4 Steps To Selling More Of Anything

Sorry, the whole link didn't hyper link.

Hopefully this one https://medium.com/@kevinharrington_39465/4-steps-to-selling-more-of-anything-even-if-you-dont-like-selling-f134e2604e0d?inf_contact_key=e40ed0676c1af7361e14e0500326f81d15f428f43990257ffa41243758d74410

Edit: Guess not. Looks like you'll have to copy and paste the whole link.

it would have been nice if he used some examples. that list was kind of, i don't want to say obvious, but it looks more like he heard it from some place else. like did he apply this know how to what he sells? or does he sell anything?


---Mike Savad
http://www.MikeSavad.com

Well I thought it was interesting to share because the author is the inventor of the infomercial. Which I believe came out before social media and maybe even the internet.

Yes, Frank, infomercials were around LONG before the internet. They filled up all those empty channels late at night. a whole half hour plugging the wonders of the wonder product du jour

Here is Frank's LINK

Frank,

The concepts in infomercials are useful. Thanks,

Dave

Welcome Dave. How could you go wrong with a guy who's put to use the methods of the great Zig Ziglar.

Thank you RD for that link. That was a tough one for me.

"EO Co-founder, As Seen on TV Pioneer, $5 Billion in Sales"

Trust me, this guy has made some sales! lol

We used this method in our ad agency for a client and set a record for non-entertainment video tapes (yes, it was that long ago) and again for a specific sporting goods item that in the day was extremely competitive.

And no there was no Internet. Cable TV was just starting to sell advertising and the cost of what we used to call "blue-back" ads were dirt cheap. I was buying ROS 30's for under $5 and late nigh ROS for less than $2. Markets like Dallas, Huston, Miami, Myrtle Beach, San Diego, Phoniex.

I can't figure out this whole concept of filling a need when selling art, especially POD. For commissions it makes sense, those people are looking for someone to fulfill a specific need, (a family portrait for example). I don't see how my art fills any specific need except maybe to match the living room couch. The concept of finding your tribe and marketing to it makes more sense to me but I have yet to find that tribe.

DK,

I have begun in my bullet points to say my art is "Enjoyable Fine Art".

You know how many crazy PITA fine art ideas are out there? More often than not fine art in NYC is complex garbage. The emperor wearing no cloths.

There is a need for "enjoyable" art concepts. It can be that simple a need or because we sell a luxury in reality a want.

Dave

DK - Like the article says:

People don’t buy a product, they buy what that product does for them.

We buy the products of the product, which are called “benefits” or “need solutions.”

DB, most art is "enjoyable art". There's no shortage of "enjoyable art" at all, FAA is packed to the gills with it. That lunatic stuff in modern art galleries is the fringe.

DK,

Then say so.

Or say some other attribute that people would want to have in their lives.

It is not like the plastic parts in an infomercial are a new plastic that is more fantastic.

Dave

Sorry Frank, I guess I'm just dense, that still doesn't help me. I have no control over what my art does "for" somebody. They like it or they don't, in rare cases they love it enough to buy it, I have zero control over that. The challenge is finding those people who love it that much.

DK,

If you point out to potential clients that they will love your art, more of them will think in terms of loving your art. Love is a need.

Dave

I can't make someone love my art DB, they do or they don't.

I just remembered that a month or so ago I swore off marketing discussions, I just broke my promise. I apologize, I'll withdraw now.

Well I feel art lends to our sense of wellness of being when we decorate a room with this in mind. I feel that is the need I am looking to fill. Kinda of like the idea of Feng shui

I never said make anyone do anything.

If people shuffle through images at a very fast pace, when they read a bit on a website, if you lead them a bit on how to see your art, YOU have helped yourself in the moment when someone needs to put your art into a framework. You have referenced how people can "enjoy" or "love" etc your work.

If you passively say nothing....they can simply say in some instances, NEXT!!

Dave

LC,

How about saying exactly that in your About/Bio? It is what your viewers need.

Dave

Yes, David B is right ... think of the infomercial. What Marlene said .. it filled the need of the dead space on cable TV before the internet.

When people learn what you see in your art they come to know more about you and your art. If they see WHY you crated a piece of art, they come to resonate what the artwork does for them ... too.

LC - Exactly .. what David B said. BINGO!!

Everyone here on FAA that is making sales are doing it with various approaches to the same basic thing. They are getting their art in front of a significant number of people that they think it will appeal to the most.

Their success is going to be directly related to the number of people they reach.

I personally feel to reach the level of sales that I have set as my goals, I need to reach millions of people. Many here think they are going to get it done by reaching a few thousand. That few thousand is not going to be sufficient, IMHO, to make all that many sales. But everyone has to set their own goals.

