Why Connection—Not Promotion—is What Actually Sells Your Art

A healthy art business is not built on just sales, selection and customer service, like a furniture store.

A profitable art business is built on personal connection.

heart makes art!

Personal connection comes from you simply showing up and talking about what inspires you, what is involved in creating your art and why you make it.

Imagine people talking about your art to their guests as it hangs in their home. They saw it, loved it, and bought it.

When they look at it, they think of their own story. They feel a certain way and that feeling is enhanced by what they know about you and why you created it. 

Back to sharing with the friends who are visiting. They’re standing in front of your art, telling the story of how they found it, who you, the artist is, why they love your art, and your story of the piece hanging in front of them. Then they go on to talk about why it moves them so deeply, what they find interesting or compelling, how that relates to their world… and the friends nod and admire the painting, sharing their own related stories, and…

They feel a connection to your art because of a story you shared about it, and they quite literally buy into their feelings by buying art from you.

So sharing your feelings and why you created your art isn’t telling  people what to think or feel, it’s enhancing the story they feel and hear inside when they look at your art, and knowing that someone else feels it too. 

Connection.

It inspires them. It gives them thinking points and talking points when they look at it and share it with their friends.

It’s about the connection, and humans are wired for connection. 

Your collectors want to share their happiness with the others in their lives.

They are eager to share something that touches them deeply enough to hand over their money and bring it home to hang in pride of place, to spark many more discussions with friends. Your art connects them to their memories, things that are important to them, the wider world and at least one person in it- you. 

Part of their story is YOUR story.

Sharing your story doesn’t tell them how to feel, it gives them a touchpoint to connect- much like talking about your favourite movie or TV show does for you when you chat casually with friends.

When they talk about it, those who “get it”, get it… and that is a strong connection in itself.

Your art is an emotional investment for people- an investment in feeling good every time they see your art, every time they share it and every time they think of it. It’s NOT about YOU, it's about the connection you share with people. But sharing your story can create and enhance the connection.

Email is a direct line to sharing with people who already love your art and your story on a regular basis, and that’s what makes it such a strong tool for art sales.

for more about how to use email, check out my Simple Art Sales System