Cory Huff's Blog: The Abundant Artist Goodreads blog, page 9

The secret to better productivity for artists

First thing in the morning you receive an article in your inbox claiming that a live chat feature on your website can increase sales. You research, download, unzip, and upload the plugin… and the installation fails. Three times. By now you’ve burned through the entire morning you had set aside for marketing, and you feel like if you DON’T get this plugin running then your day will have been a waste. 

After a little more research, you realize that the culprit is your website theme. You’re committed now, so you hunt for a compatible theme.. By the time you’ve got the new theme up and running, you’ve also wasted most of the afternoon. But you are ultimately victorious! After 7 hours of research and frustrating guesswork, you manage to install the plugin. It feels a little anticlimactic, and it’s a little glitchy. But NOW your website will sell more art… right? 

Now to get back to that inbox full of emails you ignored all day.

Are you spending too much time on your website?

How much time did you spend fiddling with your website this month? If this story feels a little too familiar, you’re in good company among artists trying to conduct their business on a tight budget. Web designers and IT support cost money, so why not just spend a few (dozen) hours doing it yourself? But now be completely honest: could you have spent those hours in a more productive way? Unless you have significant experience or training in web design and technology, the answer is probably yes.

There are a few reasons artists can get caught in the trap of spending too many hours messing with inconsequential website details: 

Website design is a time suck, especially if you’re not a pro.
You’re procrastinating!
You haven’t identified which of your tasks produce the most value for your business, and so you get easily distracted.

The case for hiring help

Even considering hiring a contractor or agency can feel off-limits to small business owners and entrepreneurs. You’re already pinching pennies, why would you pay hundreds of dollars for someone else to do all the stuff that you can probably figure out, given enough time and perhaps a few tears?

Ultimately, the problem of artists and other creative business owners spending countless hours DIY-ing every aspect of their business is a mindset problem. Do you consider yourself a true professional? Do you expect your business to pay for itself, or do you feel sheepish and apologetic about spending the money to hire a pro? A dentist or a lawyer is very unlikely to try to spend hours and hours making their own website, because they know their time is much more valuable if spent in areas where they excel. The same goes for you, artist.

If you find yourself stuck in a frugal all-or-nothing mindset, consider the rule of displacement. (By the way, there’s nothing inherently wrong with frugality. But remember that money isn’t the only resource that requires mindful management- you must also consider the value of your time.)

Strengths, weaknesses, and the rule of displacement

If you’re a creative professional selling your work either part- or full-time, then you already know that creating art is at the top of your list of strengths. You cannot outsource creating your paintings, your sculptures, or whatever it is you excel at creating. But just about everything else is up for discussion.

Charlie Gilkey, productivity expert and founder of Productive Flourishing, explains the rule of displacement like this: whatever you spend your time doing is displacing something else that you could be doing. So you must consider what you are displacing in order to do the task before you. In our example of spending an entire day fiddling with a website for a minor upgrade, essential tasks were displaced during those hours.

In order for your business to run successfully, you will need to spend at least half of your time on business and marketing. But within that range of time, there are tasks that you and you alone should be doing, such as meeting with potential collectors and responding to emails and phone calls. Anything else you do during your dedicated marketing time, like the website design in our example, is displacing those tasks. 

In order to determine which tasks are worth outsourcing, try following a flowchart of questions like this:

Does it absolutely have to be ME who does this?

If the answer is yes, do the thing! If the answer is no, ask yourself: is this a task that I excel at? If it’s not, hire someone. If the answer is yes, ask yourself: does this displace essential tasks that I must do myself? If the answer is yes, hire someone! If the answer is no, do the thing!

Another strategy is to relegate those non-essential tasks to the end of your list, but this introduces a snag: sometimes a task really does need doing, and putting it off indefinitely at the bottom of your list won’t be good for business. This is why hiring a website designer, a virtual assistant, or a studio assistant can make a huge difference for the growth of your business.

Some tasks that you may want to consider hiring help for include:

Website design and updates (web designer)
Shipping and receiving (studio assistant)
Processing orders and responding to customer service inquiries (virtual assistant) 

What does your website really need?

Our example was a common problem for artists: spending too much time fiddling with ultimately inconsequential aspects of your website instead of focusing on the tasks that really need your attention. In order to identify whether that plugin or upgrade you want to enact is necessary for your site to sell art, take a look at the list below. These are the fundamental features of a good artist website. If your site already has all these features, congrats! You’ve got a pretty effective website. And if it doesn’t, you’ve got a nice list to present to your web designer.

A custom domain, probably your first and last name
An about page with your artist bio and brief CV
A functioning Shop page
A way to add visitors to your mailing list
Lots and lots of beautiful images
A clear explanation of what your work is and what it’s about

The Bottom Line

The key to better productivity for your business is in identifying your strengths and weaknesses, and developing a clear and unflinchingly honest perspective on which tasks require that YOU be the one to do them. Don’t be afraid or embarrassed to outsource other tasks; rather, view them as a way to help you laser focus on growing your business. And when you have a frustrating and unproductive way, be willing to step back and take a look at how your current to-do list shapes up according to the rule of displacement. Ultimately you’ll see an increase in productivity, happiness, and better sales for your art business.

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How Artists Across the Country are Adapting During the Pandemic

From online classes to livestreams to virtual studio tours, artists are using technology to thrive during lockdown.

When states and countries across the globe entered into various states of lockdown in response to the COVID-19 pandemic earlier this spring, no one could anticipate the outcome. And while the end is still far off, enough time has passed that we can begin to see, and celebrate, the ingenuity and flexibility of artists around the world as they continue to create in a strange new type of “normal”.

We recently asked artists on social media about what they’re doing right now to connect with others and stay active in their art practice and business. We’ve rounded up their replies here to give you some insight, hope, and inspiration.

How Artists Are Using Social Media During COVID

Amanda Rackowe: “I have been making small paintings and selling them via the #artistsupportpledge. It has hooked me up with all sorts of other artists and I have sold really well and ready to buy my first work.”

The #ArtistSupportPledge was started by artist Matthew Burrows to encourage fellow artists to support one another by buying one another’s work. See more on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/artistsupportpledge/

Kika Pierides: “I am doing a 100 day project on Instagram. The project I have created entails making a 30 minute abstract collage per day.” www.instagram.com/kikapierides

Tricia Chitwood: “I just downloaded tik tok, and started doing video streams there. It’s hella inspiring, and has pushed me so far out of my comfort zone I’m on the verge of breaking down!! Which is good.”

How Artists Are Running Online Classes and Workshops

Katana Leigh shared that she is running online paint-along classes on YouTube and individual and group classes via Zoom: http://ArtistinHawaii.com 

Jamie Norton Poole: “I am doing an online art class every week! Having a great time connecting all my adult art classes and learning a lot myself too.” https://www.jamie-poole.com/online-lesson.html

Meghan Oona Clifford: “I usually only run my online creativity workshop once a year, but now I opened it up to run all year because of Covid!” https://www.meghanoonaclifford.com/pages/the-creative-path

Jessica Singerman: “I am running an online watercolor class.” https://www.jessicasingerman.com/course/little-watercolor-square

Rod Moore: “Online courses at https://www.learntopaint.academy. We live streamed every day in April and our students all painted along. They loved it. Exploring the idea of making them more interactive using Google Meet.”

Nikki Coffelt: “I’m curating a live painting gig online next month! https://mailchi.mp/a3e168f2015d/liveart?fbclid=IwAR0_kJhTPaGes7yA0G8SXhgnJBC-zxTiqhhiYz1jIpSy9WiyvXY-U8wawfw”

Sonia Iwasiuk: “Zoom live classes and online e-lessons plus a shop on our brand new website!” www.theartway.ca

Other Ways Artists Are Connecting 

Bart Levy: “I’m planning a virtual studio tour/sale to take the place of the studio tour I’ve been trying to schedule since last fall. Will publicize via social media and email.”

Sarah C. B. Guthrie: “I am facilitating TAA Mastermind Groups every week.”

Roberto Aceves Diaz: “Working behind the scenes on new infrastructure (website, online shop, digital content) and trying to engage in my current platforms by generating the habit of commenting giving value.”

Karen Payton: “I am working on an online art show and possibly a drive through neighborhood art show.”

Marie de Longcamp: “I have reached out to journalists. I got two press mentions. One is a video for the online version of a magazine. Shooting this week. “

Chelsea Lang: “I’ve been live streaming over at youtube.com/c/chelsealang and chatting with my subscribers there. I’ve even had a couple request one-on-one consultations and support me on Patreon, totally unprompted after getting to know me on YouTube.”

Are you an artist doing cool things during lockdown? We want to hear about it. Drop a link in the comments to whatever online classes, virtual studio tours or social media challenges you’re doing right now!

The post How Artists Across the Country are Adapting During the Pandemic appeared first on Online Marketing for Artists.

The Beginner’s Guide to Teaching Art Online

Teaching art courses online is a fantastic way to grow your student base, increase your passive income, or add a revenue stream that will be  extremely valuable in challenging times like these.

Recently we sat down with artists from around the world to discuss how artists can teach art courses online while self-isolating or quarantined. We’ve embedded the original CrowdCast video at the bottom of this page as well as a link to download the transcript.

Even if you’ve never taught any kind of class before, you can succeed at teaching your art techniques to others online! Read this beginner’s guide to teaching online art courses, and give it a try.

