Last Updated on January 7, 2020

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Many artists are generating a large income selling their artwork and handmade crafts online and so can you. Building an online art business has never been easier as long as you know what tools will help you to get the job done.

5 Tools To Help You Build A Successful Online Art Business

Disclaimer: Please note that some of the links on this post are affiliate links and will be clearly marked as so. I will earn a small commission when you purchase a product or service from an affiliate link at no extra cost to you which helps with the costs of operating Nevue Fine Art Marketing. I will only recommend products I have used, found helpful to my business and are companies I trust.

Is selling your artwork online relatively new to you?

If you are just starting out I recommend you to read Sell Art Online Startup Plan. This post covers all of the basics that you will need to know to get started selling your art online.

Before we get started I want to tell you up front that selling art online is work and it takes time to build brand awareness.

The more time you put into your art business the more you will get out of it.

Anyone can sell art online, you just want to learn what the best strategies are to build your business faster.

Below are 5 art business categories I cover in Sell Art Online Startup Plan:

Goals
Showcase your art
Email list
Artist Blog
Social Media Marketing

The list is small but each section will take up some of your time and don’t forget that you will also need to devote time to creating the art you will be selling.

As long as you are organized, utilize the best tools and plan out your days so you are productive, everything will run smoothly.

In today’s post, I am going to share with you 5 tools I have discovered that have helped me to grow my art business faster than I could have ever imagined possible.

I do want to mention that not everyone will see the same results with the tools I am going to highlight. Do some research and decide what tools will help you achieve your unique goals.

Goals Planner

I didn’t see real results until I started writing goals and tracking them.

I knew that I wanted to sell art but everything else was a little blurry and I didn’t know what actions I should be taking when I started selling my artwork online. Basically, I was wasting a lot of time accomplishing nothing.

When I started documenting my objectives I was able to develop strategies that would guide me to the finish line.

While I was implementing the strategies I would keep records of the results so I could revise my plans and make smarter marketing decisions.

Because I have witnessed the value of goal setting I decided to create workbooks and planners for all of the artists I coach one on one and have chosen to make them available on Nevue Fine Art Marketing for a very reasonable price.

Goals Setting Workbooks And Planners:

Free Online Art Gallery Software

The next tool you will need to invest in is a platform in which you can showcase your artwork.

There are many options available and you will have to take a few minutes and review your goals to decide on what the best options are for you.

If you are just starting out and you are not sure if you are going to enjoy selling your art online I would suggest starting with a third-party platform like Etsy.

Etsy was created for artists to sell their handmade goods to people interested in purchasing unique items they can’t find elsewhere.

I recommend starting with Etsy because it is easy to get started and the fees are very reasonable.

Below is a Tutorial I created to help you get your Etsy Shop up and running in just a few minutes.

How To Set Up An Etsy Shop Tutorial

The other option you have is to build a website with WordPress.

The WordPress software is free but you will have to invest in a domain name and a hosting service for your site.

One of the many positives for building a WordPress site is that you own it and you will have total control of the design and the content you publish on it.

Using third-party sites have limited features which make it difficult to create a unique brand that will separate you from all of the other artists selling art online.

Related Posts:

As you can see with Nevue Fine Art Marketing I have two objectives. One objective is to sell my original artwork along with selling prints of my art. The second objective is to coach artists like to build a successful online art business by providing information I have learned over the past 16 plus years.

The design of your site will be determined by your goals and can be changed at any giving time. You can change your site to accommodate the growth of your business.

Building a WordPress site might feel overwhelming at first but I have to tell you that it is easier than you might think.

You can find the answers to any problems that might arise via a Google search or on YouTube because WordPress is the most popular website builder for professionals and bloggers.

Setting up your WordPress Site has never been easier with the one-click WordPress Install Features provided by Blue Host and HostGator. All you have to do is purchase a domain name and hosting from either Blue Host (affiliate link) or HostGator (affiliate link) and use the one-click WordPress Install Feature and your site will be up and running in no time.

To help you get to know your new WordPress Site I have created a couple of eBooks and courses to help make the learning process a little easier.

Email List

Growing an email list from day one is something I wish I did.

Your email list will be the biggest asset of your business and I recommend you to start from day one.

The next two tools you will want to invest in is a marketing automation platform that helps you share your emails and newsletters and an opt-in plugin to collect emails from your site.

OptinMonster (affiliate link)

Is a powerful WordPress Plugin that converts abandoning visitors into subscribers and customers.

OptinMonster’s Features:

Convert any link or mage into an opt-in form.
Personalize campaigns based on visitor’s location
Detects user’s mouse behavior which shows them a targeted message as they are leaving
Easy drag and drop builder
Mobile friendly pop-ups
Lightbox
full-screen welcome mat
Slide-in scroll box
Floating bar and so much more….

After you have collected emails you will need to have a service that will send bulk emails and newsletters to your list.

Popular Free Email marketing services:

The above are free services and have limited features.

If you are planning on starting an art business you might want to consider investing in a service with more features like AWeber. (affiliate link)

Try AWeber free for 30 days! – AWeber Communications

Social Warfare

The last tool that you will want to invest in for your artist website is a way for people to share your content on their favorite social media platforms.

There are numerous social sharing plugins available for WordPress and I have tried many of them.

All of the plugins I have tried in the past had limited features I liked but I was searching for something more.

I finally discovered Social Warfare, (affiliate link) a social sharing plugin that allows you to build brand awareness while making it easy for people to share your content on their favorite social media platforms.

It only took a couple of months for me to see a tremendous amount of growth in my traffic.

Below are some examples of my most shared posts:

You can see by visiting the posts above that Pinterest was my biggest traffic generating platform.

Once I notice that I started to focus on growing my Pinterest Business account. The problem I faced was that it took up too much of my time so I started searching for a Pinterest scheduler and I stumbled across TailWind.

It takes me less than 30 minutes a week to schedule all of my Pinterest pins for a week. The time I save using Tailwind is used on other strategies to help me sell more art.

Related Posts:

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Conclusion:

Starting an art business takes planning and work.

The tools highlighted in this post will not only make your work easier but they will also help you to build a solid online art business.

Take a look at all of the tools mentioned and see what will be the best fit for your unique goals.

5 Tools To Help You Build A Successful Online Art Business Overview:

Goals Planner
Free Online Art Gallery Software
Email List
Social Warfare

28 Day Blogging Challenge for Visual Artists

Are you ready to start building an online presence?

Available on Amazon or Download your copy today.

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.