I thought I was saying that.....but you think I should say it like I just did verbatim?

https://ziglarshow.com/?s=harrington

Here are some podcasts interviews of Kevin Harrington, the author of the article. In one of them he talks about when he started it was in selling driveway sealing. When he went door to door and told the homeowner they need new sealing, he didn't make any sales. But when he went back and told the homeowner what he saw wrong with their driveway, and then showed them a picture of what he did with other driveways, he made many sales.

Floyed has it right. If you read Barney Davey he says all you need is 100 specific collectors and you have a lifetime of sales. The other way is what Floyd is doing, promoting to the masses withing his niche. I'm selling mostly with email marketing, and my subscribers share my mails and I get more subscribers of like interest.

LC - I think so. It's short, clearly stated, and helps them to decide if they want to look further or not.

Good point David King. There are many who have all the knowledge, training and scholarly advice and still couldn't sell water in a desert.

Alison,

I think that has to do with being a buyer instead of being a seller. In other words some folks do not like ads because they are buyers. Other people like ads because they work.

Mind you I do not sell yet. And I just restructured my ads from top to bottom. The whole process takes time.

Dave

i'm a buyer of things, so i can review myself for any question i have.

basically the list says:

find something you want to sell
find people that wants your stuff
figure out how their mind ticks
then sell your stuff.

that's basically all it says. its a good read, but it reads as click bait. i think its all so he can gather email addresses to sell off.

art is a visual thing, i'm not sure fancy ad's really work. the best i can do is show people the images and hope they like it. that's it. i can't convince them of a psychological benefit, or how the art will make their pasta cook evenly. or how the art will make them more handsome. i suppose there are gullible people like that, but i haven't ran into too many so far. i find the sales pitch never works, even if i'm being funny about it.


---Mike Savad
http://www.MikeSavad.com

At the very least we should be getting the emails from the artist coach / gurus to learn the latest and the best way to sell our art. All they are basically doing is taking this concept and applying it to the art business.

Some examples are:

http://barneydavey.com/

https://theabundantartist.com/

http://martinstellar.com/

https://www.artsyshark.com/

http://kleinartistworks.com/


EDIT: this is exactly what I do and that is why I know what the article that I shared is saying. So click the links and subscribe to their newsletters.

David B:

The article Frank posted says to think of the client's needs first. -- so that's what I was addressing. Which comes first, the chicken, or the egg? If Frank's article says "chicken" then a post that discusses putting "egg" first is relevant, but not what I was talking about.


To address Floyd's post: I think Floyd would probably agree -- if you're doing very much manipulation of the product, or very much manipulation of the marketing methods, that could be a clue that you're trying to pound a round peg into a square hole, so to speak, and you should stop wasting your time/resources & try an approach where the product and the marketing methods are a better fit for each other.

Dave, then maybe the key is to make it look like it's not an ad. Some are naturals at that.

David King, I love your response.

It's epic in that many people know how to sell, but the principles of being a sales person makes them feel icky...like a used car sales person.

I like to use my husband to hustle a few sales for me because he has that pushy bartering personality, it cracks me up too...it's like watching a black belt master...bullshitter.

Agreed 100% DK, not everyone is cut out to be a Zig Ziglar salesman no matter how much knowledge is acquired. Honestly, If someone isn't the type that enjoys being outgoing and social then it's going to be an uphill battle. It's going to be a constant chore and probably won't last. (I know where I stand, over 3200 images in my portfolio and almost zero time spent on working on sales and marketing lol).

Cheryl,

The responses here, some of them, are centric to the persons saying them. Not centric to potential clients. In fact people are complaining about being centric to possible buyers.

Some are assuming it means giving up identity or being manipulative or pushing people around.

I do not think it means any of that.

It is a bit like the rich person does not flaunt her cash. But the poor person does. I think people have a lot of this inverted.

I have gone from having "enjoyable fine art" to having "Accent Pieces ~ Enjoyable Fine Art" Isn't that what art is? No arm twisting, no manipulation, no pushing anyone around. Just a set of comments on my art. Nothing more.

Dave

It's all a mystery until you sell every hour, where are the artists I see selling every hour to tell us how it's done for painters or Con Nash for pop fashion art? There are those that know how to get-r-done. LOL

For me, I'm happy where I am at, never thought I would get this far... never and I am completely baffled by art business.

#2 is the hardest step for me, understanding the industry.

"I know where I stand, over 3200 images in my portfolio and almost zero time spent on working on sales and marketing lol"

You've got lots of great photography of specific subjects people are looking for so that works well enough. Congrats. I wish I could say the same for my junk. lol

Maybe it's Cond Nast...is that an artist or gallery of artists? They sell a lot here on FAA.

Unless you are trying to sell New Yorker cartoons and covers I don't think Conde Nast is taking any sales from you.

Conde Nast is a huge publishing conglomerate. Think Vogue and The New Yorker.

