What is the Business of Business for an Artist-preneur?

Times they have changed...but not all the way.  Artists still use easels and canvas and brushes and pigment but the female artists I know [me included] no longer wear those ridiculously tight and long and hot dresses! 

Although I think we're all influenced by those who went before us in whatever profession we work.  Tools may change over time, materials may upgrade or go out of existence but the desire to manipulate the media [speaking of art materials] to express through color and shape and form an idea or feeling remains a shared thing.  I expressed this thought as the closing statement on my art blog, Mosaic Mandalas, today.  Doesn't matter the profession, we learn from the successes and failures of those who went before.

Business is the same.  I remember ten years ago when I was considering becoming a full-time working artist I did some research into art marketing.  Not the "where do you go to buy art" type of marketing, but the "where does an artist market his or her work" type of marketing.  In doing my research I read of the trials and tribulations of artists who tried one marketing ploy after another in an effort to peddle their wares.  The key point I learned from all this research was this: marketing is no different for an art business than for any other type of business - you have to communicate to and connect with the marketplace.

So an artist has to ask: where are the people who are looking to purchase Art looking?  Then the artist must ply their selling efforts in those places:

• outdoor art shows and festivals - these are where individual artists and artisans [fine artists and fine art craftspeople] set up a booth and sell their art works: directly artist to end buyer
• exhibits and shows - these are art exhibits where an artist has one or two works hanging that are for sale during the run of the exhibition: artist receives a percent of the sale, anywhere from 70%-80%
• galleries - these are the traditional brick and mortar storefronts that represent one or more artists: artist receives a percent of the sale, anywhere from 50%-60%
• online: this is a whole 'nother world.  There are online galleries that charge a commission for sales, others that do not.  There are online companies that allow an artist to have their images for sale as prints and notecards - the artists gets a flat amount per print or notecard, but they retain the physical original...some of these companies will list the sale price of the original and provide a way for a prospective customer to contact the artist directly.  [These companies make their money on the sale of the accouterments that attend a print: the matting and framing.]
• artists' own websites and gallery pages - here the artist sets up their website and gallery pages - this is artist to end purchaser directly.

The above are some of the places people looking for art to buy find it and places where artists put their work for sale.  There still remains the whole marketing thing, how you let your target market know where to find your work.

• most outdoor art festivals have their own marketing/advertising to publicize the event as a whole.  Individual artists still need to let their audience know that they will be there
• most exhibits are advertised and publicized as a whole before the fact and are lucky if they get media coverage for the opening reception after the fact
• all galleries employ their own marketing strategies to advertise the gallery as an entity and the artists they represent
• online - depends upon the entity: a print-on-demand company markets both to an art buying public and to artists [they need to have art uploaded to their site for the public to buy]; an online gallery, like its brick and mortar counterpart will market itself
• artists with their own websites and gallery pages hold the entire magilla of marketing

So what to do?  The business of business for an artist-preneur is to 1) produce work and 2) sell that work.

• maintain a mailing list of people who have a) said they enjoy your work and b) will allow you to market to them via either postal or e-mail
• take full advantage of online Social Media: Twitter, Facebook, Youtube, blogging
• publicize yourself through press releases [awards won, major show appearances, etc.]
• have your booth at relevant art festivals
• take active part in exhibits and events such open studios tours
• seek gallery representation if that is part of your overall business plan
• have images with the best print-on-demand online company you can find
• image licensing

There are many ways to market [advertise and publicize] your work and the above list is not exhaustive.

So.  I am an artist-preneur and have taken my own business advice...which is saying a lot as it is so much easier to give someone else advice than to follow it - that whole 'do as I say, not as I don't do myself' thing!

I took a sabbatical last year [2009] from my art business to re-do my business plan and direction.  The result has been an exciting 2010 for my home-based business.  Taking my own advice:

1. I have had my work in exhibits - winning an award in one for one of my new mandala mosaic pieces
2. I've filled my 2010 schedule with relevant outdoor art shows where I set up my booth and have original work for sale as well as prints and notecards - an am participating in an open studios tour in October [I'm pleased to be one of the artists listed on Chico's Artoberfest site]
3. At this point gallery representation is not in my business plan; however I did just this week sign up with a premier print-on-demand company, Fine Art America.
4. I'm getting more adept at utilizing Social Media for my art business.  I started a Fan Page on Facebook [see the Fan Box in the right hand column] specifically for my art business which has direct access to my work on Fine Art America - my Fan Page has a shopping cart which allows for direct purchasing of prints and notecards via FAA.  Pretty cool from a business standpoint.
5. I do have an art blog, and there are gallery pages which showcase my work.  Part of the traffic to my blog is a result of utilizing Twitter for announcing new posts to the blog.

There is still much more I can do from a purely business standpoint for my business and I'm working on it.  And down economy or not, paying attention to the business of business is key to remaining in business for any type of endeavor.