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 This Past Month |
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We have finished the integrating of our billing system with PayPal. We believe that we finally have the billing platform in place that will allow us to significantly expand our services, particularly regarding the individual site shopping carts and prints option. We won’t give a definite launch date, having done that before and then not having met the date, but the work should be done by the end of February (and hopefully before then).
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Holiday Shopping Down |
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This holiday season, U.S. shoppers will spend almost 50% less than they did last year, hitting a low not seen in 17 years, according to the American Research Group. Of these sales, a third of shoppers will buy online, spending an average of $536. This is a big drop from last year’s $967. A majority of these people haven’t started shopping yet. They are waiting for sales.
This adds fuel to our suggestion in last month’s newsletter that you might try some creative pricing (take another look at Selling Your Art in a Bad Economy, http://www.artspan.com/newsletter/artspan_news_November08.htm ). We suggested 20% off, or payment in installments or lease/purchase. You might even go further in offering special pricing to previous collectors of your work. Let them know you appreciate their support, and would like to recognize this support with special pricing. They can take another look at your site and, if they see something of interest, contact you for special pricing well below the pricing quoted on your site. You decide what that should be – perhaps 1/3% off. Clearly, if you are established or mid-career, you need to be careful with discounting your work. But this is one way to do it that could bring some funds and make a collector even more supportive of your work.
Another thought would be to ask them (or anyone visiting your site) to consider using a print of any of your works as a (very affordable) gift. You can go to www.pictureframes.com and have any of your paintings or photographs made into a matted (and even framed) print. There is a fast turn-around on this, and pictureframes.com can ship directly to your customer, if you decide that is what you want. (We will of course be offering this service from your site in a couple of months – see above – but were not ready for this holiday season).
We suggested last month that members might want to share some of their marketing experience. We are happy to extend a couple of months free hosting for anything published in this newsletter, and would love to hear from you.
In the meantime, below are contributions from two members |
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Approaching the Decorator Market (by Jos. Biviano) |
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I've had tremendous luck over the past 6 weeks advertising to local Interior Design and Decorating Showrooms. There is a real method to how I do this:
1). I go on a recon mission and visit some these design firms---getting contact names / business cards of the top Interior Designers in these firms.
2). I then mail postcards containing samples of my artwork. You can make these postcards cheaply by going on line to do-it-yourself card stores such as Zazzle.com, and photoworks.com. They allow you to create an account, upload your images, and lay out the postcards the way you want. Once you make your card, you can print as few or as many as you want. There's no minimum and no limit. I usually tailor my postcard images to the taste of that individual design firm.
3). Once I mail my postcards out, I follow-up with a phone call to the addressee in 4 days (don't wait too long). I've been selling steadily this way. If need be, I have also convinced some of these Designers to take some of my paintings on approval (usually 10 days) to see if the art works with their interior schemes. It also helps if your art is not overly pricey.
I've been doing this for about 6 weeks now and have had a fairly good success rate.
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Selling at Christmas (by Rita Smith) |
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You should always keep a full record of people who have purchased from you in the past. As Christmas gets closer, mail them a Christmas Card featuring one of your works and add a seasonal message. Don’t forget to thank your collectors for supporting you in your work, for being part of your community. And let them know that the items that you have for sale are the perfect gift for Christmas, birthday, wedding or any other occasion,
Always include a couple of business cards. Remember that they may have bought from you in the past, but that it’s easy to misplace a card. Ask them to pass along the second card to a friend. Its all about continually expanding your circle of people who are interested in your work.
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Two Cautionary Tales |
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Mass Solicitation
Quite a few Artspan members appear to be getting emails from Danielle Kirby at Ico Gallery in NYC saying that the gallery is interested in discussing the possibilities of exhibiting their work, but giving the following disclaimer, “in order to properly advertise your work to its fullest potential, you should expect to finance some of the costs." We suggest caution with this kind of approach. In our view, a serious gallery will promote you and your career on their nickel.
Nasty Virus
A particularly nasty virus is currently making the rounds. Do NOT open an attachment if you receive an email with a subject header stating that you have received a Hallmark eCard (or greeting card, etc) from a schoolmate (or classmate, neighbor, family member, colleague, etc, etc), even if the sender appears to be someone you know. As always, be very careful with any attachments. Before you open any attachment, make sure you know what it is.
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Featured Members |
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| Francesca Azzara
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| Encaustic Paint and Mixed Media |
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On Encaustic paint:
A medium that pre-dates oil painting. encaustic paint is a mixture of beeswax and pigment. This challenging yet forgiving medium allows the artist to layer, collage, scrape away and etch into the surface. The rich textures and depth of imagery cannot be duplicated with any other medium.
Her most recently completed series is her "Windows and Whispers" series. Window imagery, combined with ambiguous text, create visual and psychological vignettes for the viewer. O ther series include "Weather Dressing, " incorporating female images surrounded by text appropriated from a 19th century children's reader and the "Nature of Humans" series, a group of small canvases that exploring the movement of humans, as groups, in a variety of settings |
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Catherine Roberts Leach
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| Photographs: Urban, Abstract, Skyscapes & Waterscapes |
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"Discovering reality turned on its head inspires me. My photographs represent the straightforward facts on one hand, and on the other, an enigma. These images can inspire the flip side of the shock of recognition. They can encourage the shock of the unrecognizable. In other areas they can suggest a contextual mystery. But I shoot and present the real world, unposed. Although digitally produced, the images are often never, sometimes only minimally, manipulated."
-Catherine Roberts Leach |
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Legal and Other |
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Copyright 2008. Artspan LLC. All rights reserved.
All /images are the property of their respective owners. The opinions expressed in this newsletter do not necessarily reflect those of artspan.com members.
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Technical questions or problems? www.artspan.com/help
Visit www.artspan.com today! |
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