Showing and Telling
In the Marketing Blog (see those posts here) I have several posts that deal with websites. Your very own website with your very own domain and your very own personality is something collectors really enjoy. It’s almost a craving. They want your individuality. They want that different experience.
However, the best and most fascinating website in the world is no substitute for you. Don’t forget that over half of the people who land on a web page leave within 15 seconds. People are easily distracted online.
Even the totally awesome website by frequent commenter Rebecca Vincent will not impact the viewer in the same way as standing beside Rebecca and seeing the work in person. My guess is that being able to engage with her, seeing her studio and her printmaking tools, is powerful and transcendent. Hearing the stories of her creative spirit is going to have a deep influence.
Keeping the Mood Alive
Here’s where it gets tricky.
They believe that they WILL order from you online. But they don't. It's a trap - don't fall in. Click To Tweet
So when they ask you if you have a website, and you then turn away from selling what’s directly in front of them and start “selling them” on going to your website, you have validated their belief that they have this escape hatch. You have changed the energy.
Whew…. they don’t need to make a decision right now. What a relief!
I know you may LOVE your website, but it’s not what you want to be selling. If you don’t love your website, then you REALLY don’t want to sell it!
Either way, telling them to go to your website is you being afraid to ask for the sale. You acquiesce and give credence to their strategy about buying from you in the future. You have abdicated your responsibility to find good homes for your art.
Be a True Advocate
A website can never be as strong a voice as you are in person and your art will never have the same impact as it does in person.
So I want you to be very clear about your intentions to find homes for your art. This is extremely important when you have someone who is focused on a specific piece of yours. They need to understand that you care about their happiness.
Discourage them from considering a future purchase on your site. Here are some suggested statements. Re-word them to fit your situation.
- Yes, I have a website. But what you are seeing now, may or may not be available on my site. I don’t really keep it up to date. This will apply to nearly everyone reading this except aforementioned Rebecca. ‘-)
- This is a one-of-a-kind and I don’t bother to upload it. Too much to keep track of when new pieces emerge and then sell – sometimes within the same day.
- The quality and the richness you are loving right now just will not show up on a computer screen. I fear that you will miss the opportunity of owning this if you rely on viewing it again on my site. I have sent dozens (hundreds) to my site and can count on one hand the sales that result. As much as you like this piece, I encourage you to buy it now.
They Need to Measure
Or wait for construction/remodeling to be completed or get approval from their interior designer, or whatever. It’s time to apply some Elasticity and keep them in the here and now.
Offer them a full refund if the piece doesn’t fit the space they are considering. (They love the piece! They WILL find the space.) During construction, offer them free storage and even payment plans and free shipping after it’s over. Offer them a full refund if their interior designer is not happy. They will over-rule the designer in 99% of the cases.
If someone has fallen in love with your art, they will find a way to buy it now. However, you must bring Intentional Sharing to this situation. They must know that you are their friend and their loving advisor. You must remain faithful to your Selling Purpose:
In the end, you know what you need to do: Ask them to buy it now.
Please take a moment to share in the comments how you have avoided sending people to the black hole we call a website. As I say on one of my favorite Flashcards, “Your art nurtures the creative soul in all who view it and forever enriches the lives of those who own it.”
Go forth and enrich someone’s life at your next art showing.
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Hi Mckenna,
Gosh – I’m honored to be mentioned and laughed loudly at the example!
Thanks for these thoughts, it is tricky to cope with this issue in a sales situation. I’ve progressed from being blissfully ignorant that directing visitors to the website might injure the sales opportunity, to having some awareness of the problem. But I’m still groping for words. With one offs, I’m OK as I can say with hand on heart that the one the customer is interested in may not be available for long. But with the limited editions there may be plenty, all on the website and I don’t really want to lie about it.
Inspired by what you say in your guide about being a decision counselor, I’m wondering if there’s some mileage in saying that I’m here now, all attention to guide you through my collection, answer your questions and help you find something just right. I’ve often seen sales happening the other way round where people have explored the website quite thoroughly but still prefer to see me in person to get advice and have a story to go with the work. Sometimes they need quite extensive help. (And of course they avoid the delivery costs and can buy large framed pieces that I don’t ship due to the fragility of the glass.)
Thanks again for the mention and link, Rebecca
It is tricky. But then asking for the sale is …. well…. tricky! And that is what must happen when you know someone is really deeply connected but wanting to ignore their “little voice” that is telling them to say “yes”. It’s a voice that we all try to ignore, particularly if we can convince ourselves that we can put off the decision – that we have a way of purchasing in the future.
