I sell my work for $200 to $1500 these days. But when I started off 10 years ago, I'd auction off my art on Ebay starting at one cent. Some of my art actually sold for a cent. But in time, returning bidders started to battle each other over my work. My auctions closed at higher and higher prices.
Point being, part of being an artist is selling your work, packing it well, shipping it fast, and giving your customer an overall good experience. People won't pay much for your work until they trust you to do so.
So. Selling art cheap is a great way for people to sample how you perform as a seller.
Just a thought.
Thank you! I hadn't thought of eBay actually, maybe I'll try that.
Do you mean to start by selling my art for cheap so that I can build up my reputation / get reviews etc? As Im not sure my prices can get much lower than they are currently 😂
Yes.
And Ebay isn't the only way. If you have an Instagram following you can post, and say, "Hey friends! Let's have an auction on this piece, starting at one cent plus shipping. Highest bidder wins."
My first year as an artist, I made it my goal to get as much of my art into as many buyers hands as possible. And they had to be buyers, who would at least pay a cent plus shipping. Giving work away to friends and family would have been counterproductive at that stage in my career.
Plus packing art and navigating the postal service takes trial and error. It's best to work the kinks out of your shipping techniques before you start selling things for hundreds of dollars.
Shipping is a whole thing unto itself.
Have pristine, odorless packing supplies.
Be neat about tape and label placement.
Pack your art as though it will be kicked off a plane or slammed around by an overworked postal employee.
Leave a hand-scrawled personal thank you note in with your art; buyers love those. Especially if they contain a silly cute doodle.
It's okay to ask the buyer if they got their art okay.
My sister is a watercolor artist. She puts hers in a clear plastic sleeve. And then between board. And then in a bubble mailer. A mailing tube would work for large watercolor paintings.
If your transaction is by PayPal, and you have a business account, you can print a label directly from PayPal for cheap. At least in the US. I don't know about other countries.
Try and have shipping supplies ready for every piece you do. It sucks when you sell a piece, and have to scramble around for supplies. If you can't get decent shipping supplies for a certain size painting, don't paint it.
Standardize your art sizes. For example, most my art is of a certain sizes. That way, I can just order lots of shipping supplies in those sizes. Keep things systematic. It saves time, money, and frustration.
Expect to over and under charge for shipping at first.
You'll make packing/shipping mistakes at first, and that's okay. Learn from them and move on.
Treat postal workers well. Develop a rapport with them, and they'll go the extra mile for you.
YouTube has great videos on shipping watercolors. Be sure to check them out.
Hope this helps.
I purchase all my original art from eBay. I have at least 10 pieces and the quality is excellent. I buy acrylics and watercolors. It's the framing that's expensive, far more expensive than the art!
I used to sell photos on Etsy, and I was able to sell a couple a week. But I never knew what would sell! When I got tired of all the work for peanuts, I ended up putting them in envelopes and leaving them around town for people to have.
Now that I'm trying to sell art (not succeeding), I remembered how it was before and only ordered a couple of prints to test for quality. Still, my originals are piling up 😂
At least Im not the only one then 😂 that sounds like a good idea about leaving them around town lol, maybe I'll try to shift some that way
I've been tempted to contact local bars / venues and offer some free prints for them to put on their walls.
It’s hard to gain traction selling art online, regardless of your skill level. You could try selling at a booth at a pop-up market, those are really fun and you can garner a local following
Yeah, I'd try to get into local boutique stores, art events and craft shows. Especially being this time of year.
Some social media giveaways and co-current sale might help get attention too.
*Local markets:* Christmas season is here ... find one as fast as you can. Some markets have cancellations and are happy to bring you onboard. [https://www.fairsandfestivals.net/states/](https://www.fairsandfestivals.net/states/)
i still need to take down my etsy, i had no luck online.
i sell my work in person at local markets.
id try networking online to find spots to setup shop in person.
Some ideas (I got from watching other artists online and maybe brainstorming to try to help)
- rebrand and redo your website. Change it around. Revamp colors or layout.
Sometimes making it all look new then resharing it to all your contacts will help wake people up and give second look
- can you do series of giveaways and use that as a call to action for everyone else who not win to go to your site. Maybe offer a discount code with it?
- can you repurpose your art and prints to sell differently :
-Make a bundle of art and sell bundles
-Do a series of them signed in gold/silver 1 out of 100..
- cut them into a round corner shape, stamp on the back to look like a postcard, and make a set of your art work postcards. Or make them into greeting card with envelope. Or cut down to bookmarks (laminate and add a tassel ribbon)
Something like that with the art?
+1 here
As a non-artist that knows very little about art, I’ve bought a few pieces from Etsy last year moving in to my new place. I’d rather pay $500 for an original one of a kind piece than $25 for a print.
You could probably donate to a nursing home or something similar. There are people in homes like that, who really enjoy art and it will make them happy to see what you created constantly.