___________
Susan Maxwell Schmidt
So-so Board Moderator and
Artist Extraordinaire

Thank you, Susan. I looked them up a moment ago and read all the adjectives they use to sell. I think I just got a real lesson on marketing and what to say.

Oh no, I don't view any artist as taking sales from me, David.

Anyone willing to market their work can sell. The art doesn't even have to be good. Great marketing can change what most people think they need in a second.

"Great marketing can change what most people think they need in a second."

Bingo!!!

And great marketing can be taught, you do not need to be a super salesperson. When I see people keep repeating that I see people using a weakness as a crunch, a weakness that can be improved upon with just a little effort.

I don't care what level of sales you at or what level of marketing skills you have, there is always room to improve and to learn new stuff.

"I know where I stand, over 3200 images in my portfolio and almost zero time spent on working on sales and marketing"

The fact that you have spent the time to join FAA, and at least one other sales platform, uploaded 3200 images, inserted keywords, wrote out descriptions, joining groups and I am guessing maybe contests is a significant marketing effort in itself. Now combine that with your having a Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn and Facebook accounts, that is not exactly what I would call "almost zero time spent on working on sales and marketing".

The question each person has to ask and answer only to themselves is, am I making all the sales I want to make? If the answer is yes, then fine. If it is no, then I strongly suggest that you keep an open mind, shut out the negative people and learn as much as you possibly can about marketing, advertising, and salesmanship.

"you should stop wasting your time/resources & try an approach where the product and the marketing methods are a better fit for each other."

Yup, and that is where the marking mix and 4Ps come in and how to apply them.

Of course, first, you have to understand what the marking mix is and the 4Ps are.

Simply stated it is taking the right Product to the right Place for the right Price with the right Promotion.

The simple answer to the first P is where some are hung up thinking that the product is just simply Art. It is not.

The other thing too many seem to buy into is that art is such a unique product that it can not be sold through traditional marketing. That too is dead wrong. It is that kind of statement that tells me that there is NOT the in-depth understanding of selling and marketing that some are claiming to have.

Lisa,

Best wishes on your journey. I think you will do well.

Let us know a few of the adjectives you might use.

Thanks,

Dave

Oh thank you, David, B!

I think the best we can do for ourselves is what we do for others. Be as gentle to yourself as you would be to another, build yourself up, build up your fellow artist and don't be afraid to be excited about art and getting it out there.


Here are some of my favorite concepts, in my own words of course, from Cond Nast. This is what I get from their official site. It's so positive, I almost purchased and/or wanted to invest.

Be diverse and flexible.

Don't miss out on the best!

Have acess to the best...

Rejoice at...

It's about humor.

Be real, find the meme and make it better.

The list goes on and on, it's about leadership, taking over the subconscious of what people want to hear.

Best of luck to you to, David B.

Floyd, I read your responses three times. Great ideas back at you. I think this marketing thing is hard for a lot of us because we take too much of our own psychology with us into a marketing plan, but we need to focus on traditional marketing tools AND separate ourselves from the marketing plans... as you suggest, great posts and thank you for agreeing with what I said, I'm still very much in the learning phase of art industry.


Art business lesson plan 100,987,896,000: Don't take your personality with you into marketing, leave that at home.

Lisa,

Thanks, yes Conde Nast is leading. Quite honestly and straight forward at that.

I have more on my AW, I have bullets to make my points.

In an ad on SM though we need to boil it way down if only because the space is limited. So I went with "Accent Pieces ~ Enjoyable Fine Art".

I use the "~" to skip the verbiage and get to the next bullet. I use Enjoyable to say Accessible, because not everyone knows a lot about art even if they are bigger consumers of art. Also I use Enjoyable to get away from the snobby factor. People have no use for snobs. Even if they are snobby.

Also "Accent Pieces" is a way of saying decor without being pedestrian.

Dave

"Art business lesson plan 100,987,896,000: Don't take your personality with you into marketing, leave that at home. "

I love this!! :-)

That really is just about how many business plans it takes sometimes, or at least it seems like it. You just have to keep at it, stay flexible and make adjustments.


Maximizing your success and moving forward, expanding, adding to it, is not about what you do know, it is about learning what you don't know, seeking that knowledge and figuring out to apply in a way that it will add to your success.

I love the concept of "accent ..." David, thanks, running to a meeting now.

Your last sentence, Floyd, is spot on. The reason I shared the information in this thread.


"but we need to focus on traditional marketing tools AND separate ourselves from the marketing plans." Agreed!



With that said, I'm going to close this thread by the end of today, in case you have some last words to share. Thank you everyone for your participation, in helping each other to understand all this and the business of Art.

I am waaaaay separated from marketing plans.

___________
Susan Maxwell Schmidt
So-so Board Moderator and
Artist Extraordinaire