BY VICTORY ART

The art industry and the creative community at large is often overlooked and sometimes even looked down upon as a career choice. In every society there is a common misconception that individuals who wish to pursue a career in the arts are throwing away their future and will never be successful. However, in modern times, it has been proven over and over again that a career can be made from almost anything. With the right mentorship and knowledge – success can be just around the corner! In this article we uncover some of the positive aspects of being an artist and show how to make use of one’s resources to create a name for yourself.

Every product or service you receive is a result of numerous business operations. Acquiring business knowledge is an important aspect of creating a career out of your passion. Marketing, supply chain management and finance are the main business topics that contribute to the success of a career. All the applicable areas of these three topics can be covered in what is known as the 4 P’s:

• Product
• Promotion
• Price
• Place

Product is undoubtedly important and is the actual artwork supplied by the artist, but it is important to consider how to promote the artwork and oneself as an artist to sell the product. To successfully penetrate the art market, creating a brand image or identity and would allow a hopeful artist to carve a space in the market, by emphasizing their unique selling point and what makes their artwork worth investing in. Once a unique selling point is decided upon, an impressive online portfolio would be the next step to take, to ensure there is enough content to convince potential customers to buy a creatives work. With this content, you can make use of tools such as social media, online selling platforms or art auction sites. However, research on any online platform you consider using that is not well known is extremely important to avoid scammers.

Identifying the right approach to pricing your artwork may be challenging for some as there are numerous pricing strategies. The following strategies are quite useful when launching a new product in the art market:

• Penetration pricing – Starting out with lower prices and gradually increasing them over time as your customer base grows.

• Competitive pricing – Observe any possible competition and the prices they have set, adopting a similar price range for yourself.

• Value pricing – with this pricing strategy it is crucial to know your target customers and how they perceive value. You need to convince them by creating enjoyable content and align with their idea of what a valuable piece of art is. Additionally, this pricing strategy considers the quality of materials used as many customers view quality as value i.e. canvas is better quality than paper, oil paint is more expensive and smoother than acryl.

A few examples of the variations in pricing art:

Finally, ‘Place’ goes in hand with ‘Promotion’. Once you have identified the content to promote your work, where to do so and the price to charge, getting the work to your customer to finalize the purchase is extremely important. In recent years, customers have appreciated convenience over anything. Professional supply chain managers make use of what is known as ‘Distribution Channels’ that may have direct or indirect distribution to their customers. For an emerging artist it is important to identify whether selling the art directly to their customer (through a website, online or physical shop or distribution site) or indirectly (through galleries, art platforms and partnerships). The choice is yours, but be sure to consider your budget, who your customers are and where they are located, as well as delivery arrangements if necessary.

Victory Art Free Business Consultancy Sessions is a helpful resource for any specific questions related to art business.

For more conversations on how to make your art into income, tune into Victory Art’s 12-part business seminars. These seminars cover the topics of branding, pricing, art on the internet and its potential dangers, a guide to safely shipping your work and so much more! Click Here to find out more information.

Also Read:

How to Make Art a Career: The Three Golden Questions to Ask Yourself

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