How To Find A "Buying Audience" For Your Art

 

Riches in Niches

If you took a time machine to medieval France and watched people barter their goods at the marketplace you would find that the same fundamental principle of business applied back then just as much as it does now.  All business comes down to nothing more than finding out what people want and providing them with that very thing… in exchange for money of course. Here’s the good news for you as an artist. There are people who want to pay you for your art. I know, exciting right? But slow down, I am afraid there is bad news as well. MOST PEOPLE DON’T! Your job is to find the people that do! We call this process finding your niche.

Very often when we ask our clients who their audience is they tend to answer with something like, “the world is my audience” or, “my art is for everyone” or, “don’t put limits on my art, man.”  It’s perfectly fine to think this way… unless you want to make money that is. If you want your art to be your business then you need to know who your audience is so you can serve them effectively.

Think of it this way. If you randomly posted a link to your online portfolio on a forum for cat lovers, chances are no one will go to your site and nothing will happen.  The cat lovers won't give a rip about your art and why should you expect them to? You need to find the slice of humanity that loves art, then find the portion of them that love your medium, then the portion of them that love your style, then the portion of them that love you, then the portion of them who will actually buy something! Now that’s a niche baby!

So, how do you find a narrowly targeted and reachable niche for your art? First, we need to find your “avatar”. No, an avatar is not a giant blue alien or an element bending bald kid. Your avatar is the official “poster child” for your paying customers. Here is how you can find yous…

Finding Your Avatar

Let’s start with a quick game of 21 Questions. Remember, your avatar is the “poster-child” for your paying customers. He or she should embody all the qualities of your most likely buyers… your super-fans! Be as narrow and specific as possible.

1. Is your avatar male or female?
2. How old is your avatar? (Which decade where they born in? Which generation? ie. Millennials? Baby Boomers?)
3. Where does your avatar live? (Country? Region? City?)
4. What is your avatar’s annual income?
5. What are your avatar’s hobbies and interests?
6. Where does your avatar work?
7. What kind of education does your avatar have?
8. What are your avatar’s political, religious or moral beliefs?
9. What is your avatar’s ethnicity and cultural heritage?
10. Where does your avatar shop?
11. What does your avatar do on the weekend?
12. What kind of clothes does your avatar wear?
13. What kind of car does your avatar drive?
14. What is your avatar’s relationship status?
15. Does your avatar have children?
16. iPhone or Android? (Yes, it does make a difference!)
17. What does your avatar eat? (Vegetarian? Texas BBQ?)
18. What are your avatar's problems and fears?
19. What kind of media does your avatar consume?
20. What social media platforms does your avatar use? (Twitter? Facebook? ect...)
21. What hours of the day is your avatar online?

Yes, you are creating a stereotype… and yes, you are profiling your potential buyers. I know it can feel icky but it must be done. It is true that your avatar will not perfectly represent every single person who buys your art.  The point is to be so darn close that you will be able to market yourself effectively and end up in the right places at the right times.

Get to know your avatar. You want to be able to pick them out of a crowded room with no more than a glance from the corner of your eye. A great way to get started is to create an avatar profile card. You can fill out the form below or make your own.  

Avatar + Congregation = Niche!

Now that you know who your Avatar is the next thing you must determine is where they congregate. Where does your avatar go in droves? What events do they attend? Where do they spend the most of their time online and in the real world? Knowing your "niche" means having a profound understanding of the person (your Avatar) and the place (where your Avatar congregates).  

This is the fundamental difference between artists who sell and artists who don't. You want your niche to be an inch wide but a mile deep. Save yourself from wasting time and money. If you can get specific about your "buying audience" you can expect to see predictable marketing results, higher conversion rates and more sales.

Free Book

We go over this in greater detail in our new book "Art to Income". For a limited time you can get your copy of "Art to Income" for free at https://arttoincome.com/free-book. Until next time... may your days be happy, may your skies be blue, and may your art create income!

Kenny and Jake Ballentine