selling

Written by:

selling
July 7, 2009

Tags:

categorize work, optimization, profile page, sales, sell and selling

Optimize Your Profile Page for Sales

Your Profile page and Bubblesite are your consumer-facing galleries (some would say shops or storefronts). Here are some simple ways to make them both visually appealing and sales focused.

A brand called you
Your Profile page should contain an image of you. Many artists dislike this idea, but a happy, smiling image of you helps buyers connect. A photograph, painting, etching, drawing, etc. all work. People are naturally attracted to faces.

. . . . . . .

The elevator pitch
Tell buyers a bit about yourself. Where you live; your location as it relates to your artwork; your influences; your USPs (unique selling points), etc.

For example, Ron Moss wrote:

“I have been deeply interested in Eastern art and philosophy from an early age. I have pursued this interest through extensive reading and through the study of Japanese writing forms including haiku. [-] My poetry work has been translated in several languages and is widely published in journals and anthologies. I have won numerous awards both within Australia and overseas (including Japan). I enjoy using visual media and poetry in combination.”

For anyone interested in Eastern philosophy, Ron’s description is spot on.

The application
What have previous admirers and buyers loved about your work? E.g., “My work looks great in baby nurseries, shared spaces, etc.” You can also let this story be told through the pitch above, e.g., “My work features super hero characters from the 1940s – 1960s, and features an aesthetic reminiscent of the unbridled optimism of yesteryear.”

Categorize whenever possible
If you have works that can be bundled by theme, location, application, subject, etc., you can fudge categories and link to them from your Profile page. For example, Scott Ward created categories by tagging work with key words, e.g., “Africa,” and then creating category URLs such as:

http://www.redbubble.com/people/membername/art/everything/tags/keyword-tag/

Karin Taylor did the same, but augmented the strategy by creating categories for both topics and themes, e.g., “new baby” and “relaxation.” You can also categorize by holiday or event. See holiday calendars for the US, Australia and UK here.

Be smart and efficient with these categories. Too much is, well, too much. See categories that art buyers search for often.

RedBubble is a safe place to buy art
RedBubble repeatedly states that the website uses 128-bit encryption and that all sales are “Satisfaction Guaranteed.” This is good for members, as RedBubble carries the burden of complete satisfaction.

I added this body of text in the Sales & Marketing Forum, but you could shorten to say “Safe and Secure checkout featuring 128-bit SSL encryption.”

“My art sales are powered by RedBubble.com. Since February 2007, RedBubble has shipped more than 240,000 premium-quality works of art and t-shirts to over 70 countries worldwide. RedBubble offers a simple money-back guarantee, gold star customer service, and assures safe online transactions by using 128-bit SSL encryption – an industry standard. RedBubble accepts five different currencies including USD, AUD, CAD, EUR and GBP, and accepts credit cards as well as PayPal.”

Kudos
It’s always a good idea to feature any kudos and awards that you’ve received, as well as a testimonial if possible.

Causes
If you represent a charity or donate a portion of your earnings to a charity, your Profile page is an excellent space to feature your cause. Melinda Kerr has done a great deal of work in this area, and features calendars and cards.

The real thing
I’m not one for cluttering pages with lots of large and heavy images that slow page load. However, there is something to seeing artwork and t-shirts in the real world. You can feature work on your Profile page as well as individual artwork pages by capturing an image of the work after configuring it on RedBubble. You can also add images to the Buyers’ Booth and link to them from your Profile page.

My recommendation is to note the configuration details near the image, e.g., “Here is a large work X in a bright white mat and cherry box frame. You can buy this work here.” You can also show works that would make good diptychs and triptychs (pairs and threesomes) by showing them together and noting the links (URLs).

RubyRed features a t-shirt of the month on his Profile page, as well as an image of the t-shirt on a person. I like both of these techniques, as they encourage repeat visitors.

What’s the weather?
If your country is currently in the fall/autumn or winter seasons, note on your Profile page that your t-shirts are available in a long sleeve version (if you chose to reveal that option). The same goes for “girly fit” – which is a must for some buyers. Give buyers the idea to personalize their purchase by choosing a color, size and style.

