Hey there Sea Changers and welcome back to my series of posts outlining ways and means to create yourself an online business as we discuss how to make money selling art online. This is an interesting niche as there are certainly so many different areas and products that could be considered as ‘art’. However, in terms of setting up an online business, it is also definitely a niche where people tend often be looking for that next great piece.

Added to that is the hobby and trading side of the art market so I certainly think there is something here to explore. Let’s check it all out…

How do we get started?

As usual before we get into things, it is always worthwhile making sure that there is actually a market for art in regards to selling it online. I mean, I would hate to convince anybody to start their own online art business and have it fall away due to the fact that noone actually does purchase their pieces over the internet. So, as usual, let’s see what people are searching for:

What are people looking for?

To start let’s just confirm our market numbers:

1. Number of monthly searches

As we are looking to see if there is an interest in art related pieces, products and services online, let’s start by checking for purchase centred searches. You will need to find yourself a good keyword tool (I use Jaaxy) and enter in the keywords that best describe your market. In this case, we will start with the basics:

Ok, so over 480,000 average online searches for Art is fantastic. However, we can’t see much more here as good old martial arts is obviously popular as well. So let’s change it up a little…

That’s better, and again some great numbers here. We can also start to see what people are looking for in this niche with searches such as oil, modern, bathroom and floral paintings all ranking well.

And finally, we will just check this from a slightly different angle:

Another big market – in fact higher than I expected to be honest. And again we can see some great numbers and variations in the niche such as resin, wooden, stone and plastic which fit within the art niche as well as the popular home decor and gardening arenas too.

2. Search Trends

Another important aspect of online sales and niche selection is to check that interest is maintained over time. To gain an insight into this let’s check out how the searches for art as per the above keywords are trending online.

That’s good too. Interest has been well maintained over the past few years with a few spikes however nothing to really cause concern (I am not sure why statue interest spiked in August 2017 and again in June 2020) . There is however interest all year round meaning it is a good niche to work with at all times.

All in all, I really see a good opportunity here.

What is our niche?

Ok, now the fun part begins – In the statistics and screen dumps above we can already see some of the interest in different niches within the art niche. The decision you have now is to determine whether you wish to create your online business covering art in general or concentrate on a specific area or sub niche. There are a good number of different areas you could explore here – and off the top of my head, some examples include:

• General Art
• Paintings
• Statues
• High end art
• Home decor
• Garden art
• Art appreciation and identification
• Art collection
• Art paraphernalia
• Creating art
• Drawing
• Art maintenance
• Art supplies

All of which can be marketed from the point of view of the writer, or simply as a means of supplying information to those looking to purchase. I tend to think that a few of the above areas could be incorporated into the one site however as you start to think about this, the question to ask yourself is whether the content you are covering is too large to cover effectively.

The risk here is that if you start with a niche that is too broad, you may not be able to cover everything to the level required or to become authority on the subject – which you will need to be if you are going to convince people to purchase from you and not their local store. Don’t forget, you can always add a new section to your site as you grow as well.

As you work through narrowing your targeted niche, consider the following:

• Are you able to solve a problem – Most people undertake searches on the internet to solve a problem – see next section.
• Is it a subject that you have an interest, or knowledge in – I am guessing that you are in this post as you know about, or have an interest in art (even as part of a homewares niche etc). If not, maybe consider another market as to be honest, you might struggle to produce solid content if you either don’t know much about them or have no interest in learning. Trust me, people will know immediately if your information is not up to scratch or even worse, can put their collection at risk.

Let’s investigate this a little further by discussing the problem solving elements of niche selection.

What problem are we solving?

If this is a niche that you are interested in, you may already know what it is that you are trying to sell. If not, then maybe start to look at it from the perspective of solving problems. This, added to your area of interest is a great way to work out exactly what you think you might like to base your online business upon.

Think about your own search behaviours when you are online – I would hazard a guess that most searches you do are in order to solve a problem. Now think of this in a manner in which someone might have problems within the art niche such as:

1. You know that you want to buy a nice piece of original artwork for the boardroom but don’t know which is the ‘best’.
2. You have a problem and need a solution – I.e. “I have inherited a porcelain vase and do not know how to care for it”.

