Artspan News

If you receive an email from a Mr. Eric Baldry, e_baldry2k1@yahoo.co.uk from Bristol, England, don't respond. He has been in communication with members of Artspan. A good rule of thumb: if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Also and more importantly, never ship a work unless the funds have cleared in your account (NOT just credited to your account). There are also a number of other ones out there. Cathy Ewe is the most recent, also supposedly from the UK.

We have added new features to our web-based email program! There is now a spell check feature, and you can also compose and view your emails in HTML-that means there are text tools and formatting options that weren't previously available. If you don't currently have an Artspan webmail account and would like one, just drop Denise a line (include your name and site name) at support@artspan.com and put “Email account request” in the subject line. For those of you with our webmail, just go into Options, then Display Preferences and check the HTML box next to Default Email Composition Format.

Here are a few reasons why even those of you who do not sell online should still be on top of making sure your site ranks well in search engines. When asked, Where would be the first place you would go online to find out more about a product or service? 64% of respondents replied with “a search engine.”

Google tends to dominate to a greater extent as incomes and education levels increase. Google was the engine of choice with approximately 72.4% of lower income users, while it was the first choice of 86.9% of high-income users.

In looking at the Organic (Natural) vs Sponsored (Pay per click ads on the right side of the search results) search breakdown by engine our Search Engine consultant finds that Google users show the strongest preference for organic links, by a margin of 76.7% to 23.3%, remember people HATE being advertised to, a pay per click campaign is missing the big target, especially if your target audience is affluent / highly educated.

Currently, Artspan's page ranking in Google is 6. This judges the importance of a site and is a very strong ranking. To give you an idea, MASS MoCA and the San Diego Museum of Contemporary Art also have a ranking of 6. We continue to work at optimizing the site and expect to garner a 7 within a few months.

For a list of search terms and to see how Artspan appears in search engine results, go here You will see that Artspan ranks in the top 10 or 20 for numerous terms and we are moving up for a number of other ones. These are all terms with many millions of results returned, so to be in the top 10 or 20 is a huge advantage for all of us.

Traffic in August was close to 40,000 unique visitors (visitors counted only once) and 1.5 million page views! This does NOT include those visitors who go directly to the individual member sites. That number is considerably greater. Remember that a website needs continuing promotion. Our recommended rule of thumb to members is to get the site URL out to one new contact a day…can be friends, artists, collectors, galleries, etc. It all counts and adds up. You will gradually build up a real following for your work.

Whether you are an artist, a gallery or a dealer, World Wide Web should be playing an important role in your sales and marketing. With a half a billion Internet users, if you are not using the Internet to reach current and future buyers, you are missing out. Here are some recommendations that should assist you achieve a wider-than-real audience and incremental sales of your artworks, whether paintings, graphic prints, photographs or sculptures:

• Get Online
  It is pertinent that you do not miss this opportunity; so take advantage of the vast Internet user base. Remember that there is more to a Website than simply building it. Often a Website can simply be like a store in the middle of the desert - nobody enters! If you are building your own Website, remember to reserve a large budget to market it. If you decide to use an Online Arts company, get a sense of their monthly visitors. Once you, as an artist or as a dealer, get Online, promote your online exhibition, just as you would your gallery exhibition - use your Website address on your business cards and promotion materials, in press interviews and everywhere else you can.
  
  
• Images and Information
  Clear images and adequate information are two key factors in achieving both sales and new admirers of your work. Internet implies that someone is seeing your work on a computer monitor. You need to make sure that they are getting as-realistic-as-possible image of your work. If you are not a great photographer, use a professional one; even one new sale will make it all worth it.
  
  When someone views your artwork online, you will not be there to explain him/her the details. Do provide all the details that you can about yourself and the artwork. Importantly, keep your information updated.
  
• Gain Buyers' Confidence
  It is important that once you are online, your site enables art lovers and collectors to make purchases in a safe and secure environment. Remember knowledgeable and prompt customer care, by Internet, telephone and facsimile, is particularly important in Internet-based sales, as is secure payment options.

Used with the generous permission of www.picassomio.com

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Copyright 2005. Artspan LLC. All rights reserved.

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