Week 3: Meeting my art market

Following up on Biz Portrait 

During week 2 of the Right Brain Business plan e-course, I sent out a survey to get feedback on my business and the experience patrons received at the studio. I received no response to the following questions: 

Initial Survey 

"Please use the comments section to answer all/some of the following questions: 

1. Why did you choose to follow this page or buy art here? Did you consider another artist? IF so, what was the deciding factor/what keeps you coming back to the studio page?
2.What benefit did you receive from your studio experience?
3.What three words would you use to describe me and/or my work?
4. What other products or services would you like to see offered at SheilaLynnK Art Studio? [my website is here if you need to peek at the portfolio, etc. before you answer:www.sheilalynnkart.com] "

Frustrated with the lack of response, I moved forward with the week 2 assignments and based them on prior interaction with customers/patrons/page followers. However, I still felt that some valuable component was missing from my business assessment. I posted the survey questions in the private RBBP e-course group on Facebook and received very useful and applicable criticism and input from the creative cohorts participating in this session. It was a wonderfully tangible, real-world validation of my studio/my work.

Fringe benefits of the questions and comments I received:

• Realization that there are multiple, but focused, marketing paths that I can choose
• Getting a much clearer picture of my current customers and new target markets 
• Great ideas & confirmations for new offerings (i.e. a card deck of the mandala project, an "experience package", add detailed photos of current offerings to website, ostrich cot/adaptability is the "hook")

Important Marketing Discoveries (Week 3)

• I have more male than female followers on my website & blog (google analytics) 
• I have more followers in age range 18-35 than I thought (Local patrons average age 35-65 and are predominantly women.)
• My website and blog are being viewed/visited internationally (U.S.~North East~Southern States~West Coast, Canada, Italy, India, Australia, France, U.K., Philippines, and Korea)
• The average current viewer visits my studio online approximately once a week.
• In addition to refining my Fine Art market & meeting my "ideal" Fine Art patron; I want to develop specific studio experiences/products that target other survivors to encourage healing, recovery, adaptability, and living after medical injury. I considered, "chronic pain sufferers" as a category for this but it is too broad. Although medical injury often results in chronic pain, chronic pain conditions not of iatrogenic origin do not seem to come with the same sense of violation and trauma that medical injury survivors must face. However, both groups are often facing these conditions alone... 
• I am already connected with agencies and organizations who might use my own recovery experience and knowledge as a resource for their clients/patients
• I recognize the true value of the work that I am doing.
• It is still very important to me that my ART experiences, products, and services remain affordable and do not segue into an "elite" market with limited availability due to financial constraints/ economic hardship
• Need to research~ funding sources which enable the provision of community art services, local providers offering similar art & healing/coping services [art therapy].

Many new ideas and concepts are swimming through my mind (as always) but these ones have more substance.I can actually SEE which ones I will be able to sink my teeth into. These visions,like a path of stepping stones on freshly levelled and sanded ground, are just waiting for roots to spread and pop up green in the spaces between.

New Marketing Image (C) sheila l. kakbrenner

 Marketing goals set during week 3 include securing 20 new orders/customer by April 2014. This image is being used for my first 2014 ad/campaign to promote reduced prices on specific projects.

THE ad TEXT:

SPECIAL PRICES TO WARM YOUR WALLS with:
matted, unframed single subject portraits
8" x 10" graphite on paper, ONLY $40
16" x 20" graphite on paper, ONLY $80
AND $5 off all 11" x 14" Poster Prints 
[excludes prints displayed at the Wellsville Art Association 2014 Annual Photography Show]
PRICES VALID UNTIL MARCH 31, 2014
Policies & More Project Rates and Options