Stop and look around...

Still kicking...

I'm New to Selling My Art...What Should I Do?

This was an interesting letter I received from an artist yesterday...

I'm a so to speak 'wet behind the ears' artist. I've been drawing since elementary. I love to draw but that's all I know. I can't paint or anything like that. I still know that I can make a living being a artist. It's my passion. I have never sold any pieces before. One time in my high school art class, my art teacher put one of my drawings in a art show and she said that a lady wanted to buy it but she knew that it was my favorite. That let me know then that I was meant to be a artist, it's what I love to do.

I was surfing the net when I came across your site and I'm glad that I caught it because I feel that it can give me a head start. A very big head start. I don't even have a portfolio yet. So you see I need some assistance. I really don't know what I should do. I don't exactly know where to go from here. Hopefully you can help me out a little.

So as soon as I'm able to, I'll be purchasing your class. I like the points that you bring out. Please don't give up on me. Be patient with me. I'M STILL INTERESTED!

Here's My response...

Thanks for the email. Don't worry I won't give up on you :) My suggestion for you is to just keep creating, don't worry about sales right now. Develop the artist inside, keep your creative juices flowing. Please don't think of your art as a "job" that's the worst thing that could happen. When you are ready to do your art full time than buy my course so you can learn how to sell it. There's no rush. What I would like to see you do right now is blossom into your art and how it defines you and you define it. Please don't just go out there trying to sell "stuff" you make unless you are sure it represents your best. There will always be time and opportunities to sell it when you are ready :)

Best Wishes,

Steve
The Thriving Artist

Should You "Spell Out" Your Message in Your Art?

An artist named Kiki sent in this question which I thought others may have as well...

I have noticed that my creativity is beginning to become focused in some directions that are closely related to my politics. I wonder how important it is for me as an artist to clearly express the political side of my art or if I should just leave it to the person gazing at it to dicipher its meaning.

Great question! I believe in allowing the viewer/buyer of the artwork to contribute to it. What I mean by that is that the work is meant for them not you. You create from your soul to touch another soul. Some people will connect and some won't. Don't be too hard on the "souless" as you call it. If they love the aesthetics so be it. To them it has profound meaning, maybe different from your intended meaning, but meaning none-the-less.

One thing I have learned over the years (and they haven't been many, hey I'm only 43) is that "It's not about me, it's about them". I don't mean this in a derrogatory way but rather a caring nurturing one. At this point in my life I am more interested in moving people to change by them having-self realizations and cognitions. If I try to "force" this realization by having to tell them what they should be thinking or realzing, I have defeated the purpose. They are just not ready for "it" yet. Nothing wrong with that...we are all just moving at different paces (some to be at a snails pace ;) ). That's what makes the world interesting. Let your buyers determine what it means to them. Those that connect will, and those that oppose your views probably won't buy it anyway. Be true to yourself first and the sales will follow.

I hope that helps somewhat :)

Best wishes,

Steve
The Thriving Artist

How Do You Determine What Art Will Sell and What Won't?

"What Sells??!!" Great question!

The answer to this is simple...RESEARCH! Now what does that mean? I suggest you do your homework when approaching a new venue for the first time, whether it be an outdoor art show or a gallery. This is really easy to do.

If it is a gallery, go inside and find out what they are displaying on their walls. Talk to the people working in the gallery...find out what they see as being successful and what has been sitting around for awhile. If you are planning to approach that gallery with your work in the near future, have a friend or family member do this research for you. That way you won't be approaching the gallery owner or manager with work that they are not interested in.

With art shows, the same thing goes. If you are planning to exhibit at an art show coming up, do some investigation on how the show was in prior years. There are many publications on the market such as "Where the Shows Are" and "Sunshine Artist" as well as online sites such as www.festivals.net which will give you this information. Look at what previous attending artists said about the show.

This can provide a valuable insight to help you evaluate whether the show will be to your liking. Some shows draw different types of buying crowds. Some are low priced point shows and others draw serious collectors. Bringing the wrong style or priced pieces will only work against you.

You can also call the show promoter and introduce yourself. Find out what type of artists have done well in their prior shows. Ask for some artists that you can talk to. I have done this before and it gave me a wealth of information on what to create. For example, an artist could tell you what they liked or didn't like about the show and what they noticed was selling at theirs and other booths. Some artists may not share this information readily so establish rapport first before diving in with the questions.