So the concept of being a decision counselor means you become that very loving friend who is wanting this good thing to happen. I have often said something along the lines of, “I will sell this eventually, so I really am not concerned about MY sale of this item. However I know when someone deserves to own my work and you have all the earmarks. You will have a lifetime of enjoyment, and that matters more to me than getting a sale. I want to find deserving homes for my work. You are someone who clearly deserves and will have a lifetime of enjoyment from this piece. I think you should get this. You will never regret owning this.”
Words to that affect – said deliberately and clearly and with full eye contact – AND THEN: I just remain totally silent and wait (sometimes a few seconds and sometimes a lifetime) until they respond. And because, I am truly part of a journey with this person or persons, this is recognized as a loving gesture – a truth is a truth. And even a “no” is a wonderful answer because they know and I know that we are on the same emotional page and I am only trying to help them.
This is not hard to do when you love your art and know your art is loved. This is a natural outpouring of your love for someone who is loving your work. It’s a Love Fest! And it really feels good.
In dealing with the “Need to Measure” or “Construction/Remodeling” excuses, I have taken to heart what a local – and highly successful – home improvement company owner said for years in his TV commercials: “You’ll look at it, you’ll love it, and you’ll take your time paying for it!”
Offer to let potential buyers take the work on approval. Getting artwork into a buyer’s home is a huge step – no, LEAP! – to securing a purchase, and offering approval and/or payment terms is also a high-percentage lock to that end.
Buyers’ reaction to the offer of taking work on approval, and/or an offer of payment terms, is most often, “Really? You/We can do that??” Then they’re told, of course I/they can, because it’s obvious how much they love the work, and I’ll show them how easy it is for them own it. In effect, you have given them the “permission” they’ve been subconsciously seeking to buy your work.
This approach has a high Convenience Factor. My experience tells me that once the art is in the home, they will probably keep it. They liked it enough to take it home in the first place, and they likely won’t want the “trouble” and extra expense of repacking and shipping it back, or spend the time to return it to me or the gallery in person. Instead, at the end of the approval period – bingo! – the sale is completed automatically with no further action on their part (the convenience factor).
Create, and always keep on hand, an Approval Form for such cases. Discuss and specify terms of time for possession and payments, and make sure they put some “skin” in the game. Here are basic terms I’ve devised:
– – – – –
1. Buyer’s credit card will be charged the full price* before Buyer may take possession of the work(s).
*[Or negotiated partial payment – I recommend 50%, but that’s entirely dependent upon individual circumstances.]
2. Buyer’s decision to return the work must be received and acknowledged by Artist/Gallery, no later than the final day of the approval period.
3a. A full refund of any payments made will be issued after the work(s) has/have been received by Artist/Gallery (at Buyer’s expense) and Artist/Gallery is satisfied that the work(s) is/are undamaged.
3b. Any balance due will be charged if:
i) Buyer decides to keep the work(s), or
ii) Buyer still possesses artwork(s) when Approval Period expires.
– – – – –
These terms are, of course, only a starting point. They can, and should, be tailored to your particular situation.
That’s quite a post, James! As I said in my blog, even telling them to take it on approval to show their Interior Designer usually means they over-ride the designer’s advice and keep it. Making it easy to own, makes it easy to say yes even if the space intended is to big or too small. Art is not a commodity! It’s purchased from the heart!
Another very important tool is discussed in great detail in the E’s of Selling Art System : Right of First Refusal. If you have the book, take some time to review that section – it starts on bottom of page 39. It can be a very powerful way to help an admirer turn into an owner and has many “side” benefits.
McKenna thank you for this and for the commenters who provided great notes! I do find myself in this scenario and often, because I had been uncomfortable or unsure of how to move forward with a prospective buyer, I have often just let them “walk away”. I would not consider myself a sales person, or even comfortable with making sales so this post has given me a better understanding of how to approach this scenario and make an interested prospect into an actual buyer. I do love how coming from a place of wanting to encourage happiness and joy with owning one of my pieces is the main motivator for not letting someone walk away. Thanks again!
The “E’s of Selling Art System” is filled with these kinds of thoughts, Shelby. I totally do not advocate artists try to Sell as in the traditional selling books. It’s not about closing deals. It is 100% about finding homes for art. I highly recommend you get this system into your life. It’s a total game changer. Learn more here and use the code BLOG and get 20% off and Free shipping. Seriously – you should never just let them “walk away”. The system will give YOU the confidence and the emotional support to find more homes for YOUR fabulous art!
And – proof of concept: I don’t need your money – your purchase won’t make or break my day. But I do need every artist to find their selling purpose and become decision counselors and find homes for more art. THAT is what I, quite self-servingly, am after whenever I try to “sell” my guidebook and flashcard set. I love knowing I contribute to more artful objects being collected!