How and where do you promote your shop? Do you find that any particular channel works better than the others (and how do you measure that?)
Share your tips!
I do all the usual facebook, twitter, stumble, I have a blog and a website.
I find when I promote more I sell more but balance and time management have to play a part or I wouldn’t get anytime to paint !!!
When I started out I heard a lot about how hard it is to sell Art online, but it can be done, I do it as do many other artists I have met online via folksy and other venues 
that said it is not easy to sell Art online in my opinion, it’s difficult to show and present in a marketing way what you are getting when you buy a picture from a photo … My own work being created in Encaustic wax for example isn’t something everyone has seen before or even heard of !!
I do my best with photo’s but the sheen and the texture and vibrant of the pictures is better in real life and the comment I get most is that they are so much better than they were expecting, and once someone has a piece of Art In Wax they often have another - I have a lot of repeat customers - and they buy them as gifts too which is great
I do also work on my name awareness as part of my marketing. I am a keen blogger, we have made several demonstration videos of me painting which helps when explaining about how I paint - I have guest blogged for people / art supply companies when asked, I have reviewed Encaustic products and been invited to feature in magazines all of which doesn’t directly lead to sales but helps spread the word about Art In Wax!
Hazel
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I find that facebook is the best marketing tool for me.
I’m a prolific artist and usually list 1 or 2 items every day in my folksy shop. Everything I list I also upload to my facebook page with links back to my shop. Facebook views are not fabulous (on average 100 out of 450 likers regularly see my posts, but they seem to be seen by the right people. If I can get a conversation going about a piece then the views go up.
If relevant, for example if it’s a listing for my local landmark commissions (pubs, houses etc), I tag local town pages/profiles too - this gets me upwards of 2000 views. You have to be careful only to do that every now and then because if you spam the pages then you will be blocked from those pages. So I only tag local towns once a fortnight or so.
Most of my commissions come in directly through facebook via private messages to my page without coming anywhere near my folksy shop.
I also use twitter, tumblr, stumbleupon on the grounds that every little helps. I’m not convinced by twitter though. Experience from eBay (which measures views in real time) says that each tweet gets me 10 views. I’ve not seen any evidence in folksy stats to say that those items I have tweeted get more views.
The daily listing club really helps because when everyone in the club is promoting everything, the results are magnified.
Oh and with every sale, wherever it has come from, I send out a hand written note with my shop details printed on the bottom.
[Stephanie Guy Fine Art][1]
[1]: http://stephanieguy.folksy.com
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I show all my paintings on facebook and I also put fliers in with every sale I make, so that people can find my shop…I also have my folksy addy on my business cards and give those out to anyone that I think will be interested in buying art.
I try to never miss an opportunity to tell people about my art and then tell them that I have an online shop.
I also try to join in with the daily listing club on Folksy and try to favourite other people’s shops…we all help each other here.
I also started the original daily art thread and introduced a lot of people to aceos, which are tiny paintings that people collect. I try to come onto the art thread at least twice a day (maybe more) that will show on the old forum , as I have something over 12,000 chats marked against my name !!!
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Twitter is an excellent marketing tool and Ive had sales from there. It does take time and effort to build up followers but its worth it.
Lately I have been making the effort to improve my facebook and interact more and regularly. I also have google+, business and personal, Stumbleupon, Wanelo, Picsity etc etc.
I do find though that unless I am part of the daily listing club views are virtually non existent here despite alot of promoting. Can be quite disheartening.
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I use Twitter and I do seem to get sales from that. I’ve never had a Facebook account. Martine x
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I mostly use Facebook, and sometimes a relevant forum.
I can’t get to grips with Twitter, and haven’t tried stumbleupon etc as I’m busy enough already lol.
I do well with just a couple of places to promote, though - the people I promote to have an interest in the type of things I create, which is what is needed
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i only promote on facebook - i just find it easier for me if i keep all my eggs in one basket, as it were! but i also find it very effective - as @DandelionsGallery says, you are promoting your work to people who are already interested in it
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I’d wondered about using twitter, but I don’t use this personally, so wasn’t sure how to get followers?
I use Facebook and although I have absolutely no idea how it works or how to use Twitter I have my Facebook linked to it so that everything I post on Facebook is automatically tweeted. I seem to have picked up a lot of followers - not sure how much it has helped but any promotion is better than nothing!
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Have you tried sponsored posts on Facebook? Good way to attract new followers to your page and/or clicks to your shop and can be pretty cost effective if you target it right.
Hi All
I use good ol’ word of mouth and I post stuff on Pinterest. I haven’t got a Facebook account but I’m considering opening one, but it would really only be for promotion of my Folksy shop (haven’t really got into using social media yet). I do use Google Analytics to monitor my shop views - I usually get a few each day - but really I look at Analytics to see which pages are being viewed.
And I have started putting a business card with the shop address in with every sale I deliver, as well as the details on the printed invoice.
pintrest gets a lot of views
I havnt ha a sale for months. I used to do craftjuice but gave up now we have to add a new description(its tough enough doing 1). If I add a craft link to my work on FB it gets about 4 looks and thats it, non work posts get lots more looks. I stared a board on Pinterest with my stuff. Mostly I use Twitter, but as i say Ive had no sales for ages. Very disheartening
cheer up i have never even had a sale or on etsy!!!
lucky you i get no sales at all…i just keep on painting and working as a nanny…if i had to rely on being an artist i would die.
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Blingcards
re no sales in your shop…I took a look at your Springboard daises and you need to put sizes on your paintings…because you are called Blingcards, people will think they are cards and the prices are ones that no one would pay for a card. I assume that they are paintings??. You haven’t put any sizes either and so no one would order because they need to know the size . They would have no idea what you are selling. Also your title says Disies…so that needs correcting. People who are confused won’t bother to buy…hope that helps…sorry to be on the negative side but it might help get sales if the details are accurate
Just looked also at your African Jazz…there is no size, nor do you say whether the painting is on paper, canvas or whether it is mounted or framed…people need this information
Brenda
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I have tried on Facebook and am getting more reaction on Twitter, but yet to have my first sale. I also have the problem that I am learning social media as I go along, but I am having fun and hope my sale won’t be too far away!
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@Rozcraftz I have linked my twitter to my facebook so everything I post on facebook goes on twitter in one action. so I dont have to mess about. Rachel
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I’m slowly getting better at using my Facebook page and trying to vary my content a lot. I try and balance one post about about a product with at least shares of other people’s work and 1 or 2 personal comments about how my day has been, pictures of what I’m currently working on etc. I have linked my Facebook account to my twitter account so everything I post on Facebook gets on Twitter too.
I’ve also just got into Craftjuice. I didn’t get it at first, but now I try and vote every day while I’m on the bus to work.
I do have a blog but I’m not very good at maintaining it. I find I’m a lot better at posting small pieces of information a couple of times a day, such as through Facebook than I am writing a big blog post 2 or 3 times a week. I will get there with a bit more time though.
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