Develop fans
If you have Facebook Page, Twitter account, blog, or other resource that you use to communicate details related to your artwork, link out to them. These resources are a way to capture mind-share and leverage other communication channels – directing people back to your RedBubble Profile page or Bubblesite at a later date. Be sure to link from those sources back to your RedBubble Profile page or Bubblesite too.

Let’s wrap
The formatting “code” for making links, displaying/linking images, etc. can largely be found here. Here are a few more resources.

Before we go
We’re always looking for success stories big and small, so send them our way here.

And finally, if you want to help other members sell, you can join our “You Can Sell Art and T-shirts” Group (by invitation). Bubblemail me with the topics you feel confident discussing.

Thank you.

Regards,
Jason

midzing

brilliant advice,,, thank you
Enivea

Thoughtful advice, especially about not cluttering the page with many heavy images. I want a taste, not a full meal thrust on me!
selling replied

Yes, this is definitely an a la carte menu. Take what you like and leave the rest. The goal is to honor the art whilst helping the shopper.
Shanina Conway

Great advice…must do something about my site…thank you;)
Karin Taylor

Great advice thanx jason, very helpful
I’ve learnt so much already from reading suggestions others have made in the
‘you can sell art and tshurts.group’.

There aresp many members with great ideas and experience and it’s great to have a place where they can all be found in the one place. I would really encourage others to participate.
Cathie Tranent

You are a mind reader. I was wondering about this last night. Massive thanks!
Lynsye Medalia

You always have great advice….often times I even follow it! ;)

Waves at Barbara & Mimi’s pictures You must be right about buyers connecting to faces….I’d recognize those two anywhere! :)
Janis Zroback

Wonderful advice Jason, and I totally agree about the picture of your face…it is really important…I have had many buyers tell me how good it felt to see a face that was attached to the art…for some reason it seemed to inspire more confidence in the work…
Marta Boulden

Is it possible to have too many tags for a piece or to have tags that are too specific?
selling replied

I would focus on 7-10 terms that best describe your work and that shoppers use in search.

For a photograph of your poppy flower, perhaps: Marta Boulden, poppy, flower, orange, yellow, color photograph, and then alternate names for a poppy, the location if closely associated with the flower, the medium (art print), etc.

Think like a browsing shopper. I’ll work on a convention/structure to share later.
MuscularTeeth

i dont think buyers want my ugly mug on their computer screen – im happy with my little yellow spider.
:)
selling replied

LOL. Surely you’ve got a lovely mug. And please don’t put a picture of a espresso/coffee mug on your profile!
bubblehex08

I know, that I must work on my tags!!! Thanks for the reminder!
selling replied

There’s some good info on tags here.
bubblehex08

@Muscular Teeth:
I agree, I don’t want to replace my icon by a photo! bubblehex is my brandmark!
Julian Escardo

Top notch advice…keep it up – this is good!
Sam Dantone

Excellent advice,

I have a lot to learn…

Sam Dantone

... and who is that cute guy in your mug shots at the top of the page?
Natalie Manuel

I’m interested if you have any thoughts about not the profile page, but the actual IMAGE page. Many people put lots of further images or links on the image page, any idea on THAT part of it?
Sylvia Gonzales

Thank you sooo much for always sending us helpful information!! I do have a twitter acct. but not a Facebook hmmm…..Thank You Again!!
Tania Rose

great tips and excellent advice :) thanks for sharing
tkrosevear

As always RB (and Jason) knows what makes the customers happy, besides us bubblers too ;) thanks ♥
Darren Stones

I’m dolphin friendly.
selling replied

Apparently so. :-) Seriously though, the picture is an instant ice breaker. Approachable, fun, and shows that you have access to subject matter that most people do not – making us curious.
Keith Richardson

Great advice – thank you!
selling

Thanks for the positive feedback. I don’t purport to know everything (who does), so comments, suggestions for upcoming content (e.g., the comment about product pages), etc. are all welcomed. (Jason)
Hannah Fenton-...

