Ready-To-Frame Motivational Prints

 Arleyart.com is a platform where Arley Clark, the owner, sells his unique motivational art. Arley, born in 1947 and raised in Bremerton, Washington, has always been inspired by words of wisdom. This includes quotes, phrases, song lyrics, and even advertising taglines. Throughout his career, motivational or thought-provoking messages were always on display on his office walls. Frustrated by the limited selection of display-worthy plaques, posters, or art prints available in the market, he decided to create his own. Upon retiring from a management career in the sporting goods industry, Arley decided to check the market for his kind of motivational art, leading to the birth of ArleyArt​1​.

 Reproducing art on t-shirts or mugs, or as art prints means that a single work can bear fruit indefinitely—or for a limited time. There are two ways to approach selling your art as prints: open edition or limited edition.

 Your art can spread far and wide through the hands of happy customers who are never met with an “out of stock” warning.

 Limited edition means printing only a certain number of prints before they are gone. These are often numbered and signed by the artist to add value and authenticity.

 The effect is much like that of a limited time offer: creating a sense of scarcity and urgency is an excellent marketing strategy

 This print by Mike Davis has a limited run of 50 prints available on Spoke’s website, each of which is signed and numbered by the artist. Spoke Art

 Spoke often opts for the limited edition strategy. “We work really hard to find things that are very special to sell. Things that are special should be treated like they’re special,” Ken says.

 To help minimize reselling, Spoke will limit quantities of certain prints per customer. “Making sure that the real fans are actually the ones who are able to get the things that we sell is always a priority,” Ken says.

 Choosing the right printing materials, technology, or partner for your art is an important step in the process. Ferme à Papier

 Understanding how to sell your prints of your artwork comes down to getting very friendly with a printer, whether that’s your at-home inkjet or a company that handles the task for you. There are multiple options, from DIY to completely hands off, to help you sell art prints and other merchandise to your audience.

 It’s possible to start selling your own artwork by creating quality prints yourself with high-quality paper, ink, and an at-home office printer. As a new artist, this method can keep costs low, but may be unsustainable as you scale over time.

 “In the beginning, I would print, package, and deliver by hand every single poster that was ordered,” says Maria. “At some point the volume became so much that I couldn’t make time to draw. I was spending all of my days delivering and in transit.”

 This method is usually limited to selling art prints on paper, but some specialty home printers may allow you to print on canvas paper or fabric designed specifically for this purpose.

 A local or online printing company can reproduce your work en masse and can even offer bulk discounts if you are printing many of the same piece. This can be the best way to sell art online if you have a small catalog and high sales volume of those pieces.

 With this method, you’ll still be responsible for packaging and shipping the prints you sell online. These companies can often produce high-quality prints due to more advanced printers.

 Cat often prints large batches for collection releases. While she does use print-on-demand services, the prints arrive at her studio first, rather than shipping directly to the customer. “It’s important that we are the last sets of eyes inspecting, packaging, and shipping the product to our customers,” she says.

 Working with a trusted printer and requesting samples can ensure that your work is reproduced in a way that respects the original. Hatecopy

 Print on demand is the most hands-off and versatile option and the easiest way to sell art online—especially if you plan to sell your work printed on merch like t-shirts or caps.

 Print-on-demand services generally integrate with your online store. When an order is placed, the integration triggers that piece to be printed and shipped directly to the customer. This is a great option for selling art on a budget, as there is no need to invest in equipment or inventory.

 When the number of orders exceeded her capacity to print and ship work herself, Maria upgraded to using a print-on-demand company. “All I have to do is upload and let it do the work for me,” she says. “Now I can focus on actually creating the artwork and connecting with people.”

Ready-To-Frame Motivational Prints

 Print-on-demand products don’t just stop at paper prints. Your art can be printed on a number of items from phone cases to stickers to sell.

 💡 Tip: Before you start selling your own artwork this way, request samples from the printer so you can inspect the colors and quality of the print. This is especially important if printed items will be sent directly to your customers.

 Photographing and representing your products clearly and accurately is important for any online small business. Without the ability to feel a product, potential customers need to get the best sense of what they’re buying through clear and detailed images.

 If you have a bad image of your work or the image doesn’t represent the work accurately, you’re going to have a harder time selling it.

 Selling art online is no exception. “If you have a bad image of your work or the image doesn’t represent the work accurately, you’re going to have a harder time selling it,” says Ken. Or, you’ll be stuck dealing with unhappy customers and processing returns.

 Product photography for art is a little trickier than other products, and a basic light setup may still cause glare or color irregularities. Consider hiring a professional to shoot larger works or art with any three-dimensional or glossy elements.

 Lifestyle photos that feature your products or art in a space or scene help to inspire your customers and show scale. Ferme à Papier

 Lifestyle photos that feature your products or art in a space or scene help to inspire your customers and show scale. Ferme à Papier

 If you’re selling merch or other products that feature your art, the general rules of product photography apply. Take clear shots from multiple angles as well as zoomed-in shots to show texture and detail. Lifestyle photos (your product in a scene) are great for your homepage and social media and help to show scale.

 Print-on-demand companies often provide mockup images you can use on your product pages in lieu of or in addition to photography.

 For 2D works, Ken recommends scanning as an affordable and effective alternative to photography. “The most cost effective way to do that is to get a desktop scanner and scan the work in parts and stitch it together digitally,” he says.

 “If you’ve got a piece with a high-gloss coating or a resin, that’s a little tricker, but for the majority of works on canvas or paper, it’s pretty easy.”

 As an artist learning how to sell your artwork, your brand may evolve as a natural extension of your art. Your chosen style and medium will define you as an artist and you will naturally attract fans and buyers based on this alone. However, there are many decisions you will need to consciously make when you start to think of yourself as a business as well as an artist.

 Because art is a personal and sometimes emotional purchase, your brand story as an artist could factor into someone’s decision to buy. And other business assets like packaging and site design should mirror or complement the visual aesthetic of the work itself.

 What branding assets do you need? Even without design skills or the budget to hire a graphic designer, you can generate a logo and execute branding design with free and simple tools.

 The answer to these questions will help you build a set of brand guidelines that will form the foundation for website design, marketing materials, etc. If you eventually scale your business, these guidelines will help you maintain brand consistency as you delegate tasks to staff or other partners.

 Many artists build fan bases based on their online personas or personal brands that are closely tied to their art. Tatiana Cardona, also known as Female Alchemy, has chosen to put her face at the center of her social media strategy: