Any Tips For A New Member

Hi Margaret, and welcome to FAA.

Here is an accessible discussion thread, although closed, it has valuable information and links to subjects you're inquiring about that can be useful... https://fineartamerica.com/showmessages.php?messageid=4702720

All the best!
Brian Wallace

Yes welcome,
You may want to read all the sticky posts from Abbie , as there are wealth of information you may need to know as to where is what and all the nuts and bolts of this site.

best to type in marketing. there are a ton of posts and faqs about this.

Marketing 101 by Mike Savad
Why Your Work May Not Be Selling - By Mike Savad
Evaluating Your Own Work To Sell – By Mike Savad
How To Critique And Edit Your Own Work For Better Sales
The importance of Descriptions and Keywords by Mike Savad

for now post more than 14 images. add better descriptions, more keywords. turn facebook and twitter back on. no point in turning those off and if you don't have an account, make them. make a bio about the work, not so much you, i like first person personally.


----Mike Savad
http://www.MikeSavad.com

Do the work. Learn from it. Don't give up. It's a journey.

...right..and because every destination is an illusion of the past, what really matters is the journey itself...

a journey is half the trip.


----Mike Savad
http://www.MikeSavad.com

If you live in a beautiful place, show us. No need for images of things people in ugly places can do. Show us why your place is special.

coming back to the thread is always nice as well.


----Mike Savad
http://www.MikeSavad.com

Be VERY aware of time spent in the threads.

They can be very helpful and you can meet interesting, byte sized people on them, but...

The thing about a career in art is that it is a very lonely life. You toil in solitude. The process is not collaborative. Your time will be better spent working on your site (says the guy who hasn't worked nearly enough on his site) on your art.

I wish you happiness on your journey. Don't expect the destination to ever arrive. If success overtakes you, great, then just raise your site to a higher goal and see if success can keep up.

Oh and Carborundum non illigitemi (or spelling to that effect).

PLAU
UPD

Margaret,

Welcome, to many sales,

Dave Bridburg Bridburg.com Postmodernism Art Gallery

Patience.

Sorry, that's all I have to offer ;)

so is the op coming back? is she reading this thread?


----Mike Savad
http://www.MikeSavad.com

Plan to spend several days and many hours exploring and reading thoroughly the threads in the HELP tab. Brian, Tony, and Mike all referred to some of them in their initial responses here, and Abbie's "Help and links - faq" sticky at the top of the main discussion thread (where you posted your request) will get you there.

WOW, thank you all for the many replies. I did not even realize I had replies. So sorry I will start responded to each one! Thank you so much!

yay you came back. its a pet peeve of mine when they ask then vanish.


----Mike Savad
http://www.MikeSavad.com

I am back yes thank you all for the wonderful tips. I have been reading some discussions, and I have been on another site that you mainly have to add keywords and let the stuff be found. This is similar, but with the likes and the fav's adding into the mix. How I see it so far is if you have A LOT of likes you get noticed more...I also know I have to add more stuff. The more you have the more chances you will get noticed.

I am a very patient person, I think this site is a great site, for someone with patience, and just wanting to share their work, probably not ever get rich.

you have to advertise. that is the main thing. keywords are important, descriptions also. fav's etc... not as much, little bit. you won't be noticed if you don't advertise. if your not active here. you can also have thousands of images and not get seen, if you don't push the work.

patience is good, but it suggests that your going to upload and pray, and that won't work that well. and the items you shoot make a difference, if its common you'll blend in. and it will be harder to advertise.


----Mike Savad
http://www.MikeSavad.com

The sales I've made here are either place specific or niche market unique images. The most important thing is making very carefully crafted listings if you expect to be found without advertising. Some great advice I've gotten here is to address underserved markets (hard to figure out) or create a niche market. Keep reading, learning and never give up - don't be afraid to experiment with all types of photography, from abstract to hyper-realism.

Welcome to FAA Margaret, lots of good advice given so far. I have listened and applied all that I can, from many of these fine artists. I agree with the recommendations given to you. Promote yourself on Social Media, bringing people to your Official website with the premium FAA account (free accounts limit 25 images), rather than from your FAA Profile account. That way potential buyers are seeing just your work, and not distracted by other members artwork. Be enthusiastic about your talent and what you have to offer. Love what you are
doing. Be true to yourself, and be positive about what you are doing. That is how it is for me anyways.

All the best to you. Feel free to contact me through FAA.

Welcome Margaret!

My tips....

1. Create as much quality work as possible, always try to create better works than the previous
2. Don't waste too much time in forums, even though they are needed to improve your craft and your marketing skills.
3. Set small achievable goals along the way to your ultimate goal. The little victories compound over time and provide encouragement.
4. Seek the advice and critique of others, but stay true to yourself. Only heed the advice that will keep you on track with my #1 tip, don't take every blowhard's every word to heart. Also, see #2.

Best of luck you you! All of us here are at different points along the same journey.

No need to respond to me individually.

"Hi Uther, who names their kid that?" Is all the acknowledgment I need.

I keep my pets well fed so they don't get peaved.

(Smiley emoticon)

PLAU
UPD

great advice, Wonderful.

Mike Savad...Advertise, I am on pinterest...I do not have facebook, found it pointless as a social media site...maybe as advertisement, maybe when I get more images up I will consider it.

Uther...real name? Really LOL What pets do you have? pendraggin...I know that name from somewhere else.

I will try to read more threads, but you are all right you can get lost on here

you won't get far on pinterest, you have to socialize at least a little. i don't pay, i post in the stream and in groups that allow it without being pushy. google wants you to be social, its counts as a search rank requirement.

i don't like socializing either, but sometimes you need to do stuff you don't like. pinterest is just a bulletin board that is so cluttered no one will ever find anything.


----Mike Savad
http://www.MikeSavad.com

Pinterest works if you join the right boards and play the game. It drives traffic to your site...If they purchase, that is another matter. I figure I can use Pinterest for now, If I don't get results I will try something new.

Following and interacting with people will help. And lots of keywords.

Is there a place to find out what is selling on here now? Trends.

if your looking for tips, then you don't know if pinterest drives anything. i have found that i get maybe 2 hits a day from pinterest to the site i set up. and lately they don't even allow words under it. i find the site is a waste of time. i have hundreds of accounts that have my work, dedicated to me. but i don't have stats showing i get anything from there.

the thing is about social sites - twitter, facebook etc - you can't just join and expect results. it takes time to build up a batch of followers. which is why you should join today and start building it up.

there are no trends. you can see what sells by looking at the buyer reviews or the sales threads that pop up. but there are no trends. there are batch sales. but even if you had those images, because your new, you'll be in the back of the search for a while until you get more popular and sell things. and by the time you finally get to be seen, that trend is gone.

your much better off doing your own thing, standing out from the bunch, creating well made items that people want, and not worry what others are making. you want people to look at your work and know who made it. develop a style that is consistent. and upload like crazy. you won't get far with 19 images. you may start getting traction at about 200 images. that seems to be the number where i got sales for other styles of my work.


----Mike Savad
http://www.MikeSavad.com

Thank you for the great information...I will keep at it. I know I have to get more images up...in due time. I hope to be able to spend a deal of time on here in the next few days, getting more uploaded and such.