The easiest way to evaluate what is going to sell at a particular show is to visit it yourself. Now keep in mind this is if you have plenty of lead time. Many shows are held on an annual basis, but my feeling is that I can always show next year. There are plenty of art shows looking for artists. Visit a few shows in a specific demographic area before committing to one show. Look how people are dressed, if they are browsing around or spending money. Just look if they are carrying artwork with them to their cars.

Most importantly when you are scouting out an art show...talk to the artists that are there. Don't interrupt them during the "heat" of the show nor when they are breaking down for the day or weekend. Typically first thing in the morning is when they are the "freshest" and most willing to engage in conversation. A small token of appreciation to get the conversation rolling in the morning goes a long way...for instance offer to buy them a cup of coffee or a juice. They probably will say no but it breaks the ice so to speak.

Finding out what sells well at art shows and other venues is not hard to do but it takes the one thing most of us hate to do...Homework! As I write this, I am battling with my kids to do it...I guess somethings just don't change :)

Also, please keep in mind that my advance course on "How to Sell Your Art Without Selling Out" goes over many different strategies you can easily use to help you sell everything you make. You may want to really take a look at it. I really don't make much money selling it, I invest the money back into getting the word out to other artists around the world about the course :) You can check it out if you like at: www.thethrivingartist.com/vip

Best wishes,

Steve
The Thriving Artist

"Should I use an Art Agent?"

I just received this question from an artist that I thought I would share:

"It seems I spend more time selling than making - are there agents to represent artists like they represent other lines?"

Yes there are art agents and consultants that represent artists. They help artists sell to galleries around the world. Depending on the agent you choose they can charge you a flat fee, salary and commission or a combination of all three. That being said, I would tend to discourage you from using an agent.

Here are my reasons why I say this:

1. Using an agent places one more hand in the register so to speak. Not only is the gallery going to want their percentage (typically 50%) but now the agent will get a cut off the top as well. This can be as high as 15% in some cases. In other words, everyone else seems to be making more money than you.

2. Most agents are representing several to many artists at a time. What incentive do they have to represent your work or show your work any better than the other artists they are representing? They are going to sell what sells best. This doesn't mean that they are not interested in selling your work, but they are most interested in making their commission. Honestly, they will be more motivated by the "selling" artist.

3. Agents typically do not spend a lot of money on promotion. If your art does not fall into a category that commands a large price tag, say for instance over $2,500, the cost of doing heavy promotion is just not warranted. You will rely on their ability to pay for publicity for not just you but every artist in their fold.

The above may sound like I am totally against the use of art agents and for the most part I tend to be. The exception to this would be the artist who can attract the wealthy collectors. These collectors may only buy from certain upper scale galleries which will in turn only buy from reputable agents. There is nothing wrong with trying to strive to attain this level of success. It is far and few artists that have reached this level. That being said, agents typically do
not make sense for most artists starting out or who are not well-known in the industry. You will find yourself getting angry and upset with the agent. When you come to realize they are trying to make a living for themselves and their families as well, you will understand that they work the artists that produce proven sales.

So, what's the solution? You need to learn to sell you own work. The problem is that many artists, probably like yourself, have no desire to sell their work. They want to create art and work in their studios. There is nothing wrong with that. You need to find a method to sell your art that works time and time again. If the "art agent" is not the initial answer, what is?

I recommend finding a strategy that you feel comfortable with. This could be selling on the internet, selling at weekend art shows, displaying your work at high trafficked locations such as restaurants or businesses. Whatever you decide, make sure it is something that does not stress you out. You should look forward to selling thru that funnel. If you have no desire what-so-ever to sell, find a family member or friend to help you and give them a small percentage or piece of your work. They will ultimately have more interest in your success than an agent that really doesn't know you.

Selling your art should not be difficult when you have a plan and system in place. My advance course gives you both. The easiest thing to do is to go thru the course and find the strategies that are congruent with your beliefs and temperment and work those. There are over 27 different techniques that I teach to help you in this regard. Take a look at the course at www.thethrivingartist.com/vip and evaluate it. Think of the course as your mentor and teacher. It will definitely give you the tools to make you successful in your quest to make it as a full time artist. More importantly, it gives you the confidence in knowiing that you can do it!

Best wishes,

Steve
www.thethrivingartist.com/vip

Building Your Art Mailing List

This was a question that an artist recently wrote in that I thought would be of interest to all:

"How do I get people to sign my mailing list. Now it seems that I have to talk them into it?"

