A HIGHLY INFORMATIVE ONLINE MAGAZINE DEDICATED TO THE ARTIST AND THE ART LOVER
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A HIGHLY INFORMATIVE ONLINE MAGAZINE DEDICATED TO THE ARTIST AND THE ART LOVERIf you like this site then Recommend It!
ART FACTS
"PROMOTING YOUR ART VIA THE INTERNET"
by Anita Winstanley-Roark
You've worked hard to create a masterpiece and now you need to market it. Well, the Internet is a powerful resource not to be overlooked. It offers you a low startup cost and a good probability of making it worth your while to invest the time required to create a powerful Internet presence. However, one does have to approach it with several things in mind. First off, I would like to stress the fact that there is no need to worry that you'll miss the "great Internet boom". The Internet isn't going to go away and it is by far much better to go into something with some knowledge of what you're getting into. So take some time to learn what the Internet is all about before you take the plunge. Secondly, the Internet should not be viewed as the sole means of marketing your art or selling it. Instead it should be used in conjunction with your traditional methods of promoting and selling your work.
With that said I'd like to review just a couple of important ways to market yourself and your art over the Internet. The most common approach is to develop a web page. Now, I want to stress the fact that you're marketing and promoting "yourself". As an artist this is the key to marketing your art. People want to know about you. So when you create a Web site make sure you write a clear and easy to read introduction. Keep it short, simple and to the point. Placing a photo on your Web site of yourself at work is not a bad idea either. This approach helps the customer have a more personal and intimate connection with you and thus your work.
Use your alternative text command on your image dialog box so text will load before your images do. This will allow the viewer to know that it's worth waiting for that image to load. By giving a written description about the graphic image you will also be able to take advantage of the search engines, which rely on indexing your Web site by written content. And as stated earlier, for any artist in any medium, it is a good idea to have an opening page that has a good introduction about you and your work. These two tips will work in conjunction with clear and meaningful meta-tags, which are key words that describe your site, to help your chances of moving your Web site up in the search engine game.
If you're a visual artist then be sure to scan in good images of your works. JPEG images (Joint Picture Experts Group) I feel are best for art reproduction over the Internet. They can handle up to 16 million colors and are considerably smaller than GIF files (Graphical Interchange Format). The next step is to compress your images. There are several sites that offer graphics compression such as Submit It and GIF Wizard . I have personally never used any of these services so I can offer no recommendation. However, there are several very good programs available that can be purchased such as Adobe or Ulead optimization programs. I use Ulead's SmartSaver Pro and have been very happy with it. Optimization is important because most browses have learned about your site from another site and are doing just what the name implies, browsing, and these browses don't want to wait for large graphic files to load.
OK, now you have those long awaited for customers at your site, how do you keep them there and then how do you get them to come back? Content! Keep your content fresh. Those potential customers came to your site to see your art. So give them something new to look at, listen to or read. The more they come back the more likely they are to contact you about purchasing your work. The most common complaint about art Web sites that I hear is "They never update their pages!" So don't you make that mistake!
I don't have the space here to mention all aspects of marketing your art or to go into great detail. But there are some key elements I would like to mention about promoting yourself and your art via the Internet so I'll state them in 10 short steps for you:
1. Create a professional, clean, and easy to navigate Web site. Remember that this is representative of your artistic work and, for many, a first impression of who you are and what kind of art you're creating. So make your Web site look good by making it easy to get around and by keeping it simple. A good Web site doesn't have to have all the latest web gizmos to be good. Remember what it is that you're promoting: yourself and your art!2. Make sure all your links are working. Non-working links are extremely frustrating and can quickly lead to a lost customer. So check those links and then check them again! Submit It and GIF Wizard can help you here too.3. Be sure to tell people how to contact you! Clearly state your mailing address, email address, and phone number.4. Build your mailing list. Don't be afraid to ask for names and email addresses. If browsers were interested enough to come to your Web site to view your work and they like what they see, they most likely will want to be on your mailing list. Plus, you know that someone who has taken the time to fill out your form or contact you about being on your mailing list is a much better prospective customer.5. Keep in mind that you don't have to send out a lengthy email newsletter every month. The important element here is that you have good content in your newsletter and that you stay in contact with your customers. By periodically keeping in touch with your customers and reminding them to revisit your Web site the greater your chances are they'll contact you about purchasing one of your works of art. But be sure you don't add to unwanted or junk email. As important as it is to ask them to sign up for your email list it is just as important to offer your customers a way to get off your email list!6. When sending email make sure you create a sig. file. A sig. file is a signature file and it creates a direct link to your Web site. Most email programs have ways to create a sig. file. If yours doesn't then you can create one in your text editor, just remember to save it in txt. format so your email program can recognize what it is.7. Submit your Web site to the search engines. There are several submission companies online that for a reasonable amount of money will help you to submit your Web site. A couple of these are Submit It and Virtual Promote . However, most people are going to visit your Web site because they learned about it from another Web site. So take the time to exchange links with other related Web site or think about joining the Web ring or check out The Artists Ring.8. When sending email to art galleries be sure you're using the same guidelines you would use when contacting them in person. Be professional and, in your first contact, always introduce yourself and take the time to give a clear and brief description of your artwork. Never send large images via email unless requested by the gallery. Do be sure to clearly state how they can contact you if they are interested and state what your Web site address is so they can go there to view your work.9. Be sure to promote your site on all written materials you give out, such as your business cards, letterhead, etc. Don't be afraid to blow your own horn! Most people are interested in meeting artists, so be sure to hand out that card freely! Remember that some of your best customers are to be found right in your local community.10. If you have the resources for advertising work over the radio or in a periodical be sure you always mention your web address and email address.These are just a few items to help you on you way to promoting yourself and your art. I'm not promising you'll make money over the Internet by marketing your work there. But if you approach the Internet with the same care you use with traditional marketing methods of promoting and selling your work and you use the Internet to work in conjunction with these traditional methods, you should see your art sales go up and that's what this is all about. After all, you don't have to be a starving artist to be a good artist!Now, I'm sure many of you have ideas I haven't thought of or have the space to mention. So please be sure to share these ideas with all of us by joining our forum discussion group now!
Some Other Informative Sites on Marketing:
Free 321 Web siteThe Marketing Resource Center
Maher's Guide - Announce Your Web site
The Art Stand
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NOTE: If you'd like, please email us your ideas or submit an article for review for ART FACTS. We will review all suggestions and select pertinent topics related to any of the visual or performing fine arts. Please include your name and email address along with your suggested topic. Thank you!
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