Saving the Sale

[KL Smith]

I own a gallery in a fairly upscale tourist destination in which I only sell my limited edition canvases. Most of our visitors/clients are not locals.

There are two objections to art sales that I keep running into and I was hoping someone could offer suggestions in overcoming these.

The first is the "Can I have a card? Oh I see you have a website. Can I order online?" I must hear this comment 20 times a week in the gallery, and usually just as I am about to close the sale. Most often it is the spouse, or even worse, the dreaded "friend of the customer" who is going to "save them" that jumps in with the "Can I have a card?" question.

I have countered by acknowledging that they can order, but there may be a financial advantage to taking the art with them -- no shipping, no broker fees for out of country sales, etc. In the 1000 or so times a year I hear this, I might get 2 or 3 website orders. So clearly they are not dashing home and ordering. I have actually considered scrapping the entire website for all the good it does - but I know I won't.

The second objection is the "Oh, I have to measure my walls to see if it will fit". Of course once they are gone, they are gone. I have only ever had one person out of hundreds that ever ordered after "measuring their walls". I have even created a free service in which interested clients can simply email me a photo of the room where they might place a piece and based on certain measurements they provide, I will calculate the proper size of the art in question and return a composite photo to them showing my art in their room. Not a single person has taken me up on that.

I know that these are escape excuses, but there must be something I can do to salvage these opportunities. As someone who travels, I do honestly think some people simply forget all about their visit to my gallery once they get back home.

Any suggestions?

 

[PaulSF]

To me, they sound like classic escape excuses. I get it here with respect to framing purchases, and I'm sure I've used variations on them in my shopping life.

There are some people who simply don't want to make a snap decision, and need more time to think about it, however. Do you get the contact information for these folks, so that you can follow up? I would definitely try to get their address, phone and e-mail, so that you can maintain a dialogue and provide more information on a low-key basis.

Also, do you allow customers to take items home on a trial basis? I know you said your customers generally are not local, but it seems to be a widespread practice in the gallery field. I recall several years ago, when I was living in Santa Fe, my parents came for a visit. We visited a nice gallery on Canyon Road, and my mother really liked a painting by Evelyn Boren (I think). The gallery shipped it back to my parents' home in Cincinnati, so my parents could see how it worked in their home. If they didn't want it, they could ship it back. As it turns out, they loved it and kept it, paid the gallery for it. Obviously, you'll need to make provisions for insurance, liability, etc., but I would think that if someone takes something home, they are much more likely to keep it and pay for it. At the very least, making the offer will tell you if someone is serious or not.

 

[Richard Darling]

Kirstie did an excellent series of posts awhile back on email marketing. It sounds like it would work well in your situation. If they won't sign up for your email newsletter, they probably aren't interested.

I have quite a few tourists here. Many of my customers purchase BECAUSE we will ship to them. They don't want to have to carry it with them, pack it, or fly with it. We make a big deal of shipping anywhere - and of course we charge for it.

 

[KL Smith]

Paul:

Great thoughts, thank you!

While I do try to get contact information on all sales, I haven't really tried in these situations. Someone who won't give you the information clearly isn't interested I suppose.

I have allowed local sales to try it in their homes and that works well, but with the cost of shipping now, I'm not sure it would work with visitors. My average framed piece is probably only about $400 Cdn, and to ship that to most places in the US, you are looking at $60 to $100 for UPS Standard service, then add the $30 brokerage fee and it soon looses its appeal. Also, I would be very wary of the potential for frame damage back and forth. Good thought though, but maybe at a much higher price point.

Many thanks Paul.

 

[Richard Darling]

Ken, do you sell them unframed? I would agree that at a $400 price point, $100 for shipping becomes difficult to swallow. A rolled canvas in a tube would be inexpensive to ship, and might result in more sales. You might even be able to add a little to your canvas only price and offer free shipping.

 

[KL Smith]

I have quite a few tourists here. Many of my customers purchase BECAUSE we will ship to them. They don't want to have to carry it with them, pack it, or fly with it. We make a big deal of shipping anywhere - and of course we charge for it.

Richard:

Interesting. A couple of years ago, I made up some signs and placed them in prominent locations in the gallery promoting worldwide shipping via UPS and FedEx. Sales dropped like a stone and the "We can order off your website?" increased. I must be doing something wrong.

I was in Australia recently and visited one of Ken Duncan's galleries. His large panos sell for $3-4,000 and include shipping to anywhere. I have considered this approach, but as I said in another reply, my average framed piece is only around $400. I don't know what he factors in for shipping, but I can tell you for me to ship that to Australia, it would cost $450! (BTW, I see he now has 50% off so I guess things are no better there) While there are more US visitors here than any other place, we do get a lot from Europe, AU-NZ, the UK. Even to the US, that typical $400 piece is going to cost $100 or more once the brokerage fee is added in.

I will definately give this more thought though.

Many thanks.

 

[KL Smith]

Ken, do you sell them unframed? I would agree that at a $400 price point, $100 for shipping becomes difficult to swallow. A rolled canvas in a tube would be inexpensive to ship, and might result in more sales. You might even be able to add a little to your canvas only price and offer free shipping.

Richard:

That is exactly what we did and we do throw in free shipping on the rolled canvas. But even with free shipping we are still loosing too many sales as there is apparently no compelling reason to make the purchase there and then.

 

[PaulSF]

Do you do your own printing? If so, would it be possible to produce sample sizes of each piece? Maybe an 8x10 sample so the customer can see how the colors work, at the very least?

 

[KL Smith]

Do you do your own printing? If so, would it be possible to produce sample sizes of each piece? Maybe an 8x10 sample so the customer can see how the colors work, at the very least?

Paul:

Yes I do my own printing and I have gone as far as shooting a few popular pieces in a setting such as over a sofa, bed, etc., and I do hand these out when there seems to be serious interest. I should probably do one for every piece and promote these more.

A couple of years ago, I came up with what I called the "Hint-hint" card which featured individual pieces with a little note saying, "Honey, if you're looking for ideas....." The idea was to leave the card in an obvious location. They didn't produce any real results though.

 

[CAGallery]

How about giving them a compelling discount to buy it while they are there by pricing differently. Instead of pricing it at 400 + shipping on the website, price it 450 (or whatever it is that you need to ship) with free shipping. This way you can say to the customer "We sell it for $400 here in the gallery and it is $450 on the website". Since it is your own work there is no real competition or list price that you must adhere to.

Doing this can work positively in two ways. In the gallery it sounds more substantial to hear that you will save $50 rather than an abstract amount in shipping. On the website you are promoting free shipping (but really covering yourself). And while some customers are savvy enough to understand that free shipping really means that it is included in the price, at least they feel comfortable knowing what the final price will be.

Chavie

 

[echavez123]

There are two objections to art sales that I keep running into and I was hoping someone could offer suggestions in overcoming these.

The first is the "Can I have a card? Oh I see you have a website. Can I order online?" Any suggestions?

First of all, before they came up with the objection, did you have any hints about their disposition toward the art? Usually, during the course of the conversation, you can determine which way they are leaning. If they want out, then just hurry it up and let them go. I tend to gravitate towards the people who project a certain expression or body language toward the art. Sometimes they have a glazed look in their eye, or they breathe a sigh of amazement. If I can pick up on this, then my job is to guide them toward a sale. I try to engage them in a conversation that assumes they have already purchased the artwork, and ask them about the colors of their walls of their home or office. If they are excited by the possibility, then be excited with them! If they can visualize it, then they could buy it! The rest is the art of sales -- do they like you? do they beleive in the value? etc.

Ernesto

 

[Shayla]

Hi, Kenneth.

I just spent an enjoyable few minutes looking at your site and
video clip. I don't want to be presumptuous and do so myself,
but if you're game, feel free to post a link to the site and the
clip on here. It would give people something a bit more concrete
to go by. I really like the photo of the snowy bench at night,
and your websites section on how to visualize the artwork
in their own homes is both helpful and creative.