How to get started teaching art online
Decide what to teach

If this is your first time teaching an art class, the first order of business is to decide what you’ll teach. This can feel overwhelming, especially if you do multiple things like Doreen, who creates both digital illustration and hand-drawn art. The rule of thumb for Doreen will be the same for you: identify the easiest thing that you do, and start there. Of course, easy is relative, and the curse of expertise may cause you to feel like creating lush digital landscapes or creating quick caricatures isn’t a big deal, but keep in mind that anything you have been doing for long enough will feel much easier for you than for a beginner. Some examples of “easy” techniques to start with:

        Drawing fundamentals (perspective, shading, etc)
        Painting clouds
        Sculpting a small pot
        Still life drawing or painting

It may be helpful to get a pen and paper, write down every technique you use in your art, and break it down into the smallest steps possible to get a good idea of what to teach. If at this point you feel overwhelmed with the sheer volume of material you could start teaching, great!

What if I already teach art courses in person?

If you already have prepared courses and just need to transfer them to an online format, you’ll still need to make some decisions about how you make the transition to online teaching. If you’re already teaching, the first course you bring online should not be your longest, most expensive option. Perhaps you teach a month-long intensive course as well as half-day workshops. Start with the shorter workshops, and as recommended above, break them down into the smallest manageable chunks. This is a great time to experiment with video lengths: try some short 5 or 10 minute videos explaining a single technique, and try an hour-long video teaching a small piece from start to finish. Pay attention to how they’re received by your audience and be sure to ask for feedback!

Decide on a format

Are you excited by the idea of teaching a live class and interacting with students, or would you prefer to record yourself creating a piece, then go back and narrate over the top? There are a couple of format options for teaching art online:

        Teaching a live course to a small audience, interacting and providing feedback to your students in real-time.
        Pre-recording a short lesson and packaging it with images and PDFs to sell passively at a low rate.

Some teachers choose to combine these two formats for longer courses, like Flora Bowley’s Bloom True, incorporating pre-recorded downloads and other materials as well as the opportunity to join live calls to ask questions and interact with other students (The Abundant Artist does this too!) But if you’re just starting out, don’t worry about more complicated lesson formats. Just choose whether you’ll teach live or pre-recorded and get started!

Live chat platforms

There are a lot of live chat platforms to choose from that will allow you to interact in real time with your students, see each other’s faces, and type to each other with a chat feature to share links, etc. Here are a couple of the most popular live chat platforms:

        Zoom. Zoom is a great choice for getting started: it’s free to sign up and takes only a few minutes to schedule your first call. There are some restrictions for free accounts: You can live chat for up to 40 minutes with 3 or more people. If you need more time than that, you can subscribe for $15 a month.
        CrowdCast. CrowdCast does not have a free option, but costs just $20/month (if you pay yearly) for 50 attendees and up to 5 hours per month.
        Google Hangouts. Google Hangouts is free for up to 10 people and an unlimited amount of time, but the quality and ease of use is lower than Zoom and Crowdcast.

Assemble your equipment

While you can go down an equipment rabbit hole, you don’t need much to get started, especially if you plan to teach live courses.

There are two main recording equipment options:

        HD Webcam- This option will provide the highest quality picture. The webcam that comes factory-installed on many laptops is not usually of high enough quality to produce a good video. However, if you absolutely cannot acquire an HD webcam, you can compensate for a lower quality camera with very good lighting. Do your best to eliminate shadows, especially around the area where you’ll be creating art. For more lighting options, check out our guide to livestreaming art.
        Smartphone with tripod- If you need to use your smartphone to record or livestream, make sure that you are using a tripod to keep the picture stable. An iPhone 10 or 11 or the newest iPad Pro all have very high quality cameras that will work fine for recording video. Earlier generations may not be as high quality. Again, you can compensate with good lighting and a tripod. Check out the livestreaming link above for a list of inexpensive smartphone tripods.

If you choose to teach a live class from your desktop or laptop, connect directly to your internet via an ethernet cable if you can. This will cut down on video lag and produce a much smoother experience.

 

Prepare for tech issues

When you first begin teaching online, especially via a live course, be prepared to spend some time ironing out technical issues with microphones, cameras, etc. This is normal, and an inevitable part of including multiple people in a video chat. Factor some extra time into the beginning of your course to allow for these issues. An easy way to get out in front of potential tech problems is to send out your platform’s “quick start guide” to all your students in advance. A quick search on most video chat platforms should bring something up.

As mentioned above, another way to avoid issues with video/audio lag and low quality is to make sure that your computer is plugged directly into the internet if at all possible.

How to sell your online art course

If at all possible, the number one place you should be selling your online course is also the number one place you should be selling your art: on your own website. This allows you to retain customer information as well as 100% of the profits. There are also dozens of online teaching platforms that will help you quickly create a course and sell it through their website, but be advised that they will take a cut of your profit and you may not be able to retain access to customer information for future marketing.

How to sell courses on your own website.

To sell courses on your own website, you need a few capabilities:

        Record and upload your videos to a file sharing platform like Dropbox or to a password-protected “members only” portion of your website.
        Send automated emails with the download link to customers who purchase a course.
        Accept payments through your website.

If you already have a WordPress website set up that can accept payments, there are many good online teaching plugins that you can integrate:

      LearnDash
      Sensei
      LearnPress

However, if you are not already using a WordPress site, now is not the time to attempt to learn. Instead, use the recommendation above to send a video download link via email once customers have paid, or use an online teaching platform.

How to sell courses through online teaching platforms.

The great thing about online teaching platforms is that they can easily and quickly get you up and running with a beautifully structured course that is easy for students to navigate. A few of the most popular platforms include:

      Teachable (Teachable can also integrate with your existing website)
      Doki.io
      Skillshare
      Ruzuku

You may also be able to obtain new students who are searching for courses through these platforms, but due to the very high saturation of low-cost courses available you shouldn’t depend on the search feature to provide you with students.

How to get students for your online art courses

If you already teach in-person courses, send an email (or even make phone calls!) to all your existing and past students inviting them to take your courses online. You can offer a discount for early sign-ups or for students who take your first beta course.

If this is your first course ever, send individual invitations to handpicked students (friends and family and any collectors you may already have) and invite them to join you for your first online class. An announcement across your social media platforms is another way to garner interest.

You can also try piquing interest by recording a short promotional video to share on YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram (or any other social platforms you already use frequently) with a teaser of your course.

Email marketing platforms

The best way to begin inviting students is via an email campaign. There is an abundance of platforms to choose from. The Abundant Artist recommends ConvertKit*. Other popular options include:

      Mailchimp
      Constant Contact
      Mailer Lite

Don’t be overwhelmed by the options. Just like online teaching platforms and social media platforms, the best email marketing program is the one you will use consistently, so just pick one and get started.

As you begin to set up your first course and send emails to potential students, we recommend being honest about any trepidation you have. Use the journey as part of your story, and invite students and collectors along for the ride. Here’s an example:

“Hi friends!

If you’re like me, you’re taking this strange new uncertainty one day at a time. I’ve been looking for new ways to bring my art to you even during quarantine, and I’m excited to announce that I’ve just launched my first online art course! I’m still learning as I go, but I’d like to invite you to join me on this journey. The first course will be on Sunday at 12:00 p.m. Will you join me? I’d love to see your face, chat a little and teach you some of what I know.”

If you will be selling directly from your own site, make sure that your email campaign is set up to automatically send the download link once a customer pays for your course so they aren’t left waiting.

How to price your online course

Your pricing will vary depending on the length and style of your course. For live online courses that closely resemble an in-person class, you should charge as much as you would for an in-person class. It’s okay to include a small discount to compensate for the change in venue if you’re actually transferring from in-person to online.

Courses that include multiple recordings, extra downloads and/or a live chat session most commonly sell for between $300-$500.

Shorter pre-recorded entry-level courses and single workshops that run about an hour in length generally sell for about $20. The idea is to sell these courses passively at a higher volume, just like you might sell art prints at a lower cost and a higher volume than original works.

Do your own research: check out the common prices for courses comparable to yours on the most popular platforms. Most importantly, check in with your students. You should never shortchange yourself, but during uncertain times it will be helpful for you to work with your students to reach a price that they can pay and that you feel good about charging.

Online art course inspiration

If you’ve never taken an online art course before, spend a small amount of time clicking around to see what other artists are doing. You don’t need to copy anyone, but pay attention to what you see a lot of artists doing- chances are they’re doing it because it works. Here are a few posts for inspiration:

The Ultimate Guide to Online Art Courses

Top 5 Online Watercolor Classes

How to Make 6 Figures Teaching Art Online

 

Teaching Online Art Courses Q&A

This is a section of the transcript from our online working session where Cory answered specific questions from working artists.

Q : I see tons of artists at all levels, selling at tons of different price points. From master painters selling 6-hour tutorials for $20 to painters selling a 2-hour tutorial for $150. My art hero is someone selling 2-hour tutorials for $20, how do I compete with that?

A: Pricing is 90% psychological and 10% strategic. It’s just a mess, and it’s really hard to figure out. Generally speaking, a really well known artist, because of their name and their brand, can sell tons of classes. What they’re trying to do is sell a pre-recorded class at a low price point so that they call sell tons of them, and they make money by doing volume.

If you have the ability to pre-record a class and sell it, do a one-hour class for $20 or a two-hour class for $20, whatever it is. Then the challenge for you is marketing. I’m not convinced that that is necessarily better than getting 5-10 people in a 2-hour session one-on-one, where you can actually work with them directly.  People who want to take a class from you won’t necessarily want to take a class from this other person. They may want to take a class because they like you. And that will be true for all the other teachers out there. People want to take classes from teachers that they know and love, especially those who have a big local following. They’re not going to just find some other teacher online if you’re offering classes, they’re going to take it from you.

Q: Most of my students in my groups are pensioners enjoying retirement time. Their pensions are taking a huge hit. Would you think it’s a good idea to offer a reduced rate?

A: If you put a price out and people are telling you that it’s too expensive, or that their pensions are taking a hit because they’re pensioners, yeah, you can offer a discount. There’s a lot of flux. There’s a lot of change, a lot of dynamics in the market. Listen to your people and respond to them. Let them know “Hey, I’m going to be doing this course. I’m thinking this price point, let me know if you’re interested.” And if people don’t respond or they tell you that’s too expensive, listen to them and get them on board. Respect yourself, respect what you’re worth, but also listen to your people and allow them to tell you what’s actually happening.

Q: I’ve taught a few evening classes in person. I’m looking to start teaching online, but there are so many host sites for classes I don’t know where to start. What things should I consider when choosing a site for my class?

A: The best thing you can do is look at 3 or 4 and pick one, otherwise you’ll just go forever. Personally, I think Teachable is a great platform. It’s built for stuff like this. But there’s lots of them out there, and none of them are necessarily bad, it’s just which one works for your particular style. All of them are going to allow you to do things like upload a video, upload some images, upload some PDFs. All of them are going to allow you to do things like take payments and restrict access. They all perform those basic functions. If you want to combine some real-time feedback like what we’re doing now, you can use Zoom. Zoom is the easiest thing.

Q: Besides an iPhone 11, what’s another recording device that you would suggest for prerecorded videos?

A: If you have an iPhone 11, just use an iPhone 11. Another thing you can use is a DSLR, but that’s going to be $500. So you might as well just get a new phone.

Q:  How do you make sure that your students have the right supplies?

A: What I have seen other artists do in the past, is you can pre-buy all the supplies and then ship them out to people. That’s a huge pain and you’ve got to charge a big markup to do that because it takes you time. The other thing you can do is put together a pre-curated list of the supplies that you would use for that art piece. Then in the course sign up materials, let them know that you will need to purchase supplies. You need to give them enough time, you need to give them a week or two so that they have time to get the supplies and have them shipped to their home. And say “When you sign up for this course, be sure to order these supplies.” And have links to where they can buy the supplies online, whether it’s on Amazon or Blick or some other website. Make sure it’s a link to where you would buy the specific supplies you would use.

Q: I’m a studio artist. I’ve been teaching in person classes for 5 years. I thrive on the dynamic created in a class of 6-8. I can give them a lot of individual attention. Something about being able to see what they’re doing in the class as they’re doing it.

A: You can do that on Zoom, and with CrowdCast too, you can have lots of people on the screen at the same time. Then as long as they have their cameras turned towards their easel, you can see what they’re doing. If you give them some instruction and then give them 10-20 minutes to work on whatever the next thing is, you can just make sure that all of them have their camera pointed at their easel, and then you can just be watching all of them like you would when you’re walking around the room. Then you can come on audio and talk to whoever it is and say “Hey I noticed you’re doing this, make these adjustments.”

Recommendations from a teaching artist

Jennifer C. Vigil has nailed down a process that works well for her, and she has graciously shared her secrets with us here! You can check out her courses, retreats, and artwork at http://jennifercvigil.com.

I use LearnDash plugin for my online classes: https://www.learndash.com

I use Zoom and WebinarNinja.

VideoShop is a great smart phone app for easily editing videos directly on your phone. You can add stills, give voice over, add text and music, and so much more. There are in app upgrades that may be of use to some. https://www.videoshop.net

I also use Vimeo for storing my videos online. I link to or embed videos from Vimeo.

Canva is a great way to create well designed handouts and marketing material. You can create slides for your presentations and easily add images and texts. There are lots of preset formats and easy access to free images and graphics. You can also purchase additional images or graphics for $1. 

In terms of best practices for teaching online here are some links. While these aren’t directed specifically for art courses, the content is useful and relevant for keeping the content focused and having clear expectations about what the course covers, the way it is delivered, access to the instructor and what they will learn. 

https://teachonline.asu.edu/2018/09/best-practices-for-teaching-online/

How to make your teaching more engaging:

https://www.chronicle.com/interactives/advice-teaching

Some tips:

Infuse your writing and content with warmth. Convey your support. Find ways to encourage and support even with giving feedback. Being creative involves risk taking so make sure that people feel supported and safe when taking leaps. Set clear guidelines for your online community spaces that explain what is allowed. Discourage marketing, negativity and complaining. Encourage support, sharing resources, and positive feedback.
Let your personality show. Write like you talk. Share your humor. Imagine that you are talking to someone when you are shooting video. You can even print out a letter size image of someone you like and post that in front of you. Imagine you are teaching/ talking to them if that helps.
Don’t worry about being perfect. No one is. Certainly have a basic level of polish in what you do (videos) but don’t get hung up on making high end professional videos. You can spend too much time editing and not getting it done. Also people can relate to you more if they see you are human.
Don’t overwhelm your students with too much content or bells and whistles. Make sure that what you add makes sense and supports your 3 main goals of the class (what 3 skills/ concepts will they come away with from your class). Be clear in organizing your content. Don’t get overly creative with headings for your class. You want to make it easy to find information. For example, resources would be where they could find supply lists, places to buy supplies, other books, and handouts. 
Under promise and over deliver. You will get raving fans by adding some bonus information. This doesn’t mean you cover everything you know. Think of it as offering good customer service. What could delight your students? Could you offer online office hours? Can you give critiques/ feedback on student work (this is a given for live online or high end courses but is also a nice addition as hot seat options for office hours for an evergreen course). Send personal emails with encouragement and try to get to know your students. Seek engagement.
Once you have your course done, preview it from the student view and see if it makes sense. If possible, have someone else look at it and see if the organization makes sense, is easy to follow and if they find any bugs or glitches.
Share a sample video in your sales and marketing. Give them a glimpse of what they will learn and your teaching style. Let them get to know you. Make sure that video sample shows you and that you sound energized and not monotone.
Make sure you have a welcome video that walks them through your teaching portal, where to find things, what to do if they get stuck, can’t get in, lost their password, etc., and any additional information. Think of this as what you would tell people right away.
When they finish the course, have a survey as part of the last module. Getting feedback helps you improve the class and also gives you a way to get testimonials to add to your sales page.
Consider offering transcripts of the videos. It is helpful for people who learn in different ways and also those who have hearing difficulties.
While your videos will mostly focus on seeing you create (your hands painting, etc.) try to also include you talking to them directly. It is hard to connect to a disembodied person. Having videos periodically where they see your face or you talking directly to the camera will help them feel a connection to you.

The other thing I recommend is that the course description and title be clear and to the point.  Make sure students know what media they will be using, what level it is, and what they will be able to do afterwards. How long is the class (how many modules, total length of video content, any additional bonuses or resources). 

Consider having payment options. If they pay in full it is less than if they pay in a couple of installments. Don’t make that difference too large though.

Here is a link to a free checklist that I had created for artists, Artist’s Course Planner Checklist: https://jennifercvigil.lpages.co/artists-course-planner-checklist. While this is for teaching in person, most of it is relevant for online classes as well.

Some gear:

Bluetooth shutter remote for smartphones: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00PJSIIES/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o04_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Smartphone tripod adapter: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01L3B5PBI/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

GorillaPod stand. It wraps around things and is adjustable on lots of surfaces: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01NGTBA3E/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Gaffer tape. Great for taping your phone to a surface like a wall in front of you. It doesn’t leave a residue: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00GZE3UJ8/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

This is a strange and challenging time for everyone, but necessity is often the catalyst for explosive new growth. Don’t be afraid to try something new, be honest with your collectors and students, and see where your new journey takes you!

Have you taught an online course before? What advice would you share with your fellow artists?

Download transcript:

How to Sell Online Courses Transcript

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5 Psychological Reasons Why People Buy Expensive Art

Works of art

What makes a work of art great?  Almost anything can be seen as a work of art, but some art is more expensive than others, and why is that?  It is because certain works of art are done by more prominent artists, or it is a certain type of art. Art galleries are all different and unique. For centuries there has been artwork that must be owned and artwork that is just, eh, but what makes people want to own pieces of art for their homes?

Why do you want to own art?

There are a lot of reasons that people would like to own artwork but did you now that most of those reasons are purely psychological reasons.  There is no real reason that people would want to own art. It serves no function around the house, all it does is sit and look pretty, so what is the need to have stuff that looks pretty?  The want, or the ‘need’ to own art is strictly psychological.

Couldn’t one argue that the need for art is emotional?

One could imply that they like the artwork they have chosen because it makes them feel a certain way.  Either it makes them happy, or nostalgic, but even if you are getting a feeling from your artwork, that is your brain working.  Feelings, or emotions, are a psychological thing. Artwork makes you feel a certain way because it is meant to target certain areas of your brain.  In fact, feelings are one of the many reasons that people want to own art.

What are the top 5 reasons people want to own artwork?

Emotions – Art makes people happy.  It has also been known to bring forth feelings of anger and sadness.  It can make someone feel like they are back in their mother’s kitchen while their mom is baking cookies, or it can make you relive your worst moments in time.  Some people buy and keep art because it makes them feel a certain way. Have you ever just looked at a piece of art and said: ‘I need that because it makes me feel like this…’?  That is a psychological reaction. When art makes you remember something or makes you feel a certain way because of its theme or colors, you want that piece of art because it makes you feel that way.


Money – Some people do not even care about the art they are purchasing when they purchase it.  Some people only care about what they can gain from purchasing the artwork they have. When these people are buying art, they are thinking about whether it will gain value or decrease.  They wonder if they can sell it and make a profit quickly or slowly, and how much of a profit they can make. Some art is strictly sold for the profit it can make.   Now, some people would say this is not psychological, however, the need to always have money or have something that you are able to sell for money is a psychological need.  People who are like this understand that it is always going to take money or something of value to survive. In a way, purchasing art that will fetch a hefty sum later is a survival instinct.


Prestige – Some people want to own art strictly because it makes them look a certain way.  This is a psychological need as well. Wanting to look good for others or have people who are higher in social standing than you like something you have is a huge accomplishment.  The more expensive the art, the more praise they are fed. If they have artwork from certain artists, like Renoir or Picasso, they have clout. Artwork has the ability to make people more socially acceptable.  Most people just want to fit in somewhere, and art can help them to do this.


Love of art – For some people purchasing art for the love of the work is enough.  These pieces may not even be super-expensive works, they might not get the highest price or even be created by someone popular.  When someone really loves apiece of artwork and just has to have it, they are fulfilling the psychological need of wanting.    


Making statements – Some people like to keep art because it makes a statement.  A lot of this art is controversial, and people strictly own it to be different. While some art is meant to make people more socially acceptable, some art is meant to make people feel uncomfortable.  It is meant to make people question things. This is fulfilling the psychological need to be heard. Some people do not have loud voices or are not well versed in public speaking or writing. Some people are artistically inclined and make their statements that way.  People buy their work because they feel the same way as the artist, like the point needs to be heard.

Is owning artwork that important?

Owning some type of art is important to your psychological well-being.  Artwork can make something you have to say very clear without you having to say it.  It can stimulate your emotions and you brain. Art can help to make sure that you always have some kind of rainy-day fund, or it can just sit around because you like the way that it looks or what it says.  Artwork can be very important in a person’s life.

Are people really fulfilling psychological needs through art?

Owning art is a psychological need itself.  Art serves no purpose other than to make its owner happy.  It does not have any function beyond sitting around and being stared at.  Even if it is for monetary gain, the art is making its owner happier, just by being worth money.  There is a psychological need behind every piece of art that is sold, bought and displayed. Either it is meant to improve someone’s mood, make a statement about something, or is there for later monetary gain.  No matter why the art is in your home, it is there because of one of your psychological needs.

 

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Chelsea Lang on Wildly Improbable Goals

Two years ago, lifelong artist Chelsea Lang was working a full-time job in marketing and driving an old Honda. When she decided to pursue selling her work more seriously in 2018, she had only ever sold a very occasional commission to family and friends. Today, Chelsea is the owner of a brand-new Tesla, has quit her day job and is on track to make over six figures this year. What changed?

Chelsea sat down with us to share her journey and how The Abundant Artist enabled her to reach wildly improbable goals.

Art was always a part of Chelsea’s life; she made her first oil painting with the help of a relative at age three! But for many years she believed the myth of the starving artist. She languished under the assumption that to make a living from her art (and not to seriously struggle like all the fine artists she knew seemed to be doing) would require her to redirect her passion for traditional portraiture into concept art or illustrating. But Chelsea found that the repetitive and imaginative iterating of concept design was far outside her realm of interest, and she balked at trying so hard to force herself into a mold that she clearly didn’t fit into.

“I realized…  there was no dream illustration job or no dream concept art job for me. I have to do the thing that’s scary and try to figure out how to be a fine artist.” – Chelsea Lang

Once she decided to stop fighting her natural  inclinations and instead attempt to make a go of it, she had her first pop up show as part of an art walk in September of 2017. She casually invited friends and family via social media, and made a couple of sales throughout the day. But what truly vaulted Chelsea over the moon was a tattoo artist who fell in love with one of Chelsea’s pieces, borrowing money from her father on the spot in order to place a down payment on the piece. She was touched that someone who didn’t know her at all could love her work enough to borrow money to buy it, and she realized that perhaps it was possible to sell her fine art for a living.

Having closed the pop up with $1,000 in sales, Chelsea barrelled forward, taking the How to Sell Your Art Online courses and making slow but steady momentum in her art business. Although she was very new to selling her art in a serious manner, she knew immediately that she was in need of a more consistent and personalized push than the self-study courses would provide her, and she requested to join a TAA Mastermind group.

By the summer of 2019, Chelsea had hit a wall in her day job. Although she loved her boss, her heart was restless and the stress of the work was complicating her efforts to focus on growing her art business after hours. As she expressed her discontent to her Mastermind group and the reservations of her well-meaning loved ones who were concerned about her quitting her day job, the group encouraged her to run the numbers. How much she would need to make by the end of the year in order to pursue her art full time?

“Last year my therapist introduced me to wildly improbable goals: the idea of a goal that when you hear it, you think ‘That sounds crazy and I have no idea how the hell I could possibly do it, but I know I’m going to do it.’ I had this wildly improbable goal at the beginning of 2019 which was to make $30,000 off my art.” – Chelsea Lang

Although every month of 2019 wasn’t a big win due to the stress of her day job, Chelsea was putting what she had learned from the HTSYAO courses into practice with the steady and focused encouragement of the Mastermind group. She picked up a series of commissions that enabled her to reach her audacious goal by the end of the year… as well as another goal that had most people looking at her funny:

“(In one of our Mastermind meetings) we talked about goals that we could reward ourselves with for crossing a certain threshold. It dawned on me that  I want to be able to afford a Tesla! The plan was maybe this time next year I could have saved up for it, and it just so happened that a couple months before taking the leap (to quit my day job) my little Honda had some issues. It was $1,600 of repairs on a $2,000 car. I thought alright, we’ve hit that threshold. The car is costing more than it’s worth.” – Chelsea Lang

After a week of mulling it over and talking to friends who encouraged her, she figured out how to make it work. Chelsea noted that the large purchase encouraged her to hustle even harder. Although her financial planner was reticent to rejoice as excitedly as Chelsea was, she has marched determinedly toward larger goals that dwarf the extra monthly car payment.

At the end of the year, Chelsea’s largest wildly improbable goal of all came to fruition when she made the call to quit her day job. Chelsea acknowledges that her rapid-fire vault to full-time artist is not the norm, but that it shows what is possible when one is motivated by the lack of an extra income from a spouse or any other financial safety net:

“I’m the extreme because most other people I know who have made the leap have a spouse or some other safety net. Part of the reason I could do it so fast? I don’t have someone else’s income supporting me. I have to make enough to cover my mortgage, to buy health insurance. I don’t think I would have done it as quickly. There would have been some complacency if I thought that I could rest on my laurels at all.” -Chelsea Lang

As of early 2020, Chelsea’s business model is primarily in selling 11×17 portrait commissions at the $1,250 level, and she is moving upward toward commissions at a higher price point. Through the lean and abundant months and reaching milestones that in her past she would have thought entirely out of reach, Chelsea has realized that art and marketing are two entirely different skill sets:

“I think the interesting thing about all of this that I’ve really had to come to terms with is so many artists think if you build it they will come, and if the quality of work is enough people will pay you want you want to be paid. In reality they are completely different skill sets, and for artists who already make excellent work that can be disappointing news. But I think for artists who still know that there’s a long road ahead of them in terms of their artistic growth, there’s no reason that has to slow you down. There’s no reason you can’t make an amazing living right now and get paid well to keep furthering your craft. I think that’s what excited me most about this. I’m proud of my work, I also can’t imagine how great my work will look in 10 years, and the fact that I get paid to go on that journey… I’m incredibly fortunate.” – Chelsea Lang

If Chelsea’s story is exciting and inspiring, sign up for How to Sell Your Art Online 101 now to join a cohort of artists in learning how to tell your story, sell your art, and start reaching your own wildly improbable goals. 

You can learn more about Chelsea at ChelseaLang.com, or subscribe to her Youtube channel.

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Top 25 Art Grants for Growing Your Art Business

If you’re intimidated by the idea of applying for art grants, you’re not alone. Long applications and complex criteria can make even the seasoned professional artist shy away. But dipping your toes into the water could pay off in a big way: the average cash amount among the 25 grants included in our list is just over $5,000.

Art grants fall into one of three broad categories. The first is for general business development and growth, in which the grant is awarded to an artist for the purpose of growing their overall art business through a variety of means, sometimes including a mentorship or “incubator” program in addition to a cash award.

The second type of grant is project development. These grants generally provide funds to research, develop, and complete a specific project such as a show, installation, or particular series or collection of works. These grants are often awarded to artists working in various modes of activism or works with a high level of benefit to the community.

The third category is unrestricted funds. Professional and project-development based grants typically cannot be used for immediate financial needs like rent, but unrestricted funds take the shape of a simple no-strings-attached cash award. A few require the artist to demonstrate immediate financial need, while others are simply awarded to artists excelling in their field.

