If you’re an artist with a website, sooner or later you’re going to get around to asking yourself what is SEO, and is it something you should be concerned about.

There are definite techniques for making your website appear sooner in search engine rankings. Actually, the sooner, the better! The higher you rank in search engine results, the more visitors you’ll find coming to your website. Those 40 visitors a day might just blossom to over 1000 a day.

The term search engine optimization embodies all the different type of techniques you can use to help your website rank for specific keywords/search terms.

By understanding what people are searching for, and incorporating those terms in your website copy, you can start to rank for the keywords that will eventually drive traffic to your site

Everyone agrees that the economy has taken a turn for the worse. New credit is a challenge, the dollar has taken a dive, food and fuel prices are on the rise, and real estate has hit rock bottom. In short, people are hesitant when it comes to spending because they aren’t sure where the economy is headed.

The art market has been impacted as well, as people have less income to play with. Selling art is a challenge even in a healthy market—and the present economic times make it seem almost impossible. If you’re going to survive, you’ll have to adjust to the prevailing conditions of the day.

Here are a few tips:

Readjust your prices—Ride with the market and adjust your pricing as quickly as possible. Artwork sitting on the shelf doesn’t do anyone any good. Your artwork is like real estate, and will reflect higher values at any given time.

Reduce what you’re asking in the galleries—In hard times, it makes sense to lower the asking price to keep your talent in front of the people who will buy. Art, like anything else, will fluctuate according to supply and demand.

Consider selling your work on an installment plan—Just make sure you’re not tying up works of art that can sell outright by placing them on installment.

Barter your artwork—Believe it or not, you can barter your artwork for everything form dental work, legal services, construction work, to the work of other artists and home furniture. Once you start thinking in these terms, the ideas will begin to flow.

Get involved with online networking resources for artists. This is where online research comes in handy. Tough times can actually be a springboard to success—because they make you think In ways you wouldn’t have imagined otherwise.

At some point in your career you’re going to have to adopt the “successful mindset about being artist”—assuming you haven’t already done that.  Contrary to some stereotypical ideas about artists, getting paid for your artwork is not selling out.

The majority of creative souls, in the youth of their profession, often feel their work is above the din, creative, and worthy of contemplation by the masses.  Sooner or later, the reality is that you’re going to have to pay the bills, the rent, and buy food.  Why not use the gifts you’ve been given to enlighten humanity?  In so many words, earning a living as an artist means that you must be in the business of selling art, and reaping a reward for it.

Being a professional or an unprofessional will be determined by your ability to successfully sell your work.  This means taking yourself very seriously, and setting the standards of reliability and professionalism that will let your clients know you’re a person worthy of doing business with.

When setting a price for your work, make sure the terms are crystal clear.  It’s too often the case that artists are bashful in bringing up price and compensation for their work; and this can lead to a client undervaluing your work.  Any time spent drawing, redrawing, or making changes should be rewarded accordingly.

Travel expenses should be included if applicable, consultation fees should be included if you’ve been called in to discuss a commission, and the costs of any revisions that might occur.  It’s a balancing act, and if you play the game to win, you’ll walk away with both the commission and the respect of your customers in hand.

There are a lot of people that wonder how artists make a living, and the bulk of those mystified are probably artists themselves.

A top priority should be to sell your work

Commercial galleries will sell artists’ work at a commission, and it will be anywhere between 40% and 50% of the sale.  This is usually done by contract, and you have the option of working on consignment or entering into an ongoing relationship with a gallery.

Nonprofit Galleries

These are the venues that will display new and cutting edge works. They will take a commission, but usually not more than 30% of the selling price.  These galleries typically do not represent an artist or enter into contractual agreements.

Out of Studio Venues

This type of venue works well for artists selling art of their own studio, or sharing an open studio with other artists.

Private Commission Works

This is usually the case when a client wants a “personalized” work of art, such as a portrait painting.  The artist sets the price and usually gets a commission up front.

Public Commissions

New construction or building projects can be an excellent source of income.  The law for any public building in the United States, sets aside 1% of the entire building cost.  State and city art groups should have up to date information in an artist’s area.

Grants

Grants are very competitive, but you should never rule them out.  Do not give up!  Keep applying because you can never tell when your number will be called.

Teaching & Guest Artist Programs

If you are really good, there may be a teaching position available at a college or university.  The positions are competitive, but there may be a guest position available.  You should also check if there are any lecture openings that will pay for your time and services.

Surviving as an airbrush artist is much the same as surviving in any field of endeavor.  You have to have a plan!  The first thing you should do is to make a list of the subjects you’d like to paint; T shirts, crafts, models, fine art, tattoos, surfaces, helmets, etc.  Once you’ve nailed this down, your next step is to do some quality research on airbrushes and art related supplies.

 Airbrushes

You’ll have a few choices to choose from in the airbrush arsenal.  External mix combines air and paint after they exit from the tip of the airbrush. You can control your paint volume by a knob on the airbrush.

Internal Mix

This technique combines the air and paint inside of the airbrush (within the tip of the airbrush).

Action

The action refers to the trigger control that affects the airbrush spray pattern.

You could be one of those people who can’t quite seem to draw a straight line.  Keep in mind there are some great artists who can’t seem to draw a straight line either.  However, that doesn’t stop them from making a solid living at their craft.  Pick up an airbrush and give it a try. If you make a mistake, it’s only paint.  You can simply start over and think of ways to turn a negative into a positive.

