Weather you are an amateur artist or the one with years of experience behind your back. It doesn’t matter! You still have a good chance to monetise your art, by selling it online!
The best thing about it that you are not limited to just one country, you live in, you can do it worldwide!
Where can I sell my art?
There are quite a few platforms out there where you can display your artworks, and if you’d like to know more, check out this article here.
But in this article we would like to talk about one if the biggest platforms for all the artists and crafters called Etsy.
You can find there works made by artists from all over world!
Each seller has an opportunity, to have their own shop on Etsy, where he can display all the works that are for sale. It makes it so much easier than creating your own website.
Buyers will be able to find your store both through the internal search on their website, as well as through such search engines like Google.
What sort of art I can sell on Etsy?
Just like any offline and online market space, Etsy has its own rules to follow. The main one is the authenticity of your products; they have to be made by you.
So you have to be the artist of your works and you can’t resell artworks bought from another contemporary artist. This is considered against their policy and your account can be suspended and you’ll will never be able to register a new one again.
However, this rule has an exemption, such as re-selling antique items, created 20 or more years. Those products can be sold on Etsy as well and in this case they don’t have to be made by you.
Also, in case you’re an artist you create replicas of famous artworks you can sell it on this market as well. However, firstly you need to make sure that you’re not breaching any of the copyrights.
How much money can I make on Etsy?
Unfortunately, Etsy doesn’t have general statistics on sales accordingly to different stores; so all the calculations are not quite precise. But we decided to take a look at some of the stores and here what it looks like.
This artist sells prints of her original works. The average price per piece is $250 and she sells about 6-7 of those a month, which makes it about $1500 a month.
This artist sells original oil paintings with an average price of $650 and he sells about 100 of those a month, which makes it about $65000 a month.
This watercolour artists sell original watercolour works as well as print of her art on the scrubs! Quite an original idea which make her around 30 sales a month, so with an average price of $50 she make about $1500 a month.
This artist sells mainly small sized artworks and she has roughly 25 orders per months with an average sale of $20, so that makes around $500 a month.
Those are one of the most popular sellers and they do have quite a different income according to there sales. So it does depend on how long you are on the market and how much do you price your works.
But don’t get discouraged, remember they all have started somewhere and didn’t get such results overnight.
What are the most popular items to sell on Etsy?
As you could probably see from the previous sample, there are different styles that sell on Etsy, so it’s a good idea to make your research and analyse your competitors before you go on.
Here some of the most popular types of artworks that sell quite well:
- Abstract Interior Design Artworks
- Portrait Commissions can be for people as well pets.
- Small Cards and miniature paintings
- Nursery and Kids Bedrooms Artworks
- Polymer Clay Jewellery
- Seascapes and landscapes
How about digital art?
It’s worth mentioning digital art as well, as it became quite popular on this market space as well!
Selling digital art means you are not selling your original works, but a copy of it in a JPG or PDF file format. That way your buyer can download the file and print it the way they want.
Those types of products called printable art, so if you would like to see some examples, check it out.
Generally those cost only a few bucks, but you can sell those forever!
If you’re a Photoshop pro- this is the best go for you, but if you are not quite there yet, this is something that can inspire you to learn an extra skill, specially since there so many graphic design courses out there!
How do I ship my art?
If you chose to mainly sell your original artworks and make the prints yourself, you will also have to pack and ship them yourself.
When it come to shipping overseas, it’s a great idea t become familiar with the customs policy of your country and the country you will be sending it too.
Insurance is very important, especially when sending the original works, as this is not something that can be easily reproduced.
Majority of the courier companies, such as FedEx and USPS, offer a basic cover package for the bigger parcels, however it is important for a sender to go through all the terms and conditions thoroughly.
What about packing?
Prints and posters are always best to send in tubes, or you can use tough envelops for smaller works. Make sure to always use plastic sleeves or acid free paper, for extra protection.
When it comes to works made on canvas, it will be quite helpful to keep the boxes form the canvas when you buy them, that way you can use the same box later on to send your work. Using some extra bubble wrap will also insure your artwork will not get damaged.
However, sometimes no matter how well you packed your work, incidents can happen and it’s always best to get an insurance with your delivery.
How do I start?
In order to create your own shop on Etsy you will need:
- PayPal account, although most of the world has one already if you don’t have one yet you can head here to sign up for free.
- Register your account with Etsy.
- Take pictures of your works, make sure to set up the light right and ideally use a good quality camera. If you’re not sure how to take photos of your art, check out this.
- Upload at least 5-10 items for starters and make sure to think through the titles and descriptions, as this is the main way your art can be found.
- Create more work and wait for the great sales to come!
Summary
To sum up, selling on your art on Etsy is not as hard as it seems, and it can be quite profitable, as it has been proven by many successful sellers. However like anything in this world, it take time and effort to succeed, but the first step is to start.
We hop this article has been helpful for you and if you fell like you’re ready and you would like to earn more on on how to make a living from selling on Etsy, check out this course.
It will help you learn on how to get started and avoid all the common mistakes, that way you can attract more potential buyer, much faster, than if you would do that on your own!
