Traditional brick-and-mortar galleries and regional art shows are still great ways to get your work in front of art lovers. But getting your work in front of enough prospective buyers to make a living can be a real challenge. Fortunately, being a starving artist is not inevitable. With a little marketing savvy and the power of the Internet, you can go from being a financially-challenged artist to one who lives comfortably by selling his art worldwide.
One artist who has done just that is Becky Danielson. In 2008, Danielson sold over 200 original paintings online from the comforts of her home located in a small Midwestern town. As a former gallery owner, Danielson prefers selling her work online. When selling online, you don’t have the overhead of a gallery and set hours where you spend time working at the gallery instead of painting,” she adds. “Not to mention, days where only a couple of people stop by to see your work. Online, I have hundreds of people view my work in a single day.”
Through her online sales, Danielson has received requests for custom work from individuals who lost out on the auction. “Without the Internet, my success was limited by my location, now I’m able to build a customer base from around the world.” Danielson feels the key to building repeat customers is to post new work often. She tries to list new paintings weekly. “I have several regular customers who are admitted art-addicts. They love discovering new artists and collecting their work.”
Where to Sell
There are several online auction sites available for artists. Sites such as artbyus.com cater specifically to artists who have original artwork to sell. The site launched in 2004 and has successfully grown their registered buyers and sellers over time. eBay is also a great site for selling artwork. In fact, “art” is consistently one of the top five terms searched terms on eBay.
Getting started.
To sell online you’ll need a computer with an Internet connection, digital camera and possibly a scanner if you primarily sell drawings and smaller portraits.
If you don’t have a seller’s account on the site you intend to sell your artwork on, you’ll need to take some time to set-up an account. A credit card number, billing address and bank information are typically required to set-up an account. Sites use this information to confirm your identity, which helps protect the integrity of their site, as well as to collect auction fees. Some sites also allow you to set up your own store, which will allow you to sell auction and fixed-price artwork from your own designated location within the site. A monthly fee is typically charged based on the level of store services you want, in addition to the fees for listing and selling artwork through the auctions.
Make Your Post Stand Out
On auction sites like eBay, you’ll need to first select the appropriate category for your art. For a little extra cost, you can list your work in two categories to help increase your exposure. Before choosing a category take some time to view the items for sale and find the category you feel best fits your work.
Next it’s time to name your listing. Use words your buyers might try typing into the search box. Typically 45 characters are allowed for a headline so be sure to make each one count. For instance, instead of listing your artwork as a floral painting, describe it as Daisies Dancing, Oil Painting, Original Art. That way the painting may come up for anyone searching painting as well as daisies, dancing, or even art. Although, your art may not be the item they came to the site searching for the description may encourage them to take a look and even place a bid.
An interesting description can bring your work to life and give you an edge over other pieces. A good description can help you build a connection with potential buyers. Danielson often lists her items with an interesting story about the subject. Her stories give a personal touch to the artwork and complete the piece. Some collectors will even hang the story with the artwork itself.
The description should also include your sales terms, dimensions, material/medium used, whether the work is framed or not, whether it is signed, condition, reproduction or original and weight if applicable. Always think about what you’d like to know about the item if you were going to purchase it and include that information as well.
Attract Buyers with Great Photos
Photos are the closest you can get to actually putting your work into the hands of potential buyers so take and post several photos. Try several angles and different lighting to get results that best convey the quality of your work. Avoid holding the camera and use a tripod if you have one. You can even create your own photo studio to showcase your work, by placing on a table draped with a white table cloth or sheet. Or if you are selling a painting try hanging on a wall and showing a close-up as well as showing how it makes a room by taking a picture of it above a sofa or fireplace. Avoid using a flash to take your picture and try using halogen flood lamps placed from three different angles on the work. When using a digital camera set pixel resolution at 640 x 480 or higher.
Keep your images organized by setting up a folder for your auction images on your computer so you know where to find them. If you’re selling multiple items, be sure to save the photos under a name you’ll remember. Before loading to the site, take some time to review the images and rotate, edit or crop them if necessary. If you do not have photo-editing software, many sites include tools for you to edit your photos online.
Setting Your Price
Getting the first bid is critical to your success. Other buyers are generally more likely to jump in and bid if they see there is already a bid on your art. To encourage bidding, many artists prefer to set a starting price below what the item is actually worth to help jumpstart bidding. Danielson always starts her bids low to let the market determine the worth of her art. “It can be scary at times to start your art out at just $2, but when you end up selling that same piece for hundreds of dollars, it is well worth it. I know of many artists who will start the bidding too high which can discourage bids and sometimes result in no bids at all.” You may also set a reserve price, but if you set this too high, it can discourage bidding as well. eBay also offers a “Buy It Now” feature that gives bidders the option to buy your artwork immediately for a price set by you.
Payment and Shipping
You’ve almost completed your listing. Now all you need to do is select the type of payments you’ll accept. Most sites allow you to select PayPal, credit cards, checks and money orders. If you know how much your items will cost to ship, include this information with your listing. If you are uncertain of the costs, you can simply state you’ll provide shipping costs at the close of the auction.
Before submitting your listing, take some time to review your information one last time. Once you are sure everything is correct, submit your information. On some sites, your information goes live immediately after you click the Submit button.
Top-Notch Service During and After the Sale
Occasionally during the auction, potential buyers may leave questions for you. Be sure to respond promptly with answers. If you take a day to answer their question, you may miss out on a sale. After the sale, you should take the initiative to contact your art buyer immediately after the listing closes by e-mail. The e-mail you send should contain all the information your buyer needs to complete her transaction with you. Items you may wish to include are recapping the payment options, shipping costs and options and your contact information.
Once payment has been received, try to ship the item as soon as possible. If possible, ship the same day payment is received. One of the most common causes of seller-buyer disputes are very delayed shipment or items damaged in transit due to poor packaging. Be sure to take time packaging your art to insure it reaches its destination in one piece.
What It Costs
Fees for selling online are quite minimal when you compare it to other sales channels. For instance, an item you originally list for $5 and end up selling for $200 can cost you around $7 in fees which equals just 3.5% of your sale price. That same piece sold at a gallery taking a 30% commission would net you only $140. So you can see selling online is an attractive and affordable option for both established and new artists.
Of course, you can experiment with other features and tools on the auction sites which do add to the cost, but may also result in greater sales. Don’t be afraid to experiment with new features, categories and listings until you find one that works for you. That’s the beauty of online selling, you can try new things with little risk or cost.
So what are you waiting for? Get started today and watch your business grow.
