Jim'll Paint It

Please paint me dinosaurs drawing people in a dinosaur art class.

Jim will paint it! Make a request, and he'll render it completely in Microsoft paint. However, Jim has a bit of a backlog now that word is getting around, so your suggestion should be particularly funny or challenging to move to the front of the list. The dinosaur above was the first entry on his Tumblr site.

Please paint me Bill Murray catching a bank robber using only his charm while members of the Tokyo police force shield themselves behind him?

You can see the requests have become more challenging and detailed! So far, Jim has painted three pages of silliness. Via Miss Celania. Link

The Fabulous Robert Genn's Take on the Current Market

The incredibly talented and generous Robert Genn has posted a fabulous article on the current art market.

A lot of this transition is due to the advent of the Internet. Even a few years ago my friends and I were agreeing that folks wouldn't buy art on the Net. How wrong we were. Many of my best dealers now do 40% of their business online. And they're doing it not just locally, but worldwide. 

An interesting parallel I would have never thought possible is Yoox. It's an international online fashion clothing operation based in Italy that sells up-market duds (Prada, Armani, Jil Sander, etc). Yep, expensive couturier stuff you have to try on to see if it fits. This company, started in 2000 by Federico Marchetti, is now one of the largest rags retailers in the world. They don't have a store. 

Read the full article here.

Selling Emotions, Not Art

A great way to become a better seller of artwork is to go through a challenging purchase in full consciousness, so I like to assign my students the hypothetical challenge of selecting a domestic product that they have never owned and know nothing about. The point of the assignment is to make my students hyper-aware of how they buy; what criteria they use to make their selection; what triggers their purchase; what they are seeking when they make their decision.

In many cases, my students will realize that what they want from their purchase is an emotion—often, that emotion is confidence or fulfillment. They want to feel happy with their decision; that they paid a fair price and that their product will last.

It is very rewarding when my students reveal a certain joy/surprise in the revelation that what appears to be a search for a product is actually a search for a positive emotional experience. Whether you have to buy something essential or something optional, it is valuable for us to understand what we are truly seeking when we shop. By becoming a conscious buyer, we can be much better sellers because we can address the emotional needs of our buyers when we are talking with them.

Many of us know this to be true when we think about it. If you have used the term “retail therapy,” whether you realize it or not, you have referenced the emotional drive behind many purchases. “Retail therapy” refers to the action of shopping as a methodology for feeling better emotionally, and whereas feeling better is part of many purchases, it is of vital importance when we make non-essential purchases like art.

Art is bought for many reasons: to add beauty to an environment, to create an impression of sophistication, to create atmosphere, as an investment, to match a sofa, to fill blank space, as a gift, etcetera. But behind a desire to create a lovely environment, is a desire for pride; behind a desire to impress is often a feeling of insecurity and a desire for recognition. When we understand these things, we can subtly address them when we are talking about our art.

When my furnace broke down. I used the magazine Consumer Reports to help me choose what furnace to buy. By buying a furnace that they recommended as a result of the objective testing and evaluation of both the product and its warranties, I gained confidence in my decision. When I bought a car, I did the same thing, plus I asked my friends who know a lot about cars for advice.

A car is a good example because it delivers the other desirable better than a furnace: satisfaction. A car is an object from which we can easily derive satisfaction because we are often in it ,or with it, when our friends first see it. And when they do, they either politely or enthusiastically express their admiration for your new car. Other people are our richest resource for satisfaction; the compliments and approval of our friends are a very fulfilling part of life. When people purchase art, they are taking a huge risk so the approval of friends is very important.

Buying art is risky for people because they cannot do research like we can when we buy a furnace or a car. That is why they are often so insecure when purchasing art. They do not know what is “good,” and they do not know what criteria to use to give them the confidence they need to buy your art. That is why they want to know what it is “about;” they want a narrative, something they understand about your work so that they can get satisfaction from their purchase.

The art they buy will go in their homes and all the people who see it will like it because they have to. Because they are friends or polite strangers, and because they have been invited into a home, their compliments do not bring the art buyer satisfaction because he or she knows that the guests must be polite. It is only when someone objective loves a purchased work that the owner gets satisfaction; and were a respected curator to see and highly praise the work, the owner would get immense satisfaction.

For most of your buyers, the confidence they need to purchase your work comes from you—your sales history, your reviews, your testimonials—or it comes from their friends who shop with them and share a love of your work. But the satisfaction sought by most of our buyers comes from the narrative attached to your artwork.

Because they know their friends have to be polite, they get their fulfillment from being knowledgeable about the work and you and sharing that knowledge with their guests. That is why narrative beyond the formality and distance of an artist statement is so important; you must give your buyers the anecdotes they need to achieve their fulfillment. That is why I advocate that artist blogs should be very focused on the customer and their needs. If you make posts titled with the names of your work that reveal your inspirations, motivations, perspiration, etc. in making the work, your buyers will derive all the narrative they need from it.

