Sarah Edmonds looks at selling art online with a case study on artist and illustrator Sarah Wimperis.
How do you get your artwork in front of the people who want to buy it? Well the good news is that there are more channels available than ever before and there are still buyers out there.
Selling from your website
Whatever stage you are at in your career, your own website is an essential tool for commercialising your practice. Think of your website as a studio tour: people can see your artwork and learn about you and your practice. You’ll need to consider carefully how to represent yourself – you’re in it for the long term, after all.
Blackthorn and Daffodils, 30 March 2020, oil on board, (15x20cm) by Sarah Wimperis
A good starting point for your ‘brand’ (you) is to answer a few key questions: What is your niche? Who are you customers? How will they find you? Designing and maintaining a website requires an understanding of Search Engine Optimisation (SEO), payment protection, online advertising such as Google Ads and e-commerce, particularly if you are selling originals alongside prints, cards or books.
Artist websites are heavily focused on visual elements – presenting your work in the best possible light, through a portfolio, gallery or catalogue. It’s obvious to say, but beautiful photography will sell your work. Invest in high-quality imagery including headshots and studio shots.
Should you have pricing on your website? Yes ideally, unless you are working with a gallery and it competes with their pricing structure. Regularly update your pages with your latest work and invest some time in your Artist Statement. This is different from a CV or biography and explores your motivation, philosophy and body of work. It is an important communiqué between the artist and the public and speaks of your core truths.
Specialist industry software
There are software packages built specifically for artists: Artlogic, ArtLook and ArtGalleria are a few. Many enable artists to set up a print-on-demand function that offers an affordable option for buyers and a potentially passive income for artists.
ArtLook offers inventory management, video and image storage, exhibition submission records, editioning options, buyer contacts, sales records and a complete website design service to incorporate all of these functions.
Online galleries and marketplaces
Whether to sell work through a gallery is a personal choice for every artist; some benefit from the support of a gallery, others prefer to go it alone. The choice of online galleries point to established communities such as Saatchi Art and Artfinder, with excellent new alternatives like Partnership Editions and Oliver Projects.
Online marketplaces are the ideal place to start if you are new to selling your work online and are a stepping stone to larger galleries. PaintersOnline Studio membership offers a commission-free platform and a lively community. Choose from different packages, create your artist profile and list your art for sale quickly and easily. Membership costs as little as £3.50 per month and exposes your work to thousands of art lovers, plus you can still build a direct relationship with your buyers.
You can also benefit from Sarah's video advice on selling your artwork as part of your Studio TV.
Etsy started life as a crafts and vintage platform, but is increasingly used as a shopfront for artists selling less expensive works. The small 5% per cent commission fee is attractive and has proved successful for some.
Social media
It’s no surprise that engagement dramatically increased on all channels during the covid lockdown. Facebook and LinkedIn have seen activity rise by 50% (Buffer, May 2020). If you’re keen to ‘get eyes’ on your work – now is the time! There is no doubt social media is an amazing way to connect but is it worth all the effort? Yes is the short answer, but stay focused and don’t spread yourself too thinly.
It’s worth noting that the algorithms can shape your success; Instagram suggests that the more you engage, the higher up you will appear in the feed, the more followers you will get and the faster you will grow. In short, you have to be active on the platforms – galleries and collectors will not simply come to you. Connecting and collaboration is key.
Thanks to Matthew Burrows and a legion of global artists, #Artistsupportpledge is an example of viral success. His initiative hit the perfect note of solidarity and commerce via digital media. Social commerce itself has grown exponentially – 2021 trends predict ‘shopping for entertainment’ with customers spending more time on social media than watching television; 87 per cent of shoppers believe social media helps them make shopping decisions (Smart Insights 2020) and this includes art. With that in mind, you may also want to consider social media advertising.
Case Study – Sarah Wimperis
Artist and illustrator Sarah Wimperis has been selling tiny oils called ‘Daily Survival Paintings’, all created within 1.5 miles of her home in Cornwall. They are sold via social media for as little as £25. Over the course of her career, Sarah has seen considerable changes in the way art is consumed. ‘People are growing in confidence, in their own personal taste, as well as buying art online. I think it is the result of so much artwork being online for everyone to see.
‘It used to be that people were only comfortable buying from a gallery, but now galleries must now act like a matchmaker and they have to be really interested in their clients as well as their artists. I have recently left all my galleries as I wanted to have more control and was fed up with the commission structure. I also wanted a closer relationship with how I sold and marketed my work and with my buyers. I wanted my paintings to be affordable.'
Sarah Wimperis
Q: What platforms do you use to sell your work online?
A: My actual sales are all through my website. I ‘advertise’ on my Facebook Page, Sarah Wimperis Paintings, as well as my own Facebook page, Instagram (@szwimperisart) and occasionally through my Twitter account.
Q: What have you found has been most successful?
A: My Facebook page, as my demographic of likers and buyers has been the older person who is more likely to use Facebook. Lately, due to my daily painting, I have attracted a lot of younger buyers through Instagram.
Q: Do you sell a mixture of originals and prints?
A: I do, but my Daily Survival Paintings have outstripped my prints by miles. I now only sell prints framed; they are far more likely to sell if they are the complete package that can go straight onto the wall.
Q: Are people happy to buy without seeing the paintings?
A: That has been the great thing about selling small affordable originals online. A painting always looks much better in real life so once someone has taken the first step, they love it in real life! It is all about building trust in your work and your packaging (that is important) and your relationship with collectors.
Buying online is an introduction to owning and collecting art and Sarah is developing a collectors’ club as a result of this new trend. As an ambassador for ArtLook, she extols its benefits, ‘ArtLook is the key in enabling me to update my website with new work on a daily basis, plus mark it as sold almost instantly – it takes me eight seconds! I also have a record of my work over the past seven years and all the sales I have made.”
About Sarah Edmonds
Sarah is the marketing manager for Pegasus Art and a freelancer supporting creatives and fine artists. Sarah studied a short course at the Slade School of Fine Art and has a degree from Chartered Institute of Marketing. www.sarahedmonds-marketing.com
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