 

[KL Smith]

How about giving them a compelling discount to buy it while they are there by pricing differently. Instead of pricing it at 400 + shipping on the website, price it 450 (or whatever it is that you need to ship) with free shipping. This way you can say to the customer "We sell it for $400 here in the gallery and it is $450 on the website". Since it is your own work there is no real competition or list price that you must adhere to.
Chavie

Chavie:

I think that is an outstanding idea! I am going to give that some serious consideration as it "may" be enough to save the sale.

Many thanks

 

[KL Smith]

First of all, before they came up with the objection, did you have any hints about their disposition toward the art? Usually, during the course of the conversation, you can determine which way they are leaning. If they want out, then just hurry it up and let them go. I tend to gravitate towards the people who project a certain expression or body language toward the art. Sometimes they have a glazed look in their eye, or they breathe a sigh of amazement. If I can pick up on this, then my job is to guide them toward a sale. I try to engage them in a conversation that assumes they have already purchased the artwork, and ask them about the colors of their walls of their home or office. If they are excited by the possibility, then be excited with them! If they can visualize it, then they could buy it! The rest is the art of sales -- do they like you? do they beleive in the value? etc.

Ernesto

Ernesto:

I do study body language and it has helped me many times, and I think I have a very strong sense of whether someone is serious about buying or not. The issue I have with them exiting at the last moment is that it is often a disinterested third party such as a family member, friend, etc., that jumps in at the last second and throws a virtual bucket of water over the prospect.

Example, I had two couples come in on the weekend. One set were very engaged in the art to the point they were deciding whether to buy a few pieces framed or unframed. The other couple were just observing. Just about the time I felt we were ready to close the sale, one of the friends who had no interest in buying art grabbed a card and actually stepped between me and the prospective buyers and said, "I see you have a website. So they can order online right?" That's all it took and they were gone. Clearly they had a different agenda for these people. This sort of thing happens a lot!

Sometimes it is as simple as the third party asking the customer at the last moment, "Well have you thought about where you're going to hang it?" More often than not, the customer just fallen in love with the piece and now they might feel they are going to look stupid in front of their friend because where they are going to hang it is secondary to what they are feeling at that moment.

Now a lot of times it can be the "keeper of the purse" that instigates this as well and there is nothing I can do about this. I don't want any divorces on my conscience because they bought a piece of art from me.

Many thanks Ernesto

 

[KL Smith]

Hi, Kenneth.

I just spent an enjoyable few minutes looking at your site and
video clip. I don't want to be presumptuous and do so myself,
but if you're game, feel free to post a link to the site and the
clip on here. It would give people something a bit more concrete
to go by. I really like the photo of the snowy bench at night,
and your websites section on how to visualize the artwork
in their own homes is both helpful and creative.

Shayla:

Thank you for that!

The website is: http://www.klsimages.com and the view the video, just click on the About Kenneth - YouTube button

 

[more_so]

Ken, great looking website and I really like the classic framing choices you have made for your work.

I was wondering if you mostly sell canvases only, or framed pieces? I sell mostly framed work, but often hear stuff like "OMG, don't ever try to second guess somebody's tastes in framing, you'd sell so much more without the frames!" But the fact is framed pieces seem to sell better, at least to my retail customers.

In regards to Devil's Advocate third party family & friends, engage them in conversation in a friendly way early on in the discussion. If you let them stand there in silence that just gives them time to plot their attack. Talking to three or four people at once takes a little practice, but is a mandatory skill for every gallery salesperson.

And keep the cards hidden from view, the only people who get them are a select few, and only if they're heading out the door empty handed. Early on I gave out untold thousands of cards (with URL) and got at most a few sales from them, and it finally dawned on me I was handing out excuses not to buy right then, duh!

 

[KL Smith]

Ken, great looking website and I really like the classic framing choices you have made for your work.

