Custom-made avatars | Update

Not long ago, we featured two small companies dedicated to creating custom-made avatars. A third example of this creative cottage industry was recently spotted in the UK. Bless This Chick creates mini-portraits that illustrate someone’s online or offline identity. Customers send Bless This Chick details of the person to be illustrated, pay by PayPal, and receive a hand-drawn portrait by email a few days later. What are they for? Consumers can stick their chick on their personal website or MySpace page, add it to their email signature, or use it as an avatar on blogs or chatrooms. Bless this Chick also creates a webpage for customers, where they can order personalized products such as t-shirts and underwear. The chicks often portray not the actual person, but their online identity, by way of an online nickname or handle. For example, nicknames for a few of the chicks shown above are britchick, EvilIndieTwin, chiliflea, and sleepysteph. Priced at an allowance/pocket money friendly GBP 3.99 for one portrait or GBP 9.90 for five, Bless This Chick is sure to be a hit with children and teenagers. And as we said in our previous article, this is a great concept for creative minipreneurs, as start-up costs are minimal. All you need some skill in illustration, and a fun website. It also helps to target a specific audience, like Bless This Chick does with girls.