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Guidelines for Selling Your Art
If you truly desire to sell your art as a for-profit business, then do not make
gifts of your art. No one (that is to say, NO ONE) will place a higher monetary
value on your art than you do. Even if someone was willing to pay $400 for a
giclee print, but they knew you were selling prints to your relatives for $65.00,
then that is all that customer will be willing to pay.
Or worse yet, if you are displaying your work in shows or galleries and your
collectors discover that you are selling your art, on the side, for hundreds less,
then they will not continue to buy at the higher price, and the gallery will
stop showing you.
If you want to donate a framed print for charitable purposes, then that of course
is a business decision.
If you are being inundated with donation requests, and you want to
respond favorably, then choose some specific work(s) and dedicate that print
edition to the donation aspect of your business. If you can sell some, that is OK,
but at least the galleries and collectors are aware that those particular prints
are serving that purpose.
Another way of donating without getting into the "give-it-away" dilemma,
is to advertise that the net profit (or a portion thereof) will be given to a
charity. Then you can maintain the higher price for your reproductions,
your collectors will still feel comfortable in investing in the art, and their
conscious will be refreshed because their purchase helped a charity.
You can alternate charities as necessary to fit the particular interests of the buyers.
If your prices have enough profit built in, you can provide incentives to generate sales:
If you do not have the print in stock at the show and if your prices are high
enough, offer "free" shipping in a tube . Stretched canvas is too complicated for
free shipping, but shipping an un-stretched canvas in a tube is good if you
have it built into your price. Be sure to collect in full at the show.
If you do not collect "in full", then you must collect enough to cover your
printing and packaging / shipping costs--even though shipping is "free". Do
not ship the art to the buyer until it is paid in full. You run the risk of never
seeing the money, plus you must manage tracking post-shipping payments as
well as sending multiple reminders to those who take months to remit: ix nay
on the "pay after shipment plan".
Concerning incentives to close a sale, remember how the music recording
companies offer bonus tracks on CD albums to encourage sales and to get the
artist's music published? You can offer an additional, different print at reduced
a price (this would be a print that is being used for that purpose, and your
collectors would not be offended to see it treated this way). If prints are used
as the buying incentive, then consider using a smaller matted print such as a
9x12 so your costs can easily be recovered.
Certainly you should not always be providing incentives, but if sales are slow,
low cost incentives are a good method of clinching the sale.
The print cost includes any cost that you incur to put the print
in the customer's hands: this includes buying the print, matting, framing,
and commissions paid to a gallery.
Other costs have to be considered such as your time, booth and show expenses,
and various other costs that are hard to figure but must eventually be
recovered. If, after expenses, you have at least doubled the money you
invested in selling the prints, then you are achieving what many other businesses
try to achieve.
If, after actually doubling your money, you do not feel that you are making
enough to justify your time, then the only wise thing to do is to increase your
prices. If sales drop because of the price increase, then you have to make a
decision whether the profits are worth the effort.
However, do not short-change yourself...
The value of your talent, your name, and the uniqueness of your art will allow
you to increase the price of your art, and buyers are willing to pay for
those attributes. As you see the demand for your art increase—original or
prints, you must likewise increase the price of your art. Otherwise, you
will find yourself unable to keep up with demand and you may burn out.
Once you have people seeking you your work, your prices will control how
much you sell—original or prints.
The most beautiful part of having a giclee print is that you can offer your
art in smaller sizes to fit the budget of anyone who may want to purchase the
image. Just make sure that your sizes are substantially smaller so the buyer
must make a deliberate choice between the small, medium, or large size.
Show yourself to be open and friendly. Be immediately available to the
people who look at your art. Introduce yourself. If you are painting while at the
show, let them watch you paint, but engage them in conversation. Do not allow
them to leave without spending individual time with them. Physically give
them a token (as opposed to relying on them to just pick it up) to take with
them which has your name, web site, etc., even if it is a brochure of your work.
Take them on a tour of your other work and try to discover a
connection between them and your art. Explain the meaning and significance
your work. Ask them what attracts them to a certain piece that they
seem particularly interested in. This will allow you to get feed-back for
future art ideas, and it also subtly generates some verbal commitment
from the potential buyer.
If they seem to want your art but are unwilling to buy, explain
that you sense they like the piece and ask if they would like to own it. If they
say yes, then find out what is keeping them from buying: it could be the
price, the effort of carrying it around, the wrong size, etc. It may be that
they will mention something that you are unwilling to change. If that occurs,
then make a counter offer.
For instance, let's pretend that they say the price is too high. Explain that
collectors are buying your work at that price and you are unable to reduce
it—i.e., truthfully explain your are unwilling because you are protecting someone
else's investment. In lieu of dropping the price, offer to throw-in another
print (one that you really do not mind unloading) for "x" dollars (like they
do at the store: buy one get the other half off—or something similar to that.)
There are a variety of other things that you may be able to offer instead
of prints. Just keep the overall cost in mind so that you are not giving
away your target profit margin.
If they do not want to carry the art around after purchase, then
offer to hold it for them during the show, or even ship it to them.
Do your homework ahead of time and get good estimates of packaging and
shipping costs that will need to be paid at the time of purchase. Add enough
to cover your time. If you spend a week prepping items to ship, that is a
week that you are not doing other activities.
If the print is too big or too small, then show them a different
size, if you choose to make different sizes available.
In almost every case, people come to art exhibits with a set amount that
they are willing to spend that day. If the money is not spent at your booth,
or on your art, it will be spent somewhere at the show. The artist who
becomes the profit-minded salesperson, who eliminates the buying
obstacles and connects the "looker" with the art is the winner.
Light your booth as much as possible. Display your best work within that
light. If lighting is limited, have at least one spot where the art can be moved
to for better viewing. If someone is interested in a certain piece, move the art
to that spot for them see.
If possible, drape neutral colors behind the displayed art to allow it to be
viewed without the distraction of a booth setting.
Make an attractive display of your prints. Shrink wrap them or bag them
against a cardboard backing. Use a liner to keep the print away from the
cardboard and create a good presentation.
Group your work, if possible, so that someone who is looking for flowers
does not have to look through marine life paintings to find them.
Label your displays if they are sectioned into groups so people can see the
variety of art that you offer. Plainly post a list of those groups so it can be
seen what type of art people (that are passing-by) can expect to find in your
booth. It may lure someone to your booth that may not think you have that
kind of art.
Make photos of awards and ribbons that you have earned and display them.
Plainly list any art leagues and associations that you belong to (such as NSA
and what allowed you to reach that achievement). Briefly mention them
as you conduct your tours.
Provide a flip-through portfolio/artist's diary for people who take an active
interest in your personal work (But attach it to the table with a sturdy—but
not gaudy—chain so it doesn't "walk-off").
Have interested lookers sign up for a prize drawing. Get them to provide
names , home / business postal addresses and email addresses. Yes, they
are signing up for the drawing, but in smaller letters in a very long
paragraph detailing how the winner(s) will be notified and other rules of
the drawing, they are agreeing that you may contact them by either email
or regular mail.
Use your disposable income to initially promote your business.
Then, as your business
grows, begin using the profits you've gained to
finance your business needs
such as art shows you might attend, booth
spaces that you might rent,
advertising, etc.
The point is this: Continually evaluate the investments of your disposable
income and art-sales profits, and do not (i.e., never) stack charges against
credit cards that will carry lingering balances.
After the the darkest days of England's history, Winston Churchhill visited
Harrow School to hear the school's songs he had sung there as a youth. During
the speech that followed, he told the students that they should not use
the words "darker days" within their song, but rather change the words
to "sterner days" (which the school did per his suggestion). Within the body
of his speech he told the students, "Never give in. Never give in. Never, never,
never, never--in nothing, great or small,
large or petty--never give in, except
to convictions of honor and good sense."
And so it is with all endeavors, great or small. You, like others who
push-out
into the business world, will face your "darker" days. Your emotions will
tell you to quit. You may be secretly saying that it will never work. But in your
heart you must allow your convictions and good sense determine your actions.
As Churchhill said, the days are "stern", but do not think of them as "dark" where
there is no hope of success.
Attitude: It is the root and foundation of every
long-term successful endeavor that has ever been accomplished.
Legacy Fine Art Printers
Legacy Fine Art Printers
P.O. Box 0538
Texas City , Texas 77592-0538
Fax: 1-409-515-1403
Questions?
Call or email:
George Roberts
(I do not do posts on web sites,
so if you see my name out there, it isn't me.)
George@LegacyFineArtPrinters.com
We are open Monday though Friday.
10 am to 5 pm CST
The office phone rolls over to one of our cell phones in case we are away from the office.
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