How to Get Them Talking About Your Art

Selling your Art online without inspiring a conversation is exactly the same as setting up a physical art stand in the middle of a barren desert! No one will come, and your sales will languish! You have to move where the people are, and then you have to engage them in order to increase sales. This guide will teach you exactly how you can get the web talking about your art.

1. Actively Participate in Social Networks

You probably already have a blog and social networks like Facebook, Twitter, Etsy and Flickr, but do you really use them?

Take Action: Statically posting your updates isn’t enough to get people talking about your art. You have to join Facebook groups and leave comments, join Etsy circles and curate collections, and upload your photos to popular Flickr groups. Chat with people, make friends and interact, and people will return the favor and talk about your work, too.

2. Tell Your Story

Your art is all about your story. People want to know your process and your inspirations. They want to know your humble beginnings and successes. People buy handmade over mass produced items for the human element, so show how human you are and tell your story.

Take Action: Update your blog and social networks frequently with your process and the adventure that is creating your art line. It will resonate with people, and they will spread the word. (Especially if you get your readers involved in the process! Think of creative ways to make your fans a part of the story.)

3. Make Friends in the Community

Genuine networking in your niche is invaluable, not only for rapport and inspiration, but also for starting the conversation about your artwork.

Take Action: If you see artwork that speaks to you somewhere online, stop and follow that person on their social networks and send them an e-mail. Let them know that you appreciate what they create. Leave comments on your favorite blogs. Starting this conversation is how you create friends in the community. You’ll talk about their art, and they’ll talk about yours.

4. Ask People to Write About Your Art

This is the common-sense answer, and it’s one that few people try. Find a resource that you feel would be a good fit for your artwork, and kindly ask if they would publish a story about your work. Many publications ask for people to submit and appreciate the free content. Be creative, write helpful guest posts for blogs or tell your story in a magazine. Don’t by shy, just ask!

It’s up to you: With consistency and a little dedication, you can get people talking about your art and spread the word of your line and vision. Get out there and get them talking, it’s your job to spark the conversation about your art.

image above Hello World by Dear Machine

Vanessa wrote this post. She is a full time copywriter and webmarketer with a passion for art, creativity, and thrift. She writes about thrifting, creating, and saving money every weekday on her blog, Thrift Core.

9 comments | Click here to reply

[…] “How to Get Them Talking About Your Art” is a great article by Vanessa on the papernstitch blog. Definitely worth the read! […]

Great Biz Article – How to get them talking… :: My Blog

Wow what amazing and helpful words of advice. I really need to spend more time connecting with like minded people on the internet and it’s so true I do happen to already have these sites set up just need to use them correctly. Thanks for sharing.

Sarah

[…] “How to Get Them Talking About Your Art” is a great article by Vanessa on the papernstitch blog. Definitely worth the read! […]

Great Biz Article – How to get them talking… :: A House Full of Moxie

Thank you so much for sharing this. I’m always on the look out for new strategies.. I’ve been at a bit of a standstill with my promoting and marketing lately. This has perked me up…

Jenny

So helpful and so true! I also find that if you genuinely promote and take an interest in the work of others – Many will offer the same to you! I’ve made many crafty friends that way both on the interwebs and in real life ๐Ÿ™‚ Thanks for sharing!

Sasha

Number 4 is probably my favorite Vanessa because its so obvious, yet so overlooked. If you don’t ask you’re most likely not ever gonna get what you want. 99% of the population has to earn everything they’ve got. So “earn” a mention by making yourself known and speaking up. Great job with this one Vanessa.
-Brittni

papernstitch

I found this article to be helpful. It’s nice to have a friendly reminder that I need to interact more. I’m going to head over and check out Thrift Core. Thanks for providing the information! =D

Stephanie Casey

Vanessa, this is a lovely post. I love how you worded all of this! Very sound advice. An excellent example of an artist who actively engages her fans would be Marina Bychkova, one of my favorite doll artists. She has a forum where folks can discuss her dolls (which are *amazing*) as well as a blog ( http://www.enchanteddoll.com/blog/ ) where she shares info about her process, shows, and recent work. She even involves her community further by holding a yearly contest (participants get a chance to design a doll) and generously gives a doll as a grand prize (no small treat, since her dolls cost thousands of dollars.)

Mai

thanks for this great post. so i think iร‚ยดll start to knock on more doors ๐Ÿ™‚
lovely greetings from germany, wibke

wibke FINGERFABRIK
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