In compiling this list, we’ve made an effort to include mostly nationwide grants that accept applications from artists anywhere in the United States. See our tips below for how to search for grants that are specific to your region.

Once you’ve found a few grants you’re interested in applying for, check out this guest post from professional arts grant writer Claire Willett: How to Write Grants for Your Art Business.

Top Professional Development Grants for Artists:

Individual Artist Fellowship Program– Oregon Arts Commission. This grant offers between $3,500 and $5,000 for individual artists based anywhere in Oregon working in visual arts. The criteria considered include the aesthetic quality of the applicant’s submitted artwork; the artist’s sustained professional achievement; and the potential for the artist’s future contribution to the field.
Creative Capital Award– Creative Capital. The Creative Capital Award offers up to $100,000 to “artists who are working at the vanguard of their fields, or who have ideas to propel their artistic practices forward.” To see the full criteria and application process, visit their website.
Radcliffe Institute Fellowship Program– Harvard University. The Radcliffe Institute Fellowship Program is a residency fellowship available to distinguished visual artists, taking place at Harvard University in Cambridge, MA. Fellows receive a stipend as well as an additional $5,000 for project expenses. While focusing on a specific project, this fellowship in particular is a significant career accelerator due to the exposure to a network of highly successful mentors and peers.
Individual Support Grant– Gottlieb Foundation. This $25,000 award is available to artists working in painting, sculpture, or printmaking. Successful applicants will be able to demonstrate that they have been working in a mature phase of their art for at least 20 years.
Professional Development Grants– (Your State Arts Council). Professional development grants are available through regional and state arts councils to artists around the country. The linked grant above, as an example, is specifically for artists working in the greater Portland Metro area of Oregon, including Clackamas, Multnomah, and Washington counties. They vary from $100-$2,000 per award. Research your own regional arts & culture organizations for grants similar to this one.
Art-Business Accelerator Fellowships– The Clark Hulings Fund for Visual Artists. The Clark Hulings Fund for Visual Artists provides grants for artists working in paper mediums, paint, and sculpture. Rather than a cash grant, this award provides a free year-long online educational program and business incubator including online courses, coaching, and workshops. CHF also promotes and sells art by the Fellows via group shows and their online art portfolio.
Grants for Visual Artists– The Harpo Foundation. The Harpo Foundation provides up to $10,000 for self-described underrepresented visual artists over 21 years old, working in any medium. Grants are made to support the development of artists’ work and a grantee may use their award to support any activity toward that purpose, so this award may also be used for specific projects and not only professional development.
Lyndon Emerging Artist Program– Contemporary Craft. This grant is for craft artists working in ceramics, wood, metal/jewelry, glass, found materials, mixed media, fiber or a combination of these materials.The award provides a $1,000 cash grant and a year of marketing and promotion for artists producing excellent work but not yet well represented in traditional galleries.

Top Project Development Grants for Artists:

A Blade of Grass Fellowship for Socially Engaged Artists– A Blade of Grass. The Fellowship is designed to support artists that are using great art to enact a social change in the world. Criteria include projects with artistic value, a plan to enact social change, and a high quality of engagement practice. The award is $20,000 to enable the artist to continue their project, and includes a required expenses paid 2-day orientation retreat in NYC to engage a cohort of peer artists and A Blade of Grass staff and board.
Awesome Grant– The Awesome Foundation. The Awesome Foundation is a minimally-regulated organization that produces autonomous “chapters” all over the country. Each chapter is seeded by private individuals who award monthly $1,000 cash awards to artists of their choosing. The criteria varies by chapter. Projects that receive the award have included initiatives in a wide range of areas including arts, technology, community development, and more. See the website for more details on the chapter nearest you.
Global Art Grants– Burning Man. Don’t worry… you don’t have to trek out to the Playa for this grant. In fact the Global Art Grant awarded by Burning Man requires that the art NOT be present during the annual festival. The primary criteria is that the art produced is that which can be touched, heard, or experienced and is highly interactive and encourages community involvement. The average grant falls between $3,000- $6,000.
ArtsLink International Fellowships– CEC Arts Link. CEC ArtsLink gives art grants to international artists to help them come to the U.S. to collaborate with an American artist or organization. Their criteria for choosing an artist include the artist’s plans for sharing the benefits of the experience with artists and institutions in their home country. For a complete list of participating countries, visit the website.
Open Call Mentorship– AFIELD. The AFIELD mentorship is for 3 individuals engaged in social and artistic experimentation. They are granted $1,500 in seed funding to develop their initiatives as well as mentorship for 18 months.
Individual Artist Grants– Ruth & Harold Chenven Foundation. These individual grants provide $1,500 to artists who are living or working in the United States and engaged in a new craft or visual arts project.
Project Development Grant– Center. This grant supports fine art or documentary projects in-progress that have not yet been widely distributed or published. This grant includes a $5,000 cash award as well as feedback and various professional development opportunities.

Top Unrestricted Grants for Artists

The Hopper Prize- HopperPrize.org. The Hopper Prize welcomes applications from artists of all ages and experience levels working in any and all disciplines, including painting, photography, sculpture, drawing, video, documentary, performing, experimental, conceptual, and installation practices.
Emergency Grants– Foundation for Contemporary Arts. The Foundation for Contemporary Arts offers emergency unrestricted funding for visual artists who have found themselves with either an unexpected opportunity to show their work, but without the funds to produce the exhibition, or a scheduled exhibition and sudden extra financial need in order to make the show happen. The grants range from $500-$2,500 depending on the need.
The Anything Art Grant– Spectro Art Space. The Spectro Art Space Anything Art Grant provides $250 & $500 awards to artists working in any medium who can express their passion for their work in a way that gets the awards jury excited too.
Pollock-Krasner Foundation Grant– The Pollock-Krasner Foundation. The Pollock-Krasner Foundation Grant requires that artists working in paint, paper, or printmaking can provide a demonstration of financial need. The award is ongoing throughout the year, and varies according to need. Qualifying artists will have been working professionally for a significant period of time.
Individual Awards– Sustainable Arts Foundation. This unique award is specifically for working artists who are also the parent of at least one child. The award offers $5,000 for artists with a strong portfolio of polished work, working in Book Arts, Drawing, Fiber Arts and Textiles, Illustration, Installation, Mixed Media, Painting, Photography, Printmaking, and Sculpture.
Artadia Awards– Artadia. Artadia offers up to $10,000 to artists living and working in one of 6 partner cities- Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, San Fransisco, Atlanta, and Houston.
Artist Grant– Artist Grant.org. The $500 unrestricted Artist Grant is offered 4 times per year for visual artists working in any medium.
Interim Financial Assistance– The Haven Foundation. The Haven Foundation awards emergency funds based on need to artists working in any medium.  Qualifying artists will have recently experienced an unforeseen emergency or triggering event that has significantly and adversely affected their ability to produce, perform and/or market their work.
Individual Support Grant– The Gottlieb Foundation. The unrestricted Individual Support Grant offered by the Gottlieb Foundation offers $25,000 to qualifying artists working in the visual arts, including sculpture. This grant is exclusively for mature artists who have been developing their craft for at least 20 years.

How do I research art grants?

Our extensive list only scratches the surface of the grants available to artists all over the world. The catch is that many grants have very restrictive criteria. If you attempt a Google search, rather than simply searching “artist grants” try adding your city, region, and state in separate searches to narrow it down. You can also try these search terms to get better, more specific results:

“artist grants + (medium)”

“artist grants + (art subject)”

“artist grants + (emerging or mature artist)”

Making a list of all the unique descriptors that apply to your art and to you as an artist can be helpful for deciding on search terms. There are many grants available for minority artists as well as those engaged in various types of activism, so if that describes you be sure to include those details in your search criteria so you don’t miss out on available opportunities.

If you are looking for a grant for a group or organization project, include that in your search term. Otherwise, searching “individual artist grant” will help to eliminate group grants that don’t apply to you.

Grant applications can be long, involved processes with multiple steps over many months. Try searching for grants for the next calendar year in order to find larger grants currently accepting new applications.

If you are searching for a specific grant from among the three criteria we identified: professional development, project development, or unrestricted (or emergency), be sure to include those terms in your search as well.

Have you ever been awarded a grant for your art business? What kind of difference did it make for you? We’ve love to hear from you in the comments.

Give yourself the best possible chance by learning how to excel at grant applications- check out our post How to Write Grants for Your Art Project.

 

The post Top 25 Art Grants for Growing Your Art Business appeared first on Online Marketing for Artists.

Artists, Do These 10 Things Before You Quit Your Day Job

Are you ready to be a full-time artist?

Are you sure?

Our goal is to help artists develop the skills they need to sell their art online successfully, and many of our artists such as Tom Harold, Sarah Guthrie, and Sara O’Connor have gone on to quit their day jobs.  Forget the myth of the starving artist: with work and practical business skills, the dream is within reach! But going full-time requires more than simply making enough money to pay your bills.

We’ve put together a list of the top 10 tasks for artists who are preparing to quit their day job and take the plunge into full-time art. These tips come directly from artists in our Association and whom we’ve interviewed for past posts, all currently working full-time as professional artists. Whether you are nearing the goal amount you need to quit your day job or it’s still far off, you can begin this checklist now. When the time comes, you’ll be ready to take the leap.

