The Etsy Situation
An update on the Etsy situation, why it's NOT news, and what you can do about it.
What Happened
Etsy has just raised fees 30% on their users, and to protest many artists are putting their shops into "vacation mode" (not accepting orders).
Things have gone so sideways that even Etsy's original founder supports the protest 👇
To answer Rob's question above the answer is NO! Another marketplace is just going to end up doing the EXACT same thing Etsy is doing now.
Why this is NOT news
This week its Etsy, a year ago it was COVID closing galleries and art shows worldwide.
Before that it was Instagram banning accounts.
Before that it was Facebook making you pay for followers, then ensuring that none of your followers actually saw your content.
Before THAT it was algorithm changes that took your artwork from page 1 to page 67 of the marketplace website you were on (FAA, Etsy, Saatchi, etc.).
You get the point.
You cannot rely on third party services and websites that you do not own. The more you are reliant on them, the more you will be effected when they change the rules. You need to own, not rent.
The smart artist or photographer knows this and sets themselves up to succeed regardless of what happens with the rented platforms.
We discuss this very topic weekly and we would LOVE to have you join us for a live webinar. Details on the weekly live webinars can be found below 👇
LIVE: Art Business Webinars
Monday, Wednesday, + Friday
3:00PM CST (1pm PST / 3pm CST/ 4pm EST)
Join us for a Zoom webinar LIVE with our Director of Art Marketing
"Painted it yesterday, posted it on Facebook this morning, sold it this afternoon. It’s not even dry."
If you've ever fantasized about having a line of collectors waiting to buy your new work, you may be surprised at what it takes to get there.
"Discovered" by a major magazine? Nope.
Winning a major prize at a juried art show? Nope.
Getting into a big gallery? Nope.
Our members have experienced all of these wins and more, and none of it truly moved the needle.
In fact, they never found consistent success until they focused on something most struggling artists and photographers pay almost no attention to:
Marketing their work.
Creating great work is one thing, but selling it successfully is an entirely different undertaking.
You'll need to address the same two specific things that every single artist or photographer must confront before they can hope to reach $100,000 a year in sales.
These two particular things are fundamental to success in the art industry, yet the overwhelming majority of artists and photographers are completely missing one or both. So –
Do you want to sell more art this year?
Build a more valuable art business?
Ensure that you are NOT going down the wrong path, like so many other art sellers?
Make sure you get these 2 things right.
The Formula for Success
Photographer Bill Wensel (Art Storefronts member since 2017) used a successful holiday season to increase his print sales by +807% year-over-year.
Artist Megh Knappenberger (Art Storefronts member since 2017) sold $93,000+ of art last holiday season
In our time working with thousands of highly successful artists and photographers over the years, we've deconstructed what is making them so successful come the holidays. It comes down to just 2 things:
FIRST, YOU NEED A PROPER ART GALLERY WEBSITE.
SECOND, YOU NEED AN ART MARKETING PLAN THAT WORKS.
That's it.
Seriously, that's it. Yet so many are still missing it.
Think about it: if you are prepared with a marketing plan that effectively generates new customers, and equipped with a properly-designed website with all the features that close art sales, what else do you need?
Nothing.
With just these 2 things, there is nothing stopping you from being successful.
With these 2 things, you can finally solve the problem of earning consistent monthly sales from your art.
Now, let's get into each of these in more detail.
#1: It All Starts With A Website*
*A PROPER, ART GALLERY WEBSITE
The art buying process is incredibly visual. To build a thriving art business, you need to take the offline gallery experience and move it online - and not just any old website will do.
A proper, art gallery website feels like walking into a retail art gallery.
There's art on the wall, and it's clearly for sale.
This is in direct contrast to most artist websites, which are set up like image portfolios. These websites feel more like flipping through a coffee table book than entering a shop where the products can actually be purchased.
If your website isn't designed specifically
to sell your art...it won't.
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Your own art gallery
Art Storefronts allows you to be your own art gallery so you aren't dependent on other galleries. You don't have to wait to be discovered, or called, or emailed by any galleries. You don't have to fit any of their aesthetics. You are your own gallery.
