Art sales opportunities for creators were severely restricted in the past. I was unable to find any niche or specialised art sales websites. In order to sell your artwork, you must first find a means to interact with potential buyers face to face. This may take the form of a formal exhibition, a more impromptu sale, or even a stroll down the street.
Now more than ever, artists can reach a global audience of art enthusiasts by posting and selling their creations on the World Wide Web. The Zyro website builder is only one example of how artists can sell their work online. This article is for you if you’re a creator or curator who wants to make money by selling artwork online.
Reasons to Promote Online Art Sales
In reality, things created from artistic endeavours are highly prized by consumers. This market segment will continue to exist as long as people need to decorate their homes and workplaces and/or make their own works of art.
In reality, the value of the worldwide art market increased by $2 billion, to $63.7 billion, in 2017. By 2024, the value of the online art business is predicted to rise to $9.58 billion annually. The United States, Great Britain, and China are home to the world’s largest art marketplaces. There is a variety of artistic wares available for your selection.
Every type of art material imaginable, from paint to canvases to kid-friendly stickers, is available in bulk here. Art can be broken down into a wide variety of subgenres. Landscape, floral, urban, coastal, and human subjects are just some examples. You can appeal to more people by splitting them up into these categories.
The next step, after deciding what kind of art to sell, is to plan how to sell it. Most artists choose to sell their work through an online gallery or marketplace.
No matter what method you choose to sell your art online, you will still need a website where interested buyers can find you, learn about your work, and make a purchase. Therefore, opening an online store is a necessary first step for any type of business.
Discussion on the Benefits and Drawbacks of Selling Artwork Online
The decision to sell artwork online requires careful consideration, as does each other move you make toward establishing yourself as a professional artist. The benefits and drawbacks of joining an online gallery are outlined below.
PROS:
You can reach more people.
When you sell art online, it means you can meet people from other states and countries. Plus, you can reach a whole new group of people.
Online stores and marketplaces make it possible for buyers who don’t like the intimidating atmosphere of galleries to find art. Now, buyers can start a collection without leaving their homes.
This is your chance to reach people who haven’t bought art before. This is good for you and the art market as a whole.
Using more than one way to market
Online art promotion is a one-time investment. Traditional methods are more expensive than using your own website to show off art galleries, social media, or curators to promote your art.
When you sell art on your own website, you have to work hard every day. You need to promote your latest work on social media sites like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest. You can keep potential buyers interested by writing a blog or a newsletter.
You can also use online art galleries to sell your work by putting up ads on those sites. Some online art galleries have spent millions of dollars to try to get more people to visit their websites.
Even though they often work with thousands of artists, a good website can show your work to buyers who are interested in it without you having to do anything.
Supplement Your Income
Let’s face it: it’s not easy to make a living as an artist. Even seasoned artists have trouble making the same amount of money every month. You can make more money by selling copies of art online.
In a traditional gallery or art show, you have to rent space every time you want to show art. You also don’t have the freedom of time, because you can only show your work in the rented space for a certain amount of time.
Most of the time, the commissions for online galleries are much lower than those for galleries that are in real places. At the low end, it can be 1-5%, and at the high end, it can be 10%. Websites can do this because they have less money to spend on running their business.
But if you’re selling your art through galleries, don’t think they’re less important than they are. It’s important to get along well with the people who help you sell your art.
CONS:
Lack of personal connections
If you leave sales up to an online store or marketplace, you won’t be able to get to know the buyer on a personal level. If you leave sales up to an online store or marketplace, you won’t be able to get to know the buyer on a personal level. You don’t talk to the buyer much, if at all.
One way to turn buyers into repeat customers and collectors is to build relationships with them. This is especially true for art sales, since artworks always show how the artist feels, what they value, and how they want to be seen.
Competition that is tough
Many people who shop online want to pay less. Alan Bamberger, an expert in the field, says that the average price at which online art is sold is between $300 and $1,200. Most sales are between $2000 and $3000. Many people who buy things online don’t care if they are real.
Shoppers are happy to buy a print of an artist’s work if they like it. Even though a numbered canvas print might be worth more than an original, it won’t be as much. But as time goes on, you can raise your prices while building a good name for yourself. Then you’ll have buyers and collectors who love your work and respect your brand.
