Should I have a website at all?

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Michelle Sholund on June 20, 2010 at 8:40am

I love this topic - something that comes up in conversation at shows (especially with those who are technophobes). I have been reading a great book - GenYBuy and feel all people from all generations should read it if looking for some insight as to what is going on in (American) society when it comes to how we buy and shop and that it is all driven by the younger generations. I firmly believe the more folks are resistant to try and have a website the worse it will be for them to market their art business.

Example 1 - I have my own craft business and although I do have one wholesale client I am always looking for more. I can't afford - at this time - to do a gift show, but do have 2 days a week where I can introduce myself to shop owners and show them what I do wholesale. I like to plan my days, with the help of the internet, to learn where the target shops are, what their hours are, and what main items they sell to either decide to stop or skip. I cannot tell you all, reading this - how so many shops don't have websites. The basic info of an address, phone number, store hours, special events/sales, etc. needs to be out there. This makes my job hard because I could be going to see these places on days they are closed, can't call to make an appointment, nor find out if "My Things Shop" is a baby consignment shop, an antique dealer, or a gift shop.

I think what trips so many up is they feel a website must be elaborate, colorful and you must sell your work on it. You don't! For the longest time I just had an information site - give folks the basic info they need, throw in some juicy tid-bits like photos of my work and price ranges, and then follow it up with places people can find me - show calendar, links to shops that carry my work, etc. Really that is all one needs for a website. Just imagine all the people looking for what you make yet can't find you or worse, don't know you exist. The best way to show you do exist is have a website - it is basic marketing but on a far bigger playing field other than those you can simply pass out a business card to.

Michelle, By the Bay Botanicals
www.bythebaybotanicals.com
www.quickcraftartisttips.blogspot.com

Permalink Reply by Jim Parker on June 20, 2010 at 10:07am

A great resource for those who don't have the time or skills to develop a full-fledged site is Weebly. It's got a drag and drop interface, can be linked to your own domain name and offers the ability to customize forms, add a blog, put galleries up and even sell items online. While some of these features are not free, the good news is that the basic site IS free.

Check it out at
Weebly

This is my affiliate link. If you choose to go with the pro package ($50/yr), I will get a small commission. You can also sign up for the free package and I will get bupkus. Your choice.

The interface is a bit kludgy, but for getting a web presence going, with contact info, a few images and a show schedule, it's hard to beat. Especially for the price.

Permalink Reply by Ralph on June 20, 2010 at 1:24pm

Or, Etsy.com is great also. It,s free to set up,has a shopping cart. and low fees. But,only if when you sell an item. It doesnt offer Domain hosted email though. You can choose a unique shop name, like www.etsy.com/shop/metalicimages. its a good way to get the name of your shop,and some traffic to your shop,out on the web for some organic search engine marketing.

Permalink Reply by Sheree Rensel on November 25, 2011 at 11:06am

Hi JIM!!!

It is me Sheree! :-)

I want to give my two cents to this discussion. Nowadays, I think every artist should have some kind of website or webpage. In fact, when I search for an artist online, if a professional artist page with a specific URL doesn't pop up, I wonder WHY? All kinds of weird things come to my mind: Are they living in the dark ages? Are they amateur or hobbyists? Are they in hiding? Are they just clueless to the fact we are in a digital age? Yadda yadda yadda

Also, the domain or brand is so important. Way back more than a decade ago, I started my website. I didn't want to use my name because there are too many "r" "e" and "s"s. I know from experience that people can't spell my name correctly very often. SO.............I took the name wizzlewolf. That is a story in itself. However, it has worked. Just the other day, I was introducing myself as Sheree to a studio visitor. He asked for a business card. Before I could pull one out of my pocket, another artist yelled over "Don't you know...She is WIZZLEWOLF!"

Loved it!!!

:-)

Sheree Rensel (aka: wizzlewolf)

Permalink Reply by Jim Parker on November 25, 2011 at 11:48am

Hey Sheree! er, Wizzlewolf! I couldn't agree more. It's so easy to do, too. One thing to add to this: once you have a domain name, make sure that your email matches. It's so much more professional to have famousartist@myartpage.com as opposed to famousartist@aol.com. It's fine to use aol or earthlink or your current ISP for your personal email, but it's so inexpensive to use your domain host's email service -- usually about $20 yearly. 

I'm so behind on my web site, too. I definitely need to get some work done on it here in the off season. 

Nice to hear from you here!

Jim

Permalink Reply by Sheree Rensel on November 25, 2011 at 12:58pm

Jim,

I totally agree. In fact, I think I was wizzlewolf on my email before I was wizzlewolf on my website. Either way, if someone can't find me it is their own fault. If you can't find Sheree, Google will find more wizzlewolf than anybody needs to know. LOL LOL

Nice talkin with ya!!

:-)

Sheree