Selling Original Art – 5 Reasons Artists Fail
December 5, 2008 | Written by Gino | Category: How to Sell Your Art
You have worked very hard on your original art and now that your work is done you probably would love to sell it and make some money! If you are interested in selling original artwork check out our list of tips below which highlight some common pitfalls when it comes to selling original art. Be sure to check out our eBook Fuel for Art if you are looking for an in depth and complete guide on How to Sell Art Online, so you can make a living doing what you love to do!
Selling Original Art
1. Not Having a Quality Portfolio Website
This advice isn’t new, but a surprising amount of artists still do not have a portfolio site despite the amount of times this tip has been given! All artists, if serious about their craft and making a living doing what they love should have a quality portfolio website. Your website should showcase your work, have your contact information, a personal bio and links to where your artwork can be purchased if available.
2. Neglecting to Establish an Online Presence
There are many ways to build your up your personal brand name online for free. You can submit samplesm of your work to art communities such as deviantART, create profiles on social networking sites, participate in forums, write about your craft on blogs and much more. The more people who know your name and see your work the better! So spend some time in front of that computer and establish your online presence!
3. Improper Marketing of Work Online
Online marketing is something that can be time consuming and expensive so you need to figure out what will work best to promote your artwork. Sites such as StumbleUpon can work extremely well when it comes to exposing your work to a large audience quickly. You can also submit your site to design galleries, optimize your site for search engines, exchange links with other art relates sites and much more.
4. Improper Marketing of Work Offline
The two heavy hitting offline marketing methods are participating in gallery showings and networking with others in the fine art world. Showcasing your work via gallery showings is the traditional way fine artists show their art to the world. They require a lot of hard work and planning, but if done right you can really create some buzz about your work and even make a great profit selling your work during the event! You should also be networking like a mad men at these gallery showings and other art events. The more people you know in the art industry the better!
5. Lack of Business Knowledge
I have interviewed a number of fine artists and many of them have said one of the most important skills a fine artist should pick up is business knowledge. You are an artist, but you also need to survive and the more you know about business the better off you will be in the long run. So pick up some books, take a business class or read some articles online to sharpen your general business skills.
Did You Find This Post Useful?
If so, Check out our eBook Fuel for Art if you are looking for a complete guide on how to sell your art online and earn great money!