This is an excellent question which most artists tend to ignore. Either they are at an art show selling their artwork or trying to build a mailing list with their website, most do not put an effort into building a list correctly. This is very important to do for it gives you a list of people who have raised their hands saying they like what you do. Put it this way, they liked it enough to sign up on your mailing list. The key is getting them motivated to give you their information in the first place.

Remember when you first came to know my website? I offered you a reason to give me your name and e-mail address. That was a subscription to my complimentary weekly articles. That was the gift I gave in return to have the privelege to mail to you about my advance course. I provide free valuable information and you will eventually see the need to go to the next level, my advance course. The "gift" is the missing ingredient that people forget about.

I have visited hundreds of artists' websites where they have a guestbook with no instructions and with no incentive for someone to sign up. Most people on the internet are surfing around. If they happen to come across your website, you better think of a way to capture their name and e-mail. You can then give additional incentives once they have done that to give you more information, address, phone number, etc. First start with something less confrontational, a name and e-mail. You might want to offer a free e-card of some of your work or some postcards of your work you could send them (this would justify why they would have to give you their address). On my website, www.TheThrivingArtist.com , I start by offering the articles and once the person leaves me that information, I offer a 74 minute audio interview which I did. This captures the other information that I use in my marketing.

Now, don't think everyone who visits your site is going to give you their information. You will have to work on tweaking your offer to increase the conversion. Currently my conversion for people who visit The Thriving Artist is about 32%, which means 32% of the people landing on that page give their name and e-mail. If you are familiar with direct response marketing, that is a great return. Out of those people, 43% give me addresses and phone numbers to get the interview. "Baby step" people to the next level.

As far as art shows, I would recommend doing the same thing. Give people a reason to sign up for your list. At an art show people get to meet you one on one. Always be friendly and helpful. Many artists, believe it or not, sit on a director's chair hidden from their booth and the people visiting them. They miss valuable connecting time with prospective customers. This absolutely does not make sense. Meet and greet is the name of the game. It's so easy to get people to sign up for your mailing list. All you have to do is make them an offer. I would recommend printing out hundreds of greeting or note cards of one of your better pieces. If you are working in a three dimensional medium, take a photo of your work and create the postcard. Put five or so in a pack and offer them to your visitor as a pack of greeting cards that they can get for free for signing up.

In my advance course at www.thethrivingartist.com/vip I cover a whole class in "giving away art freebies" to build your business. This is a great technique to help build a large following of your work. The next part of the puzzle is what to do with the names and information once you collect it. I cover that to in the course. Ok, Ok, that's my sale pitch for you :)

I hope this gets you thinking in terms of "In order to get you first got to give".

Best wishes,
Steve
The Thriving Artist

How Many Art Websites Should I Have?

How many websites should you have when selling your artwork?
I have a really easy answer and solution to this question...have multiple domain names that link to each other. Let me explain. Nothing says that you only can have one domain name at a time. I have several for my art course and they link to each other. The way you can apply this is to leave your current site alone, create another site using your own name for works that don't fit a particular theme or series and even consider creating sites for new series or themes. Let's say you decided to do a series of work about the state of Georgia (Didn't Ray Charles sing about "Georgia on my Mind?"...Hey there's another site!), what stops you from registering another domain name for $8.95 and put up your Georgia work to that site. This gives visitors the impression that the entire site is oriented to Georgia themed art. Each of these sites can link back to your "name" site where visitors can come to see your new work or work that doesn't fit into the theme that they were visiting to begin with. You are creating a huge net that captures visitors searching for particular themes or artwork. Does this all make sense?

I am going to "pull back the curtain" so to speak so you can see how I make use of this when getting artists into my database at:
www.TheThrivingArtist.com

Check out these sites below and see what they all have in common. I am sure you will see it by the second site :)

www.ceramicsresourcedirectory.com

www.sculptureresourcedirectory.com

www.sketchingresourcedirectory.com

www.airbrushresourcedirectory.com

Get the picture? Someone into ceramics would find the first site, someone into sculpture would have gone to the second site and so on. The point is, if you have server space, put up several sites with your artwork grouped according to theme and link them together so visitors can go between them. The analogy I can share with you is a mall. You may go to the mall looking for a particular shirt. You go to the intended store and buy the shirt but you happen to walk by another store carrying a pair of shoes that catches your eye. Give people the option. I have found that it is difficult trying to be please everyone thru one website that is general in nature, but having "niched" sites targeted to one niche works. Give it a try and let me know what you think. I hope that helps, let me know.
Best wishes,

Steve

The Thriving Artist