7 FREE Ways to Promote & Sell Your Art Online

The top online resources for artists to get exposure on the web. Free web directories, artist galleries, search engine submissions and more.

1. MySpace
MySpace.com is the hottest online community these days. Join for free, make your profile page, post your art, start a free blog and upload your music. The site also features message boards, announcements and great networking tools. If you only have time to do one thing on this list - DO THIS!!! http://www.myspace.com

2. Flickr
Flickr is an online community with a powerful social networking engine. Becoming a member is free and they just launched a free blogging service. http://www.flickr.com/

and Facebook, Friendster, Orkut, Deviantart, Kyte etc..

3. Web Search Directories
The major search engines index billions of Web pages, but there are many more billions of Web pages and websites that the engines cannot reach.
Web search directories provide an alternative means of navigating the web and are often maintained by humans, so in a sense the content of the site is verified. As a rule, it is the responsibility of the submitter to give a short description of the site and to classify it under the appropriate category.

Submit your artist website URL for free to these Artist directories:

• Yahoo! Directory
• The Open Directory Project
• Published.com
• Artappeal.com
• The Digital Directory
• Studio Arts - Online Directory of Local Artists

4. Web Search Engines
Submit your site for free to these major search engines only after you have verified that your website is not appearing in the results.

• Google
• Yahoo!
• MSN Search

5. Message Boards / Groups
Interact with other artists online to get more exposure. Here are some groups and message boards to consider joining. Be sure not to spread yourself too thin - this tactic only works if you are engaged.

• Yahoo! Groups for Entertainment & Arts
• Craiglist Forums
• eZBoard

6. Email Signature File
Use your mail program to create an email signature file that will be included in every email you send. Keep it short with your name, email address, website URL and your artist/branding statement. This little trick will work wonders!

How to Increase Traffic to your Artist Blog

Now that you have successfully published your artist blog and have tested your dedication to frequent blog posting, it's time to get your blog exposure on the web. Using blog-specific online marketing techniques, you can promote your blog to a target audience and build quality traffic to it - for free.

7 Steps to Build Traffic to your Artist Blog

1. Submit to Blog Directories

• For a list of the top 34 blog directories with direct links to submission pages and inclusion requirements click here. Keep in mind that the process of submitting to directories is always long and tedious, but will absolutely prove its return on the time investment, especially considering that it's free online promotion for your blog.

• Create a record of submission document (use our template) for your blog to keep track of submission dates, member registration information, etc. Many of the better blog directory sites require a reciprocal link or tracking script to get listed, so work with your technical support person to place a reciprocal link on the page.

• Make sure that the information you submit to the directories is consistent. Meaning, always submit the same title and description for your blog. The title you submit should be the title tag and meta description for your blog - both written using optimized copy rich with your blog's keywords. (See Part 1 of this series for tips on writing optimized copy for your blog)

2. Ping Blog Services

"Pinging" is a way of letting blog directories and search engines know that you have updated your blog. By sending a ping to each service, you let them know that a new post has been published so they can come check you out.

• Bookmark this link to Ping-O-Matic - it lets you ping many blog sites with one click: http://pingomatic.com/

3. Optimize each blog post for search engines

Getting visibility in natural search for a blog post is no different than getting visibility for a web page. The same rules of "writing for search" apply � meaning keyword rich titles, content length, optimized hyperlinks, alt tags, etc. Here are quick tips for optimizing each of your blog posts for higher rankings in natural search results:

• Identify your keyword phrase. Is it something people actually search for? If not - phrase it differently. For example instead of using "The Dorm Diet" for a title, you might consider "Lose the Freshman 15" since freshman 15 is a very popular searched phrase. (source: http://inventory.overture.com/d/searchinventory/suggestion/)
• Blog Entries should be at least 300 words long.
• Your targeted keyword phrase should appear 3-5 times in the entry (once in the title, in the summary and throughout the blog)
• Use the keyword phrase in any hyperlinks you have in the blog as well as in any bulleted list.
• Use ALT tags for your images

4. Build Links to Your Blog

A link building campaign is the best way to get quality and relevant traffic to your blog. These methods, although time consuming, are the best ways to get links pointing to your blog.

• Link to your blog from the main page of your site.
• Use your blog as often as possible in the "related links" area of articles published on your site.
• Post legitimate comments on other blogs with related topics and include a link back to your blog with your signature.
• Offer to exchange links with other similarly themed blogs and websites.

5. Promote Bloglet!!

Bloglet is a free service for people to sign up for an email alert each time their favorite blog publishes a new post. It's perfect for people who have not jumped on the RSS bandwagon just yet, or for those that never will (sorry mom!).

• Set up a Bloglet subscription form on your blog and invite everyone to subscribe: http://www.bloglet.com

6. RSS Feeds

Set your blog to display RSS feeds and submit your blog's RSS feed to the major RSS feed directories online. Go here for a list of the top RSS directories: http://www.rss-specifications.com/rss-submission.htm

• Make sure you have an RSS feed URL that people can subscribe to. Test your feed here: http://feedvalidator.org/
• Use the same submission guidelines listed in step 1 above (Blog Directory Submissions) to have consistent results.

7. Email Signature

• Use your mail program to create an email signature file that will be included in every email you send. Keep it short with your name, email address, blog title and URL. This little trick will work wonders!
• Become an active member of a relevant online community forum and add your blog title and URL to your signature line at the bottom of each message you post.

