Do you put the price right on the post?

Honestly, when I post a price on something like an original print run, the engagement just drops. The algorithm seems to punish anything that looks like a sale. I've noticed this across platforms, not just one. So now I keep prices on my actual shop page and let the post be about the work itself. But here's the thing that's worth sitting with: originals aren't meant to be accessible to every single person who scrolls past. That's what smaller prints or open editions can do. The "sticker shock" conversation you're describing might just be people realizing they're not your buyer, and that's fine. You don't need to soften the number. You need it to reach the right person, and unfortunately the platforms make that harder when money is visible in the post.

Tavares I think there are two ways to look at this. One is for your original you have to find the right audience. I remember the first time I had a very large print (40"x80") up in my booth and some people walk in and admire it and are taken aback by the price tag and then you get the person who walks up and doesn't even get fazed by the price. So you have to find the place where those buyers are and it usually is not on social media : )! Be able to talk to people because when they find out the shipping and crating on a piece like that is about $600 they understand the price and you need to be able to communicate the value to a potential buyer.

Second that is where smaller pieces, merchandise, and paper prints of your originals come in. Have some lower price points and be ready to point those options out and highlight the value of those pieces.

I know seems pretty common sense but it comes with experience from talking to people and seeing what language works best and using that more often!

To answer your specific question I don't post prices on social media posts for the most part but direct them to my website or next show. If they comment then I will message them privately to start a conversation and price points.

One thing that helped me with the "how much?" conversations was having a smaller, affordable option ready to mention. I sell a few postcard sets and small mounted prints alongside my regular work, so when someone balks at a full sized print price, I can point them toward something in their range. It keeps the door open instead of ending the conversation. And it means I never feel pressure to lower the price on work I spent real time with. The main pieces stay priced where they belong.

Hey! The fact that you're tracking the pattern (ask, answer, silence) instead of just grinding through it tells me you already know what the answer is.

Put the price on the post. Here's why the math works in your favor:

- The people who ghost after hearing the number were never going to buy. You're not losing sales by posting the price, you're losing conversations that end in nothing. That's free time back.

- Price in the caption pre-qualifies every DM you get. When someone messages you AFTER seeing $250 on the post, that conversation is real. They're asking about shipping, framing, or size options, not fishing.

- Sticker shock in a DM feels personal and awkward for both sides. Sticker shock in a caption is just scrolling past. Nobody feels rejected, nobody owes anyone a response.

- Frame the number with context so it lands right. "16x20 archival pigment print on cotton rag, $185, free shipping" tells a story. A naked number sitting next to a photo does not. Include the size, the medium, what's included (shipping, framing, certificate), and suddenly the price has something to lean on.

One more move worth trying: add a line like "original sold, limited edition of 25" or "only 3 left in this size" right next to the price. Scarcity next to a number changes how the number feels.

Want help writing a caption template that frames your prices the right way? I can draft a few for you right now.

Other resources you might find helpful:

- "Can you do better (on the price)? — Concrete strategies for handling price-negotiation requests without discounting, including anchoring to multi-piece sales and redirecting toward larger purchases.

- Pricing work for a venue that discounts without asking you — Directly addresses how to price prints when venues discount without permission, with concrete math on stacking venue cuts against your margin floor.

- What Arty Said! - May 22, 2026 11:19 AM — Shows how narrative framing, video content, and visual context (not just price) drive actual buyer inquiries and conversions for art sales.

Arty is our artist super-assistant. Trained on all things related to art business & marketing. use @arty in a post or comment to ask Arty directly. upvote & downvote to provide feedback.

The problem is that many don't expect to pay much at all for anything these days. Contributing factors are the everything for "free" crowd and the Chinese sellers who have flooded the markets with cheap crap–devaluing quality production. Another common occurrence is people who are never interested in buying, just curious as to what you are selling it for.

Here's the thing: when someone asks you directly "How much?", they are not art lovers, they just want to hang something in a place where they think it's... to empty. So: usually when people pop the question from the get go... they are "Walmart customers" which means that they are looking for something cheap, not for your art.

When people appreciate art, they first want to connect with it and with the artist, then they talk about "details" and usually... when the artist feels that the person is interested in the VALUE of the art, not the PRICE, then the negotiation goes towards the win-win outcome.

So: don't ever confuse value with price. And... whoever asks for the price first, is not your client, customer, fan and so on.

I would not advise it. You want people to move towards your website where they can actually purchase something. Listing your prices on social media funnels them away from the natural, progressive journey of making a purchase.

I used to buy and sell older, American made machinery from mostly school auctions. Some would just get cleaned, some totally refurbished. The refurbished ones were so well done that they looked like a piece of art. Some were rare, some 100+ years old. All were in working condition when I put them up for sale. I put a price on everything. It screens out people who can’t get the money from any source and no one skips over your listings because they assume you probably have a high price tag. There’s no guesswork. Everything is clearly spelled out. “If you want it, here’s the price”. Of course some people will try to negotiate, even if you state in every listing that your price is firm or not negotiable. I have sold several hundred items like that and fine tuned photos, descriptions and pricing. I have learned what to say, and what not to say. I believe that if you don’t show a price a high percentage of potentially interested people will never contact you.

As a newbie this is something I've been wondering,I've only sold 2 pieces and they were probably underpriced.

IMO social media inquiries are generally the beginning of a scam or spoof. I reply with my website if it is open.

Displaying a price on an e-commerce site, yes, that's what it's for, so the customer knows where they're headed. But on a promotions site, that seems rather ill-advised to me.