Developing an Art Marketing PlanHaving an art marketing plan is important to be able to promote your business. This is a lesson in art marketing 101. It is best if you set aside time on a monthly basis to work on marketing. I know you just want to do your art, but you need to promote yourself if you want to make money. This can be delegated to someone else, but you should participate at the beginning in order to make sure the right marketing message is in place. Lets get to an example to illustrate an art marketing plan: Jake is a local artist who has a full time job in another field. He enjoys painting and has sold a few pieces of his work through a friend who knows someone who has displayed his art in a restaurant. He decided he would like to establish himself as a local painter to be available for commissions to paint pets. Lets go through the process for his first marketing campaign: What is Jake's message? I am local and available. I will capture the personality of your pet in a one of a kind painting. What is being promoted? Jake is a local artist who paints pets. Who is the target audience? Jake thinks almost anyone who has pets could become a client, but he has decided to focus on families with children. What are the desired results? Name recognition and 2 commissions a month. How will the results be measured? If Jake receives any inquiries, he will keep track of how they heard about him. He will record whether or not a sale resulted and the dollar amount. What is the spending limit? At first, Jake decided that he can only afford $200 per month. When he makes a sale, he will put 5% in a marketing fund. He will work on marketing for one year and then reevaluate the goals and results. What business can Jake use as an example for his marketing plan? Jake has used a local landscaper who is known for creating traffic-stopping front yards. Jake first heard about him when he picked up his card at a local furniture store. He saw the name again when he noticed a small sign on a beautiful yard that had just been done. He called the man after he was mentioned by the owner of the small nursery that Jake had been frequenting. This is what Jake learned about marketing from the landscaper: Find other businesses who have the same target customers and find out if they would be willing to display some of your cards. Jake is going to ask local veterinarians--he will offer to display some art on their walls, or do a painting for no charge. Use completed works as marketing tools--Jake will display them on his website as photos taken of the painting in the customer's home and include a testimonial from the cusomer. He will ask his customers to tell their friends and made sure his signature was a visible part of the painting. When the landscaper came to Jakes house, he noticed the truck and equipment had the same look as the man's business cards. Jake took note of this consistency and decided to use the same color scheme in all his written materials and to use his unique signature as his logo. People have to be exposed to your message multiple times before they take any action. Jake has several ideas he wants to try and will start each one separately throughout the year. He knows he may not see any results at first. If the same people keep seeing his message over and over, some may start to remember his name, If they hear his message again, some may respond. Repetition and consistency are the keys to a good art marketing plan. Don't expect to hand out a flyer to 100 people and make 20 sales. We are all bombarded with messages everyday and we have learned to ignore most of them. This is why targeting your audience is so important. You need to break through their filters. That is easier to to if people are already interested in your topic. Jake will stick to his plan and expand upon it as more funds become available. Summary of simple art marketing plan:
Whether you do-it-yourself, or have help, start your art marketing plan today and monitor results. The more you can clarify in your own mind what you are trying to do, the more success you will have communicating your message to other people.
Return from Art Marketing Plan to Marketing Art Business
Return to Business For Artists
|
