You’re serious about finally getting your work out there. You know it’s sellable but you’re not so sure how to do it.
If this is you, know that I hear you. I know how frustrating this can be. That’s why I let you in on the key to selling art that you might be missing over three articles.
In the first part, I share that the secret to selling art is to regularly connect with people. And what the gold standard is for doing this. Although the method for this sounds far too straightforward to be real, it works.
In the second part, I share another way to connect with your audience by truly engaging with them online. I even give a dead-easy formula for doing this.
After using this method for social media engagement, one reader said that 5 out of 6 people gave thoughtful replies to her comments on their social media posts. Links to both parts are at the end of this article.
Today, I’m sharing a third way to genuinely connect with collectors, gallerists and your audience so you can get more eyes on your work and sell more of it. About 95% of artists who say they want to sell more work, don’t do this one thing but if they did, they’d have a tool to always find people who are interested in their work.
This tool is more important than being on social media. And, it’s an easy way to ask for someone to buy your work without having to do it in-person.
Are you ready for it?
The third way that is most effective to connect with people to get your art shown and sell more of it is to email your collectors, gallerists and supporters on a regular basis to update them with the work you’re doing.
Building an email list, and then sending to it, is one of THE MOST POWERFUL TOOLS you can ever have.
People who are on your list like you enough to say, yes, email me with news about your work. That’s a big deal in this day and age. They’ve trusted you with their inbox because they want you to talk to them about your art.
A mailing list trumps social media because you own it and have control over it. Whereas at any moment, Facebook, Twitter or Instagram could disappear. You have no control over what their business does that might negatively impact you, like massively changing algorithms that take traffic away from your posts. And if that’s the only way you’re building your art career, it’s like putting all of your eggs into one basket.
So, adding an email list into your mix of business tools is a smart move.
Time to take ACTION!
First sign up for MailChimp or another email services provider. They offer templates to make you look good and they handle unsubscribes. They also keep you in good standing with SPAM laws.
It can be a different email service provider but no need to overthink it. I recommend MailChimp because I’ve used it so I know it works. And it’s free for up to 2,000 subscribers (nope, I’m not an affiliate).
Once you have a mailing service in place, it’s time to send updates to your audience so you can build and grow your relationship with them.
Once a month is the bare minimum that I recommend for my clients. And, anywhere from two per month up to weekly is better. If you’re not already sending monthly, start there. It’s fun to connect with people in this way and it can help you sell more of your work!
Let me know in the comments if you’re opposed to the idea, or if you’ve taken the leap and signed up for an email service and how often you’re planning to send an email update to your audience.
Here’s to you connecting with new people and strengthening the relationships you have so you can get more eyes on your work, have more fun with it and make more sales!
Cheers,
Kate
P.S. Click here to read Part 1 or here to read Part 2 of The Key to Selling Art That You Maybe Missing so you can have all three proven ways to connect with people in your practice.