Artists Share Their Tips For Selling Art Offline

Selling art can be a little tricky, especially when your first starting out. Luckily I gathered some artists who have been successfully selling their art to share their advice. As an artist figuring out how to sell your art is the most important step to creating a successful art business. Here are some tips and ideas on how to sell art offline!

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Nathan Neil is a Hawaiian based artist and it shines right through in his awesome art. Heres what he shared: 

•  If you are selling offline, then you are probably the salesperson as well as the artist. You have to be crafty with your body language, words, and tone.  Chances are you might have somebody selling your art for you, but why would you be reading?
• A.L.O.H.A.
• A- Always greet properly. Welcome them with a smile and tell them a little bit about your artwork. 
• L- Listen and lead.  Listen to their internal motivation, what are they looking for, who are they shopping for.  Lead them through your inventory, maybe picking something special to their needs like color combination, price, or size. 
• O- Observe buying motivation. Are they looking for art or looking to waste time?  If something catches their eye, tell the backstory behind the artwork. People buy artwork backed with a personality. 
• H- Help make a decision. If they are deciding between two pieces, make a base judgement on their initial needs, like color, size, or price. 
• A- Ask for the sale. “Where are we shipping this to?” “Can I wrap this up for you?” “I think you should get it!”
• Obviously you’re going to encounter many different personalities, situations where you must adapt, and overcome any objection.  Sometimes you have to make the client feel special, especially if they want to “think about buying the artwork”
• Work with them, ask them what they have to think about?  Is it the size, color, or price?  
• If they want it, they might tell you and you can work from there to fix it. Most people never come back, you have to work out a deal right there. Whether you are giving a discount or adding a gift with purchase, there is a dance you must do in order to achieve the sale.  Artwork is extremely difficult to sell, people don’t need it, they want it. 
• The price of artwork is determined by however much the client think it is.  You should talk highly about your artwork, never point out any flaws or mistakes. Happy accidents!  Every painting is a step of growth. If people ask how much it is, tell them a little about it before you tell the price. They may think its a million dollars. Then you say its one dollar per square inch. Break out some math, involve them a little bit. Say this canvas is 16×20”, multiply that and you get 320$, thats the price. Is it within your art budget? Do you have a spot for something like this?  
• We all have different art budgets, what is this worth to you?  Meet them in the middle. 
• If your painting is priced too low, people will think something is wrong with it. You might struggle for the sale and have to discount or give free gifts. You barely make your money back. You should create a math behind your prices, something reasonable, you can always lower the price for that special customer. 
• Selling art offline is a great tangible experience with the client and the artwork. You know exactly what you are getting.  If you have the inventory, find the marketplace, if you have the location, get creating!  Don’t waste time in no traffic zones, don’t be afraid to get exposure, but never do it for free.

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Sana Jamlaney is known for all the big beautiful paintings she creates. Heres what she shared:

• Once I felt like I had a solid portfolio that I was ready to share with the world, my next step was to find ways to get my work out there and try to sell some of the artworks that were in my studio. I began my research into different approaches that could work for me. The traditional approach would be to network in my city, try to introduce myself to gallerists and take it from there but something inside me told me that I wasn’t ready for that step. I decided to remain independent and try to push my artwork to independent collectors by building my own database. Yes, this was a far slower approach and it took longer but at the time I felt like I needed to learn a lot more about my market first hand. It was important for me to understand the people that were interested in my work – price points, size preferences, palettes, general aesthetic preferences and so much more. I felt like that knowledge would always be an asset for me and so the journey began!
• Building a website. I’ve always felt like a professional looking website was the foundation of it all. As artists, we work with visuals and presentation is an important part of it. While researching platforms, I came across Weebly and loved that they had a plan which was absolutely free. I started with that and over the past two years have upgraded to the Starter package, which costs me $8 a month when paid annually. It allowed me to present my artwork with high quality photos, introduce myself to the world, share important information and allow interested buyers to contact me effortlessly. The interface is very user-friendly and the end result worked extremely well for me. I haven’t started selling original artwork through my website as yet but the day I do, I know that Weebly has a great platform for e-commerce as well.
• High quality photos. Photographing my artwork was always something I paid a lot of attention to. I began by using my iPhone and over the years have ended up buying a Canon DSLR. Since these were the photos that were going to be viewed first and were going to either spark interest in the buyer or turn them away, I knew that getting the lighting right, ensuring the colors were true, and cropping them well were all very important steps. 
• Befriending social media. There are mixed feelings about how important social media is when you’re marketing something. I feel like it is essential to understand the importance of it but also to identify which elements of it are the ones that actually count. For example, I’ve never felt like the number of followers is what determines or indicates how much work you sell but who the followers are. Are you targeting the people who you have the potential to convert to buyers or are most of your followers bots who will never actually buy your work. Use social media to create awareness for your work and prioritize the quality and consistency of your posts. The right people will find you in that crowd.
• Pricing. For many buyers, this may very well end up being the deciding factor. I read several blog posts from successful artists and tried to get feedback about how I should go about pricing my artwork. How do you even start with that? The most sound advice I believe I received was to replace the emotion with logic. I factored in the average cost of creating an artwork in a particular size (canvas, paint, packaging etc.) along with the average number of hours I spent on that size of a canvas. After figuring out a reasonable hourly wage I would pay myself, I then came to the end price. It took a few adjustments over the years via feedback from collectors and colleagues but have now arrived at a price range that I’m comfortable with. 
• Hosting open studios. Since most of the networking we do today is online, something as simple as an open studio where you invite fellow artists, collectors, and other members of your industry into your space to present new work, talk about process and just connect can be a great way to sell new work. Don’t worry too much about limited space or how messy your studio is. I’ve heard from attendees in the past how much they enjoy feeling like a part of the madness and its often encouraged them to make a purchase.
• Understanding the importance of art consultants. While galleries have a particular aesthetic, and like to support their own roster of artists, art consultants work with the aesthetics of the space and prioritize the preferences of the designers. When I first learned what the job of an art consultant was, it truly felt like an entirely new world of opportunity opened up for me. Art consultants can help an artist enter the world of hospitality and corporate art. Hotels, restaurants, retail stores, hospitals, offices – suddenly its no longer a single collector but an entire group. 
• Participating in local art & craft fairs. I live in Dubai and community dynamics I feel are very different here than in North America. I personally have never participated in local art fairs because I didn’t feel like the ones that were available to me were attended by collectors that would justify the price of the booth. But when I read about the ones that artists have access to in other parts of the world, it really does sound like a fantastic opportunity to further build a client database and expand your network. Before participating though, I would recommend visiting one year to see what the turnout is like, and whether the attendees fit your customer profile.

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Taylor Pendleton that’s me! Heres my advice:

• Look for local businesses like coffee shops, restaurants, salons, tattoo shops, etc to display your art. Leave your business cards and maybe even a portfolio of your past works for people to look through. 
• Get involved with your local arts community. 
• Talk about your art everywhere you go. try and tell everyone you meet your an artist. You never know who might be interested in buying a piece.
• Contact local magazines, newspapers, and bloggers to see if they would be interested in sharing your story as an artist.
• Teach a class or a workshop! Not only is teaching your craft a wonderful experience it’s also a great way to meet people who might end up buying your art.
• Donate art to a charity event. This will get your art in front of alot of people while at the same time supporting a great cause.
• Submit your art into galleries.
• Participate in craft fairs and trade shows. 
• Offer to do live painting /craft demonstration at events. This a great way to connect with your audience and even meet potential clients. 
• Ask local dentists or doctors offices if they would allow you to leave a brochure with your art in the waiting room. You can make a brochure on a site like vistaprint.  
• If you or a family member/ friend drive a lot consider putting your art Instagram @ decal sticker on their car. It’ll be free advertisement everywhere you go. you can buy a pack of 5 here (for you and 4 other people)  Luke Duke Decals Customized Social Media User Name Large 8″ Decal/Vinyl Stickers (5 pack) 
• Try to work with local boutique owners. Offer to display your handmade items in their store and if anything sells you can give them a percent of the sale.

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Zaz Watts is known for her lovely mandala art. Heres what she shared:

• Learn from Local Artists and Galleries – This is important because as an artist you can quickly learn from other galleries about what art sells and what art doesn’t in terms of sizing and price. This can help in evaluating your future projects and working out what pieces may be more popular. 
  
