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Picture Before Starting A Business

Before Starting An Art Business

What you need to know to begin
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What do you need to know before starting a business?


One of the very first steps to make a living from your art is to build a business. I know that most artisans only need to hear the word business, let alone the sound of a plan, to feel an urge to withdraw.  

Building a successful business is one of the very first things you need to do to make a livelihood from your art. I am well aware of the fact that the mere mention of the word "business," much alone the suggestion of a strategy, is enough to send the vast majority of craftspeople running for the hills.

It is hard for me to believe that I am about to say this, but what produced the greatest success in my art career was to create a business plan. Although, passionately disliking it at first, this most of uncomfortable move turned into the most satisfying, clarifying and important step I ever took. I lacked any entrepreneurial spirit and had to rely on others for guidance at every turn. But once I took things into my own hands, I never looked back. What I once found intolerable is now second nature to me.  Knowing your stuff creates confidence, independence, and focus.
​
You will be going on a journey that will require some time, the best business plans take about half a year, if not longer.

Time over time have I heard the usual argument that floats around: I would love to use my passionate desire for the arts and make a living from it. Yet, they feel not the slightest desire nor have the  time to actually learn about running  a business, and that is heart-wrenching to me.
To put mildly, this is backward thinking. Without proper business knowledge, most remain stuck in the same place, after years of fantasising about a successful art career. They make an income with a job they don't like, while never getting any closer to their dream, to create income. Therefore, investing even a minimal amount of time into business planning is preferable to doing nothing at all.

These are the steps you need to take before even thinking of launching into business. The idea is to work on a plan for a few months to allow for reflection. To give you time to think and the accumulation of relevant data and ideas.

​When going through the steps below, you likely will find aspects of it where you are at a total loss. See each step as gain when you make progress, remember that the information you gather will last. Consider devoting six months figuring out your market and customers. 
​It will be all worth it!

Executive Summary   001


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This is a quick summary of who you are and what you do. The timeline for planning your future is a plan that overseas the next three to five years and includes how you expect to make money. You need to include your goals, an artist and mission statement, products, and services. If you are starting out, it’s important to highlight relevant experience and education. If any book stands out as a most helpful resource, it would be the publications “What’s My Plan?” from the Australia Council for the Arts and “The Code of Practice” from NAVA.

Business Description   002


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Describe what sets your artwork apart from the rest. If you don’t know, do some research and try to express the distinction in words. Discuss your market and your target groups, explain who you’re trying to reach and where you see them. Do you, for instance, want to become known as an exhibiting artist, or would you rather tap into the merchandising market? You will find the right questions and answers in the book "What's My Plan". If you get one book to help you write a business plan, it is this one, and it is free.

Market Analysis   003


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You’ll need to look up data about the people in the area you will be targeting. Find out about the demographics (age, income, education) of the people you’ll be serving. Some procedures may appear strange to you, but trust me when I say that I picked up useful information about the art world at every turn. The Australian Bureau of Statistics is the best place to go if you want statistics about Australia. If you are from another country, learn where your country stores such data.

Business Management Plan   004


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Decide how you are going to structure your management. Will you be a sole proprietor, an LLC, a corporation, a partnership? Business.gov.au is a good resource for learning about legal forms and all sorts of other useful business information in Australia. 

Your Artwork   005


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How would you describe what kind of artwork you produce, what style and subjects you paint? Detail your product’s or service’s unique selling points and how they stack up against the competition. Create a written statement. This may take a while. The idea is to think about it until you get a good idea about what you actually do and be able to put it into words. Then, use it as an asset. Again, "What's my Plan" is the outstanding book to work through if you do not know how to answer these questions. They wrote it with creative types in mind.

Marketing & Sales   006


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You need to figure out how you are going to get the message of who you are and your work to the target group, the people you try to reach. How contemporary or traditional is your work? Do you paint horses, for example? In that case, reach out to groups and companies that specialise in equestrian art. Then, what plans do you have in mind for how to proceed? Go to Arts Marketing Arts Marketing if you want to learn more.

Funding   007


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Have you considered receiving arts funding? In such a case, explain what you do, how you do it and what you are trying to achieve. If you want to attract investors or secure a grant, you absolutely need a business plan. Once you have written an application for a grant, you’ll already have the bulk of the information compiled and are ready to do to reapply. It is always worth the effort to apply for grants, as you don’t have to pay the money back. How long would you have to work for amounts of $2,000-$15,000 or more? Therefore, it’s well worth it to put in some effort to craft a compelling application. If you are looking for a grant, NAVA is the place to look. Regional grants and the Australia Council both care deeply about the success of their local artists. Contacting the local arts development officer was a standard practise of mine whenever I needed to learn about the range of possibilities in a certain situation. They want to be of help to you. Talk to them about what is available to you to fund a grant.

Branding & Your Logo   008


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Both, your logo and branding are important. The home page of your website or your name can be your brand. Keep in mind that your brand is like a promise you make to your customer. If it is your name, make it stand out - create something catchy. However, don't forget the logo since this creates a visual or image for the customer. The logo represents your business so make it count. Apple is a brand, that is it is known for they do, and their bitten apple is their logo. Think about how that name and logo affects you. If you are not a designer you can go to local colleges and ask if any of their students would like to create a logo for you for a small fee or create one with many logo creator apps that are available these days. 

Bookkeeping & Accounting   009


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Starting a new business is exciting and overwhelming so consider an accounting service, which is a group of experts who can save you time, money, and worry. A good accountant can provide you with some great business tips to improve cost efficiency and save on taxes. There are some great programs around you can use, who combine an art inventory of your work, invoicing and bookkeeping in one. More in my "Organise your Art Business" article. Use an easy invoice system like Invoice2go or Wave. The Wave app is for free. I used it for years with my students when conducting art classes. 
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  • Home
    • Art School Surveys
    • Mailing List
    • Art News Blog
  • Art Tips
    • 1 Year Drawing & Painting >
      • Daily Watercolour Practice >
        • January
        • February
        • March
        • April
        • May
        • June
        • July
        • August
        • September
        • October
        • November
        • December
      • Daily Drawing Practice >
        • January
        • February
        • March
        • April
        • May
        • June
        • July
        • August
        • September
        • October
        • November
    • Art Business Tips >
      • Before Starting A Business
      • Earn from Your Drawings
      • Pricing Your Artwork
      • Art Business Planning
      • Arts Marketing
      • Artist Media Release
      • Artist Proposal Writing
      • Creative Website Writing
      • Copyright (eousness)
      • Organise Your Art Business
      • Networking for Artists
      • 5 Tips for Instagram Success
      • The Power of Pinterest
      • Art Is A Business
    • Free Art Business Books
    • Free Art Instruction Books
    • Free Stockphoto Collection >
      • Art Students Photo Collection >
        • Peculiar Photo Collection
        • Landscape Photo Collection
    • Artists Reference Photos >
      • Artist Reference Bundles
    • Best Art Websites
    • Book Recommendations
    • Gift Ideas for Artists
    • Art Magazines
    • Art Organisations
    • Art Accountants
    • Art Competitions
    • Art Infographics
    • Artists Info Sheets
    • Artists Signatures
    • Web Tools For Artists
  • Martina's Articles
    • Painting Tips
    • 15 Must Have Skills for Art Students
    • Art Competition Benefits
    • Benefits of Art Classes
    • Coloured Pencils Article >
      • Coloured Pencil Studies
    • Colour Mixing Article
    • Did You Know?
    • Learn to draw in 15 minutes a day
    • The Art of Learning Art
    • Why We Need Creativity
  • Art Workshops | Classes
    • Art Materials Lists >
      • Art Material Glossary
    • Art Student Portal >
      • Arts Ministry Liberti
      • Anatomy Drawing >
        • Drawing Hands
      • Drawing Introduction >
        • Line Contour Variation
        • Measuring Proportions
        • Atmospheric Perspective
        • Shading Laws
        • Composition
      • Painting Introduction
      • Portrait Drawing Introduction >
        • The Eye
        • The Nose
        • The Mouth
        • The Ear
        • The Head
      • Coloured Pencil Introduction
      • Colour Mixing Introduction
    • Gallery >
      • Kids Art Gallery
      • Teen Students Gallery
      • Adult Art Students Gallery
      • Student Scholarship >
        • 2018 Scholarship Winner
        • 2018 Scholarship Winner
        • 2017 Scholarship Winner
        • 2015 Scholarship Winner
      • Artist in Residence >
        • 2017 Artist in Residence
      • Opportunities for Students
    • Gold Coast Art Teachers
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  • About
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