How do you feel about selling your art? Part 3!

Late Valley Light - Pastel, 5"x7"
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Where would you show a small 5x7 painting?

I talked about selling through galleries in my last post. I have taken a few small paintings to my gallery in Marietta, and there have been a few at the Blue Ridge Mountains Arts Association in Blue Ridge, GA. But, keep in mind... these are a rather lower price painting, and the gallery will not make much money on selling these small pieces. They enjoy having a few, but will try harder (most likely) to sell things they can make a little more money for their time and overhead!

So, how about putting these small gems in an on-line gallery or through your blog posts or newsletters ... something that is easy for you as the artist to pack and ship if the client does not live in your area? Sell these yourself! If someone wants a larger piece after purchasing a small piece and getting to know you, then you can send them to your brick and mortar gallery if you have one. I think this makes way more sense.

Are you in an on-line gallery or have been looking at one? Fine Art America is a good place to start with their free version. There are many more you can look for or may have heard about. Also Pinterest and Facebook (a business page, not your personal one) can be good places to show a small piece of art. These two social media sites can be used an on-line gallery. You just have to be a little more discreet on Facebook, and you have to do all the promotion for both of them ... and really for Fine Art America, also. These three are easy places to sell your smaller artwork... leaving your larger pieces for the brick and mortar gallery if that is one of your plans ... to be in a gallery, that is!

How do you sell through these alternative sites?

As I mentioned above, you will have to do the promotion for these alternative sites. Just listing them will not bring your clients! That means doing a blog that will point people to those sites, sharing the blog post on Facebook, posting the paintings to your Pinterest boards and talking about them with a link to it in your blog, on Facebook, and in your newsletters.

To help you, join Etsy and create your own shop! Here you can list them for sale, and then you will have a link that can be inserted into your blog, or posted on your facebook page, or under the image on your Pinterest board. Instead of saying "Buy Now"... use what was told to me... a discreet link instead of the in-your-face sell, sell, sell words! A discreet link under your image might say, "Purchase through Etsy" or some similar, less offensive "sales" pitch, and make it a link that takes the person to that Etsy site.

My link under the painting above will take a client to the Fine Art America site and that particular painting!