Are you finding it difficult to get everything done during the day? Is your to-do list getting longer during the week? In this post, discover 19 productive tips for the selling artist. Easy tips to help make your days a little less stressful.

 Productive Tips For The Selling Artist

 

You have probably heard me say a thousand times, “Selling art is hard work.”

There are so many large and small jobs that must get done if you want to sell your artwork.

The first step is creating art.

The second step is promoting the art that you have created.

Here are just a few of the items found on an artists to-do-list:

• Photograph the artwork.
• Crop and edit the image.
• Upload the image to the site where a customer can purchase the product.
• Write a description of the artwork.
• Send the information to your email list.
• Write a blog post about the artwork.
• Share the image and blog post on Facebook.
• Share the image and blog post on Twitter.
• Share the image and blog post on Instagram.
• Share the image and blog post on Pinterest.
• Create a video.
• Answer emails.
• And the list gets larger and larger.

 

Is it possible to get everything done working alone?

Yes, it is possible to learn how to be more productive with your time and I want to share with you what has helped me over the past 16 years.

 

Before we dive into the 19 productive tips for the selling artist I do want to mention that I have made many mistakes in the past. I would try an idea and if the plan did not work as I envisioned I would move on to the next strategy. I kept chipping away until I had everything working just like I wanted.

You will want to adjust the following tips to best fit your goals and lifestyle. If a plan is not working move on to the next one. Keep chipping away until everything is working just the way you like.

19 Productive Tips For The Selling Artist

These 19 productive tips are in no specific order. Go through them and decide which ones you can start implementing right away. When you have those strategies working for you to review the list again and pick out a few more tips. Before you know it, you will be managing your time properly.

 

How To Make Time For Art – Start Early

Whether you are an artist mom, full-time artist or a part-time artist, waking up early will allow you to get 60 – 90 minutes of work in before your day gets started.

I just recently had someone ask me on Twitter, how do I run an art marketing business while still finding time to create art.

My response was, “My day starts at 4:30 in the morning.”

I have found that by getting up at 4:30 allows me enough time to review my statistics and start writing content for Nevue Fine Art Marketing. I am able to finish a good chunk of my tasks before my family wakes up.

Having some quiet time early in the morning has been very productive for me. I do have to say that waking up early is not always the easiest thing to do. But it sure does feel good at the end of the day knowing I got everything crossed off my to-do-list.

 

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Dress The Part

It is a great feeling knowing that you are your own boss and your art studio and office is in your home. I often hear people say, “It must be great to work in your pajamas all day.”

The truth is that working in pajamas is unproductive. You have to get yourself mentally prepared for work and one easy way to do this is by dressing the part.

No, you do not have to wear a dress or shirt and tie if you are writing a blog post but you should clean your self up and put on some appropriate work attire.

By taking a few minutes getting dressed and having a cup of coffee will help you to get your brain focused on what needs to get done for the day. It will also help you to get into a routine so you do not waste time getting started.

 

Plan For Interruptions

You are going to notice that will be more interruptions working at home than working at an office.

There will be times when your children are sick or someone calls for a favor. Many distractions throughout the day will derail your thoughts.

Plan for distractions by scheduling extra time for them. Make them a part of your routine. Distractions are going to happen.  You will be more productive throughout the day if you prepare for them. This will allow you to solve any problems that arise and get back to work as quickly as possible.

 

Schedule Work Hours

I have learned many years ago to schedule work hours.

There are two benefits in creating a working schedule.

First, you will be mentally prepared to work. You will not procrastinate and put important tasks on the back-burner.

Second, you will not find yourself working 24 hours a day.

It is very difficult to separate home and work when your workspace is in your home.

There is no time card to punch in and out. You do not leave a facility at the end of the workday. Your day starts and ends at home.

Scheduling work time during the week will allow you to focus and be more productive on the responsibilities of your job.  At the end of the workday, you can unwind and enjoy what matters most to you, your family.

 

Turn Off The Phone

When was the last time you did not have your smartphone within arms reach?

Your smartphone can easily become a large distraction that will eat up your time faster than the Cookie Monster eating his favorite cookies.

