Whose Rules are You Playing By?  And when did you agree to them?

I find it ironic that so many creatives assume that they must compete in the marketplace based on the same competitive factors, finding representation and critical acclaim.

Why?  Because this does not equal getting paid.

The rules of the traditional art market are completely permission and scarcity based.  I for one don’t want any part of it.

Why?  I enjoy freedom, financial and creative.  And lets face it, these freedoms walk hand in hand.

No money, no art supplies.  No money, no time to create.

So what do you do?  Question the rules.  Isn’t this what artists do best?!

What is your measure of success?  Gallery representation?  Okay.  If that’s working for you and you’re making money hand over fist, go for it.

But if that is not working? Then you, like any other person peddling their wares in an overcrowded market, must find a target market and compel them to buy from you by offering them unique value.  That, my friends, is the Blue Ocean Strategy.

The first business profiled in the book the Blue Ocean Strategy, Cirque du Soleil, ironically, is a theater company.  Cirque du Soleil reexamined the competitive factors of their industry.

Then they looked at what they could subtract and what they could add to a circus.  They asked themselves, “Do we really need animals?  They are messy and animal rights activists are on our case.”  So they subtracted the animals.

Then they looked at the multiple performances.  Then they added an elevated quality to the performance and got rid of the three-ring circus, adding focus.

What can you subtract?  What value can you add?  Are you looking for approval or for a market that will support your creativity and your financial well-being?  That is the business of art.  And that is the best business I know of.

Should artists pay for advertising?  Generally my answer is no.

Why?  Because most artists don’t have the budget and there are more effective ways that are either free of relatively low cost.

Most of my business comes from the following sources and generally in this order:

1.   Referrals
2. Ecommerce site
3.   Events
4.   Press

With the exception of relatively low overhead for my Ecommerce site, each of the marketing mechanisms listed above are free and I would venture to say they are more credible.

Then how do get referrals you ask.  Well… you simply ask. How?

Here’s an example:

“I’m so glad that you like my work.  You know, I don’t advertise.  Most of my business comes by way of referrals from people just like you.  Can you think of one or two people to introduce me to who would also enjoy my work?”  Then stop talking.  This is key.  Don’t be nervous and keep talking.  Just let them say yes or no.

When they mention a name, say something like.  “What would be the best way for us to meet?”  They might say, “They’ll be at my party on Friday.  Why don’t you come?”  Or “I’ll introduce you via email.”

Your objective is to get to meet that referral in person.  Not sell them.  Just meet them.

To review.

1.   Ask for one or two referrals
2.   Ask how and when the introductions can best be made
3.   Follow up and get some face time with the referral

Asking is free. And it’s simple.  Just follow 1,2,3.

"Pacific Ocean Deep", Ann Rea, oil on canvas

Most artists are trained in art school to swim with the sharks in an ocean of blood unconsciously competing for the scarce kill. But only a few will ever feed.

The alternative is to swim in a blue ocean far away from the kill zone, making the competition irrelevant.  How?  By creating a Blue Ocean Strategy.

What’s this?  It’s when a business creates unique value to serve a target, making the competition irrelevant

When I’m working with artists to help define their Blue Ocean Strategies we have to first get to what’s unique.

The only place to start is the artist’s life purpose, passions, interests, and values so that we know who they are as an artist and a person.

This is not life coaching this is the beginning of defining truly unique value.

Take a jeweler I’ve been coaching for example.  This creative, like many, had to work a long while before we arrived at her new Blue Ocean Strategy.

The first thing that she had to learn was that she had to get out of the business of selling jewelry, a Red Ocean, and get into the business of celebrating friendships.

What? Are you scratching your head?

After much exploration she realized that one of the most important aspects to her life is her long-standing and close relationships with her best friend and other women in her life.

They all have stories and a history that they have shared over the years. And they have been her main collectors.

Her Blue Ocean Strategy?  To create a line of unique charms that mark the most meaningful milestones in a women’s life.

What’s different?  You can collect the charms, customize the bracelet or necklace, and an individual story is beautifully packaged with each charm.

You then give a bracelet or necklace to yourself and one to your friend, or friends, to celebrate the history of your friendships.

Rather than one sale she has built in two or more immediate sales and ongoing charm sales as new milestones are celebrated.

Notice we didn’t start with how to build in multiple sales. We started with the artist’s unique value.  The unique value is a reflection of this artist’s very personal purpose, interests, and values.

This Blue Ocean Strategy is something she’s passionate about and her excitement is giving her the energy to execute on this strategy.

It took time, effort, and patience to arrive at this Blue Ocean Strategy.

She’s had to work through some key frustrations that had limited her thinking. But she stuck with it until she was open to exploring marketing solutions in non-convention ways.

