When we released initial results from our Art and the Internet Survey several weeks ago, a number of you asked us to look at how spending on site design related to online sales. This seems like a logical question – spending for development of an artist’s website can vary wildly – it would be nice to know if spending more to develop a site would lead to better results. Today we’ll briefly look at this question.
Again, it’s important to state that the results shared here are not scientific. We had over 700 respondents to the survey, but the participants were volunteers, not a randomized group. When we filter the results down to look at specific questions, as we are doing in this post, the survey sample is even smaller. These results should be considered anecdotal.
We’ll look at several factors as we consider investment for developing artists’ sites, but obviously the most interesting correlation is between spending and sales, so let’s get right to it. When we look at artists who spent more than $1,000 developing their site we find that their average annual sales are $11,913. Artists who spent less than $250 averaged $1,756 in annual online sales. This is a pretty stark difference and would seem to draw a pretty clear correlation between investment and sales. It would be prudent, however, to pause for a moment and consider if there could be other factors at play.
First, we have a chicken and egg problem. Did the artists who invested more than $1,000 in setting up their site generate more sales because they made the investment, or were they able to make the $1,000+ investment because they had already obtained a higher level of sales (both online and off)? In other words, it seems likely that a successful artist would be willing, and have the means, to invest more in setting up a website. A successful artist would already have name recognition and a collector base, which would lead to more sales, both online and off.
Unfortunately it’s impossible, using our data, to make this kind of distinction. Before you go out and write a big check to update your site, it’s important to note that a full 1/3 of those who report spending $1,000 or more on their site design indicated that they sold nothing ($0) from their website in the last year! In other words, spending alone is no guarantee.
If you look at our report last week on artists who are selling more than $20,000 worth of work annually, you will see that only 35% of these artists reported spending more than $1,000 on their sites.
It’s also interesting to note that artists who reported spending 4 or more hours per week working on their site had an average of $4,900 in annual online sales while those who reported that they rarely work on their site had an average of about $2,200. Certainly not as pronounced a difference, but this indicates that keeping your site up to date can have a big impact on your sales, and this might be a better place to start.
For those who made larger investments on their sites, let’s look at how they responded to some of the other questions in the survey.
What has your experience with your site been? Have you made a big investment in your site and seen a difference in sales? Leave your comments below.
About Jason Horejs
Jason Horejs is the Owner of Xanadu Gallery, author of best selling books "Starving" to Successful & How to Sell Art , publisher of reddotblog.com, and founder of ARTsala. Jason has helped thousands of artists prepare themselves to more effectively market their work, build relationships with galleries and collectors, and turn their artistic passion into a viable business.
{ 14 comments… read them below or add one }
the last two graph show the web site is critical for marketing but nobody really expects sales from the web. I would agree with that conclusion. You have to have a web site, but it’s not the selling place; we have all been told it can/will/should be the place to sell, and it probably is if you have the correct widgets. I appears to be better suited to buy/sell than real art. im[notso]ho
Hello. I like the marketing information you have in the Red Dot newsletter. I publish a digital magazine for watercolour painters and am hoping you will allow me to copy some of this material for my readers. Of course full credit will go to you and your website where my readers can learn more. Please and thank you for considering my request.
Thanks for reading Eileen, and yes, you are welcome to share the information from the blog.
I initiated my site about 10 years ago and traded an $1100.00 (price at that time) painting for the set up. I pay my webmistress $15 to host the site and I spend approximately $300 to $400 2 or 3 times a year for updating and rennovating through her. I joined Google Analytics to track usage of the site and have seen a fair number of visitors, but only a few online sales. Word of mouth, galleries, and auctions have made up the larger part of my revenue. The website is a good place to send people for a generalized view of what I do, but it has not been a good selling tool. I suppose that nothing is working particularly well in this dismal art market. I have been in business as a “fine artist” since 1994 and have always been in the “black” until last year when the three out of state galleries representing me closed their doors. My local gallery still sells, but I have saturated the market here and now face “pounding the pavement” for new venues. I wish I could say that the web gave me some hope, but my work ranges between $900 and $5000 and doesn’t seem right for the web marketplace. Wish I could be more helpful or positive for the survey. Alas.
Interesting, but anecdotal, as you say. People expect to be able to google an artist’s name and see an example of their artwork, in a not-too-crappy-looking format. Beyond that, it is all about the sort of online – and offline – marketing one does, IMHO.
You did a lot of work on this survey, very nice.
I found the information in the survey interesting, certainly.. And some factors surprising. But does it help me?.., I’m not sure. I have never had a sale from online presence…not from my website, none via Etsy (now given up). Yet my gallery sales are consistent (annually). I don’t know that spending more will translate into a change, or even an inquiry – unless the money is in some way spent on advertising that directs buyers to the site?
I do not generate any sales directly through my website. Instead, I use my site as a tool for sharing my work with potential collectors and curators. I agree with Christine. The most important reason to have a website is to ensure that people can find and see your work online. The reality is that even for successful artists, a relatively small amount of people will be searching for you online, but if you do not make it easy for them to find you, you are unlikely to sell work or be offered an opportunity to show it. The goal of your website should be to have the highest ranking in google search as possible. While I do not sell through my website, it has helped me direct curators and gallery owners to my work, which occasionally leads to a studio visit and/or an opportunity to show. I think it depends on if you are interested in being a part of the gallery system or not. If you are, gallery owners may be hesitant to show your work if it appears that you might undercut them by selling online. Just food for thought. If you sell online, I think you need to be very careful about how you manage relationships with any dealers or galleries that you also work with.
