5 Marketing Tips To Get Your Art Website Noticed
How to grow your art business online
You’re an artist.
You eat, sleep, and bleed paint (not literally - that wouldn’t be good). You can create stunning watercolor landscapes with ease. But when it comes to content marketing, you feel like you’re in over your head.
When you read about this “SEO” thing everyone’s talking about, your eyes start to glaze over. It’s not that you don’t want to learn, there’s just so much information out there, you don’t know where to begin. You’d rather stick to what you know: art.
Fortunately, I do know about this “SEO” thing and content marketing for artists. So I’m here to save you the time, energy, and headaches from falling down the rabbit hole of content marketing searches.
Have a plan and know your audience
You have a website, great first step! Now what?
Ask yourself who you are selling your art to? In an ideal world, everyone, right? But not everyone has the same tastes. There are those who love Picasso and others who think his work is nonsensical.
Take some time to figure out who you see buying your art.
Is it a 21-year-old wannabe rock star from Irvine, California named Jamie? She has three tattoos of bands she doesn’t listen to anymore but doesn’t regret them. She works at Barnes & Noble, which is perfect because she loves to read suspense-thrillers. And she loves abstract art because she sees beauty in the things no one else does.
Or perhaps it’s a man named Gerald from Oregon. He’s in his late 60’s and recently retired. He loves fishing and reading books about travel. Landscape photographs are his favorite because they remind him of being out in nature, where he feels most alive.
Know your audience and talk directly to them.
Optimize your website
You knew this was coming. The subject of the always changing, ever-elusive, non-marketer nemesis: SEO. But I promise I’ll make this quick and painless.
If you cringed at this topic, you know there’s a bevy of information out there and it can get overwhelming. The good news is, you don’t have to be an SEO expert to incorporate SEO.
If you’re not familiar, SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. Which simply means making your website Google friendly.
Basically, if someone is searching for a specific phrase and Google sees your website closely matches, you'll show up in the search results. This is why knowing your target audience is so important. This helps you figure out which keywords to sprinkle throughout your website so it will be most effective.
See, this section wasn’t so bad, was it?
Use your words
While having stunning pieces of artwork on your website is important, I’m afraid your art won't sell itself. That’s why having compelling art descriptions can make or break a potential sale.
What sets your art apart from other artists? Is there a story behind a specific piece? It helps to get a bit personal so the potential buyer feels connected to your work. Let them know why or how you created a specific piece.
Use descriptive words so your potential buyers create images in their minds. Make sure to stay true to yourself and use your voice.
Important things to include are:
Titles - what’s your piece called?
Descriptions - What’s the story behind this piece? Or how will it make the new owner feel?
Materials - Is your artwork on canvas or printed on giclée? Did you use watercolor or is it digital art?
Other important information - How much does it cost? Is shipping included? Will it be delivered framed or in a poster tube?
Oh, and remember to incorporate SEO into your product descriptions! That’s important for artists when incorporating content marketing into their websites.
Use social media wisely
I say “wisely” because according to Smart Insights, 51% of Facebook users say they unfollow brands if they post irritating content. Also, 27% say they flag the page as spam or report and block it.
A few tips:
Keep your posts relevant, but not too personal
Even if this is your business page, don’t feel the need to sell all the time.
Post videos of you creating your artwork or pictures of in-progress/finished works.
Your followers probably don’t want to see what you ate for dinner. But they might not want to constantly be sold to either.
Research what type of content your followers like - What do they want to see more (or less) of?
Engage with your audience and connect with your followers.
Respond to their comments and answer their questions.
Have a blog? Promote it! And encourage your followers to like, comment, and share them too.
It’s important to make sure what you’re posting is relevant to your business and your followers.
Take advantage of emails
I’m sure you’ve opted in for a newsletter a time or two. Maybe you’ve never thought about creating them yourself, but email marketing is perfect for artists.
Yes, social media is great for keeping your audience engaged. But with the ever-changing algorithms, it's hard to guarantee your followers are seeing your posts. Even if you post regularly!
That’s why emails make an awesome marketing tool for artists to keep their following in the loop.
While at first you’ll have to grow your email list, it's not as daunting as it seems. Creating an opt-in of value will help you turn website viewers into newsletter subscribers.
What could be a valuable opt-in? Something as simple as free shipping or a discount on your first purchase.
Once you have people opting in, make sure you continue providing them with valuable content! According to SaleCycle, “59% of respondents say marketing emails influence their purchase decisions.” Give them an inside scoop of what you have coming up, show them new pieces you’re working on, or share links to your blog to drive traffic to your website.
There are endless amounts of opportunities for newsletters.
Content marketing for your art website all starts with knowing your audience. All the content creation, keyword research, marketing, and promotion you do revolves around this important piece of information.