Your goal here is to determine just what problem/s you are trying to solve for your readers. This maybe one problem that spans your site or differ for each post that you write. In these cases, people would be searching for those topics based on having a problem and needing a solution. Your site would outline and review the best options for them.

Alternatively, if your site is about buying and selling art pieces for investment then you could look into the following:

• What types are best to purchase?
• How to find a good item.
• When to sell.
• Maintenance and storing techniques.
• How to display your art.
• How to ensure you are not paying too much.
• and so on…

Note: You do not need to identify every possible problem that your readers may have straight away. In many cases, the more you write, the more ‘problems’ will present themselves so initially you really just want to make sure that there are some that may need solving as we have found here.

How are you going to convince them to buy?

Now that we know our niche (or are at least working on it) and have an idea of the types of problems that we want to solve, there is one last thing to consider which is the online purchase behaviour of your targeted audience.

The first thing you would need to consider is exactly who will be looking at your site. An example that comes to mind are the art collectors as above – they will generally always want the latest information as to what is currently ‘trending’. It probably goes without saying then, but your sales/post pitches not only need to match the needs and problems that your site visitors are looking to solve, but also target them specifically as well.

Some examples include:

1. Those that are new to the world of art collection for home decoration purposes will want to know exactly what it is needed and why. Some will want the best whereas others might want the same information, but may be looking at some options a little gentler on the back pocket.
2. Hardcore collectors will need specs and details such as to origins and potential value increases etc. – they will dissect your reviews with a fine toothed comb.
3. Those looking for some art for a specific purpose will just want to know what they need and why – make it easy for them to research and buy…

So at the end of the day, even though we do have purchaser behaviour on our side, to be successful in selling art online, consider the following:

• Solve problems without purchase – That’s right – write your posts in a way that actually makes it easier for people to do their research and buy elsewhere – by doing this, you are solving problems and helping readers out. If they trust you, they will be more likely to return next time and buy from you then – especially if you follow up with posts on similar or compatible products or accessories that might interest them!
• Provide the intangibles – One major disadvantage when it comes to selling anything online is that we can’t really know what the products look, feel or even smell like. And this is especially important when it comes to art – after all, we can’t always look at a piece first it first and words such as ‘colourful’ or ‘precious’ can mean different things to different people. Your posts will need to cover this information in a manner that puts minds at ease and explains some of the intangibles.
• Know your audience – A big mistake many make here is to target the product and not necessarily the buyer. This is especially important when dealing with a budget minded audience. Expensive doesn’t always mean better. Make sure you do your research on the buying behaviours of those you are targeting before writing your posts.

Tip: Still not sure? Have a look and see what others are doing. It might just help you with some ideas.

How do we sell art online?

And now we come to probably the most important aspect of this whole online selling caper in that we need to consider how we are going to sell the products that we have decided to promote. Depending on the product, there are a number of methods you can use to do this. Let’s explore them below:

Affiliate marketing

Affiliate marketing programs are setup directly by companies or marketplace platforms (Amazon, Ebay etc.) that allow you to join and then refer traffic to them via customised affiliate links. In short, this means that you will write about art and then refer your readers to a link where they will purchase directly from the vendors. The vendors then pay you a commission for the sale.

Affiliate marketing is especially good for those selling art and its accessories online as you can move seamlessly through changes to current trends and tastes etc. without needing to sell out of previous stock first. This way you can discuss everything to do with art within your posts and then refer your readers to the vendor to manage the sale without you having to hold inventory or organise shipping.

Finding affiliate programs is generally not a difficult task either. To locate them, you would normally just type “Affiliate: art” into your preferred search engine:

So, as you can see, there are plenty of options in regards to affiliate programs for art related niches. As you search through them all, you can check it all out and find programs that:

• Relate to your niche/problems that you are solving.
• Have quality products – your brand can be severely damaged if you promote poor quality or unsafe products.
• Have solid payment and customer service arrangements.
• Pay decent commissions.
• Have good testimonials covering commission payouts and quality of product.
• Whether they have high ticket items you can promote on the side.