How to Sell Art on the Internet
Running an online storefront might take up some of your free time, but it can be a great way to reach more people and find a hungry audience if you have a clear idea of how to market your business and what to do to boost sales.
Find your “niche”
Before you start selling art online, it’s a good idea to find your target market and a style that makes your work stand out from others’. This will show potential clients what you’re good at and who you are as an artist.
It may take a lot of time to choose from a lot of different art styles, but you will have a better chance of being successful if you choose fewer styles, media, or themes and work in a niche market.
Find a good market
Online marketplaces that specialise in buying and selling art are a good way to sell art online. Etsy is a well-known online market for crafts, prints, and other unique items made by artists and creatives. Through an online dashboard, you can keep track of your Etsy lists and orders, talk to buyers, and buy and print postage.
One of the best things about Etsy for business owners is that you can take advantage of the platform’s large customer base. In 2018, there were almost 39.45 million buyers, so you’ll have to do less work to bring in customers.
It also means that the market is very crowded, which makes it hard for your listings to show up in search results, especially if you don’t already have an audience or sales.
When putting art up for sale in this market, there are a lot of things to think about. Knowing a lot about SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and keyword research will get you off on the right foot. Even for people who have never sold art before, the site has a pretty high success rate. Artists have used the platform to make thousands of dollars.
Open up your own shop
If you don’t have a website or online art store but don’t want to sell your work on a third-party market, you can use platforms like Shopify to sell your work on your own website.
As was already said, having your own website is still important. Your website’s design should show off your artistic style and give potential buyers and fans a chance to see your work. It should be a virtual representation of your brand and show off your best work.
Know what it’s worth and how to price it.
Since you’re an artist, you’d rather be in your studio. You can always pay someone to take care of your website or social media, but only you can decide how much to charge. Most of the time, getting started is the hardest part, but this is just the start.
It’s important to research different ways to price your art so that you don’t undervalue or overvalue it. If you’re just starting out and have never sold your work before, you might find it helpful to start with a rule for how to price your art and change it as your business grows.
After you’ve made a few sales, you’ll know for sure if your price is right. You’ll find a way to set a price that works for you, and it won’t take too much work. Your prices will go up soon.
Sell Legally
If you want to sell art online, you need to know, understand, and follow the laws and rules about the sale, trade, and purchase of art. The other side of the equation is the right to know about your own intellectual property. Do you know what to do if you find someone selling your work as their own on the Internet?
If you want to sell legally and punish people who steal your work, you need to know how to sell art online. There are a lot of online resources and free legal advice for artists, like the Business and IP Centre at the British Library and ArLaw. A-N Insurance is also a great site for finding information.
Sell Art Supplies
People always want to buy art supplies. People have always bought things like charcoal, watercolour paints and brushes, easels, and canvases for work and fun. When you open your own art store with a specific focus, you can make money from this very popular market.
Just like any other niche market, selling art supplies can help you make more money if you know how to sell them. If you buy art supplies from the right company, you can make as much money as you can imagine.
If you want to focus more on selling your art than on getting art supplies, you might want to use dropshipping, a method of distribution that only requires a computer and an Internet connection, so you can spend more time on your art.
Dropshipping doesn’t need you to rent a warehouse to store your products. You just need to choose what art supplies to sell on your store from dropshipping sourcing platforms like AliExpress. You can see how this dropshipping business model could be profitable with the right products and plan.
Dropship Corporation: It’s Easy to Dropship Art
But things can get harder if you don’t take care of business tasks in a timely manner. Your online brand can be ruined by having the wrong list of products, the wrong way to package them, or low-quality products. No one can take on all of these responsibilities on their own.
So you need dropshipping tools like Dropship Corporation to take care of the “busy work” of selling your art. Dropship Corporation can help you find the right technology solutions for your business, whether you run an independent online art supply store or work in a mature market.
Dropship Corporation’ order fulfilment service can help your art dropshipping business because orders are processed automatically with just a few clicks. Also, the Dropship Corporation Supplier finder feature can help you find better suppliers on AliExpress that you can trust. Your online store’s best campaign is always the one with the best products.
Last Word
You can make the kind of art you want to make and still make a good living from it. You can sell art online directly to your fans and reach a new group of people who might want to buy it.
You can get rid of the middlemen and be the only one who sells your art. Online art sales have a lot of potential, and there are a lot of ways to use the Internet if you are smart and careful.
