WEEK 8: MARKETING STRATEGY
Effective marketing strategies will help you attract buyers and grow your audience. But, if you haven’t got the bones of your art business set up, you’ll want to go back to the beginning of this series and start there. You can find post #1 of the ‘Concept to Launch’ series HERE.
It’s week 8 of our ‘Concept to Launch’ series, and you’ve already tackled a lot. In this post, we’re giving you a list of the things you’ll need to learn about and start to implement to promote your art and increase your visibility. Marketing can be a beast of a topic, but it’s just like trying to eat an elephant. How do you do that? One bite at a time, of course.
- Develop a Marketing Plan
- Target Audience: Identify your target audience. Who are they? What are their interests and buying behaviours? Where do they hang out? How can you reach them in that space?
- Goals: Set clear marketing goals. Do you want to increase sales, grow your online following, or get more exhibition opportunities?
- Content Marketing
- Blog: Start a blog to share your creative process, inspiration, and art tips. This can drive traffic to your website, which is where you want them to be since that’s where they can buy your art!
- Social Media: Share engaging content on Instagram, Facebook, and other social media platforms. Use hashtags and geotags to increase visibility. Remember, likes and follows on social media feel good in the moment, but ultimately, you want to get those people used to hearing from you by email because your email list is YOURS, your social media following belongs to the platform.
- Email Marketing
- Newsletter: Start an email newsletter to keep your audience updated on new work, exhibitions, and sales. Be as consistent as you can with your contact by email so that your audience gets used to hearing from you.
- Segmented Lists: Segment your email list based on your audience’s interests and buying behaviours. Send personalized content to each segment. (This one is a nice to have not a necessity.)
- Public Relations
- Press Releases: Send press releases to local and national media outlets. Announce new work, exhibitions, and awards.
- Media Coverage: Reach out to art bloggers and influencers for reviews and features.
Marketing your art requires a mix of strategies. By developing an understanding of who your target audience is, and having a plan in place, you reduce the likelihood of being struck down with what we like to call “Shiny Influencer Disease”. That’s where the latest trends and online marketing gurus have you constantly worrying that you won’t reach your audience without using their strategies.
You’ll get whiplash trying to keep up to all that noise! Just focus on one thing at a time and do what feels right for you and your business.
Next, we’ll focus on selling. Finally! It’s the second to last piece of this puzzle. See you back here next week!
In the meantime, if you’re feeling a little disconnected from your art practice, give our Colour My Numbers tool a try. It’s free to download here.
