Essentials: Getting Your Work Seen
Finding Your Audience
Finding your audience can be incredibly difficult. Aside from trying to be noticed for your craft, determining what route is right and feasible for you is just as troublesome. Well let’s just say that the possibilities are endless. There is something for everyone.
Below we have a list of alternative ways to finding your audience.
1. Defining Your Art
Pinpoint what your actual niche is! Get a concise description of what you do.
2. Online Platforms
Using online platforms can be a very useful tool if you don’t quite yet have a huge following on social media or within your network. Online platforms give you the opportunity to be exposed to a much wider range of audiences. You might find some platforms that’ll produce other accessories from your artwork and provide a more easier way to turn your work into other products. Cons: There’s a lot more competition between you and other artists that are too trying to sell their work. If you choose a platform that can create products for you, you won’t be taking home all of your profit. Here are some platforms:
To Find More Interesting platforms check out ART + Marketing’s blog on their top 15 websites to sell on.
3. Fairs, Festivals, and Pop Up Shops
Art fairs and festivals are a perfect way to get out their and display your work. Everyone love fairs and you should just follow where the buyers are going. There are fairs and festivals every year, all year in different cities and states. Maybe it can be apart of your vacation to travel, sell work, and explore the city. You can also look into events that cross over in other art forms. Don’t just stick to what you know. An important way to draw them to your booth would be to decorate your booth or table that screams YOU and CREATIVE. Check out affordable DIY booth options that Artwork Archive has whipped up because things can get mighty costly.
You can also get a free ebook on the 9 Things You Must Do at Every Craft Fair from Pop Up Shop America! Brittany Bly, one of FreshArts’ presenters at the 2019 Summit, is the founder of Pop Up Shop America.
4. Retailers
Displaying your work in different businesses such as, cafes and coffee shops, are a perfect way to get exposed while selling your work. It gives your artwork that much more character by being in an actual working space. Sometimes it may come with a fee, whether it’s a percentage to the owner after work has been sold or the wall space; it comes out cheaper than a gallery space. You could display your prints in their businesses so you constantly have income once you’ve sold your original…or not.
5. Commissions
Commissioning yourself to others could be a great start to getting your name out there and continuing to have a flow of money. You have the ability to manage how often per month/year that you would be of service to someone. Be careful of losing yourself in someone else’s ideas, so continue to work on your body of work. There are a lot of other things to consider as well: contracts, insurance & liability, and taxes. Be sure to know exactly what you’re planning to do.
6. Licensing and Merchandising
Want to know how to get started in art licensing? Begin by searching online for art publishers, researching companies other artists are using and calling manufacturers that make products you’re interested in printing your artwork on.
Artists like Robin Maria Pedrero and Tyler Wallach have found great success merchandising their art and kindly shared their advice with us earlier this year. (source)
7. Interior Designers
If selling to retailers interests you, consider the interior design market.
First, you’ll need to understand the current designs trends and build up your body of work to complement those (without just making replicas of trendy items). Then, research designers whose styles match your artwork and reach out. For more help, check out “How to Sell Your Art to Interior Designers.” (source)
8. Podcasts
Podcasting has become a favorite way to convey a message through the internet. In its beginnings, podcasting had a “do-it-yourself” approach. Essentially, any person with a microphone and a computer could launch their content and build up from there. As the years have gone by, podcasting has become more sophisticated and more prevalent, especially in the music industry. Here are a few reasons why Planetary Group found it to be beneficial in this article they wrote: “How Podcasts Can Help Your Music Career“.
9. Research
Then identify artists that are like you that have the same genre, style, or approach and figure out how they run things. Discover where they perform/show their work, seek who their followers are on social media, and possibly introduce yourself. You want to reach out to people who have already shown that interest.
After you find your audience, how do you plan to market to them? Check out our Marketing Resource Library.
Other Resources You Might Find Interesting:
Stop the Breaks: Independent Grind – “Understanding Your Target Audience For Independent Artists“
A3C Festival – “How To Find Your Target Audience“
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill: Writing Center – “Audience“