Ten things to do before quitting your day job:

1. Figure out your timeline

Quitting your day job to pursue art full-time does not happen in a vacuum. As you begin to plan for how to make it happen, begin with your current and projected income for the next 6-12 months. How much money will you need to pay the bills comfortably? Remember to include: rent/mortgage, car payments & insurance, food, utilities, medical insurance, childcare, entertainment, and other household expenses. We recommend quitting your job when you have at least six months of income in the bank. We then recommend waiting until your monthly business profit exceeds your personal expenses.

As you get close to your quit date, factor in the time it will take for your current employer to hire and train a replacement (if applicable), how much time it will take to find and hire the right contractors to help you with the finances and legal considerations for your new business, and how much time it will take to get your website ready. Create a tentative timeline, and seek feedback from other artists who have already gone through the process.

2. Decide on the legal structure of your business.

Will you be a sole proprietorship, an LLC, a corporation, or something else?

US artists can review the options at the Small Business Administration website: https://www.sba.gov/business-guide/launch-your-business/choose-business-structure

Nailing down your business structure before you take the leap is extremely important because it will impact the way you approach day-to-day operations as well as quarterly/yearly taxes. While many artists start out as sole proprietors, for example, a sole proprietorship cannot have employees and is personally responsible for business debts and legal issues. It’s important to consider the risks and limits of each type of business structure, perhaps seeking legal counsel, before embarking on your journey.

3. Hire a bookkeeper

Why should you hire a bookkeeper instead of saving money by keeping your books yourself? Put simply, a professional bookkeeper saves you time and money. Bookkeeping errors, like thinking you have more money coming in than you do, or thinking your expenses are different than they are, can be costly. Factor the cost of a bookkeeper into your operational costs from the outset, and you’ll avoid tremendous headaches in the future.

What does a bookkeeper do?

A bookkeeper is in charge of recording transactions, posting debits and credits to your accounts, producing invoices, and handling payroll. Your bookkeeper can also be an invaluable advisor on whether your business is healthy enough to quit your day job. If your business grows to include studio assistants or contractors this will be especially helpful.

4. Hire a CPA

You may be able to find a CPA who also provides bookkeeping services, but a CPA (certified public accountant) will generally provide you with analysis and advice on a quarterly or yearly basis. Use a CPA to help you figure out your taxes, analyze whether you’re spending your money wisely, and find even better ways to make your money work for your business.

5. Reach out to local business organizations for resources, grants, and networking

Taking your art business full-time requires your networking game to be on point. An excellent example of networking prowess is Jesse Reno. When he first began creating art with an eye to going full time, he created a strict rule for himself:

“In the beginning… I had serious rules to get me here. I had a full time job and was like alright, ten hours a week either trying to get a gig or make 10 contacts, whichever one comes first. Then you’re off the hook and you can paint. It’s one thing to paint, it’s another thing to make a living from it. I did quick math and I was like alright, there’s 52 weeks in a year, that’s 52 contacts… (if I) contact 500 people, something should happen. I stayed on that level of hustle for probably the first four years, and then things started to happen that I didn’t really need to make ten calls.” – Jesse Reno (listen or read the full interview here: https://theabundantartist.com/podcast23/)

Connecting with local and regional artist organizations will also make it easier for you to access grants that may be available for small business owners. For more on writing grants, check out How to Write Grants for Your Art Project.

6. Hire a coach or join a mastermind group

Whether or not this is your first foray into starting your own business, you’ll benefit greatly from hiring a business coach. The Abundant Artist offers coaching sessions, or you can ask artist friends for recommendations. It is wise to find a business coach who has experience working with artists.

Once you’ve hired a business coach who can work one-on-one with you, a mastermind group will provide you with the support of peers in varied stages of business who can cheer you on and hold you accountable. Read more on why you should be part of an artist mastermind group: Mastermind Groups for Artists.

Sarah Guthrie facilitates our mastermind groups at The Abundant Artist, and she herself has a business coach as well (Charlie Gilkey of Productive Flourishing; we can’t recommend him highly enough!). Sarah says of coaching & mastermind groups:

“What became clear after a couple of weeks working with Charlie is that I really wanted to live the Dream and make creating and selling art the center of my business… (coaching artists) becomes this exciting feedback loop that keeps me open and growing. I love researching and sharing what I’ve learnt with my clients–it’s mutually beneficial as I am learning for them and I am learning for me. Within the coaching, there’s two branches: there’s the work I do at The Abundant Artist and coaching really seasoned artists, sharing my knowledge of business and communications and marketing, performance management, and goal setting. I love bringing that training to support artists. I’ve gotten a great deal of joy out of helping people who are very creatively blocked get unblocked and find the joy in their lives.” 

Read our full interview with Sarah: https://theabundantartist.com/sarah-guthrie-case-study/

 8. Make sure your website is up to date

Start strong with a website that clearly tells your story and makes it easy to buy your art. With a compelling call to join your mailing list and memorable images of your artwork, your website will be an essential tool to help you grow your business.

Wire ball sculpture artist Tom Harold, who went full-time in 2018 and works primarily on commission, found that a quality website helps potential clients take you seriously:

“One thing I learned was that people take you more seriously when you have a website that legitimizes their perception of you as an artist. Another thing I learned from TAA is that you want to have eighteen to twenty pieces in your portfolio as a really good starting point. There’s that mental shift- people are like “oh, this guy is pretty serious.” And learning how to present yourself online. My website still needs a ton of work, but I have all the basics down. I learned things about making it as easy to navigate as possible. And just presenting things in a clean format. I still think all the time- ‘Do people really read the about page?’ Yeah, they do.” – Tom Harold. Read the full case study here: https://theabundantartist.com/tom-harold-wire-ball-sculpture/

Not sure how to get your website up to snuff? Check out Artist Websites That Sell.

9. Identify your strengths and weaknesses

There’s nothing wrong with wanting to build your web design skills, but you’ll do yourself a tremendous favor by identifying which of your weaknesses you should invest time and money in improving, and which you should outsource in favor of focusing on your strengths.

This is another reason why joining a mastermind group is so important: the feedback of peers and a skilled facilitator will help you to identify strengths and weaknesses that may not be clear to you in the isolation of your studio.

 Why is identifying your strengths and weaknesses so important?

Isn’t this the kind of exercise one might do in a high school guidance counselor’s office? What makes identifying your strengths and weaknesses so important? In part, it’s because goals requiring skills you do not possess often equate more time and money than you can afford to spend. If your goal is to revamp your website this year but you don’t want to spend the money on a professional web designer, you may decide to spend the time and effort learning how to create the website yourself. But by the time you have managed to create a passable website, something that could have been created in a short amount of time by someone who knew what they were doing to begin with, you’ve spent countless hours that could have been much better spent on growing and expanding on one of your strengths.

This is when the principle of the “minimum viable version” is completely acceptable- do you need a super beautiful immersive themed site with pages and pages of perfect custom code written from scratch, or do you just need a simple website that tells your story and sells your art?

Association members have access to archives full of videos and transcripts of productivity training that will help you nail down your strengths and weaknesses, and identify how to make the best use of your time and money in the New Year.

10. Identify your business model

“Once you start thinking, there’s so many ways that you can get your work out there, and they’re not all gallery oriented. You don’t have to rely on somebody else to sell your work. There’s lots of ways that you can do it on your own. You can rely on yourself to do it.” – Amica Whincop (Listen or read our full interview with Amica here: https://theabundantartist.com/podcast33/)

Will you be selling in traditional galleries and supplementing with online sales, or will you focus on commissions and outdoor art fairs? In the beginning it’s good to experiment with lots of ways of selling your art, but within a year or two of starting to sell your art, you should focus on the one area that brings you the most profit.

Many artists who could quit their day jobs don’t make it because they slow their business by trying to sell in too many different ways. This divides your attention and makes you less effective.

Creating a business plan and goals for growth will require a clear vision of where your income will be coming from. There are nearly as many ways to bring in money as an artist as there are kinds of art. Consider this list of ways to make income from your art, experiment to find the one that works best for you, then create your own personalized business model that works for you:

Traditional galleries
Selling original works, Direct to Collector. This includes:

Outdoor arts and craft fairs
Online marketplaces (Etsy, Artfire)
Selling on your website


Selling prints

Print on demand marketplaces (Redbubble, Zazzle)


Offering commissions, public works or installations
Art licensing
Teaching

Teaching online art courses
Teaching in-person courses and workshops

Taking your art business full time and quitting your day job is completely doable, and you don’t have to starve to make it happen. But you will need patience, perseverance, and a plan. Use this list of action items to help you move closer to your goal of living a creative life of freedom.

Have you already gone full time? What steps did you take before taking the leap? Let us know in the comments!

If you’re looking for extra ways to increase your income as you work towards going full time, check out our list of passive income options for artists: Passive Income for Artists.

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How to Research Juried Art Shows & Competitions

If you’ve ever considered entering a juried art show, you know the number of important details can be head-spinning. Aside from the eligibility standards for both artist and artwork there are regional and international opportunities, in-person and online, open calls and invitation-only. How do you determine where to start? Because researching the best juried shows and competitions for your work is a different endeavor than many other types of research, we’ve put together a short guide on how to get most helpful information for your art business with the least amount of blood, sweat, and tears.