You have to give your customers confidence and satisfaction. That is what they really want. When you are talking to them, when you are blogging, on your websites, in your advertising and in your newsletters remember this: give your customers the stories they need; be generous of thought. It's the stories about your work, its inspiration, process, techniques and the stories of your life that owners want. By repeating your stories to their friends and guests, they appear knowledgeable and sophisticated and that gives them pride.

Do Artists Need A Return Policy?

A return policy is something every artist should consider. How you handle a customer that wants to return or exchange an artwork can have a lasting impact on your career—especially given the impact of electronic social networks on marketing. Well-handled, a good return policy can turn a one-time-only customer into a repeat customer or an good word-of-mouth advertiser.

Customer service is greatly valued in e-commerce. On E-Bay and Etsy, you can quite easily get a sense of the customer service level of the vendors. You get it from customers who post comments about their service experience on vendor storefronts. The availability of this kind of consumer information is particularly important on the Internet because we cannot meet the vendor in person and feel at greater risk buying from a stranger.

When customers shop, they want to have confidence in the wisdom of their decision. All you say and do for your customers, plus the language that you use should instill confidence—that is what a customer-conscious return policy does. We can sometimes be glib about what we say or do with customers, inadvertently triggering “red flags” for potential buyers of our work.

Good customer service is best measured by your post-sale behavior. Do you follow-up with purchasers to cement the relationship or contact “almost customers” with a “gift” (or minor product or valuable non-sales information) to move them to a valuable relationship with you? It is when there is a problem that your customer service skills are tested.

The point of my questions is to get you to consider your attitudes to customer service and, in particular, to a return policy. I want to impress upon you that customer-conscious thinking can have a powerful impact on your practice. Few artists I know have considered what they would do if faced with a returned artwork; some artists I know encourage them. What should your return policy be? How are you with post-sales customer service?

I think it is wise for you to have a return policy of your own design—a policy that is adaptive to the divergent products of your practice. Once articulated, I further believe in discreet use of your policy for two important reasons: Having one suggests to your customers that you are a moral person and, therefore, worthy of their support. And by discreetly letting all your potential customers know that you have a return policy, it lessens the risk of their purchase and increases the chances of you making a sale. And I’d suggest you have a policy that is not based on a “money-back” principle; instead, I’d provide a credit against another purchase of your work.

So how do you discreetly advertise a return policy? The best way I know of is to have it printed on some business cards or to provide access to on the homepage of your website or blog. Then, when you are doing business, you can selectively and easily articulate a simple policy verbally, giving the card as welcome proof of your word.

When do you bring up the subject of returns with customers? When someone is considering your work who is:

1. Single but unaccompanied by their partner (and who might have to negotiate your work into their environment).
2. A first-time buyer of art or of your work.
3. Conflicted—close to a sale but hesitant.
4. Buying an expensive piece.
5. Buying a gift.

To know if a potential customer is one who should be told about your return policy means engaging with them. “Indirect engagement” (where the object is to establish a relationship, not make a sale) should be your goal. Offering to help, using a phrase that is sincere, is a good opening. If you focus on the customer and their needs, you will get to know your customers; information about your return policy should be reserved for only your good customers and worthy potential customers.

With artwork, I would limit returns to one month after the sale, or something like that. There are, however, artists reinventing the return policy to their advantage, including using an unlimited return policy. I have interviewed an artist who allows all his customers an unlimited return on their purchases provided the work returned is in pristine condition. And he advertises this policy.

His return policy recognizes that tastes change, and so, sometimes, do partners. He recognizes that sometimes, like a record played too often, a valued visual stimulus may lose its appeal. Hence his open return policy that, he is certain, has contributed to the success of his practice. How does he know it is working? Because, he says, over 87% of his first-time customers return for additional purchases (and not to make an exchange).

In the minds and hands of creative people, good return policies serve the customer and the artist equally. Simple or complex, traditional or creative, a return policy should be part of your creative practice.

Significant Objects

Significant Objects (SO) is/was an experiment that provides comprehensible and creative documentation to illustrate just how valuable stories can be when we sell objects like artwork. The people involved with SO hypothesized that they could quantify the impact of stories on the marketing of objects. They conscripted an impressive roster of writers (including a favourite of mine, Jonathan Lethem) to add narrative value to items selected from a second hand store and then sold on eBay.

In their first round, they purchased $128 worth of thrift shop items and sold them for over $3,600. In round two, $134 worth of items sold on eBay for $3,992. The combined resale prices were between 2700% and 2860% higher than the combined cost prices. Money raised from the sale of the objects went to the writers. More information is available on the experiments website: http://significantobjects.com. Click on “The Experiment” to get an overview of their process and a detailed analysis of their conclusions.

