How to sell art

One of the worst things you can do when you are trying to sell art, whether that be yours or somebody else's, is to have an opinion about it. If a prospective client asks you what you think, do not, under any circumstances, give your opinion. You may well say the one thing that will turn that client off and kill the sale. Instead, deflect by saying, "My opinion is irrelevant. How does it make you feel?"

We used to sell Thomas Kinkade limited editions by the hundreds, if not thousands. My opinion is that I wouldn't give them space in my garbage can, and that those who liked them had no artistic taste whatsoever, but I never said that to a customer. I can say it now because I'm not trying to sell them, for which I am truly grateful.

#artsales

All the techniques and methods shared in this community pertain to one-to-one interactions and are not applicable to online selling. Any artist who has people come to their studio or exhibits at Art fairs, and the like, can and will benefit, but if you're like me, who only has an online gallery, they are a waste of your time learning.

However, I think you'll find nuggets of wisdom. At least, I hope so.

Far too many people, especially in the US, where I lived for 35 years, operate on a "What's in it for me?" basis, meaning they do things for others only when there is tangible payback. I detest this attitude. I do things for people because I can, and that's all the reward I need. I share my knowledge freely; this community is an example of that.

There's nothing wrong with being selfish, as long as it isn't all the time. Ultimately, we have to please ourselves by doing what we want, when we want, but there will be times when we can't, and we have to accept that.

As artists, we have a need to create. That requires support from those who we are close to, and we need to appreciate that support. Getting that art sold is difficult, very difficult, no matter what some people will tell you. Selling it online is, in many ways, much more difficult because you don't get the interaction you would with another person. Plus, there is the indisputable fact that getting noticed in this age, with thousands of distractions and extremely short attention spans, is almost impossible.

Of course, there are things one can do, and should, but those things all take a great deal of time, and may well provide no reward. I opened my ASF gallery in January, and I will likely close it when it comes up for renewal. For me, there are many easier ways of making money, but I'm very lucky in that respect. Will I be sorry? Yes, and no. I knew going in that it was a gamble, but I wasn't afraid of the risk and could easily afford it.

A girlfriend once asked why I kept so many balls in the air. My reply was that until I knew which ones weren't worth keeping, I'd keep them all, and add more as opportunities arose. I added that I would drop any ball the moment I knew it was going nowhere. We all have a tendency to hold on to things longer than we should, but we must learn to let go. If we don't, our lives will be full of regrets, and, to me, at least, there's nothing worse than that.

#artsales #motivation

I took my ex-wife to The Louvre once. She wanted to look at every painting in every Gallery, while I walked through them as if I were in a hurry to find the bathroom.

"Aren't you interested in all of these amazing paintings?, she asked.

"No," I replied. "I'm only interested in the ones that stop me dead in my tracks."

"But you're not even looking!"

"No, I'm not actually looking at any of them, but the ones that I do stop at, I will have caught out of the corner of my eye."

"How does that work?"

"It's a visceral reaction. They strike something deep in me, and I stop to really look."

Art is bought because of visceral reactions. When someone can't stop looking at a piece of art, it is because they are having one, but no matter how powerful the reaction is, most people still have to be 'sold', or as I prefer to phrase it, 'helped to make a decision.'

What is important is understanding why this is so. Human nature means we are full of self-doubt. We hesitate to make decisions because we fear making the wrong one. We are conditioned this way by our parents, and they were conditioned that way by their parents. Historically, this fear came from living in a very dangerous world. That isn't to say that we don't still live in a dangerous world, but the dangers are different. So, we ask ourselves, "Is this safe?" even when the decision we are making is innocuous, like buying a piece of art.

Understanding both visceral reactions and this fear is key to selling your art.

Diverging for a moment, have you ever wondered why some people are natural-born entrepreneurs, and why most are content with a salaried, secure job? The reason is simple. To be an entrepreneur, and I am a lifelong one, you have to be a risk-taker. I can almost guarantee you that all of the extreme athletes, those who do very dangerous sports, will all, if they live long enough, become entrepreneurs.