Mathieu Laca
Artist
Furthermore, a proper art gallery website has a host of powerful features that are designed to handle all the possible questions and objections art buyers face when making a buying decision:
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Canvas gallery wrap, metal, acrylic...I don't know what any of these media types actually look like... |
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I love it, but I need my spouse to sign off. I'll have to remember to come back later.... |
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I'm not sure how this piece will look with my paint color, furniture, other artwork, etc. |
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This is a lot of money, how do I even know I can trust this artist with my order? |
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Furthermore, a proper art gallery website has a host of powerful features that are designed to handle all the possible questions and objections art buyers face when making a buying decision:
I can't tell what size print would look best on my wall... 
No Sale
Canvas gallery wrap, metal, acrylic...I don't know what any of these media types actually look like...
No Sale
I love it, but I need my spouse to sign off. I'll have to remember to come back later... No Sale
I'm not sure how this piece will look with my paint color, furniture, other artwork, etc. No Sale
This is a lot of money, how do I even know I can trust this artist with my order? No Sale
An art gallery website like the ones provided by Art Storefronts have features that would have saved each and every one of those lost sales.
An art gallery website like the ones provided by Art Storefronts have features that would have saved each and every one of those lost sales.
Want to learn more about all of the 30+ features an Art Storefronts website offers?
After years of struggle, painter Bill Stidham sold over $17,000 his first holiday season on Art Storefronts.
Wildlife photographer Tim Laman (Art Storefronts member since 2018) sold $47,624 in prints last holiday season.
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#2: A Marketing Plan
That Works
MARKETING IS THE ONLY THING THAT MATTERS
Sure, you'll need the right website to turn your site visitors into collectors, but how do you bring those visitors to your site in the first place?
Many photographers and artists waste years of their professional lives trying to figure this part out.
Photographer Jim Livingston
Jim Livingston (Art Storefronts member since 2018) recently sold two 12' murals using Live Preview w/ Augmented Reality
An effective art marketing strategy requires:
- Consistent, on-going content marketing via email and social media
- Frequent print giveaways
- Strategic promotions centered around holidays
- An advertising strategy designed to maximize your return
- An analytics system that allows you to track the progress of your campaigns and react accordingly
Not quite as inspiring as creating art, right?
And yet, without it, earning a reliable, consistent living from your art will be nearly impossible.
Here's how we've solved this problem:
Art Business University
EASY-TO-FOLLOW COURSES AND CHECKLISTS
Everything you need to run successful marketing campaigns, summarized into straightforward checklists.
Our tactics are based on data from thousands of actual artists and photographers. We find what's working out there and bring it to you.
Plus, the Art Marketing Calendar keeps you on track with what you should be doing to grow your art business 365-days-a-year.
Weekly Members-Only Zoom Sessions
DIRECT CONSULTING FROM ART MARKETERS
3-5 live sessions each week that put you in touch with our team of professional art marketers and mentors.
Get advice on how to maximize results from your next marketing initiative.
Get feedback on a crazy idea you have that might just work.
Or just get help with how to use Instagram's latest feature. We're here for you.
Ready to learn how to spend your limited marketing time exactly where it counts?
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Building a Profitable Art Business
To recap, avoiding disappointment this holiday season as an independent artist comes down to 2 things:
FIRST, YOU NEED A PROPER ART GALLERY WEBSITE.
SECOND, YOU NEED AN ART MARKETING PLAN THAT WORKS.
These two needs are why artists chose Art Storefronts.
First, we provide best-in-class art gallery websites. We have all the key art-selling features (and then some) that will provide your buyers with the finest art buying experience available.
Second, we provide step-by-step marketing instruction and unlimited access to our consultants. We'll tell you what to do, when to do it, and how to do it - every day of the year. It's all based on what is actually working for other successful artists and photographers, so you can stop guessing and immediately get on the right path to growing your sales.
Notably, our members don't just do what works, they avoid what doesn't work.
That's common mistakes like uploading your images to a bunch of online gallery sites, waiting for sales to come to you, or starting your holiday marketing in October or November when it is far too late.
First, accept your work is never going to simply sell itself. Then, join our members in learning how to sell it. 👇
It's time to create your own success story.
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Absolute best decision I have made in my Entrepreneur Art Career
Joining this Art supported platform has been the absolute best decision I have made in my Entrepreneur Art Career. I have sold more paintings this year than ever before. I am super excited about being part of Art Storefronts and cannot stress enough how this is a complete game changer for me and my career at this point.
Kim Vergil
Fine Artist
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Ahead of the Curve
The reason I love Art Storefronts so much is because they are always ahead of the curve with marketing and technology specifically for artists. You have saved me tons of money and time trying to keep up in our fast-moving world on my own.
Shirley Williams
Artist