What happens if artists come sniffing around her waters to copy her?  We’ll create more unique value and they’ll will sink to the bottom of the ocean because they won’t be able to match her energy.

“Be a first rate version of yourself, not a second rate version of someone else.” – Judy Garland

Many artists are desperate to arrive at an answer. So they put the cart before the horse. If an artist is not open, patient, and trusting in the process, or they are clinging desperately to the traditional scarcity and permission based model, I just can’t help them.  I can’t get past that negativity.

It takes trust to surrender the fight for the kill when you’re hungry.

But in order to sustain your drive to be an artist and to build a business you must first know your purpose, passions, interests, and values.

You must “know thyself” so that you can know what unique value you can offer the world.

Note. Your compensation will be in direct proportion to the value you offer.

Perception is reality so make sure that the perception others have of you and your art is not distorted.

I have written about this before but I just cannot emphasize it enough because there is such a common and unnecessary disconnect.

Selling art is serious business, requiring more marketing savvy than most businesses.  If you want it to run a profitable art business then understanding that “perception is reality” is even more critical.

Just like framing a painting, you want to frame your professional image.  You want a frame that that doesn’t look cheap. You want a frame that’s simple so that the focus is on your the work. And you want a frame that is carefully considered so that it elevates the art that it protects.

This means that you need to manage every touch point that patrons and prospects have with your business so that you convey a positive and professional image.

Some of the ways that you can convey your professionalism are:

• Answering the phone professionally.  For example, “Hi, Jane Smith’s studio.  This is Jane.  How can I help you?”

• Your recorded phone message.

• Your website, actually your eCommerce site.  It should read visually like an art gallery or museum.  Too many artist’s sites are over- and ill- designed.  Don’t distract from your art, elevate it.  Hire a professional.  You and your business is worth it and you’ll sell more work online.

• Your business cards.  These should be professionally designed, including the logo. Don’t skimp.

• Your promotional photo.  This should also be professionally shot.  And no sunglasses or berets, unless you really are French.

• Your personal style/dress.  I’m not suggesting that you purchase business suits, simply that you look and feel your best.

• Your email address. For example, what’s more professional?  jane@aol.com or jane@janesmith.com?

• Your email signature.  This should include a link to your website, social networking links, and all of your contact numbers.

• Your Facebook fan page.  This is a huge and free marketing tool.  Link to it from your eCommerce site.

• Your LinkedIn profile.  Take the time to complete this.  And follow the rules. Only ask people to join your network if you actually know them.  Take the time to write a request for others to join your network.  Don’t use the default message.  It reads.  “Here, join my network.  I’m too lazy or I don’t care enough to actually write you a simple message.”  It’s not a contest to get to “500+” contacts.

The bottom line is this.  When you’re selling art you’re asking patrons to part with their money.  So give them reasons to feel confident with each transaction.  Professionalism is not an area that you have creative license.

When I’m coaching my artist clients we do what is called a blue sky session.   We think of different art marketing strategies to help them sell their art.  Not to be confused with a blue ocean strategy, our ultimate goal.

During this creative session there is one very simple rule. Record every idea and negate none.  Simple?  You’d be surprised.

When artists get out of their own way and pause their self-limited thinking, the sky is the limit, pardon the pun.

We can hatch big ideas during these blue-sky sessions.  Or it can be a time when even seemingly positive artists kill opportunities before they are even born. “That won’t work.” “I hate this or that.” My constant response.  “Just focus on the exercise, pretend, have fun. There’s no right or wrong.”   Self-doubt and lack of confidence become very evident.  Sometimes they play along during the session and then their attitude kills the ideas later.

Artists who really engage in this creative process, kind of like you do when you make art, win.  Because the blue sky strategy is simple and it works.

This is a creative exercise that many marketing strategists use.  The good news is that artists are in a particularly good position to come up with creative and new marketing strategies.  But they have to stop thinking about themselves and think about what value they can create for a target market.  Why?  Because your compensation is in direct proportion to the value you offer.

Most artists have been told to craft artist statements to explain their work as a way to sell it.  These statements are all about them and their process.  Unfortunately I have rarely read an artist’s statement where I didn’t cringe and say “Oh, please.”

If you want to sell your art, ultimately it’s not about you. It has to be about the unique value you offer to a specific target market.

The other good news is that you are free to create this value and assert it any which way you please, kind of like you do when you make art.

Marketing is a creative process like making art.  And that’s why I love it too.

I have a coaching client whose expertise is watercolor.  In fact she’s earned several awards and she loves it.  But her sales declined in recent years and she thought that she should change her medium to oils.  This is a medium that she has little experience with and that she struggles with.

