How To Start Selling Your Art Today!
1 Master Your Mind
The first step is selling art or anything is having the right mindset. In short, you must believe in your own talent and accept there are people out there who are willing to buy your art. You must eliminate the fear of failure which stops talented artists from even attempting to sell their artwork. Face what you are afraid off, anyone who has been extremely successful can tell you, that they have all had challenges and failed multiple times before they were really successful. It was through their failures that they learned and grew. Never ever give up, on your dreams and continued to work towards your goals no matter where you are at, in your art journey. One of the best books ever written on self-mastery is Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill, I recommend every artist should read it. This was a vital book that assisted me in the process of creating an online art gallery.
2 Create A Fanbase
As an artist people don't know who you are, so you need to create a fanbase. There are numerous ways of doing that, however, here are a few ways that I did it. Post your art on social media platforms and reach out to online art galleries.
The best social media platforms to sell your art.
Pinterest- Is a fabulous community for sharing (pinning) pictures with your followers and following other people (artists) who share inspiring material.
DeviantArt- The biggest online social network and platform for artists and art collectors to exhibit, promote, and distribute their works.
Instagram- Allows its users to take photos and videos, and share them with their friends. The platform has half a billion people on it.
Tumblr- Has 40 million posts every day, many of them concentrated on photography, paintings, and art.
Facebook- Enables you to join online art groups where similar people like you post their artworks.
The keys to effectively selling art on social media platforms
-Engage with people, start a simple conversation make it fun, don't just make it about your artwork.
-Consistently post your artwork. People have to be aware of who you are, and what you stand for before they start buying your artwork. So don't post your art as a salesman, however, do post your art as an artist, to show the process it takes to create your painting or your unique artwork.
3 Communicate What You Do
Go outside and do some good old face to face communication with other successful artists, go to a local art event, go to your town art gallery or museum, these places are perfect for artists due to the fact you can ask the question(s) that you are asking on here, which is how do I sell my art as an unknown artist? You will receive different answers that will benefit you, and personal experiences from other artists, and what it took for them to successfully sell their art. Furthermore, you get an opportunity to grow your network and brand yourself.
Make sure you have a business card and take it with you ever you go. As an artist, you must look at every moment as an opportunity to build your brand, and create a fanbase or a target audience. So next time you go to a restaurant, hotel, coffee house, or any other business, keep in mind that you are an artist and opportunity is ever-present, it's a matter of choice whether you want to communicate with other business owners or individuals to let them know who you are, what you have to offer, and most importantly how your art can help them. I am not saying you have to be a salesman. However, you must have the courage and the confidence to let others know that you have a special skill. You can start by telling your friends, family, and co-workers about your art.
There are 5 stages in the buying decision process according to most consumer marketing and management books. These five stages are problem Identification, Information Search, Evaluation of Alternatives, Purchase Decision, and Post-purchase Evaluation.
As an artist, you have to keep in mind how your art (painting) is going to help or solve the problem that the potential buyer is facing. Ask your self, does my art produce a positive emotional uplift? Does my art benefit someone who is looking for simple wall decorations? Is my art designed for exclusive art collectors? Or the everyday person who just wants to decorate their apartment or house? Is my art for someone who is looking for bizarre art? If so how is my art different? And does my art communicate that? Is my art for someone who likes classical art? Your goal should be to produce artwork that somehow benefits the consumer with their needs or in business terminology solves the problem identification part. You can start by writing or emailing your local radio stations, newspapers, and other publications to get a promo for your art.
As an artist, you have to understand that people are smart and they have a multitude of options to choose from or in business terms, due to Information research, once they have identified their problem or need for art. You as an artist must be in a position to help them. Here are some questions you can answer that will help you understand their problems and create a strong fan base.
How and where are you placing your artwork? And why? Is your art on the appropriate channel for potential consumers to research and possibly buy your art? Does that channel allow you to create a strong fan base? And how is your art (painting) different from the thousands of other paintings that are available for consumers to choose from? Do you have a distinct style that makes your art unique? Is your artwork designed to be affordable for a majority of consumers? Is your artwork especially tailored to specific people? Or demographics? Is it one of a kind? or can others duplicate your work? How do you communicate the uniqueness of your art, with art collectors? By answering these questions, it will assist you in defining your target audience, and creating artwork that you can sell.
As an artist, it's a wonderful feeling when someone purchases your artwork, however with the purchasing decision comes customer service, which at times is forgotten by artists. Meaning is your buyer truly satisfied with your artwork. You as an artist should keep in touch with your buyers, ask how their experience was, with you, as well as the artwork. Customer service is a crucial step that should be taken before and after the purchase of your artwork. If you want to learn more about consumer buying behavior, I recommend that you read Decoding the New Consumer Mind this book was written by an award-winning psychologist Kit Yarrow and details the mindset of buyers.
Obviously, these are only a couple of the steps in selling art, that I have briefly touched on them. My goal here is to show you, that you can sell your art as an unknown artist.
If you like this article, please share it with others, so perhaps they can also enjoy it. Any of the artwork purchased on ATX Fine Arts accommodates me as an artist/ writer along with helping the site grow organically, thank you.
