The logic of it all

Sometimes arts marketing fails because some vital part of it (price, promotion strategy, etc.) just doesn't make sense.

An example:

I had a client who was a painter.  His issue?  People weren't buying his more expensive work, i.e. the stuff in the $2,000 - $4,000 range.

So we talked about how he was currently promoting his stuff.  One of his most common techniques was to go to local bookstores and hand out these very nice postcards to people at the store.

On the surface it seemed like a good idea.  It got the artist out in the world actually meeting people.  The postcard he handed it out was very attractive.

So what's the problem?

The way he was promoting his work and the price of his work, didn't match.

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So you're at your local Barnes and Noble.  Someone gives you a postcard with a website link to look at his art. 

You go home and pop in the URL.

The painting seem pretty nice.  You check out the price for one:

$4,500.

You close the window out and starting looking for the latest Chris Brown/RIhanna update.

Very, very few people are going to be willing to bust out their credit card and drop several grand on a online purchase . . . I don't care what it is.

Most prospective art buyers that can spend that sort of cash require something more, a relationship with a gallery perhaps . . . or a relationship with the artist that goes way beyond a postcard.

So if this artist wants to move his pricer stuff, he needs to make sure that his marketing includes lots of relationship building with a relatively small group, not papering the streets with postcards and hoping he gets lucky and finds a buyer.

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This is your question for the weekend . . . does your marketing make sense?

Does the price you charge, the promotion, the product itself, the place where the art is  . . . all make sense when looked at together?

Is the price too high for the product?

Is the promotion going after people unwilling to travel to the place?

Because if it all doesn't make sense to a consumer, it's pretty hard for them to buy.