( ya never know). It is obviously pretty telling when/ how quickly they get to the payment part and how they can pay right now. I find it humorous at many of these that I actually need to ask, “would you like to know the price before paying?” Yes, what is he price please? And again when it is this obvious sometimes I cannot help but play along. I give an enormously inflated number like, “$35,000 plus tax and shipping, and can I please get your exact shipping address for estimate? Thanks much. Response is usually like, that is no problem , can I pay with? (and what ever payment system). This communication is actually only a few back and fourths, not a huge time waster, so when I get their shipping address. I go right to Zillo and check out the home, find the latest owner etc… ( only takes a minute or so, always a different name from inquiry , many times they are homes for sale or homes in vary odd places for someone to be able to afford high dollar art). That is the final definite tell and I block , report and delete. Fun times we are in!