
If you pursue your passion by creating art, then you are an artist. But transforming your passion into a career means you need others to pay for the fruits of your passion, which means you probably have to sell your art online. Thankfully, the Internet has made the art selling process easier than it’s ever been.
The days of hauling your canvasses to a store or a pop-up exhibition are over. Well, not over, but they’re definitely not the only way to make your art more visible. Today artists and art buyers meet online in a marketplace that is both global and convenient. If you aren’t selling your art online, you’re missing out on a vast array of opportunities to both make money and get your work out there.
So how should you sell your art online?
If you’re a new artist, you’ve probably been told to sell your art on Etsy. There are in fact numerous other websites that could be perfect for getting your art in front of potential buyers.
Each site will offer different advantages based on the type of art you create. Most artists should consider using several of these platforms simultaneously, which will offer an expanded opportunity to create revenue streams.
Amazon – This is the largest repository of stores online, a platform on which almost anybody can sell almost anything to almost anyone. Amazon is a great starting point to learn how to sell art online because of the sheer bulk of the site’s traffic.
ArtFire – This is an interactive, international online community of craft makers and buyers. It has spawned articles and podcasts that keep the community informed of developments in the art buying world.
Artplode – Artplode offers personalized advertising at $60 for each piece priced at over $1000. Unlike other sites, they do not charge a commission for sales.
Artsy – A huge, venture-funded online gallery trying to make art and art resources available to anyone with an Internet connection.
CafePress – If your art leans more toward coffee mugs, tee-shirts, stationary, or wall art, CafePress is the place for you.
CafeStyle is the site’s blog with great information on designers, trends, product spotlights, and deals.
Craigslist – The world’s largest classified ad website. Use Craiglist to connect with buyers in your community without the overhead of Amazon.
DeviantArt – Great for digital artists, this is the world’s largest online art community, with over 285 million pieces from 31 million registered users. Submit your art for consideration, and if chosen, you may get one of the most popular Tumblr blogs around.
Ebay – The world’s largest auction site. Get a sense for what types of art sell well on Ebay and, if you excel at facilitating an auction, this could be the only site you need.
Etsy – The famous art site specializing in handcrafted pieces. There are specific tips to increasing visibility on Etsy, like using Etsy’s tagging language, and interspersing posts so that each piece spend time atop the buyers’ list.
I Am Attitude – If your focus is fashion, this is the alternative clothing marketplace for you.
Society6.com – A huge player in the online art selling game, it’s easy to upload your work, price it accordingly, and offer a variety of products created with your art or imagery. Many of the artists IPaintMyMind works with have pages on Society6 where they sell open editions.
Spreesy – Spreesy enables one-stop shopping for art on Facebook and Instagram, and offers online e-commerce storefronts.
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