Do you want to become a professional artist and sell art online? Every artist asks himself, at a certain point in his artistic path, how to sell his artworks, and how to promote his work on the market. We can discuss for hours about the definition of a professional artist, and the most common definition is that it is such a person who is able to sell his works and who can pay back with its revenue not only the expenses related to his work but also those related to his living.

Sell art online: This is your turn

If you want to sell your works, you should know the market that will appreciate your works. To reach the market and find interested customers, the works in question must be beautiful, significant, original, interesting, fascinating, for that range of costumers. This is the ideal condition, but you don’t need all these qualities at once, since from the beginning, of course. Still these prerequisites alone are not enough to be able to make sells : you also need to be able to place your work on the market. Today we talk about the artist’s sale phase: How should a painter move to sell his works?

1- Fear Of Selling Your Work: Let’s Get Over It

Selling means making money. But it also means exposing yourself. For most artists making this first step is difficult. It requires courage to expose themselves and accept possible criticisms. It is quite different than exposing your artworks in your workshop or to your friends and family. Putting a value on your work, giving it a price and showing it to the glances, criticisms, and possibile rejections of the public it’s on a different level of exposing yourself. To this fear of exhibition, in many cases, is added our personal affection for our own works. Yes, sometimes our works are particularly dear to us: in this case, we must remember that nobody forces us to sell what we don’t want and that other people’s opinion is …still just an opinion! Again, other times there may be thoughts of not being worthy enough to sell your paintings: “My artwork is beautiful to be given as a gift but not beautiful enough to be sold (and bought)!” But if behind your work there are commitment, talent, and feelings, they can have the chance of being paid. And finally, give up the idea for which art has nothing to do with selling. You don’t draw, you don’t paint, you don’t sculpt for money. But it is also true that, if no one had paid – much or little – for their work, today we would have practically no Leonardo Da Vinci, no Raphael, no Monet.

Sell art online: Which is your client?

2- Sell Your Work With The Customer In Mind

If you’re finally ready to sell your artwork, you need now to know your audience. Who is interested in your work? And how many of these potential admirers of your style can turn into buyers? You have to realize that even if many people like art, only a few will really appreciate your work at the beginning, considering by that only those who will be inclined to take out their wallets for getting one of your piece of art. You might think that the collectors you have to watch for, are rich people of a certain age with whom you may find it difficult to get in touch. Well, that’s not so: statistically speaking, in fact, your potential art buyers are an ever growing portion of Millennials and Generation Y people. According to a US Trust survey, in fact, those born between 1980 and 2000 are very quickly forming a new and interesting class of collectors, with a growth of 67% compared to 46% of Generation Y and 19% of Baby Boomers (who, however, it must be said, still make up 44% of the total number of collectors).

3- Difference Between Selling Original Works And Selling Reproductions

When you think about selling your works online, you probably refer to the original works of art. There is also another possibility: Think outside the box to sell art online: Your work could also be good for creating prints and merchandising. You can think about creating limited edition prints, on canvas or paper, with or without a frame. Then you can spread your art through various merchandising, from caps to shopper bags: when you have formed a certain fan base, you can sell personalized original works. Now that you have created the necessary public you may want to sell – at a high price – even your real originals.

Sell art online: Spread your art through various merchandising products

4-Portals To Sell Paintings Online : Choose the best ones for art.

Etsy: It’s one of the most famous portals dedicated to crafts, vintage and art. It allows you to display your works online, counting on a wide range of interested kind of publications and it also let you deal directly with your customers. All this will happen also, in a very fast way, it should be pointed out. Artfinder: It is specialized, as its name suggests, in online art sales, this portal is very popular and attracts a large audience of collectors. It is a huge online gallery, representing artists to customers. In this case, you don’t sell directly to the customer, and Artfinder – which has every possible interest in promoting your work – will hold about a third of the revenue. Rise Art: Another online gallery is Rise Art, which can be accessed after a careful selection made by the curators. This selection at the entrance guarantees a high quality of the works present on this portal, and users who navigate on these pages know that very well! One important thing: Rise Art does not require exclusivity. Saatchi Art: very similar to Rise Art, this platform selects artists and does not require exclusivity. Here there is an important deduction from your earnings too, always about a third of the revenue.

Conclusions

Start selling art online is one of the most frightening but also rewarding experience you can make as a modern artist. It requires guts but with these tips I hope you’ll be a little bit more ready to make this important step of your career :D! If you found useful this article on sell art online, I recommend you also this one: “Growth hacking for artists: 5 steps that you urge to know to turn your social image in a professional one” Now go get the world, Tiger!