Buy an Airbrush

Start out with a bottom or siphon feed airbrush, and make sure it’s a name brand.  I’ve done a little research, and the names that keep popping up are: Iwata Ecplise BCS, and Pascoe VL. There are a lot of good brands to choose from, and you’ll be able to decide how much money you’re comfortable parting with.

Buy Airbrush Paint

Look for airbrush ready paints! A few names that keep surfacing are Golden Airbrush Colors, Doc PH Martins, and Com Art.  However, the choice is always yours after you’ve done adequate research.

You’ll also need to look into airbrush compressors, instructional videos, painting surfaces, and art lessons if you’re so inclined.

The key is to get started!  You can never tell what type of talent might surface once you get past the jitters of taking action.  Don’t give up, no matter what the first, second, or third outcome is.  There’s a lot of fun and hidden rewards in taking on new challenges in life.

The Vega 2000 Airbrush Set is a great way to start your career as an airbrush artist.

Jazz runs through me as if it were an underwater stream in a desert river bed. It’s there—-always beneath the surface. I was prowling the back alleys of YouTube, listening to some of my favorite jam sessions, and I discovered these two young men! They’re playing Footprints (Wayne Shorter)! It’s a little choppy, but I can hear talent waiting to be discovered.

And discovery: is what all artists dream of.

The internet is changing the way many artists’ think about doing business.  It allows a certain freedom from painting what the galleries prefer.  No doubt, there’s an avalanche of art that is available online, and it’s got the budding artist worried about whether they can compete with the established artists.

In today’s art world, web sales will continue to reflect double-digit growth, and the future of online art sales is looking bright!  When you see new venues opening up like “BoundlessGallery.com” coming on strong, it’s a sign that business online is alive and well.

This means there’s an opportunity to find your niche, and ride this new wave of selling art online.  See the full article here.

Click Here! for some great information on ways you can profit by getting your artwork in front of your “niche” market.

There’s a lot of buzz in the art world about such online art marketing sites such as art.com, artbyus.com, etsy.com etc.   While it’s true these sites may generate a considerable amount of traffic; what really matters as an individual artist is that you find a way to market to the few people in the world who are interested in the artwork you create.  In this scenario—less traffic generated is better.

Even though the larger well known sites generate hundreds of thousands of page views per month, the traffic is of little use or no use to the individual artist unless your work is being sold and you’re collecting commissions

A great source for creating a website, particularly geared towards artists is fineartstudioonline. This is great for the artist that wants to create a free online presence in a matter of minutes. It’s important for the world to know who you are, to gain a feel for your talent and niche, to contact you, and to have the opportunity to be a part of your email campaign.

You can also keep your contacts up to date by allowing them to link to your latest blogs and events. Your contacts will remain updated—and thus loyal customers.

Having a website gives you a great deal of credibility.  Online marketing is here to stay, and the sooner you adjust your promotion campaigns to facilitate an online marketing campaign, the more successful and recognized you’ll become.

There’s a lot information to digest on the internet and through other medial publications on how to survive—and thrive as an artist.  Like anything in life, you have to filter through the good and the bad; and hope that you’ll come up with a strategy that works. 

I highly recommend checking out “How to Make a Living As an Artist”.  The author brings years of experience to his thoughtful book—that’s packed full of useful information—whether you’re a beginning artist or a seasoned pro.

Click Here! for some winning strategies that can give your career the boost it deserves.

Most people will buy artwork to enhance their living quarters.  A sculpture or an interesting painting can do wonders for a bare wall in any venue.  Art has the ability to bring any space alive, and with the right painting in just the right spot of a home or office, the entire surrounding area can be turned into a focal point of beauty.

Others will buy art as purely a status symbol, and feed off the energy generated around their purchase.  Just imagine the admiration and gossip that surrounds that individual about how they are a person of status and culture.

The purist will buy art simply for its beauty.  These people find themselves in an entirely different world when admiring a work of art.  Often, they walk away form a painting or sculpture with fresh new insights.

Museums will often purchase a work of art to attract visitors.  In this instance, concern is not always a matter of beauty—but more often a desire to promote the work of an artist.  If people will pay to view the work, the museum is more than satisfied with the return.

If you’re an artist struggling to be discovered—don’t give up.  Sooner or later someone will discover your unique talents.

For more information Click Here!

With all the endless combinations of materials, subjects, and styles an artist can play with, I consider painting to be the quintessential art form.  The internet has revolutionized how people sell and buy art.  And, for collectors around the world, the next purchase is only a click away.

If you have a website, it should have search features that will allow the collector to search by the following; artist, style, size, and price.  Most collectors will continue to search until something strikes their fancy.  Online shoppers are rather savvy, and are going to decide early on how much money they want to spend—and they’re willing to spend more or less–depending on the reputation of the artist.

It would help to create a listing of your exhibitions, as this gives the collector a good sense of whether your career is established or stangnant. The collector may look to find if you have any artwork in private collections or in museums.  Having several awards under your belt can be a tremendous advantage.

Also remember, good collectors are up to speed on mediums such as; oils acrylic, gouache, on canvas, water colors, abstract, and impressionist styles etc.  It’s been my experience that collectors will readily email a friend or colleague a link for an opinion on artwork of interest. There are web tools that the collector may use to measure your artwork a color background.

Your website should have detailed information about you.  There should be a comfort zone that induces the collector to make the online purchase.  Make it clear that purchases will be safe by providing a certification of authenticity.  Collectors will check to make sure you have viable press releases backing your adventure.

Seasoned collectors are ready to buy when they feel due-diligence is done—and not a moment before.