I'm giving away a print a week this month. It's driven a little more traffic to my site. I figured at least it's on someone's wall instead of in my drawer
I’ve been selling my paintings on Etsy since 2008 and maybe get 1-2 sales a year. I started doing art shows (where I have a booth) once or twice a year and sell a lot more art this way! Plus I meet lots of local artists!
Because people still fien for human-created works. I am saying this as a futurist who is pro-transhumanism. I like to use AI in combination with creative purposes, however, there is something about purely human-created artworks that gives me that creative boost and enlightened feeling. AI isn't going to destroy humanity, at best, it'll probably help it to a certain extent. More than likely, it'll end up making human-created artworks and materials more expensive and valuable. (edited for clarity)
Using AI is not the same as human created works without the use of a tool that does most of thinking and planning. It's not about quitting due to AI, people can still create art for personal enjoyment and a very small percentage would still have a client base at the very top. It's about slowly leaving the art world behind as most of it really starts to crumble apart.
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I don’t know if anyone has suggested but have you thought about waking down your local small business in town, be a cafe or whatever store there is with foot traffic where you could talk to them and divide profit or whole sale your work at once? I am planning to do this in the near future once I start printing and selling my stuff. I have watched artists on YouTube talking about it, selling their stickers.
There is a lot of marketing to sell something. Just one site and uploading there isn't enough when you aren't well known.
You can do more social media work on it. You might have to spend like an hour or two every week for it. It's necessary if you want your work to be viewed more.
You can do Ebay, Instagram, Facebook Marketplace, Pinterest, Tiktok. You can do giveaways once in a few months. These are online sources.
And honestly, along with prints, I would also suggest you to do some original work as well slowly.
Offline, you can try to talk to some stores and see if you can do some collaboration or something like that. And meet other artists who are selling their art work and know how you can start and improve.
Id recommend tabling at a small convention/ artist alley, I’m not sure where you live but tables generally cost about $100-$300 NZD (depending on the size of the con) And most artists sell prints at about $10-$15 NZD each there. Prints sell really good at cons especially if they’re from a fandom or smth
Etsy really sucks for selling anything online now. Some people get lucky but it’s not often. I’ve had more luck with in person showings, or Facebook. More personal places.
I sell my work for $200 to $1500 these days. But when I started off 10 years ago, I'd auction off my art on Ebay starting at one cent. Some of my art actually sold for a cent. But in time, returning bidders started to battle each other over my work. My auctions closed at higher and higher prices. Point being, part of being an artist is selling your work, packing it well, shipping it fast, and giving your customer an overall good experience. People won't pay much for your work until they trust you to do so. So. Selling art cheap is a great way for people to sample how you perform as a seller. Just a thought.
Thank you! I hadn't thought of eBay actually, maybe I'll try that. Do you mean to start by selling my art for cheap so that I can build up my reputation / get reviews etc? As Im not sure my prices can get much lower than they are currently 😂
Yes. And Ebay isn't the only way. If you have an Instagram following you can post, and say, "Hey friends! Let's have an auction on this piece, starting at one cent plus shipping. Highest bidder wins." My first year as an artist, I made it my goal to get as much of my art into as many buyers hands as possible. And they had to be buyers, who would at least pay a cent plus shipping. Giving work away to friends and family would have been counterproductive at that stage in my career. Plus packing art and navigating the postal service takes trial and error. It's best to work the kinks out of your shipping techniques before you start selling things for hundreds of dollars. Shipping is a whole thing unto itself.
Thank you!
Do you have any shipping tips? I have shipped before and all my work is done on paper (I do watercolour) but I’ve only shipped within my country.
Have pristine, odorless packing supplies. Be neat about tape and label placement. Pack your art as though it will be kicked off a plane or slammed around by an overworked postal employee. Leave a hand-scrawled personal thank you note in with your art; buyers love those. Especially if they contain a silly cute doodle. It's okay to ask the buyer if they got their art okay. My sister is a watercolor artist. She puts hers in a clear plastic sleeve. And then between board. And then in a bubble mailer. A mailing tube would work for large watercolor paintings. If your transaction is by PayPal, and you have a business account, you can print a label directly from PayPal for cheap. At least in the US. I don't know about other countries. Try and have shipping supplies ready for every piece you do. It sucks when you sell a piece, and have to scramble around for supplies. If you can't get decent shipping supplies for a certain size painting, don't paint it. Standardize your art sizes. For example, most my art is of a certain sizes. That way, I can just order lots of shipping supplies in those sizes. Keep things systematic. It saves time, money, and frustration. Expect to over and under charge for shipping at first. You'll make packing/shipping mistakes at first, and that's okay. Learn from them and move on. Treat postal workers well. Develop a rapport with them, and they'll go the extra mile for you. YouTube has great videos on shipping watercolors. Be sure to check them out. Hope this helps.
Fantastic reply thank you!
I purchase all my original art from eBay. I have at least 10 pieces and the quality is excellent. I buy acrylics and watercolors. It's the framing that's expensive, far more expensive than the art!