Many thanks. My wife is the one that comes up with the frame selections and we have always maintained that framing will either make or break a piece.

I was wondering if you mostly sell canvases only, or framed pieces? I sell mostly framed work, but often hear stuff like "OMG, don't ever try to second guess somebody's tastes in framing, you'd sell so much more without the frames!" But the fact is framed pieces seem to sell better, at least to my retail customers.

Because of the shipping cost issue, we sell a lot more canvases than frames, BUT, and this is very important, framed pieces on the wall sell the unframed canvases. Unframed canvases by themselves do not do that well as I have found people have to see how a piece "could" look.

In regards to Devil's Advocate third party family & friends, engage them in conversation in a friendly way early on in the discussion. If you let them stand there in silence that just gives them time to plot their attack. Talking to three or four people at once takes a little practice, but is a mandatory skill for every gallery salesperson.

Great advice!

And keep the cards hidden from view, the only people who get them are a select few, and only if they're heading out the door empty handed. Early on I gave out untold thousands of cards (with URL) and got at most a few sales from them, and it finally dawned on me I was handing out excuses not to buy right then, duh!

DUH is right! I had never even considered this. I have cards out all over the gallery and I just went around and gathered them all up. Let's see what happens.

Many thanks!

 

[UTA KIRCHLECHNER]

I know that these are escape excuses, but there must be something I can do to salvage these opportunities. As someone who travels, I do honestly think some people simply forget all about their visit to my gallery once they get back home.

Any suggestions?

I own a gallery and frame shop on Martha's Vineyard. We have a lot of tourists "coming thru". Some days there are 100 people and no one buys any thing, not even a card; we call them the "lookie-losers". I have a web site as well, but no sales from it. A lot of price inquiries.
There are usually the same escape routines you experience - you just have to bear it and grin - because a lot of customers make it a habit to
1. go into every store on Main street with no intention of buying anything
2. Have no room to put artwork
3. Want your expert opinion on something
4. Have the spouse/friend/significant other spoil the sale
We have these things happening every day - i got used to it.
There is no way that you can make them buy what you sell - Art is the last thing on their list they need - food and lodging comes first.
The serious buyer will let you know when they are ready to buy - even wait if you happen to talk to other customers. I talk to every customer - greet them, ask them if they are looking for something in particular. The most annoying customers are the ones that come in, "we are just looking", get barely into the door, and after my greeting turn around and leave....
Sorry, i cannot give you any uplifting hints about it... All you can do these days: hang in there.
Uta
Island Art Gallery

www.kennedystudiosmv.com

 

[CAGallery]

Uta and Ken have galleries in tourist destinations where people have leisure time to wander about and window shop. It makes sense that the conversion rate of walk in traffic to an actual sale would be less. On the other hand, you just can't compete with leisure time. And maybe that is something that can be used positively.

Our gallery is located in an area where people are so busy and there is almost no free time. Families are large, social obligations are huge, life is hectic and it is often a struggle to get even necessary things done. After all you can spend half a day just looking for parking!

We exhibit different types of artwork but specialize in Judaic and Israeli art. Our biggest competition is not local, but Israel. And the reason is not price or selection. It is the fact that as I said earlier, you cannot compete with leisure time. You have a couple who is stressed out due to their busy life here and all of a sudden they are on vacation, strolling together and able to stop into a gallery, take the time to view the art and make a decision TOGETHER. They purchase, come into us to frame and find the same artwork (if limited and not original) in our gallery for less money! Despite our efforts to loan out artwork, bring it to their home etc. which work at times, we still can't beat leisure time.

So, those of you who have galleries in such destinations should try to figure out a way to capitalize on the frame of mind of those on vacation.

 

[CAGallery]

Chavie:

I think that is an outstanding idea! I am going to give that some serious consideration as it "may" be enough to save the sale.

Many thanks

Let us know if it works.

