Below are additional thoughts from makers as a part of our survey How do you share your work?
I find the complexities of selling outside the EU difficult to navigate. There don’t seem to be any simple guidelines available.
Giving talks, teaching, going to events where I may meet potential clients, exhibiting and always carrying my business cards and chatting about what I do plus Insta and a website have all led to getting clients
I believe in the role of galleries, exhibitions, studio sales, and word of mouth. I have yet to sell online and yet I feel that may be a good way of selling older work that has been returned to me by the galleries. I just need to bite the bullet and hire someone to help me set up selling online.
I wish stuff sold a little faster. It all sells eventually, but I wish there was more demand so it sold quicker. Social media is great, but most followers out of 12K seem to be other potters, not so many buyers. There are some buyers, but I would like more.
I did really well when I did craft shows. But I haven’t been able to do them in a few years. I feel like my sales have significantly decreased by not showing up for shows and markets.
Via workshops and retreats
It is not easy to find your people and takes a lot of trial and error. It also takes constantly continue to market and put yourself out there. Being an artist is not for the faint of heart.
Use small communities to start getting known in your local area, sell to people you know and who appreciate the value in your work.
I hold Open Studio events and allow the public into my studio/ workshop. Where I live/work there are two organised Open Studio events for artists promoted with a guide and social media. They are very successful and profitable.
I am always open to finding new ways to let people know about my work. I would like to try entering more ceramic competitions and I have done small collective pop ups with other makers in the past.
Whatever I do, it always seems that I’m behind the curve…. I sell but not enough. Never know how to improve sales
Managing other distributors and galleries is extremely difficult, the main challenge being someone that is a true champion of your work.
I mostly make what interests me at the moment. Sometimes, family will ask for the piece and I oblige. I sometimes get what I call an #unpaidcommission for family or friends. The rest of my stuff I stockpile in an extra room and, when the room gets full, I may get a booth somewhere and see what sells.
Selling a luxury custom product means that shows and retail do not result in sales and scaling is not much of an option. That relieves the stress and cost of shows, but that energy is put into speaking publicly about my work so people understand what I do.
There is a huge difference between ordinary craft markets, retailers and web selling through platform and luxury hand made one-off pieces selling in gallery or through commission.
Brexit has stopped all non-UK sales for me overnight. It would be useful to have a makers wide system or workshops on how to sell to EU/US without the customs and import fees, and needing to be a VAT registered business.
Pricing is hard, especially at different shows. I spend a lot of time explaining how I make things and generally interacting with people which is good but can clutter up the selling space
I’d like to have distribution to physical shops around the world, but don’t know how to make this happen. And their terms would be fine to me.
I’m not quite sure what kind of information you’re looking to get from this survey, but I don’t see We Make as a potential avenue for directing people to my site and/or generating sales as it currently exists. That seems to be what you might be getting at.
I should try and find the time to use my email list
It’s hard to find a gallery in my poor rural area that understands and promotes my work.
I’m an author but my craft is knitting, so most of the things I make are fiber related, but I’m using them to sell my books, not the crafts themselves. This year I’m branching out into crafting materials (undyed fabrics and custom-milled knitting yarns), so will be selling those as well.
It’s often hard to find the right audience for my work. Directing people to my website can work, but in-person events usually do better.
Craft markets have been steadily getting less and less lucrative, and much more expensive to do. From this point forward, I only plan to apply to one.
My ideal client is interior designers who are sourcing for their residential projects. I find it difficult to connect with them without using social media, primarily Instagram. quarterly mail list
Joining associations related to your work that will advertise for you.
It’s a challenge I am currently assessing. Pricing to accommodate gallery commissions is something I’d like to stop doing since I’m on a break from gallery sales except occasional pop up shops. But I don’t want to change prices only to have to change them back again. I’m in the process of making some decisions about how I want to move forward as my local steady gallery closed last year.