In most cases, you will need to apply for the program before you are allowed to promote their products – don’t take this step lightly or you will be rejected. Affiliate programs will generally want to know:

• Your website name.
• Traffic levels.
• Why you want to join – (“so I can make money by selling your paintings online” is unfortunately not generally a good enough answer).
• How you plan to promote their products.

One thing to be aware of here I guess is to keep in mind the issues we discussed earlier in regards to selling art online. You need to make sure that the programs you choose can be trusted and that the consumer is comfortable that they have recourse if something goes wrong. For this reason you will need to make sure that your chosen programs are going to resonate with your readers and your niche. That said, some marketplace programs such as Amazon and EBay can give you access to these types of products and as they are more trusted, then they maybe worth a look for sure. Some Amazon examples are as below:

Dropshipping

Dropshipping is something that may be of advantage to you in this niche if you are looking to work with such items as statues, home artwork, supplies or to be honest, anything else you can think of when it comes to art.

This process is similar to affiliate marketing in that you are generally promoting the products of others without the need to actually hold any inventory. With affiliate marketing, you are paid a commission on whatever price the vendor sets but do not manage any customer service, sales processes or post sales requirements. The main difference with dropshipping is that you perform the following (there are a number of variations to this but this is the guist of it):

• Strike a relationship with a wholesaler.
• Promote the product for whatever price you see fit – often via a marketplace site such as Shopify, Amazon or Ebay.
• Manage the sales processes and customer service.
• Send the final order and payment to the wholesaler for packaging and shipping.

The money that you make is effectively the difference between whatever you managed to sell the product for and the wholesale price that you owe the vendor. The other advantages of dropshipping over affiliate marketing is that:

• You own the customer list – which is another means of building an effective email list.
• You control the cost of the product and hence the profit margins.
• You can control when you put things on ‘sale’, group them in packages or increase the price for high demand items.

The disadvantages however are the extra workload in handling payment and any ongoing customer service requirements.

To find dropshipping suppliers online, you can enter searches such as “dropshipping: art” into your favourite search engine:

Note: These results will usually be based on your geographical location. Searches can also be broken down to look for dropshippers for specific needs or any of the other options listed above as well. Simply substitute “art” for anything else that may better suit your niche.

From here you can search through and find programs that:

• Offer dropshipping services – Not all product suppliers offer dropshipping as a service – this may just mean that you need to organise the shipping yourself after it is delivered to you.
• Have experience and are helpful – If they are not helpful and/or appear inexperienced then you can expect the same when you are trying to process sales.
• Have acceptable fees – most dropshipping wholesalers will charge a small fee for the dropshipping service – just make sure it is not so high that it eats into your profit margins.
• Provide fast shipping – One disadvantage with dropshipping when dealing with vendors is that the customer is yours, not theirs hence sometimes shipping priorities are not where they should be – make sure shipping times are acceptable.
• Have quality products – as with affiliate marketing, don’t sell rubbish.
• Have a good name – do your research and see what others are saying about them.

Whitelabelling

If any of the first two options above are not your cup of tea, maybe you could try sourcing and selling your own products. This process is especially popular with those selling smaller equipment or kits that you can put together yourself (painting, paint brushes, art stands, home decor kits etc.) as here you actually purchase your product from a vendor or wholesaler, add your own label and then on-sell them via your website or platforms such as Amazon or Shopify.

This process requires higher setup costs as you will need to purchase your products, create and affix your labels and manage orders and shipment. Some wholesalers/vendors however will affix the labels that you send them and then manage the packaging and shipment for you (see dropshipping above). This will cost you less to set up but obviously you will make less on the sale once they take their processing fee.

Again, to find out where to acquire your product, can can do a search such as “wholesale: art”:

Note: These results will usually be based on your geographical location so you may at times need to sort through a few pages. Again, you can break down your searches to narrower niches as well if it better suits.