We started doing this when selling unframed artwork to locals. Most will frame with us but some want to go elsewhere as we do not have the reputation of being cheap. In those instances if we say "That lithograph is $325 or $300 if you frame it with us" it will give an incentive for someone who wouldn't have framed with us to do so.

 

[Prospero]

Very interesting comments so far and all will be very familiar to gallery owners. Most people that come though the door will be the 'lookie-losers'. Or 'gawpers' as I call them. They seem not to differentiate between public art galleries and a shop that sells the stuff. Actually buying a painting never enters their minds. And people never buy paintings on impulse. If they come with the intention of buying they generally will.

Things people say on a regualr basis:

"When I win the lottery......."

"I've just moved into a smaller house and I have no room".

"Are all these by local artists?"

"How long did it take to paint that?"

"Have you got that in a smaller size?"


Sound familiar?

 

[KL Smith]

......because a lot of customers make it a habit to
1. go into every store on Main street with no intention of buying anything
2. Have no room to put artwork
3. Want your expert opinion on something
4. Have the spouse/friend/significant other spoil the sale
We have these things happening every day - i got used to it.

Uta:

Yes this all sounds VERY familiar! I have been to Martha's Vineyard a number of years ago and I think our destinations and demographics are probably very similar.

I think your comment about "I got used to it" is good advice. Something I have to get better at, even though rent day comes whether I am used to it or not, if you know what I mean

Many thanks,

 

[KL Smith]

Let us know if it works.

I will. I am going to be incorporating a number of the suggestions posted and if I see a marked difference I will definately let you know.

 

[KL Smith]

.......They seem not to differentiate between public art galleries and a shop that sells the stuff. Actually buying a painting never enters their minds.

Isn't that the truth. If compliments were calories, I'd be a thousand pounds by now

Things people say on a regualr basis:

"When I win the lottery......."

"I've just moved into a smaller house and I have no room".

"Are all these by local artists?"

"How long did it take to paint that?"

"Have you got that in a smaller size?"

Sound familiar?

Oh yes! How about:

As soon as I finish re-decorating....

I have no walls left... To which I reply, no worries dear, we sell walls too!

I have this painting at home that my grandfather left me, do you know what it would be worth now?

Or my personal favorite: (I sell only my photography in my gallery)

"Where is that one from?"

Australia

"Did you take that picture?"

Yes.

"Do you know where in Australia it is?"

Yes, it is in Katoomba, which is west of Sydney

.......now wait for it....

"Did you actually go to Australia?"

Yikes!

 

[Couture's Gallery]

percentage of "lookers" is very high in Galleries...most come in to see the art with no intention of buying..and you are not going to "save" a sale like that.
Most of the "excuses" you hear, all in the previous responses to this thread, are just thier polite way of saying " I'm just looking, not buying '..so as per rpevious responses you just have to expect it and get used to it....We have the same customer responses as most of you have reported, and I cannot forsee any changes in personal shopping habits of these lookers..live with it. my 2.5 cents worth.

 

[Prospero]

I sometimes get quite expensive paintings in the frame for other artists/galleries. Sometimes I hang them in the shop so I can see how they look framed and on a wall. Of course people come in and home right in and ask the price. After they have recovered they tend to say "What makes it worth that amount of money?". To which I generally reply something like, "Why did you go straight for that painting and ignore all the others?"

Sometimes I get painting from far-flung places to frame. Had a lot of Russian oils and a few from Cuba. People still ask, "Is he a local artist?" I have an oil from Austrailia which I framed recently. It's done in the traditional arboriginal style (1000s of dots.......). I'm just waiting for someone to ask it that is local too.

Then there are those that reel out the old chestnut - "I don't know much about art, but a know what I like". I just say "Well I know a lot about art, but I don't know what I like."

Another thing that baffles me. People who can't grasp the concept of an original painting as opposed to a repro. You have to tactfully explain that it has been done by someone physically applying the paint with a brush. Then they get confused because they think a print is a photo of the subject that the artist painted, not a photo of the painting.

btw. If you have a painting that you can't seem to shift, put a 'reserved' sticker on it. People always find things more attractive when they can't have them.