Building traffic to your artist blog is not a scientific process. It takes time, dedication, and persistence to build a loyal audience and create your niche interactive community on the web. Tracking your success is a key motivational tool that will help get you through some guaranteed trying times that come with building a successful blog. Be sure to benchmark the current state of your traffic, your rankings on the major search engines (Google, Yahoo, MSN) and the visitor commenting activity on your blog before implementing these free online marketing techniques.

Artist Blogs: Why Every Artist Needs a Blog

s an artist, the key to selling more artwork is maximizing its exposure. The internet is an increasingly popular tool for promoting original art, and if done properly, can be quite profitable.

One of the most effective (and free!) online marketing tools for artists is the blog. Artist blogs provide an easy way to display your art, discuss your creative process, post exhibition announcements and more. Best of all, blogs require no working knowledge of HTML and the search engines love their dynamic content.

What is an artist blog and how will it sell my art?

A "blog" is a web-based diary or journal. The author of a blog, also known as a "Blogger", publishes content on a regular basis about a focused topic. These regular postings typically provide a "community" feel by allowing site visitors to post feedback to your journal entries. This mode of communication can deepen relationships with potential art buyers, leading to increased sales.

Blogs also have the ability to archive all of your previous posts, dynamically creating an individual web page for each journal entry. This feature is great for art buyers using search engines to find original art. For example, if you have a blog post describing a painting that you just completed of the Golden Gate Bridge at sunset and an art buyer in Florida goes to Google and searches for "painting of Golden Gate Bridge at sunset", there is a very good chance that your blog entry will appear pretty high in the rankings. Cha Ching!!

Many artists have felt the pain of email marketing losing its effect due to spam filters, junk email overloads and virus paranoia. Blogs provide a new way to communicate with clients, fans and industry professionals. This trend can support your email marketing efforts by allowing blog subscription options for site visitors so that they are notified whenever your blog is updated along with providing a permanent place on the web for all of your postings as opposed to newsletter emails that are typically deleted.

How to start an artist blog

1. Blog Publishing Tools
   To begin, visit some of these free blogging sites, all offering unique template options that even an artist can appreciate, image uploads and syndication ability.
   
   • Blogger.com (Pauper Pick! Simple to set up and multiple authoring ability)
   • MSN Spaces (Pauper Pick! Create your own mini site, with an exceptional blogging feature)
   • Live Journal (Requires a bit of �blogging knowledge' to get it set up)
   • Blog Drive

   If you're interesting in reviewing additional blog features, these sites require a small monthly fee to maintain.

   • Typepad (starts at $4.95/month)
   • Tripod Blogs (starts at $4.95/month)
   
   Note to artists with MySpace accounts: MySpace provides members personal blogs, but it is important to know that MySpace blogs are not currently listed in search engines, which as noted above, is one of the main reasons to get a blog. While MySpace works to remedy this issue, it is recommended that you blog using a tool that is accessible to search engine spiders.
   
   
2. Decide on a title for your artist blog
   The title of your artist blog should be brief and to the point. You can get creative with your language in the blog description / tag line. A focused title will help with higher search engine rankings and make it clear to visitors what the blog is about.
   
   For example, the title for ThePauper.com blog is "Diary of a Pauper". The blog description is "Rants and raves about the careers and lives of starving artists." The title is concise, stating exactly what it is, while the description is a bit more creative.
   


3. Blog theme
   It's important to establish yourself as a professional working artist if you want to use your blog as a vehicle to sell your art. Blog theme involves the layout and color of the page, quality of the artwork images displayed and verbiage used for blog postings.

   Select your blog template carefully and make a habit to review your blog from the perspective of a potential client. Is the page visually appealing? Do the images of your artwork provide a link to an extra large version to see detail? Does your content have a consistent theme?

   Here's a good example of a working blog by mix engineer, Ken Lewis: http://protoolsmixing.com/blog.html

   The content theme is exceptionally consistent, plus the colors and page layout match his website.

4. What to write
   What's beautiful about blogs is that there are no rules on what to write, but if you want to attract and keep an audience, you might consider some of these suggestions.
   • Keep your posts creative and interesting. Move and inspire your readers by being completely honest about your creative process.
     
   • Use keywords in your blog title and post. Using the example mentioned earlier if your post is about a Golden Gate Bridge painting, be sure to use that exact phrase in the title and body of your artist blog. Think about what people might type into search engines to find your content and then use those keywords in your blog. This technique will help increase the ranking of your page on search engines.
     
   • Post daily, or at least twice a week. If you publish blog entries frequently, you will see more return visitors, subscriptions to your blog and comments from site visitors.
     
   • Proofread and preview your blog entries before posting. Some blog HTML editors have a way of creating weird symbols out of certain characters and a quick spell-check never hurts. (Note: be sure to write your blog using Word or some other text editor. Many blogging tools tend to "time out" after a certain amount of time and you could potentially lose hours of work.)
     


5. Publish your artist blog
   Finally! Your blog looks great and has unique content. Now, depending on the blogging tool that you selected, follow the steps to publish it to the World Wide Web. Test the live URL that now houses your blog. If all of your graphics appear correctly and the copy is flawless, then you want to make sure that you promote your blog on personal website, in your email signature and by word of mouth.Using the tools you already have to spread the word while testing your dedication to frequent posting is the best way to get started. Part 2 of will unveil tons of ways to promote your blog online.