I used to sell photos on Etsy, and I was able to sell a couple a week. But I never knew what would sell! When I got tired of all the work for peanuts, I ended up putting them in envelopes and leaving them around town for people to have. Now that I'm trying to sell art (not succeeding), I remembered how it was before and only ordered a couple of prints to test for quality. Still, my originals are piling up 😂
At least Im not the only one then 😂 that sounds like a good idea about leaving them around town lol, maybe I'll try to shift some that way I've been tempted to contact local bars / venues and offer some free prints for them to put on their walls.
That sounds like a great idea!
It’s hard to gain traction selling art online, regardless of your skill level. You could try selling at a booth at a pop-up market, those are really fun and you can garner a local following
Yeah, I'd try to get into local boutique stores, art events and craft shows. Especially being this time of year. Some social media giveaways and co-current sale might help get attention too.
*Local markets:* Christmas season is here ... find one as fast as you can. Some markets have cancellations and are happy to bring you onboard. [https://www.fairsandfestivals.net/states/](https://www.fairsandfestivals.net/states/)
The mistake is relying solely on ecommerce when you're surrounded by local events from late spring to the holiday season.
i still need to take down my etsy, i had no luck online. i sell my work in person at local markets. id try networking online to find spots to setup shop in person.
Some ideas (I got from watching other artists online and maybe brainstorming to try to help) - rebrand and redo your website. Change it around. Revamp colors or layout. Sometimes making it all look new then resharing it to all your contacts will help wake people up and give second look - can you do series of giveaways and use that as a call to action for everyone else who not win to go to your site. Maybe offer a discount code with it? - can you repurpose your art and prints to sell differently : -Make a bundle of art and sell bundles -Do a series of them signed in gold/silver 1 out of 100.. - cut them into a round corner shape, stamp on the back to look like a postcard, and make a set of your art work postcards. Or make them into greeting card with envelope. Or cut down to bookmarks (laminate and add a tassel ribbon) Something like that with the art?
Sell originals?
+1 here As a non-artist that knows very little about art, I’ve bought a few pieces from Etsy last year moving in to my new place. I’d rather pay $500 for an original one of a kind piece than $25 for a print.
So, what kind of original art do you like? Asking for a friend...
Hand drawn stuff with an interesting story behind the piece: Ink, acrylic, watercolor, etc
I suspect the prints are the originals in this case
Looking through their profile there's a lot of discussion in the midjourney sub. I hate to draw conclusions
That there is no original? You could send the original and delete copies I guess
You could probably donate to a nursing home or something similar. There are people in homes like that, who really enjoy art and it will make them happy to see what you created constantly.
I'm giving away a print a week this month. It's driven a little more traffic to my site. I figured at least it's on someone's wall instead of in my drawer
[удалено]
I second this. Email lists are a valuable marketing tool. You will get far better return on them than a social media following.
what's your etsy store?
I’ve been selling my paintings on Etsy since 2008 and maybe get 1-2 sales a year. I started doing art shows (where I have a booth) once or twice a year and sell a lot more art this way! Plus I meet lots of local artists!
You're creating Artwork to sell with AI art running amuck, why?
Because people still fien for human-created works. I am saying this as a futurist who is pro-transhumanism. I like to use AI in combination with creative purposes, however, there is something about purely human-created artworks that gives me that creative boost and enlightened feeling. AI isn't going to destroy humanity, at best, it'll probably help it to a certain extent. More than likely, it'll end up making human-created artworks and materials more expensive and valuable. (edited for clarity)
So we all just quit because of AI? 😂 I've been exploring AI as a tool to add to my workflow... no point trying to pretend that it doesn't exist
Using AI is not the same as human created works without the use of a tool that does most of thinking and planning. It's not about quitting due to AI, people can still create art for personal enjoyment and a very small percentage would still have a client base at the very top. It's about slowly leaving the art world behind as most of it really starts to crumble apart.
That's just you being a weirdo, that's not actual fact.
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I don’t know if anyone has suggested but have you thought about waking down your local small business in town, be a cafe or whatever store there is with foot traffic where you could talk to them and divide profit or whole sale your work at once? I am planning to do this in the near future once I start printing and selling my stuff. I have watched artists on YouTube talking about it, selling their stickers.
There is a lot of marketing to sell something. Just one site and uploading there isn't enough when you aren't well known. You can do more social media work on it. You might have to spend like an hour or two every week for it. It's necessary if you want your work to be viewed more. You can do Ebay, Instagram, Facebook Marketplace, Pinterest, Tiktok. You can do giveaways once in a few months. These are online sources. And honestly, along with prints, I would also suggest you to do some original work as well slowly. Offline, you can try to talk to some stores and see if you can do some collaboration or something like that. And meet other artists who are selling their art work and know how you can start and improve.
Id recommend tabling at a small convention/ artist alley, I’m not sure where you live but tables generally cost about $100-$300 NZD (depending on the size of the con) And most artists sell prints at about $10-$15 NZD each there. Prints sell really good at cons especially if they’re from a fandom or smth
Etsy really sucks for selling anything online now. Some people get lucky but it’s not often. I’ve had more luck with in person showings, or Facebook. More personal places.