#artsales #motivation

Nobody ever thinks they're boring, but a lot of people are. They have little or no energy, are unable to engage in interesting conversations on a variety of subjects, and are often so introverted that they disappear into the woodwork. Many of the most boring people I've met in a very long art career are, sad to say, artists, which makes sense because, in many cases, artists are solitary, introspective people who only come alive when they are creating. This is really important because boring people find it almost impossible to make sales.

How do you know, or rather come to the realization, that you are boring? The simplest answer to that question is noticing how many people avoid your company or drift away while you are talking.

And now comes the $64,000 question: how do you not be seen as boring? It's incredibly easy. Just be interested in the other person. Ask them questions about their life and their interests. Listen intently and keep delving deeper. Keep asking questions. They will think you are one of the most interesting people they've ever met. Incidentally, these are the same skills that are essential to making sales.

#artsales

This question came up on The Breakfast Club this week. I'm pretty sure I threw a cat among the pigeons when I said that artists should charge three times the cost of a regular painting of the same size. For example, a 40 x 40 piece that sells for $8,000. A commission for a 40 x 40 piece should be charged at $24,000.

This number raises quite a few questions; the first would be: why so much? The first reason is that it will likely take the artist 3 times as long to do it, with 3 times the stress and 3 times as many sleepless nights spent thinking about it. The second reason is that you don't want or need to deal with penny-pinchers. Telling someone looking at an $8,000 painting that a commission will cost $24,000 will quickly eliminate the time-wasters. Of course, that three-times number is also a point of negotiation, but in my opinion, you should never go below double your normal price. If you start high, you have room to negotiate, but if you start low, you're stuck. One thing you might not realize is that the $24,000 number will stick in their heads. If it is too expensive for them, buying one of your regular pieces at a third of that price makes it feel very reasonable.

The biggest hurdle is having the confidence to ask for that amount since it is so far above the numbers that the artist is used to thinking in. This is a mindset issue, and that's all it is. When I was running the gallery, I was often asked to negotiate on behalf of our artists. They knew that even with the percentage we took from the deal, they would end up with more money than they could have gotten on their own. If you're not good at negotiating, and you have a friend who is, ask them to do it for you.

My next post will include a downloadable Questionnaire that you can give interested clients.

#artsales

It's a strange title for a post, but if you only knew how many times a day you say one of these words, you would be a). horrified and b). staggered. Even some professional broadcasters are guilty of it; they should definitely know better. But what are these words? They're called fillers, filled pauses, or even disfluencies. They also go along with "like", "you know", "I mean", "basically", and "literally", all of which are actual words used without their full meaning. They are speech patterns often used by people to gather their thoughts when they are not quite sure what they are going to say. Claude calls them 'verbal tics or hedges'.

Most people aren't even aware that they use them, let alone that they use them many times a day. I've trained myself not to use them, but I'm also aware when I do. Anybody reading this can, and should, do the same. It's not that difficult. Record yourself speaking, practicing for a speech, or having a conversation with a friend. If the latter, tell them what you are doing and why, so they don't think it's weird. Then get a piece of paper and a pen, and listen to the recording, making a note of how many times you used each filler word. Listen to it again, and check that you got the counts right. Then make another recording. What is interesting about this exercise is that you will now hear yourself using those words, and you probably won't use them as often. Keep on with this exercise until you record something where you can't hear a single usage.

By this point, you're probably asking yourself why is this important. When you don't use filler words, you will sound more professional, competent, and confident. It also means that when you are trying to persuade somebody to do something, oh, I don't know, buy a piece of your art, your credibility and persuasiveness go way up.

#artsales #motivation

Most people ramble on and on and never get to the point. I think it was Shakespeare who said, "Brevity is the soul of wit." When somebody rambles, we tune them out in the same way that we tune out the sound of the refrigerator. Artists who ramble may notice how many people just walk out without saying goodbye.