From here you will need to follow the same processes as with affiliate and dropshipping programs in determining whether they are a good fit for your business plans including:

• Relate to your niche/problems that you are solving.
• Have solid delivery and customer service arrangements.
• Have good testimonials covering service and quality of product.

Alternatively, keep your eye out in your local area for markets or industry trade shows. These are a great way to find and purchase your products at good prices – you never know, you might even find a solid supplier for future sales as well.

Tip: This method can be very effective in driving online traffic and sales via the implementation of more traditional sales methods such as kiosks and market stalls etc. As people get to know you, they can purchase from you there and then be directed to your website for future sales.

Sell you Own

This process is especially popular within this niche as an inherent outcome of art is often a finished product that could possibly be on sold. This can include just about anything that can be incorporated into the art niche such as:

• Paintings
• Drawings
• Statues
• Pots and vases
• Embroidery
• and so much more

The process is extremely simple – make it and then sell it. In most cases, you will be able to sell the products directly via your website or marketplace sites such as Amazon, Etsy or Shopify.

Other methods

If none of the above really gets you excited then maybe it is time to think outside the square a little. Here are some other ideas that I have seen around the traps:

1. Demonstrations on YouTube – become an expert in all things art and link your sales to YouTube advertising etc.
2. Teach people about the art – sell access to your courses then also sell the tools, products and so on to accompany any of the methods we have discussed here too.
3. Make stuff – in addition to the ‘Sell your Own’ section above, if you are on the handy side, then make your own items to assist those working within this market such as kits, stands, accessories, tools and so on…

The sky really is the limit – think about how you might be able to corner a much-needed niche in the art arena and you could definitely set up a great business.

What do we need to do?

Once we have all of the above sorted, or at the very least a plan in place, we need to choose and setup the media that we intend to use to sell our product. This can include:

Build a Website

If you are looking to build your online business as an affiliate marketer, drop shipper or supplier, then chances are you will most probably need a website. Websites allow you to solve problems via blog posts and videos that people can view in order to identify the solutions that they need. Usually, this process is fairly straight forward in that you build your website, write posts (on the differences between certain types of high end statues for example), then provide links so that your readers can view/purchase the relevant materials from your links.

Promote on Social Media

When it comes to art, social media can be a powerful tool to assist in driving sales via your site. It has the power to reach thousands and allows you to target specific segments if you choose the correct platform. In terms of art online, a good platform to start with is FaceBook where you can discuss things with your audience such as artwork, techniques, home made options or show videos etc.

However, if you are looking to set yourself up as an expert within the niche, then Instagram and YouTube will be your go to here – some even use these platforms without a website. These are great for visuals such as pictures and/or videos showing you discussing, viewing, appraising or making art etc. And if you are able to build a following you may even get noticed and be paid gazillions to use specific tools/brushes etc. within your videos – this takes time, but it does happen…

Join like-minded groups

Anther great tool when it comes to selling products online are social groups. By getting involved with these groups you can really get a great understanding as to what its members are struggling with, what information they seek and what products they are looking to buy. Below is an example of art related FaceBook groups:

Note: Many of these groups will not allow you to spruike or promote your sites directly, however if you can interact and demonstrate your knowledge then people will ask you directly for the information. At the very least, as above, it is a great way to get ideas and insight into what people in this area really want to know about and what they are buying online.

Conclusion

And there it is – How to sell art online. I hope it has been helpful and as usual, please do not hesitate to comment below if you have any questions, need some advice or have any experiences to share.

Do you want further assistance with any of the above or need help to build your own art related website?

Are you looking for a comprehensive training platform that can give you step by step training, 24/7 support, tools to develop and host your very own website, ongoing assistance with SEO and social media and access to some of the best affiliate marketing minds on the planet, then click on the following link to read more about Wealthy Affiliate.

Until next time

Have fun

Paul

Note: If you make a purchase from this page, there is a very good chance that I make a commission from it – these commissions do not increase your sale price. This may include sales made via Wealthy Affiliate.