The first thing that sets this kind of research apart is that it may require a financial investment. High-quality juried art shows, fairs, and competitions change from year to year; if it isn’t the location that changes, it will be the eligibility requirements, the show theme, or the available prizes. The resources necessary to maintain a comprehensive and regularly-updated resource requires work, so some sites and publications will ask for a fee or require a subscription. In many cases it’s well worth the investment because it saves you time and effort that would be better put into preparing your work.

Here are a few of the best ways to research juried art shows:

Determine what you want in an art show

Before you begin researching, list out the qualities of your dream show. What will make it worth your time, effort, and money? Are you looking to rub elbows with art collectors or established artists? A large cash prize? The chance to show in a new gallery in a new city?

Developing a criteria ahead of time will save you hours of sifting through shows that don’t match up. Here are a few more criteria to consider:

Juried gallery show vs. art fair
Online art competition or in-person?
Region/state/city?
Cash prizes, or exhibition and promotion prizes?
Established annual shows or new shows?

You’ll also want to know what your deal breakers are. Here are some essential questions to ask to decide whether an art show is a good fit for your work: Should You Attend That Art Show? 10 Questions to Ask.

Art Fair SourceBook

The Art Fair SourceBook is the most comprehensive juried art show resource you’re likely to find online. Originally a print publication, the SourceBook is now a subscription-access online resource that features listings for 1,400+ art shows and craft fairs as well as hundreds of in-depth reviews. You can customize your list based on your own criteria, and the catalogue of shows features robust details, ratings, and reviews. Access the SourceBook here: https://artfairsourcebook.com/

There is a variety of yearly subscription packages available based on what type and location of shows you want access to, ranging from $199/year to $649/year. If art shows are a part of your business model or you want to begin incorporating them, the Art Fair Sourcebook is a worthwhile investment for your business to help you hit the ground running instead of wasting countless hours trying to find reputable shows in your area.

“Call for entries” sites

If you’re not ready to drop the cash on the SourceBook, there are numerous “Call for entries” websites that curate calls for art from museums, galleries, art fairs, and online galleries around the world. These websites may be less reliable in terms of up-to-date details, so be prepared to do a little more grunt work when it comes to tracking down accurate submission guidelines and contact information.

A few popular “call for entries” websites include:

Artshow- http://artshow.com

CaFÉ- http://callforentry.org

C4E- http://callforentries.com

ArtCall- http://artcall.org

Other ways to search

If you want to do more in-person research, word of mouth through your local artist organizations will be your best bet. If you’re a member of The Abundant Artist Association, make sure you take advantage of our large, active private Facebook group to ask questions of artists in your region! Here are some other ways to take advantage of local resources:

Reach out to local galleries. Visit your local galleries regularly. Attend show openings for other artists, get to know the gallery owners, and be sure to ask them about any upcoming show opportunities. Developing friendly mutually-beneficial relationships with other people in the art world is one of the best ways to find new opportunities for your art.
Reach out to local/regional art associations. Local artist guilds, chamber of commerce, and similar organizations may have information on smaller regional shows. And better yet, asking in person will help you begin to develop relationships and acquire valuable personal contact information.
Ask artist friends. What are your artist friends doing? Where are they showing? Don’t be afraid to ask business questions of your artist friends and acquaintances!

Did we miss anything? Do you know of an excellent resource to help artists researching juried art shows? Let us know in the comments!

Once you’ve selected an art show to exhibit in, make sure your business is ready! Check out our post How to Prepare for An Art Show to find out how.
Still puzzling over the variety of options available? First figure out whether your artwork is a better fit for an art show or a craft fair: What’s the Difference Between an Art Show and a Craft Fair?

 

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[Case Study] Sarah Guthrie: Artist, Coach, and Painter of Joy

Sarah Guthrie is our very own in-house mastermind facilitator for The Abundant Artist. She spent over 20 years in communications and marketing, but dreamt of being a full-time artist & artist coach. In September of 2019, Sarah was finally able to quit her day job! In addition to creating art, Sarah coaches other artists, helping them to improve their performance, reach their goals, and find their creative flow.

Prior to the shift that enabled her to quit her day job, Sarah was actively creating art but only  selling around $500-$800 worth of art a year. There were roadblocks in the way:

Sarah: “I didn’t know how to talk about my art, I didn’t know how to tell a story about it. I knew how to tell stories, because I was 20 years in communications at that point, and I knew how to do marketing, I just didn’t know how to do it with my art. 

My husband and I had moved from Washington D.C. to Seattle, which meant a big pay cut for me. And suddenly things were a lot tighter, and I needed to make more money. And so I started thinking, “Well, I could go and get a part time job… what could I do? Maybe I could be a bartender or work in a store… I do paint all the time. Maybe I could…”

I was like, “But nobody makes money selling paintings, so why would I bother?” Then I thought “Well, just for giggles, let’s see if we can find a book about it.” A quick online search later, I ordered the book (How to Sell Your Art Online) and then I started reading it. So then I went on the Abundant Artist site, and I found the 8 Day Challenge.”

“Winter Solstice 2019″ Acrylic on 24″x36” gallery-wrapped canvas. Every year, Sarah creates a special painting to celebrate the Winter Solstice and the return of the light.

 

As many artists discover is the case, an increased commitment to selling their art leads to selling more art. With the 8 Day Challenge, Sarah quickly sold a painting.

Sarah: “Every time I took a step towards my art business, suddenly more sales came up. And it has to do with setting the intention, it has to do with the mindset… I very consistently found when you shift that mindset and make that decision, I’m going to do this, things start to line up for you. And while there’s all sorts of woo-woo explanations for why that is, I’ve had enough experience to find that it’s true. 

There is something about making a decision like this. It makes things happen.”

The sale during the 8 Day Challenge was enough of a motivation for Sarah to take the next step. Even though it represented a larger financial commitment than buying the book and taking the free challenge, Sarah knew she needed to take the plunge and enroll in How to Sell Your Art Online 101:

Sarah: “In the Challenge, I sold a painting and thought “Oh, this stuff seems to work. Let me sign up for the 101 course… Oh my goodness, it costs a bunch of money! Well, I need to learn how to do this …” And I think I sold another piece within a couple of days of signing up for the course, which felt like the Universe saying “Hey, you’re going in the right direction.”

For Sarah, the most helpful thing about the 101 course was the clarity on she gained in the group coaching calls and 101 excercises about the art she wanted to makeand how to fit her art and point of view into a cohesive philosophy. With Cory’s advice and encouragement from the 101 cohort, Sarah knew that while she wanted to spend her days creating art, she was also passionate about social justice and unwilling to abandon it. But it wasn’t until a sunset walk with her dog one evening that the way forward began to materialize for Sarah:

Sarah: “It was a rare sunny day in the Pacific Northwest in January, and the sky was filled with pinks,purples and golden colors, and I just thought “This brings me so much joy seeing all these colors.” I came home and I thought I want to ask people, ‘What 3 colors bring you joy?’ I was curious what people would say. I put it up on my Facebook page–this was probably three weeks into the course.and went to bed. 

Next morning, I woke up and there were a couple dozen responses, which was the most engaged kind of post I’d ever had to that point.So I thought “oh wow, there’s something here.”There’s something here about joy and about color that’s connecting for people and is a way for me to connect. And so that started the ‘What 3 Colors Bring You Joy?’ series, which led to me thinking more deeply about joy and continuing this work that I’m doing today.”

“Omega” is the last painting of Sarah’s 2018 Painting a Day Challenge. The 36″x36″ piece started with the colors she used in the first painting of 2018 (yellow, blue, white) and went from there to a colorful and joyful celebration of the year’s work.

 

Once Sarah had completed the 101 course and had been working on the What 3 Colors Bring You Joy? series for several months, she felt emboldened to ask a friend, who also happened to be the director of a small rural museum, about the possibility of showing her work there:

Sarah: “In April of that year, a friend of mine had an art exhibit in Santa Fe, and so I went down to see her and celebrate her success. I was chatting with her afterwards. She was in the process of organizing a few of our art school alumni for a show. And so I just got bold enough because I’d been painting joy for  several months at that point, and I said “I would love to have a show at the museum, is it possible to be a part somehow?” And she said “Yeah, we actually have an extra space and we haven’t booked anyone for that yet. Can you do something for June?” It was April.

And I said yes immediately”

What followed was a month of scrambling to create 100 small paintings that would ship easily from Seattle to Virginia. Sarah also simultaneously finished HTSYAO 301 in order to make sure that her business was ready for an upsurge in publicity (a lesson Sarah learned the hard way after a Boing Boing post featuring her art went viral years ago).

“Son of Apple” is a signature 11″x14″ painting from Sarah’s Corporate Masters collection that asks, if corporations are people, what kind of portrait would they want. The series highlights corporations who pay less in taxes than the average U.S. citizen or resident and was featured in a special art event at the Phillips Collection in Washington DC in 2019.

At the show opening, she reconnected with another friend and art school alumnus with a small gallery in Nashville. A similar stars-aligning interaction took place, and Sarah booked another show for the following spring! We asked Sarah why she thinks she had so much success in such a short time booking shows:

Sarah: “The biggest thing is the relationships. These were very dear friends from art school, we’d stayed in touch through social media, calls, and visits in the years since graduating.I think having good healthy non-competitive relationships with people is one of the most important  things you can do as an artist. There’s this phrase, ‘rising waters raise all boats.’ I realized that my younger impulse to be competitive doesn’t serve me well in the art world. The art world is so relational. Both shows earned media coverage, some really important exhibiting experience, and helped me push my series, push me further. Having had a museum exhibit and an invitation-only gallery exhibit has meant that other opportunities have come up. They were a sound investment of time, money, and my own energy, and I am grateful my colleagues trusted me enough to say yes when I asked.

