Questions & answers

Art Business News, Oct, 2004 by Murray Raphel

I regularly receive letters, phone calls, e-mails and faxes from galleries and/or artists asking questions ranging from marketing, advertising and promotion, to finding and training staff.

Here are some that may apply to you--the gallery owners, staffs and artists who read this column.

Q. I am an artist in Canada with a number of small successes having to do with the marketing of my original art and limited editions. My instinct tells me that you might be able to guide me through the U.S. market. Can you?

A. Of course. First, consider renting a booth at any of the Artexpo events, which provide opportunities to show your work to a large audience. You need this kind of exposure. For more information, phone 888-608-5300, or visit www.artexpos.com.

Second, contact the U.S. galleries directly. Many are profiled in Art Business News. If you send just four e-mails a day to U.S. galleries, you'll likely make more than 1,000 contacts in one year.

Third, ask your present customers for referrals. Customers who collect or buy art have friends who also collect or buy art.

Finally, become a member of artist groups in your country that meet on a regular basis. By doing so, you will discover how others are successfully promoting their work in the United States.

Q. Do you know of correspondence or regular courses in art marketing? I never had a chance to go to school in the United States, and all my degrees are from the old country. I have years of gallery experience, but I would like this education as well. I plan on going back to my country when I retire, and I'd like to be prepared. What would you suggest?

A. While I don't know of any degree courses specifically in art marketing, I do know that any marketing course will give you many of the basic tools used in any business. Here are some options to consider:

* Contact your local community college to see what it offers. Such schools are much less expensive than four-year traditional universities.

* Visit your local library where you will find a large number of books on marketing, advertising and promotion.

* Locate marketing information on the Internet using a search engine, such as Google or Yahoo!.

* Consider subscribing to advertising trade journals.

Q. We've changed our business model from a "walk-in" retail gallery to a commercial gallery. We service large and small corporations, health-care facilities, etc. We've landed three major accounts recently, and it seems that one of the reasons for our success is our great pricing. However, we're afraid we might be going too low. Is there a basic industry standard that would enable us to validate our pricing/markup? What is your gut instinct?

A. First, I'm not sure if "great pricing" is the reason for your success. If you were Wal-Mart, sure. But you're not. So if I were you, I would not stake my reputation on price because there is always someone willing to sell paintings for less. After all, I'm sure you don't believe that your commercial customers answer people's art-related compliments with, "You'll be amazed at how cheap it was."

The keys to your success include having much art that is exclusively yours so that price is never an issue, and to offer a host of "extras"--value-added items that are important parts of your selling and satisfaction policy. These include: bringing the art to your customers for their approval; guaranteeing what you sell; accepting returns in exchange for other works; sending invoices after a month "trial" to be sure that the customer is happy with the art purchased.

Remember, you're offering quality, service and upscale products (at value prices). I like the comment of Stanley Marcus of Neiman-Marcus fame, who said, "I have always believed that if I can please the five percent of our customers who are the most discriminating, then I'll never have any difficulty satisfying the other 95 percent who are less critical. The latter know the difference between good and bad. But the former recognize the difference between better and best."

On a personal note, the success of our retail business (Gordon's Alley in Atlantic City) began the day a giant discount store carrying many of the same brands at lower prices, opened in our area. In response, we quickly changed our buying practices and went upscale, carrying higher-priced merchandise available only from us. This decision not only increased our sales and profits, but it gave us an image of quality that we could not have otherwise achieved.

Q. How do I find a reputable agent for my artwork? I've only been able to find people wanting to be paid for various services before becoming my agent. Please advise.

A. The truth is there's no simple answer to this question. When it comes to artist agents, they will seek you out once you've achieved a name or reputation for yourself. Many agents specialize in one art classification, such as animals, aviation, contemporary art or Surrealism.

In most cases, these agents will not spend time representing unknown artists. I've asked several galleries for their advice on how to locate an agent. Here are some of their answers: