Make money from your hobby - 8 Pro tips to Sell Art Online

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There exists a preconceived notion that it’s difficult to sell art and let alone make a living with art.

But that’s not entirely true! Selling Art is now easier than ever before.

With rapid technological advancements, artists have greatly benefited from presenting their work to a larger audience. Online selling allows people to buy and sell artwork from across the globe.

Making money from a hobby might sound like a difficult idea, but it’s not impossible for artists like Maria Qamar. She quit her advertising career to become an artist. The journey to her success was arduous, but she made it.

Another great example is Ken Harman, an artist and a successful entrepreneur who has built his empire from his art. The name of his empire goes by the Spoke Art empire. From being an outsider in the industry to selling limited editions online to add value to the art, it is a journey that Ken Harman can never forget.

But, online art selling comes with numerous advantages such as easy setup, a global market, and easy marketing. Also, you can connect to your customers on different marketing channels, interact with them, share work, ideas, art pieces, and more.

Selling your artwork online will give you a unique sense of accomplishment with every dollar you earn.

You can use these pro tips to sell your art online and make you a star in the community.

8 Pro Tips to Sell Art to Online Buyers

At some point, all professional artists have asked themselves, "How can I sell more of my work? Selling your artwork is a necessity for those who seek careers as professionals.

That is unless you are best friends with a gallery owner. Just like you, it's not the case for many people.

Listed below are some tips for artists who want to sell their art online.

1. What type of art will you sell? Authentic or Reproductions? Take A pick!

Your online art sales success relies on identifying your style - authentic or reproductions. Where reproduction means, you will serve as middlemen for other artists on the Internet and be paid a percentage of what they sell.

Speaking from experience, you have a much greater chance of success if you focus on one particular style, authentic or reproduction. Take a pick! Your pick is essential in ensuring your artwork stands out from the crowd. In this way, you can reflect your personality and identify what sets you apart from the competition.

2. How will you make your prints? Photo printing or Digitalization?

As an artist, you have many ways to sell your art online and the form you wish to sell it in. You can sell it in the form of a photo print or a digitalized manner. Although gaining an online audience can be challenging at first, you can utilize a couple of easy tools to market your website successfully.

But by selling digital downloads of your art online, you significantly reduce the shipping cost. Your work can be sold in printed form or as digital downloads.

3. The right pricing - can be a game-changer

Another critical factor to consider when selling your art online is its pricing. You will have to research various ways to price your artwork, but make sure you don't underprice or overprice it.

Price is a crucial factor to consider, especially if you are just beginning your career as an artist. Don’t just attempt to pull a number out of thin air. Instead, price your art considering your work and the market. After you start selling your work at an initial price, you can adjust it as you progress.

4. Start your own art online store

Whether you intend to sell your work in a gallery or elsewhere, it is vital to have an online store. An online store/website helps showcase your artistic style as a marketing tool for potential buyers and fans. You can think of it as your virtual representation.

Through an online store, you can sell your artistic products online quickly. The main advantage of owning an online art store means you will need to manage pre-sales and post-sales activities that will aid you in running a successful business.

5. Explore other platforms to sell online

The artist's ability to sell their work was pretty limited when there was no internet or no such trend of selling creative handicraft items online. But, now that there is internet everywhere, artists can now share and sell their work to buyers worldwide.

Unlike before, today, we have many online marketplaces and social networks where you sell your art. These places are Etsy, Cafepress, eBay, Artfinder, and UGallery. These platforms already have a large clientele looking for art pieces for sale. So you will have no problem finding a buyer.

6. Collaborate with influencers and other artists

An essential aspect of selling art online is artwork marketing for all artists.

If you have new art you've created or are in the process of designing, tell people about it via social media platforms like blogs, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or even TikTok. You can also get in touch with some influencers to promote your artwork.

But, it’s essential to realize that self-promotion does not always result in sales. Instead, put yourself in your audience's shoes by revealing who you are as an artist. In turn, people will feel more comfortable and trust you as an artist.

7. Claim Copyrights! and Protect your work from Plagiarism

The copyright claim is one of the most difficult challenges you will face in protecting your art from potential threats. Many artists’ claims about their designs have been copied on several marketplaces and specific websites.

So, it’s a better choice not to let anyone else copy your art pieces and protect your design. As a process of selling your products online, it’s important to select trusted marketplaces and third-party sellers.

Keeping your work free of plagiarism is crucial because it increases trust between you and your customers.

8. Market Your Brand - Ad campaigns, word of mouth, content, and more

Spreading your online art business requires expanding your contacts, conversing with people, and treating them with respect. You can use media (Magazine and Newspapers) to promote your online business. Another great way is to have a business card given to your friends and neighbors, put on public bulletin boards, and slipped into relevant magazines.

In addition to reaching out to the audience offline, online methods are equally important. Apart from marketing your art on social media, use Google Adwords to expand your reach. By doing this, you will always appear at the top of any search engine results.

Wrapping Up

Hopefully, you can start your online store and make money with your hobby with these tips.

But before we part our ways, just remember the best way to sell artwork is to be patient and have good communication skills. It is essential to establish yourself as an artist. Participate in open studios, gallery openings, and other similar events and understand other community members.

Don't wait any longer. Set up your online store with an eCommerce platform and start selling online in India or anywhere in the world.

Binay Jha has more than two decades of experience in the software development industry. Initially in web development later expertized in digital marketing, working for Ait Softwares - offers Website Making