Alyice on February 25th, 2008

Selling Your Art

I’ve got a ways to go before I’m good enough for gallery showings, but I’m not so bad that I couldn’t sell a few things on my own. I’ve actually been doing a little research and discovered that there are several ways to sell arts and crafts these days and none of them require leaving the house—which for an introvert like me is great news!

I’d always thought I’d have to lug a bunch of supplies and projects from one craft show to another and I just couldn’t see myself doing it. First, it would feel completely uncomfortable and second, I always feel so bad for the ones who don’t seem to sell their products. (Not saying I’d never do it, because I think it could be a great way to make friends in the industry and a few contacts along the way.)

Justin Clayton, Artist

Meet Justin

Justin Clayton Artist

Buy Justin’s Art

Then I met up with Justin Clayton and learned that one could make a nice living selling paintings online by creating a following through daily blog posts, a regularly updated website, media coverage, and an eBay store. Now that sounded like my cup of tea!

For almost eight years I’ve been working the Internet to sell my e-books and gain exposure for my free online magazine, surely I could use the same techniques for developing a following with my art and photography projects! But what made Justin so successful I wondered?

After interviewing Justin I discovered that his success didn’t come over night. First, he had to fine-tune his creative talent through daily study and painting. Second, he had to get a better understanding of how the Internet worked and what was needed to succeed as a business. Third, he had to set up his business website and his blog and open up an eBay shop. Fourth, he had to find a way to get the word out about all three. And finally, he had to commit to painting and blogging every single day. Of course this is an oversimplification of the process, but you get the idea.

As I thought long and hard about his tips for success, I realized that there’s two areas I need to work on before I could even consider promoting my art and photography and that’s fine-tuning my skills and creating something every single day.

Justin paints for three hours every single day. With my full load, I’m lucky if I get an hour in to paint or create photographic images. Yes, if I want to succeed in art and photography, I am going to have to make some changes. In the meantime, I think I’ll check out the eBay listings, Esty, Yessy, and a few online shops to see what’s really selling out there.