My mantra for being successful in the art fair biz has always been:
- Have great images that get you into the shows.
- Have something people will buy when you get there.
This winter in one of the podcasts with artists Kathrine Allen-Coleman added part 3:
Don't quit!
Yesterday I attended in antique show an rural Michigan which used to be fabulous! Huge event with excellent vendors and great deals to be had. The former owner let it get run into the ground, online selling of antiques gained momentum and the 2008 recession hit it very hard.
I spoke with the new owner, Bob Zurko, who runs very popular antiques and collectibles markets mostly in the Chicago area. He said the same thing: Don't quit. Keep trying new things. The vendors I spoke with there said that is what they like about working with Bob, he is not afraid to try new things.
This landed in my mailbox this morning from BuzzBoosters, a PR firm in Salt Lake City:
Did you know that 70% of McDonald's business comes through the Drive through?
Do you think they invented this concept?
No, they actually got it from the banks.
What I mean to say with this is: Don't be locked in your industry cluster.
The blockbuster ideas usually come from people in other industries.
So, network in different places, read trade magazines from other industries.
I didn't know that. Did you? Exactly what meaning does it have for you?
Replies
I agree that quitting will just close the entire door and shut the window for opportunity. I mean, there are just times that you would feel like giving up already but when you consider everything lightly, there really are a lot of other things you could have done and actually make do with everything in between.
You just have to be really careful and make sure that everything goes accordingly either way.
Good quote for this thread:
I like that quote!
We too faced the dismay of a failing/faltering/ gone- to- hell- in- a- hand-basket economy. In 2009, we set a goal of being 50% less dependent on shows by the end of 2012. So far, it looks like we are going to make this goal a reality. First thing we did was set up a personal Facebook page for Dennis, as well as a business page for Snobhog Studio. We invited everyone on our email list to join the personal page; from there we invited our Facebook friends to our business page. We really started pitching Facebook to Dennis's collectors and made sure anyone who expressed an interest in Dennis's sculpture at shows, left with a business card with the Facebook link... https://www.facebook.com/snobhogstudio
Then we started doing eBay sales. I had always thought that eBay was just not a good venue for Dennis's sculpture, but it's a whole different ball game when one is driving traffic through Facebook to the eBay auction. We have run four eBay sales so far and each one has been a success, some resulting in higher sales than a weekend at a bad or mediocre art show. No gas expenses, no motel, no time lost in the studio, no more being held hostage by the weather, and the fees are minimal compared to jury and booth fees. Best of all, no dealing with setting up and tearing down. For us, Facebook has been a great marketing tool and we find that people who "like" the page are dedicated collectors, the most targeted demographic one could hope for. After 35 years of doing shows, Dennis has a huge base of collectors; the challenge was keeping his presence in the front of them.
We don't sell directly through Facebook-in my opinion this is just a place to keep people interested and engaged. In fact, I think it's kind of tacky to try and sell directly through a social site. And, we don't overload our collectors with daily posts; it's important to not look like greedy spammers. But we do notify collectors with a direct link to eBay when we have an auction. And we don't overload on auctions; maybe just three to four times a year. It's important to keep the work special. The biggest gain has been in people contacting us for commissions...good commissions.
So, we haven't figured out how to do drive-through sales, but there are other options than shows and galleries. For us it's Facebook. It can be a wild ride, don't do it unless you can commit to keep up with it. Mostly, we show a lot of work-in-progress, show schedules and reports, funny anecdotes from the road, studio shots, work of other artists we think our collectors will like and even a video or two. Once your collectors find you, they like to stay involved and ask questions as well as pass along compliments and suggestions. It's bad form to not respond appropriately, so it's a time-intensive proposition. I have to admit that there are some weeks I don't even want to turn on my computer. But for me, whose goal is to never leave the end of the driveway ( unless I'm going to Italy) the time is well worth it.
Clair Thompson
Great contribution to your business model, Clair!
I find the opposite reaction with my customers and facebook -they just don't 'do facebook.' Unfortunate for me because I'm such a geek. I have gone to your FB page and it's great. I found the dragon in the kiln from last August -that is one hilarious shot!!
If only I could have video newsletters ala Daily Prophet and I'd be set!!
What is Daily Prophet, Lisa?
The featured newsletter in Harry Potter. It's very cool because the photos in the newspaper move like animated gifs.
Here's a link to a Google Search (http://ow.ly/aWfVT). Alas, none of the images move. :/
Great to see you here again, Clair! I can empathize with that thought of not turning on the computer for sure.
I've followed your progress on Facebook and it is pretty much a "best practices" use of that site, with interesting information. I like the "in progress" shots, which I am sure educate the collectors about the intricacy of the sculpture process and help them appreciate the work even more and want more of it.
You are the first person I've talked to who has had success with selling original work on eBay. Didn't work for us at all.
I'm always trying new things and last year one of things we tried was to create an Art Fair Deals site that would collect artist's overruns, last season stock, etc., and using our mailing lists to sell it on eBay. There was very little return on our time and $ investment. Although we did sell one of Norm's photos to another member of this site, woodworker Ed Schmidt and his wife Carole. ;)
Social media is ripe for allowing us to stay home and find new outlets. The art fair biz has such high overhead.
Now about that drive through -- I live on a US Highway, anyone want to come set up in our front yard?
Connie-I don't think sales would have amounted to much through eBay unless we were driving a targeted audience through Facebook. That's the key-it's taken over a year to build an audience of almost 900 collectors, but once they join, there seems to be a lot of interaction and interest. This year we are replacing 4-5 of Dennis's shows with Facebook driven sales through eBay. My brother owns a PR firm with offices on both coasts and the best advice he gave me was to use Facebook as gently as possible. Don't spam, make it interesting, include recommendations for other artists you think your demographic would like and create a buzz when there is an eBay sale coming up. Also-great way to promote events and shows.
I learned from watching you ,Connie-master of online marketing!
Clair
Thanks for that compliment, Clair. I am always concerned about sending out too much stuff and alienating my subscribers.
Part two -- how fortunate to have this brother who has good marketing info for you. If we all tap all of our relationships for good business advice, or at least know well some PR people (or lawyers, or salesmen or Internet marketers, or IT people) it helps a lot. Luckily I've got all those people in my family who keep me on my toes.
Thanks so much for these FB tips. It's terrific that you've been able to replace shows with these sales. I've seen some wonderful FB business pages lately where there is real dialogue going on and that is one of the secrets.
So, how many shows do you think you two have done over the years?
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