Turn off your notifications when it is time to write a post for your artist blog, answer emails, publish on social media or create art in the studio.

The notification “ding” is overpowering. You can try to ignore it but soon you will find yourself easily distracted like the Dug in Up when a squirrel passes by.

You can always check your notifications when you are done with your work.

 

Set The Clock

I have found that setting time limits for specific tasks help me to be more productive with my time.

For example, I start my day at 4:30 in the morning. I allow myself 30 minutes to log my statistics.

I then allow myself 60 minutes to revise an old post.

I also have set times for writing new posts, creating video courses, writing eBooks, writing workbooks, creating planners, editing photographs, working on my graphite drawings and so on.

Each task will have a specific time allowed. When it is time for me to get started I am mentally prepared to get the job done. This helps to stay focused and not be easily distracted like Dug, the dog in Up.

 

I also allow a few minutes between tasks. This allows me to clear my head and get mentally prepared for the next job.

Decide how much time you will devote to each task and stick to it. You will soon realize you will be working faster when you know there is a limited amount of time to get the job done.

 

Ask for Help

You might find yourself thinking it will be easier for you to do all of the household chores because you are working from home.

The reality is, it takes time to get the chores done during the day.

If you spend your entire day doing chores, you will never get any work done for your art business. You lose the opportunity to generate an income if you are not working on your business.

It is ok to ask your spouse and children to help you with the chores. You can not do it all yourself. If you had an office job, you would not be home to get the chores done. Everyone would have to do their share. The same should be true even if you work from home.

 

Turn On Music

Have you noticed that most jobs play soft music in the background?

It is not on because the boss likes to listen to music. In fact, it is because studies have shown that people are more productive with background music.

Music has been shown to boost creativity, make repetitive tasks less painful and make people more productive by improving their mood.

Give it a try. Turn on some music during your working hours and see if you will be more productive.

 

Set Goals

Setting goals will help you to accomplish jobs that need to get done.

The goals you write will give direction and provide a deadline.

You will not waste any time wondering what you should be doing.

Be careful not to write goals you cannot accomplish. This could produce negative results and discourage you.

The goals you write should be specific, measurable, attainable, timely and relevant.

Writing and assessing weekly goals will help you to grow your art business faster than you could have ever imagined.

Do you struggle writing goals?

The How to Write Goals You Can Achieve Workbook will guide you through the goal-setting process. By the end of the workbook, you will be writing attainable goals and be watching your art business grow right before your eyes.

Create Habits

Developing habits can greatly enhance your productivity.

Find times during the day that you are more productive doing particular tasks will prevent you from procrastinating and ignoring the jobs you are not fond of.

If you find that you are more focused writing when you first wake up in the morning, make that a part of your daily ritual.

You might find that you are more creative at night when everyone is sleeping.

Maybe you create your best art in the early afternoon when the children are at school.

There is no one size fits all. Everyone is different and has different lifestyles.

You just have to discover what times you are more productive for each job category and stick to it.

Once you have created a ritual you will find yourself producing better work in less time.

 

Get Organized

Being productive with your time starts with being organized. If you are not organized you could easily find yourself wasting an hour or two during the day looking for things you need.

Find specific places for everything. Make it a habit to put everything back where they belong when you are finished using them. Do not wait until tomorrow or the next day. Take 30 seconds and put it away.

 

After you have found a “home” for every thing spend some time to create a system for your documents.

The more organized you are the easier your job will be.

No more shuffling through a pile of papers.

No more digging through drawers.

No more asking someone in the house, “Do you know where this is?”

You will know exactly where everything is.

 

Set Time For The Family

We all work because we have to support ourselves and our family.

You can easily find yourself becoming burnt out if you do not give yourself special time for you, your spouse and your children.

Schedule in some quality time throughout the day for yourself and your family.

Let’s face it, we work because we have to not because we want to.

You can prevent yourself from burning out by devoting special time for yourself and your family. Your art business will still be there tomorrow.

 

Continued Education

If you want to stay in the game, you will have to commit some time during the week to learn how to market your artwork.

The internet has provided a way for you to sell your artwork to people around the world. However, if you do not know how to promote your artwork online, those people will never see your creations.