 

[josephforthill]

As others have pointed out, it goes with the territory, and yes, in a tourist-oriented area, you will have a high percentage of browsers. And you get the pro-forma "face saving" excuses.

We are in the historic district (and primarily deal in antique items), and have actually had people say they just wanted to see the inside of the building, and when it was pointed out that they could visit the two historic house museums in town, said they did not because they charged admission in those.

One family came by and asked if we were open (we were not); when asked if they were looking for anything in particular, they said: "No, we have three hours to kill in town before the train leaves."

Joseph

 

[more_so]

btw. If you have a painting that you can't seem to shift, put a 'reserved' sticker on it. People always find things more attractive when they can't have them.

On my first important gallery show the owner insisted on making sure there were at least 3 or 4 red "sold" dots visible on displayed pieces. The pieces were genuinely sold, but he wouldn't let me replace them with unsold pieces unless there were at least a few other "sold" dots visible. Sales beget sales just as browsers often beget more browsers.

 

[echavez123]

Or my personal favorite: (I sell only my photography in my gallery)
"Where is that one from?"
Australia
"Did you take that picture?"
Yes.
"Do you know where in Australia it is?"
Yes, it is in Katoomba, which is west of Sydney
.......now wait for it....
"Did you actually go to Australia?"
Yikes!

I had a similar experience recently. Two gay men entered the gallery and were admiring my photographs and asking, "where is this?" "and this one?" etc. I answered each of their questions. Then one man asked, "so, did you get to travel to all these places?" The other man tilted his head and spoke through his teeth, "well of course he did, how else would he get the pictures". The other one turned bright RED. And I politely answered, "Yes I did".

Ernesto

 

[echavez123]

Objection: I wish I had room for more art in my home.

When I get this objection, I tell the prospect a little story about another customer that goes something like this:

A customer came into my store and looked at every picture, then went around a 2nd time and picked out 5 matted photographs. Then he said, " I wasnt going to buy anything, but I ended with these five. Can you frame them for me and deliver them to Calistoga?" Of course!

When I made the delivery, he had one of these huge homes in the foothills just north of the Napa Wine Country and showed me his collection of artwork. Then he showed me his large closet which was used to store alot more framed art! Then he told me about his method for displaying the art. He picked a theme, such as fall colors or florals and put them on display. Then he would rotate another theme and store the previous in the closet.

Then he explained his philosophy about home decor. The art you display makes a statement about you, especially upon the first visit. But after several visits, your friends become oblivious and no longer "see" your art. However, if you rotate your art, people will notice that something is different. They may not be sure and may ask something like, "did you repaint this room?".

At this point, I will give them some ideas for themes, such as: florals, spring, summer, fall, winter, trees, music, ... etc. This gets the customer thinking about how they could add to the collection, or how they could purchase a theme, ie a group of art pieces.

Ernesto

 

[KL Smith]

We are in the historic district (and primarily deal in antique items), and have actually had people say they just wanted to see the inside of the building, and when it was pointed out that they could visit the two historic house museums in town, said they did not because they charged admission in those.

Oh I know! I sometimes think (not seriously of course) that I should charge $5 for admission to the gallery - refundable with purchase!

I do know of one jewellry gallery that actually charges for business cards. It costs $1 for a business card and if you do "come back and buy" as you say you will, they will give you $5 for the card back. Surprisingly they get a fair number of people who pay the $1, but as far as I know, redemption has been rather lacking They claim it weeds out the ones that just want a "get out of jail free card".[/QUOTE]

 

[KL Smith]

Then he explained his philosophy about home decor. The art you display makes a statement about you, especially upon the first visit. But after several visits, your friends become oblivious and no longer "see" your art. However, if you rotate your art, people will notice that something is different. They may not be sure and may ask something like, "did you repaint this room?".

Ernesto:

Great story!

