Won’t do that again. One auction ended at $6 and the other one at $1. I tried all kinds of price points but nothing has worked. I’m completely out of ideas. But I did realize one thing. I thought it was that the prices I tried before might have been the cause of no sales even though my latest price point was a pathetic $25, but when I lowered the starting prices to $1, there were still no sales. That just means the issue is not price, it’s something else. I don’t know what but it’s something.
Loads of people in facebook groups have told me that my prices were much too low at $25, and that I should raise my prices. But I couldn’t even sell for $25, so how does that make sense?
I’m just going to make the prices what I would expect to pay for my own art and be done with it.
I’m only going to paint long enough now to replace my painting “business” with a different online business anyway.
I agree with Katharine-- diversify!! Don’t bet on DPW as your only source of exposure/ sales/ marketing! I have found having a website, blog, FB, Pinterest, Etsy, DPW, and another online art gallery has worked for me. I would not be able to survive with only one sales outlet. They all feed each other. I love DPW, and have been on here for over 4 years! I do not sell on the DPW auction, I simply link to my other art gallery and Etsy, where buyers can purchase. I do get a lot of traffic and sales from DPW, but the auction is not a right fit for me. And I get a lot of inquiries for commissions. DPW has been brilliant as a way for buyers to see current and past work, all in one organized location.
I would not suggest anyone sell a painting via an auction for $1 or $10. It looks like you do not value your own work, and someone may have been eyeing a different painting at a higher price, and now question purchasing. Start at $50 and you will get serious buyers, and do not despair if you do not sell right away. If you have a website or blog, someone can purchase it at a later date, at full price. A LOT of buyers will save one of my images on Etsy and not buy for months. People have busy lives, they need time to decide on purchases, and that’s why I don’t do auctions. They work well for a lot of artists, but not for me. Being an artist is slow and takes time and a lot of patience to figure out what works best for you.
Oh, and don’t get hung up on monthly sales! I can sell 12 paintings one month and only 1 the next! The ups and downs are just crazy, just hang on and keep painting!
I do have some of my paintings up on Ebay, but I’ve switched from an auction format to a fixed price format with the option of making an offer. So, we’ll see how that goes.
I just went to ebay here in the Philppines. The first 9 pages of oil paintings are mostly from China for $25.99 or so with free shipping. They are supposed to be oil on canvas huge wall paintings. Not sure about that though.
Couldn’t find anything from the US.
Ebay doesn’t seem to care about how many Chinese art clutters up the whole art category. Also, apparently, they don’t seem to care about whether they are photo prints that they make look like original paintings. As long as they get the money, that’s all that matters.
To find art from the U.S. you have to use the filters on the left and select the U.S.
A lot of the Chinese art is shipping in roles and you have to get it put on stretcher bars then get it framed.
I once saw a documentary about ebay and it showed an art making factory that showed artists lined up side by side painting pictures and a supervisor walking around behind them telling them how to paint the pictures. Not like a class, but to produce paintings to sell. They only had so much time to get them done. It was really sad to see.
I never know what price I should list a painting for. I have tried very low and by the square inch. It doesn’t seem to make much difference.
I have decided to focus on the art. There is so much room for growth there. Hopefully my paintings will improve and I will figure out a good pricing strategy for the long-term.
The whole concept of a ‘high price’ or ‘low price’ is so subjective. Some people consider $50 or $100 to be a low price for a painting. For me, I’m a student and my art sales are the only income I have right now- so that’s a lot of money to me! And I feel a bit cheeky asking $20 for one of my paintings, part of me is screaming ‘drop it to $10!’ Especially when I regularly see paintings selling at that price in the ‘Active Bidding’ screen.
The self doubt kicks in- can I really ask more than these talented painters are doing? I don’t have my degree yet, or gallery representation, and if I can produce a 5x7" canvas board every day, do I really NEED to ask $20? I have so many of them stacked up in my storage space by now!
But then, I have had a few people buy my work at $15 - $20, both in my local area and online, and I feel it might be unfair to them to drop my prices now…? And after all, I have to be able to pay the membership fee, paint and canvas, and other misc expenses like business cards, advertising on Facebook to get more exposure, etc… And my wonderful parents have loaned me some money to help cover start up costs. I want to be able to pay them back ASAP. So if I drop prices I NEED to sell more.
Will I actually make more sales if I lower my prices? I’m not sure. I’m no expert, but I don’t think people buy art the way they buy groceries or housewares, trying to find the lowest price and buying when they see a bargain, regardless of whether they need the thing or not. They buy art because they like it. I’ve seen my mum spend £60 on a painting in a gallery where prices started at £15- that was the one she wanted, it didn’t matter others cost less, because she didn’t like them. So lowering prices to ‘compete’ with other artists is pretty pointless. If the audience don’t like your work, they won’t buy it, no matter what price you list it at, right?
Maybe it’s just that my work doesn’t appeal to people…? Maybe it’s just a matter of patience, posting every day- here, and on my blog, my Facebook, and my Deviantart page, keeping my website up to date- telling everyone I meet that I sell little paintings, here’s where to find me… And eventually the right person will come along and and I’ll make another sale.
I keep repeating to myself that I’ve not been doing this very long, that it will take time before I make sales with any kind of regularity. I am doing pretty good for a beginner, for my age, I know that. But knowing that doesn’t stop me from agonizing over it! I’ve started keeping canvases and paint out on my desk 24/7. Every time I catch myself sulking, I start a new painting. Then at least I’m being productive.
Sorry for the long post everyone! Feels good to finally vent the frustration. I’m sure lots of you understand…