by Carolyn Edlund
Just starting out as an artist in business? Here’s how to get your work out there quickly and have your art seen by potential customers.
As frustrating as it may seem, making art or handmade work is only half of the equation for a new entrepreneur. You simply cannot “make it and they will come.”
Getting eyes on your art and traffic to your art website are essential art marketing tasks. You must make a plan to reach out and put your work in front of others in order to establish yourself as an artist in the market of your choice.
Get in front of people
I highly recommend that artists seek out personal connections. Not only will face-to-face contact provide feedback on your art and help you identify and target your ideal customer, it serves to help you become known to others. There is no substitute for a live meeting.
Network with as many people as you can. They might be found at art-related salons, openings, festivals, and so forth. They may be business people at a networking event or members of the general public attending a get-together that serves a niche that you also serve. Quite often, there are many local opportunities to place your artwork in front of others. This will give you experience speaking about your art and gauging interest.
There is power in sheer numbers. The more people you know and who know you, the better. You must get out and be seen. Without that factor, your audience remains small and your opportunities for sales diminish.
Create an online presence
Although selling in-person is the very best way to meet new collectors and make sales, you need an online presence as well. You can be sure that when viewing your work, many people will pull out their phone and search for you online. An individual dedicated website is best (and gives you the most credibility) but if you are just starting out, it is faster and easier to join a third-party online gallery to present your work. Our directory of places to sell art online is a great resource for this.
Online art sales depend on getting traffic to your website and eyes on the images that you have uploaded there. This is issue #1 with many artists. They simply do not get sufficient website visitors to do enough business. Traffic to your website can be increased by:
Social media marketing
Establish profiles on social media platforms where you can interact with a fan group. Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, YouTube and Tiktok are popular places to post photos, videos, text and more. Follow others, interact with them by sharing and commenting, and post links to your website on a regular basis. Facebook groups can give you lots of opportunities to engage. Look for groups in your particular niche, or even art collector groups.
Earned media
Many times, small businesspeople think of advertising as a way to get attention. That may be true, but you can get free press by reaching out to reporters and editors of magazines, newspapers, blogs and even television to tell your artist story.
Press members need great topics to cover, and artists are interesting. If you are working on a fascinating project or have a great backstory, take steps to secure a press interview or invite attendance at an event where your work is displayed. This is called “earned media” and is a powerful way to get noticed. Make sure to list your website in the article to receive additional online traffic.
Your art blog
Adding new content on your art website helps with your site ranking and in search, and thus blogging can be a valuable activity. Share your blog post links regularly on social media and in email newsletters.
Guest blogging gives you an opportunity to share your link on someone else’s blog, thereby pulling more traffic to your own site. And, while you are publishing online, think outside the box to publish on sites like Medium or Bored Panda or answer questions on Quora to reach their existing large audiences and pull them to your website through backlinks.
Email marketing
This incredibly effective sales tool enables you to reach out on a regular basis and drive readers to your website. It is more powerful than social media and other marketing methods. Readers opt-in to hear from you because they have an interest, which makes it a “permission based” method. Regular email campaigns to a growing list of subscribers can become a core part of your marketing strategy.
Artsy Shark has published many articles and videos on the topic of email marketing, such as Email Marketing Secrets, How Email Marketing Can Grow Your Art Business, and Anatomy of a Successful Email Campaign. If you are just getting started and don’t yet have a list of followers, start here: How to Build Your Email List from Scratch.
Ready to start?
Motivation, persistence and steady work toward your goal is necessary in any business. The most successful artists are constantly aware of opportunities to sell their work and to meet people who can help them. They know that many efforts won’t produce anything, yet they never give up. Neither should you.
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