Putting yourself out there into the public eye is no easy feat, and knowing where to start can be an even bigger challenge. We’ve put together a list of 8 creative, innovative ways to promote your art online.

It’s important to note that marketing is no longer what it used to be – online blogging platforms, forums and social media have become the new newspaper and magazine ads. With this new wave of online marketing, it’s important to know how to navigate the ins and outs, and on a budget!

The 8 tips we’re about to share with you won’t cost you much money, but will require time, dedication and determination to grow your art and business!

How to promote Your art Online:

1. Create an Online Portfolio

Creating an online presence is a fundamental step in promoting your art online. What better place to start than with a portfolio? By showcasing your best work, you’ll be able to market yourself in your best light to potential clients.

When selecting which pieces to showcase, try selecting those that show who you are as an artist and indicate your unique style and techniques.

It’s also important to upload high quality images. Together with each piece, remember to attach its details – the title, description, size and medium. The more specific, the better!

There are a number of both free and paid online portfolio platforms, such as Adobe Portfolio, Behance, Wix, Squareplace and ArtStation. Make sure to read our article on how to put together a design portfolio.

2. Start a Blog

Given you’ve already set up your website or portfolio, including both artworks and practical information, you’ll now need to drive traffic to it. Although getting people to view your site can be a challenging task, it’s not impossible.

One of the best ways to drive traffic to your portfolio site is to start a blog! Consider creating blog posts surrounding creative topics – things that artists care about! Provide some personal insight into your creative process or provide tips and tricks for other artists.

By doing so, you’ll be driving traffic to your site with posts that are directed at your fellow creatives rather than yourself. Online search results will be dependent of your text, so posting regularly will help direct others to your blog and website. 

If you’re passionate about writing too, you can share your interests, inspirations and keep others updated on your life! A few great blogging platforms include Medium, Tumblr and Wordpress (NameCheap en Squareplace offer some great plans to start your blog).

3. Get Active on Social Media

Being active on multiple social media platforms is a crucial step in achieving widespread promotion of your art. Understandably, the more active you are, the more connections you can make with your audience.

By forming online relationships and consistently updating others on your work, you’re more likely to keep people interested for longer periods of time.

Consistent posting also heightens your chances of going viral – the ultimate form of promotion! Remember, forming online connections will fans involves a lot more than simply posting often.

You’ll also need to engage with others by liking, commenting, saving and sharing the posts and interactions of others. Some important platforms are Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, Pinterest, Tumblr and Facebook. Managing social media can take up a lot of time, so you could consider hiring a social media manager.

4. Participate in Online Community Forums

By participating in online creative community forums, you’ll be able to get your name out there as well as prove yourself as a professional. By drawing attention to yourself within the forums, you’ll drive traffic to your site and portfolio.

Try answering questions, posing questions and providing insight to those who are curious or looking for answers. There are a number of forums, groups and Q&As online – just find the one that aligns with your area of expertise.

When looking for forums and groups, you’ll come across small groups as well as large ones, each with their own advantages.

Large groups are great for finding inspiration and promoting your work, whereas smaller groups are best suited for meeting people and building connections with fellow artists.

So, make sure to get involved in both in order to maximize the promotion of your art and business! You can find forums and groups on Facebook, WetCanvas, Whatsapp, Artist Daily, LinkedIn Answers and Yahoo Answers.

5. Participate in Community Projects

If possible, given the current COVID-19 situation, try find ways to participate in in-person community art projects. This is a great way to meet other creatives, build connections, gain exposure and network! Look out for art exhibits, gallery openings or street shows that you can attend in your area.

In addition to the networking opportunities, participating in community projects is a great way to showcase your art to new viewers, further promoting yourself as a creative.

Make sure to focus on attending shows that cater to your niche, subject matter or medium, in order to connect with others from similar creative spheres.

Your best bet when looking for these events, is online. Keep an eye out for postings on group chats, forums or online communities. 

6. Create Videos

We found out earlier that consistently producing content is fundamental when promoting your art online.

Although it’s important to produce quantity, it’s even more important to produce quality – and in a smart way. Did you know that YouTube is the second leading search engine following Google? Well, now that you know that, why not put out some quality video content?

Videos are a great way to drive traffic to your site and can be embedded in your blog, website or portfolio. That way, the traffic that is driven through YouTube will be redirected to your site.

When creating videos it’s important to cater to your audience and put out content that will appeal to them. Try researching similar content online to gather inspiration to create your first video!

7. Choose a Popular Niche & Be Authentic 

As a creative, its likely you’ve found your niche, or are at least leaning towards one. When marketing yourself and your art online it’s important to stick to a niche, and put out content belonging to that niche. By doing so, it’s likely people will stumble across your work during their browsing sessions or on niche-specific platforms.

When creating content, try to align it in some way with your chosen niche – for example, scenic watercolour paintings. The options are endless, you simply need to find what works best for you! Pay attention to trending topics, techniques and media on various social media platforms to see what’s trending each day. 

While posting quality and quantity is important, it’s also important to make sure that what you’re putting out is authentic. Currently, media is oversaturated with content creators, brands and influencers.

What media is lacking in however, is authenticity. To enable your fans and viewers to engage in a real supportive fanbase, you’ll need to show off your personality and what makes you unique. At the end of the day, we’re all human, and require connections with other relatable humans.

Adding a sense of genuineness and relatability can significantly increase the scope of your art promotion.

8. Get Featured on Specialty Websites

Submitting your work to specialty websites is probably one of the best ways to instantly increase the number of eyes on you and your art.

You can submit your work, an article or an interview to a number of websites. By doing so, you’ll instantly gain more exposure within the creative community. Submit or upload your work as much as possible to achieve the greatest reach. You can search online for creative based websites that align with your niche and target market.

Submit an application for a Featured Artist post on our website for instant exposure to thousands of other creatives. With 3 plan options, dependent on your needs, you’ll increase your visibility and online presence, create a great impression for potential employers, reach new clients or buyers and gain more followers.

You’ll also be granted SEO advantages as the posts include backlinks. If you aren’t looking for a featured artist post and would like to simply be featured on our Instagram, or be involved in an interview – feel free to reach out and we’ll be in touch!

Make sure to check out our Featured Artist section or our Meet the Artist section to get an impression of what we can do for you.