Trade Of Art: Being able to sell art is not an easy task. Even people who are already art collectors are hesitant to be the first buyers from obscure or not so well known artists.
Additionally, it is way more difficult to sell to people who are not really art collectors and do not know anything about you. However, once you get to make your first sale, it makes selling your masterpieces a lot easier than before.
Is Your Art Ugly?
As an artist, you shouldn’t doubt your creativity and skill just because you don’t sell much artwork. There are several reasons why people who already like art do not buy pieces often. These reasons could be related to their knowledge of art, their self-confidence, an identity crisis of what their taste really is, and how much it matters to them what other people would say about the pieces they buy.
A lot of people in the art industry, whether new or old, usually worry about what other people will say about their purchases, or that their colleagues and friends will make fun of them. Even though someone might like a certain piece of artwork of yours, they are probably not sure of how well done the piece is, whether it’s really worth the price, or whether you as an artist are established enough in your career to warrant such prices.
Thus, it is your job as an artist to help these people who admire your art feel secure and comfortable with you, both as an artist and a businessperson. If you can do this, you’ll help alleviate whatever other fears they may have and it’ll increase the probability that they’ll buy your art.
If you don’t know where to start, here are some tips on how you can make the admirers of your artwork buy your pieces and how hopefully in time, you can turn them into patrons.
Tell Them: It’s OK, Really
Before you even start off with all the sales talk, you should be able to show people that purchasing your artwork is okay. You can try talking about other collectors that have bought your pieces, what kind of people they are and how long you have been transacting with them. Doing this will make your prospective buyer let go of the thought that you’re just some bozo trying to sell him a piece of junk and get hold of his cash.
However, if you haven’t had any collectors, then you should say so honestly. You should tell your prospective buyer that you are open to the possibility of selling your art to them, although you haven’t really done this before.
How Do You Sell? (Trade Of Art)
You should also talk to them about your method of selling your art and in what specific circumstances people usually buy it. Additionally, it’s helpful to tell stories or anecdotes of how other collectors have bought their first artwork from you. You should also talk about your most recent sale, how you were able to sell it, and for how much.
The method of how you price your pieces should be mentioned too, along with which of your pieces is the favourite among collectors, and how many you have sold all in all.
Exposure
Lastly, it’s usually very helpful to talk about the exposure that you’ve had in the industry, such as museum or institution exhibits, galleries, trade fairs, and awards or honours that you’ve received.