In sales, the extent of our talking should be asking open-ended questions, and then listening intently to the answer before asking the next question, which will be based on what they just said. We have two ears and one mouth, which means we should listen twice as much as we speak.

#artsales

Believe it or not, but one of our deepest-held fears is getting up in front of an audience and speaking to them. Having said that, it is one of the greatest skills you can ever master because once you do, you can call yourself a communicator, which is a vital sales skill.

But what is it that people are afraid of? There are two things.

1. I'll forget what I was going to say.

2. I'll make a fool of myself.

Let's deal with the second one first. Everybody in the audience is rooting for you to succeed. Whatever happens with your presentation, you've succeeded and shown courage. Even if it went badly wrong, it's just a learning experience, and you'll do better next time.

As to the first fear, the only person who will know you forgot something is you. You will either realize that you've forgotten something, or you won't. If you don't, no one in the audience will know. If you do realize it, you have a choice. Either come back to it later or just ignore it. No big deal either way.

Speaking from a vast amount of experience speaking to an audience, I will tell you that it is one of the biggest buzzes you will ever get. Once you get over the nerves, it is an amazing feeling, but you only get good at it by doing it a lot. I got my initial experience with Toastmasters International, and I highly recommend it.

#artsales #motivation

Almost everybody starts a new venture with enthusiasm, but it rarely lasts. If you don't get the results you expect, it's human nature to lose interest, and that can quickly turn into apathy.

Being an artist is a lonely profession for the most part. We are in a studio on our own, creating, often without getting any feedback or encouragement. In fact, the only barometer we can rely on to sustain our enthusiasm is sales, and if you need to make sales to survive, it is very easy to become discouraged and feel like giving up. Apathy wins, but how do you stop that from happening?

I'm not sure of the answer because everybody's situation is different. What I do know is what works for me. I keep busy. I bounce from one thing to another constantly, and I keep my energy up by doing so. I realize that not everybody has the diversity of interests I do, and this is a serious question I'd like an answer to: what keeps you enthusiastic?

#motivation

I'm not sure that 'conundrum' is the right word, but I am puzzled by Instagram. About a week ago, I had 1969 followers, not a massive number, but a decent number nevertheless. Every day, I get notifications that new people are following me. Often these numbers are in the low 30's, but one day it was 75. Honestly, I don't get excited because, as I said in my previous post, I believe that followers are worthless.

This morning, out of curiosity, I checked how many followers I have now. 1969, which is the same number I had a week ago before all the new followers. That number has also remained the same every day since I first checked. Mathematically speaking, the odds of this happening are astronomical; in fact, I asked Claude, and it said the odds of net-zero growth for my account size are ~2–5%.

On that basis, and that basis alone, Instagram is not to be trusted. Am I wrong, and if so, why?

It seems that the prevailing thinking is that the more followers you have, the better off you are, and the greater the likelihood that sales will come from them. I don't believe it; I honestly don't. It's nice to have lots of followers for sure, but they add no value for the simple reason that they are not following you specifically, and are also unlikely to be looking at the work you are doing. You, me, all of us are just one in hundreds of others that they have signed up to follow, and then promptly forgot about. You only have to look at the engagement numbers for the work you are putting out to know that this is true.

So if followers are worthless, as I believe they are, what is the point in trying to get more? If the engagement numbers are to be believed, and I believe they are, why are we all trying so desperately to produce content that sticks when it isn't going to?

Let me have your thoughts on this very important subject.

#artsales #motivation

Self-promotion is something a lot of people have trouble with. You might say, and you would be partially correct, that not everybody has anything to promote. Where I would disagree is that all of us have things we believe in, and any time we are talking about those things, we are self-promoting.

As artists, we have to be good at promoting ourselves. What gets in the way is self-doubt. Am I good enough? Is my work unique enough? Questions such as these dwell in our subconscious mind. With that said, let's get one thing out of the way. Your work is not unique. You may never come across work that you could easily have been the artist of, but that doesn't mean it doesn't exist. As an aside, I've been told by numerous people that my Critters Mandalas are unique. While it is a lovely thought, I don't believe it for a second. In fact, I would love to find similar work to review and compare.