The point of this exercise is that very often buyers of art (especially those who do not buy art often) want to have something to say about the work they buy because when they put their work on display in their homes or offices they want to have something intelligent to say in response to the compliments it generates. They value being able to respond by saying such things as, “the artist told me that …” or “the inspiration of the work is an interesting story….” Having an insightful anecdote or two to tell admirers of art that they purchase provides a lot of the emotional benefit that comes from the purchase.

Etsy

I was surprised to get an email from someone asking why there was no mention of Etsy on my blog. (Answer: This is my second blog. I am old. I had mentioned Etsy on my last blog.) Considering that Etsy is a site I admire, as much for its communities as for its marketing value, here is the post from my old blog:

Web sales are not right for all artists and all art. Two-dimensional art remains best sold face-to-face in galleries and studios supported by a web presence. But for artists who create unique hand-made items that can be effectively sold on the web—crafts persons in particular—no site is more practical and valuable than Etsy. Etsy, says this man of patience, has proven its value over time to many artists whom I have interviewed.

Etsy (www.etsy.com) is a sales site and a community. If you do not know the site and think it may be of interest, visit it (without joining) and take a look around. When you go to the homepage, click on “Community” at the top of the page to gain access to these categories: “Overview,” “Updates,” “Forums” etcetera. By clicking on each of these categories, you can give yourself a tour of the community’s assets.

At the bottom of the “Community” page, if you scroll down, you will find a listing of “Virtual Lab” and “Team” events. This is valuable for “newbies”—people new to the community. If you join Etsy and become a newby, you can identify other members who live close by and contact them to see if you can find someone willing to have a coffee with you to explain how things work if need be.

One thing I like about Etsy is its commitment to the education of its members. It encourages you to become part of a team because, as in life, the team approach works better than the independent approach. Etsy provides a lot of support services to teams, including grants to support innovative member teams. Just click on “Teams” on the Community page to learn more. The “Workshops” page is another great resource page for newbies. It has an extensive archive of topics that may answer questions that come to mind about using Etsy to sell your work.

If you are an artist who works in two-dimensional media, a visit to the site may ignite some dormant creative desire within you. Visiting Etsy can be inspirational in terms of stimuli for your creative voice. It may motivate you to undertake a creative project different from your usual work that is marketable on Etsy. Using Etsy can create an easy new source of revenue for the artist that does not require any marketing expense.

The caveats: Etsy is somewhat US-centric. Buyers can use the “Shop Local” feature to make it more effective, and there has been some criticism about people selling work that they have not made. Also, the operators of Etsy have been criticized for being slow to crack down on problematic sellers. For more information and a history of Etsy, visit the Etsy listing on Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org).

Visual Art Incomes

If you want to sell art, consumer studies provide rare and extremely valuable insight into the minds of buyers of art and into trends in art sales. The results of art consumer surveys and studies should be essential reading for every artist who wants to expand sales beyond the boundaries of their friendships. If you do not study sales (at least to some extent), you are probably involved in intuitive, inefficient and highly competitive sales program.

The Xanadu Gallery in Scotsdale Arizona conducts art consumer research. Their studies involve mostly American artists plus some from Canada and other nations; the majority of their respondents are painters [64%]. Because my students and I are interested in visual art as a career, the Xanadu statistics on income were of significant interest.

A full 90% of the 1,200 respondents are involved with sales of their work—45% of those artists earn all their income from their visual art career; an additional 45% have “another job/career” as a source of income. As a reality check for my students, I valued the Xanadu questions on income that revealed 83% of them selling less than $25,000 in annual sales; only 17% reported income above that amount. (For comparison, Statistics Canada defined the "poverty line" [or low-income cut off] for a single person living in a major city in 2007 as $21,666 (before tax). To read more about the Xanadu survey, go to their website [www.xanadugallery.com], click on “Blog” at the top of the page and then on “State of the Art 2012 Survey” on the top right of the page that opens.

In 2009, Leveraging Investments in Creativity (LINK) undertook a large survey that investigated the impact of the recession on U.S. artists. Their findings on the income levels of artists were largely the same as the Xanadu findings, but what was unique about their study was that it quantified the optimism of visual artists.

The LINK study painted a dispiriting picture of the recession losses of artists (48% reported decreased sales, 37% reported decreased grants. 35% reported fewer exhibitions, etc.), but it also reported that artists produced more work and remained optimistic about the future. Their optimism, however, may be naïve and may reflect their ignorance of the findings of studies such as the one they were in. As one artist says, “I have to believe things will get better!”

Survey results such as the ones quoted in this article are highly effective motivators for professional development. To my mind, not enough artists actually study sales to help advance their career; too many of us are merely doing what everyone else does, thereby minimizing their development potential.

The insights provided by surveys, plus general consumer preference studies are the best sources of information for your marketing strategies. The questions they ask can serve as models for “mini-surveys” that you can conduct with your own customers. The more you know about your clients, the better for your creative business practice. Surveying your customers furthers your relationship with them; it suggests that you care about them, their point of view and your career. Try it! You might learn a lot.