How do beginner artists make money with the smallest amount of investments? By creating a robust strategically curated art collection with the right pricing. The art industry is one of the only businesses that would give you a significant return on your money. It's a great business because the investment is small with big profits. If your 11"x14" painting costs you $10 to produce and you sell it for $200, that is 20 times your money. And because the profit margin is impressive, you can quickly grow your art business to great heights if you put in the effort and manage your business like a pro. Many of you dream of making money with your art. You probably think to yourself; if you could make money doing what you love, you would be set for life. You dream about waking up in the morning, heading straight to your studio, squeezing the paint onto your palette, putting on your favorite music, and painting till the sun sets. Listen, artists, I know that aspiration well because I was you. What I just described does not have to be just a dream; it is possible to make art into your business; I’ve done it for over 20 years, and so can you. If we haven’t met, I am a self-taught artist, award-winning gallerist, and business coach. Two decades ago, I took the leap of faith to open my art business because I couldn’t stand my dead-end job anymore. I felt like had no choice because another day in my uninspiring job felt like an eternity. So one day, I decided to call it quits and plunge into my art business full-time.
At the beginning of my career, there were days that I just wanted to go out there and find a part-time job for security, but my husband, Paul, warned me if I did that, I would never continue my art business. So I stayed and made it work. And it did! I am not saying you should do the same thing as me; throw caution out the window and hustle your buns off, but it doesn’t hurt if you take that small step to commit to making your dream a reality. How do you do that? By taking one small step at a time, if you don’t trust yourself to self-motivate and figure things out, go with someone who has gone before you; it makes the whole thing much more manageable. Why jump into something so complex when you can do it with a small investment that gives you a lifetime income-producing asset for a small fraction of money? Artists, you can make money with your art, but you must take the proper steps to get there. I don’t want you to quit your job as I did and take that leap of faith because that is a little extreme, but you can start small and build from there. Before I tell you the formula to create a sound and sustainable business, let me teach you how I started.
Curate a Winning Art Collection It always starts with the favorite part, which is your artwork. Before creating work to sell, you must find out what your art is about, who you are as an artist, and where your strength lies. Do you create work for a particular purpose? Here is an objection that some of you may have: You are probably saying, “But, Ting, I am multi-passionate; do I need to focus only on one art genre?” Yes, you do. There is a saying that says, “if you talk to everyone, you end up talking to no one.” that is true when it comes to finding your art genre. If you focus your time and energy specializing in one genre, your message will be much more specific, making it easier to find your target audience. It will also make your marketing so much more effective with less effort. When I started my art career, my art was a mixture of storytelling figurative, local landscape and historical local scenes. My art sold but not consistent to make me a viable business. Galleries were not accepting me as their gallery "Artists", because they had no idea where my focus was and nor did I. So artists, if you want to be taken seriously, start to be more specific about your strength and focus on that. Get to Know Who your Target Audience is Once you know the art you want to focus on, your target audience should be much easier to find. So think about who they are and what they want from you. In what ways can you make your art sellable to them? What do you need to create to convince them that having your art in their homes is what they need? To make things super-focused, I also want you to think of your target audience as one person or a community of like-minded people with similar things in common that need and want your art in their homes. The goal here is to find out the person or community you paint for because the more you know about your T.A., the easier it will be for you to market and sell to them. How to Price your Art Accordingly When I started selling my artwork, I created smaller pieces, mainly 11"x14" and 8"x10"; I priced them all below $300 and I also created larger formats and sold them below $1,000. I didn’t have a formula per se, but I decided that was how I would start. Because of the low prices, I could sell consistently, which gave me the confidence to continue. Artists, when you are just at the beginning stage of your career, price your work as an emerging artist, don’t undervalue your work but sell it accordingly to size, and once your work sells well and you gain a reputation and a client base for your art, it is time to start pricing your art a little higher. Pricing your artwork with the correct value is vital to the success of your art business. If you price it too low or too high; it will either work against you in the long run or not sell well. Here's the Question? Do you want me to help you to create that winning art collection? If the answer is "Yes" then sign up for my Art collection 101 waitlist and I'll let you know when the door is open. I'll teach you my secrets to creating that swoon-worthy portfolio that will bring you success. This course is perfect for emerging artists who want to start but are not ready to invest heavily. It will be your first step to making your dream a reality. You will not regret it! With Joy, Ting
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Ting YuenI am an artist and art marketing strategist that is passionate about creating meaningful art and courses that inspire your life, business and home. Archives
September 2024
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