Moving on from that piece of depressing news <grin>, how do you promote yourself and your work? In the first place, whenever you meet someone new, you introduce yourself with your well-defined 10-second elevator pitch, delivered with energy and enthusiasm.

https://www.arthelper.com/community/howtosellart/post/the-elevator-pitch

So you've got your elevator pitch out of the way, but there is a lot more that you can do. The next thing is you need business cards. https://www.arthelper.com/community/howtosellart/post/amateur-or-professional

All artists in ASF have their own domain name; if you don't have one, invest a small amount to get one. It's really important and gives you gravitas. It also gives you a professional email address. If you have a Gmail address, or any generic one, Yahoo.com, etc., what it says about you is that you are unprofessional. Some people reading this will disagree because they've had one of those for years and it has been working fine, but that's not the point. The point is the impression it gives.

The last, and most important aspect that will prevent or enable you to self-promote is confidence. When you are talking to people about your work or just talking to people, you have to come across as extremely confident, whether you feel it or not. If you don't feel it, fake it until you do. Confidence is the next best thing to ability. When you have both, you will be unstoppable.

#motivation #artsales

It's much easier to make an excuse than an effort. There are any number of excuses people give when something doesn't work, or they don't want to do it. They are generally referred to as reasons, but let's call a spade a spade here; they are excuses. People often play the blame game. It's somebody else's fault, but is it? Occasionally, they are correct, but in general, the fault lies with the person making the excuse. Human nature comes into play here, and by that I mean, negativity, a woe-is-me attitude. The reason is that it is much easier to be negative than positive. If you were in a room with a lot of people and two dominant personalities, one negative and one positive, most of the people would surround the negative person. Unless that is, the positive person is considerably more positive than the other, who is negative.

Those who say they can, can, and those who say they can't, can't. That's an aphorism, and it's a truism. As a regular to @Hava Gurevich's The Breakfast Club, i listen to a lot of artists talking, and in my time as a Gallery Director/General Manager, I've listened to many more than most. "Oh, I can't do that!" or "I'm not comfortable doing that." or "I'm not making any sales," or a myriad of other excuses.

If you are reading this, and you sense that there is truth, about you, in what it is saying, then you need to recognize it. Until you do, you'll just continue along the same old path, and that's not what I want for you, or, more importantly, what you want for yourself.

But how do you change from the old negative you, to the new positive you?

Nobody likes change. Even homeless people don't like it. They might ask you for change, but what they really want is dollar bills. But here's the thing to remember about change. It's inevitable and without it, decay sets in. Who remembers the typewriter? Who remembers using maps to navigate. Both gone the way of the dinosaur.

Start by analyzing the cause of your negativity. Why is it? What is causing it? Is it something you're doing, or not doing? Go back, and read this article: https://www.arthelper.com/community/howtosellart/post/the-risk-of-failure

Write down your thoughts. Don't just keep them in your head as they won't take life until you write them down. (I recommend taking a sheet of paper, drawing a line down the middle, and writing down all the negative things on the left). Now go to bed and sleep on it. Let your subconscious mind wrk on them while you do. When you wake up, get a cup of coffee, and start filling in what you can do to eliminate the stuff you wrote down.

The most important thing you must do however is change your attitude. People sometimes tell me that I'm obnoxiously positive, and I am because I don't believe there is anything I can't do. I'm not good at mechanical stuff because I'm not interested in it but if push came to shove, I can figure it out. Many years ago, I became a feature writer for a full color magazine with a circulation of 80,000+ copies every week. It never occurred to me that it was difficult. Attitude is everything.

#motivation

In all our lives, we will face criticism; sometimes it comes from those we love, and sometimes from people we barely know. Our natural reaction is to become defensive, to try to justify, but we must not, because that gives credence and power to that person. What I try to do is acknowledge, then put that person on the defensive. I do this by saying, "I'm sorry you feel that way. Do you mind if I ask you to tell me why?" The first sentence says you heard them, and the second asks them to explain.