Sarah at her 2019 solo show Resilience of Joy at the University of Washington Law School Gallery in Seattle, Washington.

 

As Sarah’s art business has grown and she has become more comfortable making the ask, she has also grown the coaching side of her business. As with any artist torn between two passions,  when she launched her full time art business, she soon discovered she had to choose what would be the core to the business–either painting and selling her work or coaching artist. She knew she wanted to do both, but one had to take the lead. She had hired a business coach for herself (Charlie Gilkey of Productive Flourishing; Association members can access a masterclass on Productivity with Charlie) to help her sort out these competing priorities

Sarah: “What became clear after a couple of weeks working with Charlie is that I really wanted to live the Dream and make creating and selling art the center of my business. The joy for me is that coaching artists is this great other thing that I get to do to help really make a difference in people’s lives and help open up more people to their creativity and grow their businesses. It becomes this exciting feedback loop that keeps me open and growing. I love researching and sharing what I’ve learnt with my clients–it’s mutually beneficial as I am learning for them and I am learning for me. Within the coaching, there’s two branches: there’s the work I do at The Abundant Artist and coaching really seasoned artists, sharing my knowledge of  business and communications and marketing, performance management, and goal setting. I love bringing that training to support artists. I’ve gotten a great deal of joy out of helping people who are very creatively blocked get unblocked and find the joy in their lives.”

As Sarah has found her place and pursued growth in her art business, she has discovered that her early misgivings about creating a career around art were unfounded:

Sarah: “That sense of abundance at the core of The Abundant Artist is vital.. We have such a loud conversation in our society about how pursuing art is risky and will create lack in your life. But it’s the opposite. Creating art actually creates abundance in your life and in the lives of the people around you.”

Sarah Guthrie, MFA, MA, is a Seattle-based, full-time professional artist and artist coach with over 20 years experience in painting and communications including facilitation, coaching, storytelling, marketing, performance management, public speaking, social media, and design. In 2017, she began a series ‘What 3 Colors Bring You Joy?’ that led to a 2018 Painting a Day Challenge, in which she completed over 400 paintings in one year. In 2019, she was juried in as a member of the Women Painters of Washington and launched her business as a full-time artist and artist coach. She is a Certified Innovation Facilitator by The Creative Problem Solving Group; a certified Development Dimension International (DDI) customer service trainer; and completed Training Resources Groups’ facilitator training. She specializes in creativity, accountability, and business coaching for artists. Her website is www.ArtistGu3.com.

 

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The Ultimate Guide to Online Art Courses

The availability of high-quality, low-cost courses has essentially leveled the playing field for all artists, regardless of whether they have the opportunity to attend a traditional art school. Like many opportunities that burst wide open with the rise of the Internet, an online art course is like the perfect marriage between a lonely library-book self-study in the studio and the connection, community, and critique available in a conventional classroom.

What makes an online art course worth trying? First, you have the chance to learn at your own pace. Many courses offer lifetime access to the materials, allowing you to return as often as you like to continue the course between a day job or life obligations. Online art courses can also often be much more affordable than an in-person course.

If the abundance of available courses is making researching and choosing a course intimidating, we’ve got your back. We put together a spreadsheet of nearly 120 online art courses with detailed breakdowns. A free membership gets you access to the spreadsheet. So go grab your copy, then read on to learn about the details inside the spreadsheet along with some of our favorite picks.

What You Need to Know About Each Course:

After consultation with professional artists who take online courses, we included the following columns in our research:

Course outcome: This is essentially the “promise” of the course. What will you be able to do at the end of the course that you couldn’t do at the beginning? Where possible, this is in the course instructor’s own words.

Specific painting vs. general technique: Does the course offer training in general technique, or are you learning to reproduce a specific piece?

Length of course: The way this criteria is recorded varies among courses- some only specify the number of modules, while others clarify that the week is a certain number of weeks long.

Length of access to course: Does your access to the course expire, or do you have access to the materials for life?

Price: How much does the course cost?

Instructor: Who teaches the course?

Platform/tools used: Is the course taught on a platform like Teachable? If run through an independent website, what tools are utilized to teach the course (live calls, video downloads, PDFs, etc).

Additional features: Is there a membership feature, a private Facebook community or forum, or any other additional features available, either with the course purchase or as an add-on?

Beginner-advanced? What mastery level is this course aimed at?

Top Online Art Courses Under $100:

After researching over a hundred online art courses, a few low cost courses stood out. These courses either offer tremendous bang for your buck with a wealth of high-quality material at $100 or less, or they are a unique course that’s well worth the small investment for your business or personal artistic growth.

Learn How to Light Your Studio Like a Pro: No more squinting?! This was the only course we found on professional studio lighting, and at just $47 it’s a worthwhile course to invest in.

6×6: 6 Canvases in 6 Days: This mini-course from Donna Downey will have you completing 6 6×6 oil paintings in 6 days. We’ve written before on how art challenges can improve your productivity, and at just $85 this course will be a worthwhile investment for oil painters in need of a kickstart.

Bold Rich Saturated Color: This comprehensive, approachable course on watercolor technique by Birgit O’Connor offers a high volume of content for under $100 including access to a private Facebook group and extra bonus content.

Figure Drawing Fundamentals/Anatomy of the Human Body: These courses offered by Stan Prokopenko offer an incredible amount of content for just $99. These are two separate courses, both $99 each. The former, figure drawing fundamentals, is great for even the newest beginner and contains about 15 hours of content, while the latter, anatomy of the human body, currently has about 55 hours of content and is still actively updating to include more content. Proko courses are highly lauded amongst artists and will be a worth investment in your art for the rest of your career.

Top High-End Online Art Courses:

Amongst the courses that require a more significant investment a few stood out as particularly noteworthy. These courses have been well reviewed and come highly recommended by some of our own professional artists within the Abundant Artist community.

Better Than Art School– Many artists who have gone the traditional university route have been grateful for the structure and challenge of their formal arts education, but have bemoaned the lack of business skills taught to fledgeling professional artists who are expected to fly without so much as a business plan. Amira Rahim seeks to bridge this gap with her highly esteemed course. The promise of the course is that you will “learn how to make art that sells in 60 days.” Includes lifetime access to the course materials and alumni support group.

Foundations in Acrylic- This comprehensive acrylic technique course is a year-long intensive that promises to help acrylic painters be more successful working with color, color mixing and using color value to build better paintings and renew creative confidence. For $420 artists receive lifetime access to a year’s worth of lessons, each month resulting in a finished work, and access to a private community. What stands out about this course is the value: broken down, each month costs only $35. That’s a worthwhile investment for artists looking to drastically improve their acrylic game.

Fresh Paint– Flora Bowley and Lynzee Lynx join up to offer a very different kind of art course: this course will appeal to artists who view their art practice in a holistic and perhaps even spiritual way (more on this below). The goal of Fresh Paint is to find your “unique creative style” through the process of creating 100 small mixed-media paintings. The course description to Flora Bowley is: in this course, we use mixed-media art, movement, meditation, and writing to explore personal experience, individual preference, ancestry, intuition, and body wisdom. Artists receive access to the $297 course for 6 months.

Noteworthy Trends:
The spiritual approach

Flora Bowley and Lynzee Lynx’s course Fresh Paint is one example of a trend we noticed as we put together this research: there is a large market for art courses that don’t stop at simply teaching technical ability. It’s clear through the breadth of courses available that marry spiritual practices such as meditation and yoga to art-making that a large subset of artists are hungry for a holistic, soul-centered approach to art-making. Courses in this vein include:

All courses by Flora Bowley

All courses by Melanie Rivers

Walk the Labrynth by Amy T. Won

Life Book courses by Tam LaPorte and others

Low-cost online academies

There are a wide range of online “academies” that allow a platform for anyone willing to put in the work to create a course and share their expertise with others. Other sites are run privately by one or more prolific artists who are passionate about making art lessons accessible to everyone.

These are a great place to start if you’re looking for a lower investment and a wide breadth of available courses and topics. Some of these academies are focused more on digital art or fine art illustration, but the larger sites like Udemy and Skillshare have a much wider range of classes available:

Udemy
Ctrl+Paint
Society of Visual Storytelling
My Painting Club
Creature Art Teacher
New Masters Academy (highly acclaimed!)
Skillshare

Reproduce a painting

Another low-cost option is wildly popular as evidenced by Bob Ross and those “sip and paint” events you always get invited to: short standalone courses that aim to teach technique by walking students step by step through the process of reproducing a specific painting. These courses are widely available often for well under $50. Examples:

How to Paint Peonies by Bill Inman

Exotic Orchids in Watercolor by Birgit O’Connor

Dirty Flirty Birds by Jodi Ohl

As our research hopefully makes clear, there is an online learning option available for every kind of artist at every skill level and every tax bracket. When is the last time you invested in yourself? Grab your free copy of the spreadsheet now and use it as a jumping-off point to find a course that will help you improve your art practice and reach your goals. And let us know in the comments if we missed any great online art courses that should be included!

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