I get a lot of people that say "I don't know where I am/ or where are you going to put it. I tell people that we tavel a lot and we always buy art when we are away. We never worry about where we are going to put it. If we love it enough to purchase it, we will find a place for it. Because we are empty nesters, we have a spare room where we store art and we do change the art in the house 3 or 4 times a year. As I like to say say, a change of art freshens up the room and it is like re-decorating without getting the paintbrush and wallpaper tray out

Now here is an experience that we had that I convey to customers all the time.:

Last year we needed the roof reshingled on the house. Before the roofers started, they advised us to remove all the art off of our walls because of all the banging that would be going on. They didn't want anything to fall off the wall.

I discovered two things as we removed the art.

1: When I removed all the pictures off the wall at one time, we had a lot more art and family pictures than I realized.

2: When the walls were bare, I had a very strange, almost sad feeling as I looked around the house. It was without a soul. It reminded me of when you move from a home that you've been in for many years and then on that last day when you do a look around before locking the door for the final time, you get this sad feeling as you realize that you will never come back to the home you've known for so long. That's what the house felt like with no art on the walls.

When they were finished, I couldn't get the art back up fast enough!

Many thanks!

 

[Artistic Framer]

"Vignettes"

It seems there is a lot of talk about the aesthetic of displaying a painting on a wall - helping the customer to visualize, etc. Ken, one thing I noticed on your website video is how packed the slat walls were. If you could take some of the artistic vision used to compose your photos to create one or two "vignettes" in your store, I think customers would be able to better visualize the art in their own homes.

I hate to be a downer, but the slat wall just doesn't do it for me with higher end sales. Your customers are upper middle class vacationers, no? If you can afford to give them a more upscale gallery experience (a more critical interior designer feel), I think you'd profit from it. This may mean fewer pieces on your wall, but it would be more selective. Plus , revealing that perfect piece from the back room usually makes a client feel pretty special.

my $.02

 

[Elaine]

Ken, I had a gallery in a tourist town and I found, that most tourists want a "memory" to take home... Not necessarily an expensive one, but a print, or reproduction or something that is from the area. I found that if I provided a variety of options at different price-points and sizes, I sold more and didn't just have the "ice cream lickers" coming in and walking around. There will always be a few who will pay the price for the higer-end art, but the bulk of tourists are looking for that take-home memory at a price-point of less than $50...

Hope that helps!

Elaine

 

[UTA KIRCHLECHNER]

There will always be a few who will pay the price for the higer-end art, but the bulk of tourists are looking for that take-home memory at a price-point of less than $50...
Elaine

I agree with you, Elaine. This is the case in our Gallery/Frameshop as well. Since sales are down this year because of the bad economy, i have created even smaller photography. I am selling 3.5x2.5 island photography/ tourist images in 5x7 mats for $6., they fly off the shelf.....
I am glad this thread started - much useful information to incorporate - like the red SOLD stickers seem to be a wonderful idea.
Have a good season.

Uta
Island Art Gallery
www.kennedystudiosmv.com

 

[KL Smith]

.....
I hate to be a downer, but the slat wall just doesn't do it for me with higher end sales. Your customers are upper middle class vacationers, no? If you can afford to give them a more upscale gallery experience (a more critical interior designer feel), I think you'd profit from it. This may mean fewer pieces on your wall, but it would be more selective. Plus , revealing that perfect piece from the back room usually makes a client feel pretty special.

my $.02

I agree 100%, and we are planning a move next year to a location that will allow us to create such an environment. While it isn't apparent in the video, I am only working with about 350 square feet. With electrical and insurance, that costs me about $50,000 a year. Yeah, no kidding!

I don't like the over-stocked look, but quite simply with the amount of space, I really have no choice.

Now I do have a few wall sections that are not shown that are carpeted in a dark brown and topped with a 4" crown molding. These are used as visualization walls.

The plans that we have drawn up for the new gallery will include a separate viewing room with furniture and a fireplace.