When you do this, many people will back down immediately because they know they made a stupid statement. Depending on how offensive the remark is, you can either let them off the hook or you can dig in. If I sense that the person is trying to be a bully, then I dig in hard. However, most of the time, I'll let it go.

A commonly heard statement by artists is, "A five-year-old child could do that!" Now that's ignorant and offensive at the very least, but if you bristle, you've already lost. Instead, ask "Do you have a five-year-old child?" If they say yes, reply "Do you have any of their work with you?" Or, you might say, " That's interesting you say that, because that's not what my professors told me. What do you see that they didn't?" You've firmly put the ball back in their court.

By the way, you shouldn't ever put up with people who are being deliberately rude. I turn my back on them generally and make a point of ignoring them. They hate that because they are subconsciously looking for a fight, or at least a confrontation.

#artsales #motivation

Yesterday, at The Breakfast Club, @Hava Gurevich started an interesting discussion about elevator pitches. For the very few who are not familiar with the term, an 'elevator pitch' is where you have a very short period of time to tell somebody what you do. Some people will tell you that you have 30 seconds, or even a minute, to deliver it. I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that it needs to be delivered in ten seconds or less.

Before I explain why I am saying this, let's talk about the purpose of an elevator pitch. It is nothing more than a conversation starter. If what you say intrigues the person you are talking to to the point that they want to know more, then you have succeeded; otherwise, you have failed. For that reason, it has to be very clear and very concise.

My elevator pitch is "I'm Michael Rocharde. I'm an artist. I create wildly colorful mandalas full of whimsical creatures." It takes less than 8 seconds to deliver, but in that 8 seconds, it tells people precisely who I am and what I do.

Yesterday, quite a number of artists gave their elevator pitches. All but one failed to 'start the conversation'. They were vague, very vague. They were meandering. They were about things that were only relevant to them, and which had the same chance of turning somebody off as getting them interested. I don't care if you're religious or not, but bringing God up in an elevator pitch is to be avoided at all costs.

"I paint all types of subjects" is way too vague. Contrast that with saying "I am a photorealistic painter of life on a cattle ranch. Think Yellowstone."

Which one of those two statements would get your interest?

The other thing I noticed while listening to all the elevator pitches was that there was hardly any excitement or energy in the delivery. If you can't be excited about what you do, what chance does anybody have of getting excited on your behalf? Being boring kills conversations. Some 50+ years ago, I was in the army, and there was a guy in my squad named Brian Ingledew. He was brilliant, had been a University lecturer in advanced mathematics, and spoke 16 languages fluently. You'd think he would be interesting to talk to, but he was the most boring human being ever; well, maybe not ever, but close.

I'm going to close this post with a challenge to everybody who reads it. Come up with an elevator pitch that you can deliver with energy and enthusiasm in 10 seconds or less. Post it as a comment. I'll look at your art and tell you if you have succeeded or failed in describing who you are and what you do. If you've succeeded, practice (in front of a mirror) until you can deliver it effortlessly and flawlessly with lots of energy and excitement. If you've failed, write something better.

Now, if you can't be bothered to do that, think about what it says about you and your journey to be a successful artist. Just sayin!

#artsales

Sales fright is very similar to stage fright. The difference is that one requires you to ask for money, and the other asks the audience to bear with you. I've done a lot of public speaking in my life, and I love it, but I remember the first time I had to speak in front of a large audience. It was a Toastmasters group, and the regional finals for a Tall Tales competition. I had won at my club and then at the next level, but the audiences were quite small. The Regional Final was held in a large auditorium, with a 500+ audience. I was with my girlfriend and some other friends. I wasn't remotely nervous until I walked on stage. My knees were knocking so loudly that I'm amazed somebody didn't immediately call a paramedic. My voice cracked. I stuttered and stammered my way through my speech. I got applause I was sure I didn't deserve and went back to my table, where Sharon asked me how I thought it had gone. I told her the sad tale, and she laughed. I was not amused. Then she said something that I've never forgotten. "Michael," she said, "You were as poised and as professional a speaker as I have ever seen!" Everything I had experienced was in my head. Since then, I have never experienced stage fright. So the next time you're about to ask somebody to buy, and doubt creeps in, take a deep breath, remember it's just nerves, and spit it out.

