How to Make a Dynamite First Impression
You only get one chance to make a first impression. True? True!
Competition is fierce in today’s art market, and you must distinguish yourself.
How will people come to know you? More importantly, how will they remember you?
Consider this advice when you want to be memorable in the right way.
Be prepared.
There is no excuse to go into a meeting or situation blindly when you have the virtual world readily available. A simple check with search engines or a social media account might lead you to a treasure of information.
Conduct your research in advance to show people that you’ve heard of them – this always impresses.
You might also discover facts in your research that will help you skillfully navigate any conversation.
Be on time.
The little computer we all carry around in our purses and pockets has made it far too easy for us to be tardy to appointments. All we have to do is text someone to tell her we’re running late.
This is usually fine when you know the other person well. It’s not fine if it’s your first meeting or if you make it a habit.
Be interested.
People will think
Processing Loss Through Your Art
A gentle warning before you read this. This was supposed to be a celebration article, but things happened that led me in a different direction. You might find it sad.
Stick with me because there is a message here that you might need. Maybe not now, but someday. And I promise that there is a happy ending.
Thank you in advance for allowing me to share this story with you.
Let’s start with the celebration. This week I celebrate 15 years of writing a weekly email to artists, which I mark as the anniversary of Art Biz Success. The newsletter is now posted here on the blog where you’re reading it.
It was on March 25, 2002 that I sent my first private email as a sample to artists I found on the Internet.
I can’t promise this newsletter and corresponding blog post will go on forever. I can’t even promise they will happen next week. But I’m pretty proud that I have never missed a weekly issue. That’s 780 newsletters if you’re counting.
This week’s newsletter – the very one you’re reading now on the blog – was a close call. Here’s what happened.
The Art Biz ep. 7: 4 Levels of Business Insurance for Artists
Business insurance!
That’s our topic for this Art Biz Podcast.
Listen in as Claudia McClain, founder of HomeBusinessInsurance.com, addresses the various levels of an artist’s career and the kinds of insurance you need at each point.
You never think about business insurance until someone asks to see your certificate of insurance or, more likely, until it’s too late. Until something bad has happened.
If you are an artist selling your art and you don’t have a specific policy for your business, this episode is for you. Refrain from clicking the Play button at your peril …
Level 1: Homeowners Insurance Only
This is the earliest phase in an artist’s career and is for hobbyists only. You’re making art just for yourself, not to sell.
At the point when you start selling, you are considered a business by the IRS and must take additional steps to protect your business.
Level 2: Incidental Business Occupancy Endorsement
This is a very affordable option for your home studio, which is tacked onto your homeowners’ policy.
It doesn’t cover the instances when you take your art outside of your home, and it might not cover liability when you have visitors to your home studio. That’s when you need …
Rural Artist Market (Curious Monday)
Start local, and then expand.
This is a piece of advice I offer clients who are trying to build an audience for their art.
The problem is that this solution doesn’t always work for artists who live in rural areas.
When you live in a rural area, is your best bet to expand your online following?
I’d love to hear from rural artists who have faced this dilemma.
How to Offer Upgrades for Your Teaching
When you offer services, such as teaching, mentoring, or coaching, seize the opportunity to enhance the experience for your students and clients. This may also be a chance to create extra income for yourself.
I’m talking about offering upgrades to your services.
An upgrade is an offer that adds value to the service for an additional fee.
The most important reason to offer an upgrade is that it improves the experience for your students. The additional income is a bonus for you.
Upgrade Options
Your upgrade offer is limited only by your imagination. Here are some ideas to help get you started:
- An additional, but different, workshop or class
- Printed and bound copy of your notes
- Audio recording of your notes
- Video lessons
- “Club” membership
- A lifetime Facebook group that includes club-only email tips
- A package of programs and bonuses, like the Art Career Success System
- Personal coaching, mentoring, or critique sessions (live or via video conference)
If you are hosting a multi-day workshop, consider adding:
- Private tours
- 30-minute coaching/critique sessions before or after instruction for the day or an additional coaching-only day at the end
- Meals
What can you offer to a large number of people at a reasonable price?
5 Lists You Need for Your Art Career
I live by lists. They’re so beautiful on the page: one item after another after another.
Whether we process each item in the order in which it appears on the list or, more likely, get around to them someday in no particular sequence, lists help us create order in our hectic lives.
The most valuable thing about making lists is that it gets tasks, projects, and ideas out of our heads and into a place where we can find them again. At least that’s the idea.
With that in mind, here’s a list of 5 lists (yep, a list of lists) that are useful to artist-entrepreneurs.
1. Your To-Do List
This is the list that you’re probably most familiar with.
Your to-do list consists of urgent or near-future items that you must accomplish. It might look like this:
- Pay bills.
- Order framing supplies.
- Write draft of newsletter.
If you’re disorganized, your lists are probably all over the place – likely on sticky notes covering your desktop or computer monitor. Not the best way to be productive.
If you’re organized, you have a single to-do list in a single place. You know where to find it and how to prioritize the items on it.
Next, you need a place to store the not-so-urgent things. This is …