Schedule in some time to watch videos, read blog posts, read eBooks, join webinars and talk to your fellow artists.

Knowledge is power. Understanding the best marketing strategies will not only help you to be more productive with your time, but it will also help you to sell more art.

 

Trash Plans That Don’t Work

You will find that the longer you have your art business the more jobs you will have on your to-do-list. During your career, you will be hearing about all of the new marketing strategies you should be trying. The end result will be a list that can never be accomplished.

You will not sell more art because you have a long to-do-list. In fact, it will hinder your sales because you will not be able to focus on the areas that are producing positive results.

This goes back to setting goals and assessing them every week. If something is not working for you, discard the strategy. It does not make any sense to waste time on a project that is not producing positive results.

You could take the time you are wasting on those projects and apply it to areas that are generating sales.

Take off the blinders and become aware of what is working for you.

 

Schedule Breaks

It is important for your mental and physical health to schedule breaks throughout the day.

You could easily find yourself not eating for eight hours and becoming sluggish. Your body and brain need fuel to perform properly. Schedule a specific time during the day to eat and relax for half an hour.

After you have finished eating you will be ready to finish the day with a bang.

 

Have A Support Group

There will be times when you need a solution to a problem you might have or even some extra motivation to keep you going through the day.

Working at home provides many benefits, but you will also notice at times it can be very lonely.

That is why you need a support group to help you get through the tough times and bounce ideas off of each other.

Your support group can be people online or locally.

Find some people you can connect with once a month online, over the phone or even at a local coffee shop.

Just talking to someone who understands the work you do will be uplifting and motivational.

 

Get Enough Rest

Everyone requires a different amount of sleep each night. The amount of sleep required could be a number of factors including stress, diet, physical activity, and body type.

You know how much sleep your body needs in order to be alert and productive.

Late nights can be fun but they will also produce a negative effect the next day.

If you want to sell your artwork online, you need to be productive while you are working at home. Make it a habit to get the amount of sleep your body needs each night. You will be waking up feeling like a million bucks and ready to go.

 

Designate Times For Chores

One of the many benefits of working from home is that you will be able to get chores done throughout the day. You will be able to enjoy your evening when your workday is done instead of spending a few hours after work on chores.

The trick is to not be distracted by all of the things that need to get done. Create a plan that will allow you to get both your work and your chores are done throughout the day.

Scheduled chores for specific days. You could have one day for vacuuming, one day for dusting, one day for cleaning the bathroom etc.

When the weekend rolls around all of the household chores will be done. The weekends will be for you to do whatever you wish.

 

Reward Yourself

At the end of each day, you should feel proud of everything you have accomplished. Take a few moments to reflect on everything you have done and give yourself a big pat on the back.

 

Conclusion:

Congratulations on being an entrepreneur. You have created a business doing something you love to do.

Working at home has many benefits but you will want to find ways you can be more productive with your time.

Here is a recap of the 19 productive tips for the selling artist.

• Start Early
• Dress the Part
• Plan for Interruptions
• Schedule Work Hours
• Turn Off the Phone
• Set the Clock
• Ask for Help
• Turn on Music
• Set Goals
• Create Habits
• Get Organized
• Set Time for the Family
• Continued Education
• Trash Plans that Don’t Work
• Schedule Breaks
• Have a Support Group
• Get Enough Rest
• Designate Times for Chores
• Reward Yourself

You might also be interested in:

• How to Be More Productive Marketing Art Online
• How to Write an Artist Statement That Sells Art
• How My Blog on Art Marketing Reached 25,000 Monthly Views 
• Be More Productive on Your Art Blog by Reducing Time on Social Media
• How to be More Productive Marketing on Social Media

 

28 Day Blogging Challenge for Visual Artists

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The Productive Artist How to Live Your Dreams

The right mindset and time management skills are essential for any business. These topics are often not talked about but are key elements for your success. You will learn how to have a winning mindset and time management skills necessary for operating a successful art business.

Available at Amazon or Download your copy today.

 

 

 

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Available at Amazon or Download your copy today.

 

 

 

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