Many thanks

 

[KL Smith]

Ken, I had a gallery in a tourist town and I found, that most tourists want a "memory" to take home... Not necessarily an expensive one, but a print, or reproduction or something that is from the area. I found that if I provided a variety of options at different price-points and sizes, I sold more and didn't just have the "ice cream lickers" coming in and walking around. There will always be a few who will pay the price for the higer-end art, but the bulk of tourists are looking for that take-home memory at a price-point of less than $50...

Hope that helps!

Elaine

Elaine:

That is/was true, up until this year. While we still have our paper 8 x 10's doubled matted to 11 x 14 that sell for $30 to $36 of local type images, the sales of those have fallen off the map. Fortunately it is the higher priced pieces that are selling. My theory is that those who are more sensitive to the current economic conditions are less likely to spend that $30, while others who are not so affected will still spend.

I am not going to tell you that my sales are up this year because they are not. We are down about 15% so far, but while the number of actual sales have dropped by 2/3rds, our average sale is about 2.5 times what it was last year.

 

[Shayla]

My theory is that those who are more sensitive to the current economic conditions are less likely to spend that $30, while others who are not so affected will still spend.

This is an astute observation. It seems that this sort of demarcation line in spending does exist, and it shows more clearly during times of economic downturn. The people on the edge (which would include yours truly) have less to spend on discretionary things and have to use income more for household expenses. For them, just being able to go on vacation is the big fling of the year, and they're probably going to be very careful about how much extra bling they cart back home. But for the people who still have wide financial margins, now is as good a time as any to buy. They'll still spend the money on things that catch their eye.

Hmm.... maybe that should be 'eyes', plural. The first way makes it sound like a family of cyclops is on vacation. Haha, for that matter, my own avatar is a bit one-eyed, isn't it? Oh, well. I really do have two if them, it's just that the left one is shy.

 

[more_so]

Hello Ken. In your video you mentioned renting wall space in business establishments, I assume restaurants and the like. I wonder if you could relate how this worked in a practical sense.

Over the last year I have withdrawn all the pictures I had on display at third party locations simply because these arrangements were based on informal agreements that could easily lead to problems, especially in these hard times. But the idea of a paid obligation rather than a good will agreement to show work seems like a great idea in retrospect.

 

[KL Smith]

Hello Ken. In your video you mentioned renting wall space in business establishments, I assume restaurants and the like. I wonder if you could relate how this worked in a practical sense.

Over the last year I have withdrawn all the pictures I had on display at third party locations simply because these arrangements were based on informal agreements that could easily lead to problems, especially in these hard times. But the idea of a paid obligation rather than a good will agreement to show work seems like a great idea in retrospect.

When I started, I found the best locations for my work were antique galleries actually. Even though my work didn't have an antique bent to it, I did do a lot of florals, and at that time local historical buildings. I didn't make a fortune of course, but it after a couple of years of this "experiment", it was enough to convince us to step up and open our first gallery. At one time we had six of these locations running. It can make for a huge inventory investment however when spread out over a number of locations.

I have never really been convinced that displaying art in an establishment whose business model was completely different than mine would be a good idea. For example, restuarants. Their business is serving food and drink. They are not equipped to take time out of their schedules to make an art sale and package it up, etc. There may be some, but I have never heard of anyone that has been successful at this.

Just last week I was approached by a new high-end wine bar asking if I wanted to hang my work in their bar. They would sell it and I could keep all the profits. I countered the offer (nicely of course) by suggesting that they could buy the work off of me wholesale (even though I don't wholesale anymore) and keep the profits for themselves. For some reason they didn't like that idea.

Where we are, rents are very high so when I rented wall space I was typically paying $200 - $400 a month for 8 running feet of wall. That is extremely reasonable around here. They handled all the sales, tax collection, CC charges etc. and as I said it worked out well for us.

We also tried consignment but that was a loosing proposition. There is too much room for bad accounting, damaged goods, etc., for my taste.

Ultimately the best solution for us was to operate our own gallery and have total control over how the work is presented, framed and sold, but it is a huge step up from where we started.

Hope this helps.