Amy's Thought's On All Things About Becoming A Professional Emerging Artist

Hello Community at FASO.  I have been revamping my website, here on FASO, as the community and service help desk people have helped me see that the marketing is really focused on adding new artwork yet keeping the artwork available to a smaller number.

At first, for the first two and a half years I thought that contradictory, and tried it both ways, often getting up and painting one a day, and posting it to get into the newsletter prior to 11pm the night before.  Then this year, I realized the Genius of what they were actually conveying.

After simply building a body of work for our websites, "it was a bit overwhelming to see so many choices available."  (Quote idea from Dave Geada.)  So this year, I am taking a different approach, which, I think will get to the heart of FASO's marketing plan, and improve my sales, and also our sales, as others may follow me in this idea.

The solution I saw of other recognized artists, was to lower the art available on Faso, yet have the link go to a separate individual website, that they have more work on, so if we "fish" for a customer or art patron that likes our work or connects on a real level with us", it is redirected to their website, away from competition.  I haven't hired anyone to do that yet, however this is my idea, before I go that route, or decides I need to, because I actually like FASO, even though my frustration with not having, "What is Selling" information, to help know which of my art lines I should focus on, has been a bit of a disappointment.  

They confirmed, we get customers by driving our own traffic, and we are for the most part a sink or swim group.
So, we have to send our website address out into the world.  For an introvert artist, that is a pill I have swallowed.

That means, on social media marketing.... include a hashtag with our website address.

That means get business cards that are new, with this website address to your blog; to your newsletters signup page; to your slideshow.  List all three of them if you can, and offer a gift, if they sign-up for your newsletters or new art alerts.  Have them confirm, my emailing you, and saying it's alright to put them on your mailing list.  That email confirm from them is what triggers their free gift.

That gives both writer/readers and visual dominant people a choice on what to view, (your Blog/Newsletter for a read) or (your artwork) and shows them you are more than just an artist, (if you feel you are).

Next, go gallery and art patron hunting.  I say "hunting", because you have to either be one, (an Art Collector, Like I am), or you have to know how they think.

Now this took me awhile to get through my skull.... Why?  Because I was an art dealer, collector, so I sought wholesale purchases, not retail.  Which means when I switched to creating, I had to find my market, ie who I was to sell to and my price.  Now here's "The RUB"....ie, the issue with that.  If I price like I wanted to buy art as a retail art reseller, then I am under the market and the true collectors were ignoring a bit too much of my work.  (I thought I was doing them a favor, offering wholesale, yet I was marketing that to the wrong group.)  If they hadn't known I had been a reseller, they just thought I was out of touch.

Now for a full sheet pastel, the price I found for wholesale for my work is around 2800. to $3000 framed.
THAT IS WHOLESALE.  So, at $2,ooo dollars, framed or unframed, I wasn't getting anyone to do anything other than look, and inquire and get excited, yet something kept them from "pulling the trigger", because they wondered, why isn't it priced like I expect?  What is wrong with it?

The retail in mid-range to higher sought galleries in the mid-range market is varied across the country.
I was in a smaller city, even though it was the county seat, and I thought while I was there, that other artist's were getting braver about pricing their work for business, instead of hobby.

One of the last conversations I had with an art appreciator, was, "What do you have there?  I said, We just put up a new show at the gallery, so I am taking the art that was on the wall from the last show home."  She replied, "And let me guess....You'll sell it to me real cheap, right?"
I said, "No, Mame." " This 9" x 12" Oil is $900."  (Still a bit below market, yet respectable.)  
her reply?  She said, "Really, I want to SEE IT!"  I had to stop in the elevator and open my professional art box to show her the painting.

Now, I was tired, and out of business cards, yet I can tell you, I won't let that go by the wayside any longer.  I would have been engaging her in conversation, contact, and offering a little original thank you card, if she were to have signed up, because I realized, and she realized we were "in the same thought process on value". 

Now, go find your market for your work, "test your pricing in the big cities that you are beginning in."   
If I start going to receptions where 15,000 dollars are tagged on full sheet pastels, I'll revamp this post, yet for now, post 2020, it seems like many are holding to having work for the mid- market, and $3000 is what my wholesale, (with $6000- $7,000 as retail target), is what I am aiming for, and I know my oils, are priced a bit lower per square inch than my pastels, and I have market data now to back up that pricing difference, should a collector or gallery ask.

Keep smiling and aiming for our dreams.  Mine is to support my hubby and myself someday with all my dreams, and his and my children's being available with my help in His plan.
Sincerely,
Amy Carter Ishmael
PS I accept Zelle, which is direct, no fuss, no muss, payments, and clears automatically for quick shipment of artwork.

my website is www.amycarterishmael.com 

You will find less than 20 works on there right now, because I have according to analytics, only had a handful of viewers for them, so I am early in 2023, posting them in groupings of 12 on a slide show, rotating each month.

They will be marketed to "place them" with a collector or gallery each month. 

I will be attending "in Person" events.  Not just for people I know that are in a show, or for my show, but lovingly cultivating an appearance at shows in my home area of DFW.  I will also travel further afield, just not monthly or every other month this year, as it scattered some of my efforts.