I had every one of my works displayed on my profile page in small thumbnail size, but it seemed to be too crowded, so now i just have a short about me section, i was thinking about posting a short interview on my profile page, so others could get to know me better.
selling replied

Sounds great. Or, tease the interview on the Profile page and link to a journal entry with the full interview. You can pepper the interview with thumbnails and links to your work as a way of breaking up the text.
Silvia Ganora

Thank you so much!
Bluesrose

Thank you for the advice! Have to try do something better with my profile page…
Andy Mercer

I agree with Muscular Teeth.. are mugshots that important ? I have my “little alien drawing” that I have used on many sites without problem and many people immediately recognise. I don’t see Mr RedBubbles face on the home page ?

Otherwise I agree with everything.
mimi yoon

thank you so much for the great advice, jason…. i’ve always wondered how other artists were creating the categories… not being so savvy, i still don’t quite understand “how”... help~ ; )
PlatypusPark

There’s no way I’m putting my mug on the site, and there’s no guarantee that any pic is of the artist herself – it could be anyone from the artist’s sister to her favourite workmate! Some face pics actually turn me right off, when I’d enjoyed their work. The links are handy though and there’s plenty of other info I’ll be able to use. Thanks!
M. Wiessman Ph...

very interesting and useful advice! thank you very much!!!
MelDavies

Sincere thanks for taking the time to share your knowledge. I am so appreciative.
linsads

thanks for all the advice i think my page is too cluttered so will be working on that, still not to sure how to put it into categories but have saved this page so i can keep gonig back to check how to do it. cheers for the help.
selling replied

No problem. Simply tag similar art with the same keyword term. Then use the URL structure above to link to those category names. Have a look at Scott’s profile and let me know how I can help.
Barbara Glatzeder

Fantastic advice :-)) Thanks for taking the time to share!
Medusa

Thankyou very much for this valuable advice, I sometimes forget where I am…
May need to have a spring clean… ;-)

Mx
Linda Ridpath

thanks for that, i feel a reorganisation coming on!!!
Kasia-D

Really good, down-to-earth, constructive advice! Thanks.
Barbara Brown

Thank you so much. This answere many questions I have had. One other question though, Can one get calendars on the bubblesite? I think this would be a great place to sell calendars!
van049

Jason this is really great advice! I am saving this on to My Favorites so when I need
to look for it then it’ll be there in a perfect location to find! Thank you for everything!!xx
Evita

Thank you for the advice !!!!
I have to say I don’t know either how to work it… but I’ll try…
dkleing

Yes good advice shame i am totally illiterate when it comes to that sort of thing. but ty
selling replied

Take small steps. Rhana’s guide or the cheatsheet linked to above are pretty clear about how to embed an image, etc. It gets easier as you use the code(s) more often. Let us know if you need additional help!
Coloursofnature

I don’t know much about setting up web pages so I feel mine is boring. I don’t have the skills to improve it. Cananyone give advuice on how to add things to your web page to make it better?? great group by the way, cheers- Valerie xx
mal-richards

All sounds great, untill you try uploading images, currently still waiting 54 mins for an image to upload.
selling replied

Sorry to hear this. I’m chatting with our UK Bubblers over Skype and the connection is working well for them; they just uploaded a 4MB file in less than 60 seconds. Please check your Internet connection and report back.
dkleing

I would actually be interested in giving some one o the admin team permission to do all of the above to my page, as i have made several attempts and failed miserable. Sooooooo if this is possible some one HELP. :( :(
selling replied

Bubblemail us the work you. We’ll check it over and share the results here to aid other members.
Mimmie Hunter

Thanks for the information, i appreciate it.
dkleing

Thank you for the information and also the offer of help, but my husband has done it for me.. good to have some one with brains in the home. Have a lovely day.
Ron Moss

Thanks very much Jason, great advice to work with. Cheers for using my blurb and pic in your article…every little bit of exposure helps :-)
GriffintheMad

<3>