It’s a bit like a piano player, who’s not getting any gigs, thinking that it would be better to switch to guitar because some rock and roll guitar players make big money.  Or a fashion designer thinking that they should covert their summer line of dresses from linen to silk, because they think that they could charge more for silk dresses.

Scarcity can spur some skewed thinking.  The value art does not come from the medium it comes from the unique value to a specific market.

What’s the “unique value” of this artist’s expression?  She is a 70-year-old woman who has survived many challenges in life, including managing Lupus on a daily basis.  She has many stories to tell that could inspire and teach life lessons.  “I’m 70 years old!” she said regretfully.  “Great! Flip it.”  I replied.  “Your  age is an asset that could offer wisdom and perspective.  You have stories to tell and a depth of human experience to express through your art.”

A marketing strategy that could benefit her is forming strategic alliances with the community which serves the cause of Lupus.  Cause marketing is an effective way to penetrate the luxury market.  What if portions of the sales proceeds supported a Lupus organization? What if she shared information and inspiration online each day about how she is overcoming Lupus?  Do you think she’d build a platform?  Yes!  And this strategy could benefit her business and actually her own health.

I encouraged her to embrace her medium and her wisdom so that she can lead and inspire by sharing her unique stories and watercolors. Then her paintings are not just more watercolors in a saturated market, no pun intended, but objects of inspiration.

Successful artists don’t follow the herd.  They express their remarkable and unique selves and they lead.

Are you targeting a market for your art?  What is your unique value and what very specific target market does it serve?

Have you ever walked by a Chinese restaurant that also had an “American” menu?  I have.  And guess what?  I kept walking.

Yes, I know why the restaurant’s owners decided to do this.  They thought, “let’s give everyone something to eat!”

Unless it’s sophisticated Asian fusion, it’s not targeted marketing, and so, it’s a bad idea.

Why? Because most people are just not going to believe that not only have you mastered dim sum but you can also cook a mean meatloaf, just like their mother.

If you want to sell your art, your prospects must trust you.  So don’t give them any reasons not to by confusing them about your expertize.

I came across an artist’s site today that advertised the following four categories. And, all on one site.

1. “fine art”
2. “pet art”
3. “decorative art”
4. and last but not least, “leather restoration”

Strike one. Do you see the problem?  The artist needs to draw the line somewhere.  No pun intended. He should devote a separate website to each product category.  Better yet.  He should just pick one category and develop a message and a market around it.

This homemade low, or no, budget site screams “I’ll do anything. I’m desperate.  I can’t, or I won’t, invest in a professional website, but trust me, I’ll be professional with you.”

Here’s the thing.  If you’re an artist and you’re selling your art, you’re in business. And the rules of marketing apply.

It’s not just artists who don’t think through their marketing messages.  I saw a plastic surgeon’s site who actually proudly displays his distorted Modigliani-like female figure paintings on the very same site that he advertises his cosmetic surgery services.  Yikes!

Are you unfamiliar with basic marketing principles? So what!  We all have to learn a thing or two.  I’m a constant student of marketing.

Go get books on the subject and or go to the nearest Small Business Development Center in a major city near you.  These centers are privately and publicly funded and they are in place to help small businesses thrive.  The cost is low cost or no cost for classes and one on one counseling.

Many people ask me, “Who’s your representative?”  The answer is that Ann Rea, Inc. is the legal entity that represents the artist Ann Rea.

How did this come about?  Well, while I was being mentored by American art icons Wayne Thiebaud and Gregory Kondos they encouraged me to make a go of it and to explore my talent full time, and to quit that boring and unrelated day job that I wanted quit.  “It’s not too late” they both advised.  But each of them began their careers as academics.

“How do I make a living?” I asked of Wayne Thiebaud.  Mr. Thiebaud replied, “I don’t know, I’m not a business man. But I can give you a letter of recommendation and refer you to some galleries, one in particular. You can use my name, you’ll probably get in. But the owner, I’ll warn you, she’s a pill.”   A pill, that was a very polite understatement.

Wayne Thiebaud’s letter did get me an entrance into that gallery to review my work.  But when the gallery owner revealed her terms, actually illegal but common terms, it was no wonder  why artists are starving.  The gallery owner insisted on geographic market exclusivity, and demanded that the best of my painting inventory was left on consignment.  The art gallery may never sell a thing and I was handcuffed from selling my own work through other galleries.

It gets better.  I would be paid 50% of the sale price or less because the gallery owner wanted the right to negotiate a discount to patrons, a discount that I would have to eat.  I could not work with any other galleries in Northern California even though this gallery may or may not sell a thing and they could give me the boot at any time they pleased. The gallery also wanted to be listed as the single representative on my website and she really didn’t want me selling from my own site.

And the art galleries illegal demands are common terms demanded by many galleries.