Its all about traffic. You could have the most expensive web sight out there but if you have no traffic you will have no sales. The opposite is true if you have a cheep but efficient web sight and “lots” of traffic you will have sales. The information you have gathered is great in that you can see that to sell as an artist it takes marketing both on and off line and to get better online sells you need to market off line as well.
This is very helpful information for an artist “restarting” selling my work.
Thanks,
Nancy
I’m a part-time artist and full-time Internet marketing consultant. I specialize in helping (companies primarily) design, implement and measure online marketing programs. A website is a marketing tool first. It should be part of a comprehensive marketing plan. Flip to artist: I use my site, a blog, two galleries, workshops, YouTube channel, plein air events, email and networking as part of my overall plan.
Flip to consultant: Before anyone can successfully “sell” online they have to have their website optimized for that activity. I’ll make a broad statement and guess that most artist sites are not designed to sell products. They don’t have analytics running to measure activity and have not used SEO techniques to help them “get found” by potential clients. The science, and time required, to implement a solid web strategy is mind-numbing. Ever design and roll out a Google paid search (PPC) campaign? As a certified PPC Individual, I can tell you it’s very, very complex.
Flip to artist: With all that said, my own website sucks. I used Weebly to create a free site. I have not focused on selling my paintings through that channel. I make more through Google AdSense on my YT videos. I make more money running workshops. The web is a great educational tool. Sites that offer information about why the artist is unique and can professionally showcase their work, with a simple newsletter sign-up box will yield reasonable results that lead to sales. Lead nurturing is a whole other area that is very applicable to selling art. Spontaneous purchases are great (think art fair), but most people come back to finalize their purchase.
Making business decisions on how to market…and then sell….fine art is not part of most artists business skills.
Great survey, btw.
very informative, thank you. i am a cliche of the starving artist (this is not cool or romantic) i work full time at my art and sell from 0-5 pieces per month. most of my sales are from ebay where i price 10-50 % below what i would at a gallery, art fair or other venues. i am also listed with most of the major artist web sites. during the past 5 years i have sold 4 pieces (2 of which were commissions) through these sites. i get tons of accolades and a bit of a following but very few actual sales. my actual web site i had set up in a trade, but have not updated in years because i don’t know how to do it myself. most of my best sales have been from restaurants and coffee shops. at one upscale restaurant i sold almost 3/4 of the pieces ( 7 out of 12 ).
if i could afford it i would like to have a professional web site, but i don’t see that happening anytime real soon.
The survey results have been interesting – I’ve maintained a blog/website for nearly three years, and find that my dealers are getting used to going there for updates on new work. They also use it to help clients look for work not at the gallery. Postings on new paintings include short essays about the work, the inspiration, or how it was created. I view the posts as an opportunity to talk directly to potential buyers and my dealers – it seems to be working. Many of my sales now begin at the blog and are finalized at a gallery. I can’t imagine not having this valuable tool as part of my art marketing strategy. I’ve noticed that when visits to my blog spike, it means a sale is in progress or a show opportunity will arrive shortly. Very cool.
Having read Jason’s book “Staving to Successful” (highly recommended, btw) and taking a look at the survey results here, it seems that most (not all) artists are best suited to 1) be painting, and 2) delegate the web- and business-side of things. I know for me, I am woefully inefficient at non-painting tasks (computer stuff, etc.) and highly efficient at painting. Plus, I am MUCH happier painting than I am doing any of that other stuff. I’m learning that though I can do it all, I’m happier doing what I am good at letting other people who are good at the stuff I hate do the non-painting stuff. It’s taken me a while to admit this, but looking back, I wish I had painted more and shared the wealth than try to do it all on my own.
I have designed my website toward the main purpose of supporting my credibility with museums and galleries, first making it easy for them to want to show my work, and second providing them with what they need to promote me. So I didn’t answer this survey (I don’t want to compete with galleries, so at this point I don’t make the site “sell”), but the truth is, my website is a hugely valuable sales tool for my direct sales.
Almost every one of my patrons has made their actual decision by poring over the website (even when they have seen the piece in person). I often have phone conversations with long-distance patrons discussing the work on the site as if we were in a gallery, and the sale is made right there on the phone or afterwards through email.
I do have a newsletter list, but interestingly in a recent silent auction that I held online–which I promoted to both my newsletter list and to friends through email–half of the 17 paintings sold went to people who were not on either list – they were friends or acquaintances of the people on the list, who referred them to the auction webpage. In addition, the auction inspired two commissions. None of this would have happened without my website.
By the way, I strongly recommend that even tech-fearful artists should insist on learning from their web person how to add artworks to your site yourself. It is crucial to have that freedom (just as it is crucial to be able to take your own photos of your artwork). Write down a set of instructions for yourself (on brightly colored paper so you can find it easily) that you pull out every time, if that’s what it takes.
Here’s something helpful. Make sure your name is part of the caption to every painting on your site, so that when someone Googles your name, those images will appear. Otherwise they won’t!
Also, make sure your name appears in the regular text, not just in some fancy font in the header image, because that is not searchable.