For a long time, art was considered a hobby. However, painting, drawing, sculpting, making jewelry, and creating wall decorations out of various materials has become a popular part or full-time business for many artists. With social media being a major contributor to this surge in art sales, many artists are able to turn their hobby into a profitable business. If you are an artist and would like to start a side business to share and sell your art, here are some tips for kick-starting the process.
Interact With Other Artists on Social Media
First and foremost, there is already an established art community on social media networks, including Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok. Artists use these platforms to share pictures of their work and tidbits from their personal lives. Some artists work full-time, and some hold down a day job and do art on the side. One artist may be a full-time sculptor and jewelry-maker, while another may be one of the 441,000 private school teachers in the United States. Social media allows artists to interact with one another and their customers. With so many mediums of art being created, many artists online promote one another to make sales.
Before launching your own business, start interacting with these artists. Like, comment, share, and retweet posts, and purchase some items, too, if you aren’t already immersed. Once you’re immersed in the art world on social media, gain a following of customers and artists alike on your own pages. Announce that you’d like to start selling your own art. Describe who you are, what medium you work with, and share pictures of your designs and craft. Once users start interacting with your posts, you’ll know you have a small following.
Create a Website Independently or Through a Reputable Platform
Once you’ve gathered some potential customers and a social media following, create a website either independently or through a platform. Keep in mind that building a website through a platform meant for small, independent businesses is helpful for tax purposes. Website creation allows you to be creative and organize it how you’d like. Your art can be bought through this website. Be sure to link all of your social media platforms to it as well so customers can continue to see your work and interact with you.
Start a Blog
If you have strong writing skills and are knowledgeable about art materials and/or art history, consider starting a blog on your website. For example, if you’re a painter, you could write a blog post about different kinds of paint or how to paint. You may include the dangers of lead in paint, which turns into invisible, toxic fumes at 900 to 1000 degrees Fahrenheit. You could create a video for individuals to follow during a paint-and-sip event. You could provide information on the history of art and the different mediums artists work with. Customers may be impressed by your knowledge and abilities and want to purchase your art.
Provide Tips for Art Decorating
Within a blog or as a separate tab on your website, you could also include tips for art decorating within the home. If you create wall decorations, such as paintings or jewelry holders, provide sample pictures to illustrate different ways they could be arranged on the wall. For example, the “rule of threes” applies to home decorating projects, as an odd number of art pieces on a wall is more eye-catching. You could share tips on how to match pieces of art with one another or how to decorate a room based on the art a person already has. If you’re an interior design buff, providing tips would likely be fun for you and informative for customers. Creating tutorials or how-tos with your art projects and sharing them may be something you’d be interested in doing as well.
Interact With Customers
Most importantly, interact with your customers. If a customer posts a picture of the artwork, jewelry, or other items they bought from you, retweet or share it and express your gratitude for their purchase. This lets customers know that you truly appreciate their business and that you want to get to know them, even if it is through Twitter or Instagram.
Reach Out to Other Artists for Marketing Purposes
To broaden your customer base, reach out to other artists on social media and ask them if they’d be willing to share your page on their platforms if you do the same for them. This way, all of their customers can see your work and possibly buy from you. The connectivity opportunities on social media are endless, so utilize the tools and individuals that can help you.
Running a side business is a lot of work and requires a lot of time interacting and sharing your art. Be prepared for the amount of effort it will take to build a customer base and make a profit. However, if you love art and want to share it with others, it may be well worth the dedication.