• Don’t ever lower your prices – One of the worst things you can do as an artist is reduce your rates. When things don’t sell many artists panic and lower their price. This will incredibly devalue your hard work and buyers will start to think that they can get your art at any sort of price, this could slow your sales down. 
•   Keep Positive – Rejection in the art industry is inevitable what is important though is how you deal with it. Accepting that not everyone in the world may enjoy or want to buy your work is the first step. As my favourite Philosopher Alan Watts once said, “If you say that getting the money is the most important thing, you’ll spend your life completely wasting your time. You’ll be doing things you don’t like doing in order to go on living, that is to go on doing things you don’t like doing, which is stupid.” Make sure you are creating art that you like to create rather than creating art that people will like. 
• Social Media Presence – This could quite possibly be the most important one. Not only does a consistent social media presence attract new potential buyers but it also allows previous buyers to keep up to date and you can possibly interest them in new work.
• Curate Exhibitions and Shows – Besides sales, building your reputation as an artist is just as important. Find a suitable venue to display your work and this will heavily increase your chance of future sales. 

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Kelly Johnson is known for her beautiful watercolor art. Heres what she shared:

• As the world becomes increasingly more connected via the internet, sites like Etsy, Shopify, and Society6 have become total game-changers in the way we sell our art. There’s something to be said, however, for face-to-face, heart-to-heart art sales. Etsy is fantastic, but it can’t compare to seeing the look on a new customer’s face when they see your work for the first time! There are countless avenues in which you can show and sell your art offline. The possibilities are almost endless! The key is figuring out where your work fits. This is the hard part. Hopefully, this article will break it down for you a little bit. I’ll cover not only different places at which you can show and sell, but I’ll touch on promotion, and preparation as well. Let’s dive in!Ok, so you’ve made a sweet body of work, and you want to show it off to the world. Great! But…knowing where and how to start can be daunting. There are a few factors you should consider when choosing a venue for your art sales:
• Your market: Knowing who your potential clients are (and aren’t!) is vital. There’s going to be a huge difference in target market between a maker who sells hand-painted Christmas ornaments, and one who paints large, detailed oil paintings. Not knowing your target market can land you in heaps of trouble and waste your time and money. For example, I’m a detailed, experienced watercolor painter. I wasted years trying to sell my art at craft shows, barely breaking even, and getting little return on my investments. How frustrating! People don’t go to craft shows to buy a $300, framed original painting. That seems obvious in retrospect, but it didn’t at the time when craft shows were asking me to participate. I was so honored by the invitation, that I neglected to consider my target market and whether or not they would even BE at these events. (Hint: They weren’t!). This also applies to other venues as well. An honest assessment of your skill level and subject matter should help you know whether your work will be a good fit for that show, gallery, cafe, or magazine. Don’t jump at every invitation. Put in the work to think every opportunity through.
• Investment: As I said before, even small craft shows can sometimes be a huge investment of time and money. It’s not uncommon for booth fees to range from $150-$400. If you’re not confident that you can make that back, you could find yourself in a very frustrating place, like I did. Start small, with venues that won’t break the bank, or your back! Showing your work in local restaurants, cafes, art stores, or home goods stores can be an amazing opportunity for exposure, and most of these places don’t charge for you to hang your work. If you don’t sell anything, at least the initial investment was low.
• Traffic: When signing up for an art show, make sure you inquire about how much foot traffic they expect to receive. Don’t pay a bunch of money for a poorly-advertised event. Do your research to see how events have advertised in the past, and how their turnout was. 
• Skill level: I know, the dream is to be in a gallery in New York or Los Angeles, but let’s face the fact that it’s not going to happen for all of us. Don’t let that discourage you! There are likely many great opportunities close to home. As I said before, knowing yourself and your work will help you avoid hours of applications to galleries that are outside of your current level of skill and experience. On the flip side, don’t settle for small galleries if your work is of a greater caliber than what you’ve seen exhibited there. Starting small and local allows you to build up your CV, so that you can eventually move on to bigger and better shows!
• Think outside the box here! Galleries are not your only venue option. If you’re a botanical artist, why not see if you could sell your work in a botanical garden gift shop? Another great idea is to inquire with local furniture stores. Customers will be able to see your work in a homey setting that just might help them envision the work in their own space! Don’t forget that your own home or studio can also be an amazing place to show your work. Have a studio sale in which people can come check out your work and also get a view into your working process. People love a behind-the-scenes peek! I once hosted an art gallery in my home, and it was fantastic. I invited 4 other artists to show a few pieces as well, and we turned my living room and dining room into a gallery! We invited everyone we knew, served drinks and appetizers, and generally had a lovely time. One artist sold three original pieces that night!
• Now that you’ve got some great ideas for where to show your art, let’s talk nitty-gritty logistics. Fun stuff. The items you need will change based on where you are showing, but there are a few things you should always have on hand if selling in person. This list applies mostly to art and craft shows.
• Square Reader: This one is so important! Most people don’t carry cash these days, so if you don’t have a way for them to pay by card, they will be gone faster than a jackrabbit on coke. Don’t let that happen! Square readers are an inexpensive way to make sure that everyone can pay. Take it with you to every art or craft fair. This is also an easy way to calculate your sales tax, which you should be charging on every purchase! 
• Spreadsheet: Keep track of every purchase you make, either by hand or on a spreadsheet. If possible, get people’s names and email addresses as well so you can add them to your email list later. That information is GOLD.
• Booth Setup Supplies: Obviously, if you’re doing a show in which you have a booth or a table, you’ll need the basics: a table, a tablecloth, easels to display art, a wire grid and zip ties, etc. Consider making your booth a little extra, and make it inviting for everyone who enters. Signage will help people know what they’re getting into before stepping into your booth, so make it large and clear! Look online for inspiration; people get creative with all sorts of fancy setups. Your’s doesn’t need to be fancy, but it should have a clear flow and inviting warmth. And for the love of God, don’t forget to have business cards…lots of them! 
• Product: It’s wise to have products of various sizes and price ranges, so that you can appeal to a wide range of buyers. Consider making prints of your work, offering your art on greeting cards, posters, mugs, coasters, or other small items. People eat that stuff up! Make sure that everything is clearly labeled and that prices aren’t hidden. Potential customers don’t like to have to ask how much the work goes for. If they are unsure, they might just leave. Yikes!
• Packaging: Keep plenty of acid-free bags on hand to package up unframed, smaller pieces. This will help protect them as buyers continue to shop. It’s also not a bad idea to keep shopping bags on hand to offer to customers. 
• If selling via a gallery, professionalism is the name of the game. Follow the gallery’s instructions to a T, if you ever want to work with them again! This means making sure your art is properly framed and labeled, shipped on time, and similar to the pieces you put in your proposal. Expect the gallery to take a commission of the sales: anything from 30%-60% is normal. Price your work accordingly. I once forgot to factor in the commission, and ended up selling a beloved piece of work for way less than it was worth. It was really disappointing, so don’t let that happen to you!
• Finally, it should go without saying, but I’ll say it anyway: promote, promote, promote! Even if you’re in a gallery and they are promoting the show on your behalf, you need to self-promote. Utilize social media here: tweet it, share it on instagram and facebook, send personal messages to people who might be interested. Put it in your email newsletter! You really can’t over-promote, since only a fraction of your audience will see it each time you post. Flyers and postcards are another great way to promote. Tack them up all over town and hand them out to your family, friends, and neighbors. 
• I hope that this article gave you some good ideas and insights into the wonderful world of selling art offline. Enjoy the process, make great connections, and sell some art! I’ll be cheering you on!