So I thought, “Oh, I don’t think so!  I want to make a living.”  And no profitable business would agree to these terms.  “I’ll make my own market, thank you very much. I don’t know how, but I’ll figure it out.”

I was advised by the successful artist Donna Billick, yes the sister of the famed football coach, “Take the reins, it’s the only way you’ll succeed.”  How true!

So I reflected on the lack of business advice from Wayne Thiebaud, and from my brother, the Dean of a business school, and my sister, a self made multi-millionaire.  Then I decided to write a business plan and a marketing plan anyway.  I sat with a dear friend to do this.  I didn’t have experience in writing business plans but realized that it was an unconventional approach for an artist that could offer a distinct advantage.  Why not try?

They all thought that she I crazy.  But then, they always did think she I crazy.

So in 2005, I launched my business as a sole proprietorship. And without the benefit of a PR agent my business was profiled by the national media, including, “Fortune”,  “The Wine Enthusiast”, “Practical Winery and Vineyard Management” magazines, and the “Fine Living” channel.

So I’m is happy to work with art galleries and art consultants but only if the terms are profitable and mutually beneficial, like any good business owner.

In late 2008, I learned more about our federal tax structure and the IRS code and with my CPA’s advise I changed my business structure to a corporation.

Now you know the history of Ann Rea, Inc. and you have a little insight into the art market.

And hopefully this story has encouraged you to support independent artists just like Ann Rea, who have decided to “take the reins.”

I was pondering the investment required for my one-on-one artist consulting and coaching services.  Recently it has been suggested to me that the cost of these services are too low for the value that’s provided.  Although every one of my artist clients is different, and so are their results, most artists increase their sales to cover the fee during the time we’re working together.  If they don’t, artists can see clearly how they will increase their sales the near future.

This got me thinking and I decided to examine the current annual cost of the fine art education that I received. I attended the Cleveland Institute of Art, established in 1882, a prestigious member of the Association of Independent Colleges of Art and Design.  This year the annual tuition is $47,780! The investment for my services? They’re a small fraction of the current annual tuition.

In 1987, the bachelors program I attended required five years.  I can’t imagine taking on that investment of money and time at this point in my life without a clear path to success in mind.  But for those students who have, I wish them the very best.  Because the odds are not good, even with the finest education from a prestigious art school.

Part of the artist dropout is simply unavoidable but tragically much of this is avoidable.  Even the very best art schools do not adequately prepare their graduates for the realities of the art market. If a student wants to become, and remain, a professional artist they’re going to have to make an additional investment.  That is an investment of time, money, and effort in learning and applying business and marketing principles to their art career, or rather, their art “business.”  If there’s no employer involved, we’re talking about a business, not a career.

I’ve said before that I believe that becoming a top artistic talent is much more of a challenge than learning about marketing and the business of art.  Evidence of this abounds.  We see mediocre talent in the art and music industries everyday. What’s happening?  A lot of mediocre does well when it is effectively targeted to a well-defined market.

Besides instruction, just think of what we must invest in art supplies, photography, framing, or show fees, etc.  Now why is it that are we not investing more in our businesses?

A published collection of an artist’s work can be a powerful marketing tool. But only when the publishing process is carefully planned well ahead of the actual design and printing. Lacking adequate information and a good strategy, it can be a colossal waste of time and money, time better spent on your art.

This is intended to be a brief overview of where to begin. For a more complete description of design, materials, and printing, I would like to direct you to my web site for a more extensive article I wrote on these subjects.

Learn more at…

http://ralphgradyjames.com/PrintingYourBook.html.

Your first consideration should be, why do you want to print a book and what is the end use of your book? Is it to showcase your art, or maybe to teach art technique and theory? You may think these are silly questions, but they are foundational in your planning and often overlooked or ignored. The reason they are important is because the design, the narrative, the marketing of your book, and even the type of binding and materials used should reflect and agree with these objectives.

If you plan on selling your book, what compelling reason does a customer have for purchasing your book? Let’s face it: you may be a great artist, but unless you are nationally or internationally known, basing your sales only on displaying images of your work will limit your sales. Consider designing your publication with several levels of appeal. For instance, if you also teach something new about technique or business, or share beautiful places to create art, then you’ve increased your potential market.

The last critical thing to ask is do you have the funds to finish your project? Take the time to think through your project from beginning to end and make sure not only to include design and printing cost but also think about any associated costs, such as advertising, shipping, or storage. Also, remember, because of the time required in design and print production, it may be a while before your book is ready to start returning your investment.

I want to encourage anyone interested in publishing a book to go for it! It can be a wonderful and fulfilling experience if you are willing to invest a little time and thought before beginning. It will also leave a legacy for the future, which is priceless.