P.S. I didn't win the contest, but I did come in 3rd out of 20 speakers.

#artsales

Throughout my life, I've lost count of how many times someone has said to me, "That's a bad idea," or "You shouldn't do that." I have never once listened to any of these people, and I'll tell you why. They are not saying it because they think it's a bad idea for me to do, they are saying that they couldn't do it themselves because they don't have the courage to take a risk. Only a very small percentage of people are risk-takers. I'm definitely one of them. Those who are often entrepreneurs because risk-taking is part of that skill set.

The more interesting question is, why are there so few risk-takers? My father was not one of them. He worked for the British Civil Service and rose to a very senior position, but, for him, it was all about security and a pension at the end of it. My godfather offered him a partnership in a property management deal. Dad said no. If he'd said yes, he would have made millions. He wanted my brother and me to join the Civil Service. We told him we weren't interested. He was heartbroken. He didn't understand it. As a non-risk-taker, he found taking risks abhorrent.

Years later, he broke down in tears when I told him that I was playing poker professionally. Gambling was, for him, a risk too far. I explained to him that it really wasn't gambling. Yes, there was money involved, money that could be lost, but there was a high degree of skill; an understanding of mathematics, pot odds, and implied odds. Psychology and skill at reading people also came into play. It took a while, and quite a lot of effort on my part to explain it, but he eventually came around.

Both my brother and I have been very successful. If we'd listened to the naysayers, we wouldn't have been.

#motivation

The answer is yes, absolutely. The print market is where you will make the most money. It increases the number of collectors who can afford your work. It also means your work reaches a much wider audience, so over time, you become better known and can charge more. The next question is, do you produce limited editions or poster prints? You do both. Poster prints are mass-produced and sell for small amounts; limited editions sell for more. Both are profitable. The most likely criticism that you will hear is "Oh, you're so commercial." If you ever hear somebody say that, just say "Thank you very much." It will shut them up in a heartbeat. Ignore the naysayers; they've always got an opinion, which is rarely rooted in reality.

#artsales

Somebody recently commented that they wanted to be an artist and not a salesperson. Unfortunately, in today's world, you have to be both, unless, of course, you are wealthy enough to hire somebody to sell for you. With that said, let's talk about why people might not want to be seen as a salesperson.

Some people think that being in sales is beneath them. What they are failing to recognize is that we are all salespeople. We might not make money from it, but we are selling ourselves, our beliefs, and who we are every day.

Some people think that it is a dishonest profession. It's true there are some professions where being in sales has such connotations; however, for the most part, it is as honorable a profession as any other. If, as a salesperson, you act with integrity and honesty, then that is who you are.

Some people believe they aren't cut out to be salespeople. I would argue that it is a mental block: they already know how to sell; they just don't want to.

But what does a salesperson do? They sell a product or a service that people either want or need. Nobody needs to buy art, so the artist is dealing with people who want what they have created. If the artist doesn't sell their work, they eventually have to stop being an artist, for they cannot afford to be one. The artist who sells fills an emotional vacuum for the buyer and gets money so that they can continue creating. Both sides win. The corollary is also true. When the artist fails to sell their art to someone who really wants it, both sides lose.

Now, here's what I want you to think about. You're the artist, and you've sold a piece to somebody who fell in love with it. You've made some money, and they have a piece of art. How long will the money you've just made last you? How long will that piece give the buyer pleasure? I guarantee you that you, the artist, will have spent the money long before they fall out of love with that piece.

#artsales