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Ariel Lacombe
IG: @arielkarmapolice

• Post on social media. Some artists are too shy to post on social media, but it is one of the best things to do if you want to sell your work.
• Create a contract between you and your client. This is very important especially if you are being commissioned to do work outside of your portfolio. Your material cost and time should be included. You don’t want someone to back out of a commission and not value the energy you spent on an art work.
• Be open to new clients. Sometimes we are afraid to work with new people, but the more you branch out, the more your work spreads through word of mouth… and the more people will want to buy your work.
• Don’t price your art too highly if you’re just starting. Build experience, learn the quality of your materials, calculate your time. Build a clientele first, then raise your prices.
• Start exposing in small joints such as cafes, restaurants and community centres. Work your way up afterwards towards galleries or any art related event. When first starting, exposure is what you should be looking for. 
• Learn through your mistakes. If there is one thing I’ve learned is to not cheapen your prices because you’re afraid someone won’t buy your work. People will buy your work if they really love it. This, of course, comes with experience in the field and also through trial and error. 
• Have fun. Art is not only about selling, its about enjoying the practice. 

Thanks to all the incredible artists who shared their advice!

I hope this post inspired you with new ideas on how to sell art! How have you found selling your art to be most successful? Do you have any tips/ ideas that weren’t mentioned here? I’d love to hear from you! If you found this post helpful I would appreciate you sharing it so much. Good luck on your art journey, I’m wishing you all the best!! 

XOXO, Taylor