How To Create and Sell High-Quality Canvas Prints

Creating high-quality canvas art prints that sell involves a combination of artistic vision, technical expertise, and effective marketing.

For those for whom art is more than a hobby, it may feel arduous to translate your artistic vision and skill into a profitable venture. However, thanks to a plethora of online platforms, becoming a monetarily successful artist is more in reach now than ever before.

This doesn't mean that doing so isn't challenging, though. Making a living or even creating a profitable side hustle by selling your artwork takes much more than simply posting it online and hoping someone decides to pay for it.

This article explores some strategies to to help you sell your prints.

Research Audiences for Your Art

If you want to sell enough art to make a living, you might have to branch out beyond what you typically create.

Of course it is always a good idea to focus on creating original and unique artwork that stands out from your competition and to experiment with various techniques, styles, and mediums that showcase your versatility. However, you must also think about the audience or niche you want to target for sales.

It's important to find a niche audience substantial enough to sustain your art sales over time. For instance, if you only paint bowls of fruit, the number of potential buyers will likely be small. If you want to sell lots of prints, you'll need to branch out into additional topics that buyers finds attractive.

Exploring multiple niche interests makes expanding your circle of potential buyers easier.

Offer Customizations, Convenient Sizing, and Multiple Framing Options for Your Buyers

Making your art convenient to buy significantly impacts whether or not you make a sale at the end of the day. Considerations such as size and framing options hugely impact consumer decisions.

If your chosen artistic medium demands large canvases, finding buyers who can afford to buy or have the space to display your pieces will be more challenging. Printing, transporting, and showing your art will also be more difficult and expensive.

If you want to create prints that sell, it is best to print of your original artwork in a variety of sizes that accommodate varied buyers' needs. Offering a wide variety of sizes enables potential buyers to purchase a version of your art that works better for their individual situation.

You also may improve sales by offering personalized options, such as custom sizing or color variations, that cater to individual preferences.

Build an Online Presence

If you want to sell your are it is important to build a professional online store that both showcases your artwork and enables customers to purchase from you directly 

Note that the web platform you choose to sell your art dramatically impacts the types of customers you receive and your profits. The most common platforms for selling your artwork are Etsy and Shopify, which are popular for good reasons.

However, exploring lesser-known platforms is also a good idea, as they may help you discover the hidden niches for your work so be sure to investigate the various options to find the one that works best for you. Also be sure to familiarize yourself with their pay structure to retain as much of the income from your sales as possible.

Be sure to establish a presence on popular social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest. Read up on best practices for these sites like using relevant hashtags, and engaging with your audience through captivating content.

If possible, hiring a specialist to help you market your art is always a good idea.

Focus on Pieces That are Simpler and Faster to Produce

If you want to product enough high-quality canvas prints to make a living or supplement your income, you need to be realistic about what you can handle and what is worth your time.

If creating extraordinarily detailed and highly realistic pieces is what you love to do, then by all means, continue! However, be aware these pieces will need to be sold at much higher prices because of the extra time they take to create and that higher prices deter more casual art buyers. In most cases casual art buyers make up a sizeable portion of your potential buyers.

Making a living from your artwork is easier if you can release new and original pieces more frequently, especially when starting out.

Network in Your Local Art Community

It is a good idea to dedicate some time to participating in local art shows, galleries, and exhibitions to gain exposure and connect with potential buyers. Networking with other artists and art enthusiasts will also help you expand your customer base.

Produce the Highest Quality Reproductions

Experienced art buyers expect you to meet specific standards and quality always attracts more potential customers for your art. So it is important that the quality of your printed reproductions is exceptional and that your prints resemble your originals as closely as possible.

Visual clarity is one of the most essential traits for selling art in mediums like painting, drawing, and digital photography, no matter the subject matter of your piece.

To achieve long-lasting quality and the best visual representation of your art its best to collaborate with a reputable printing company, like the Stackhouse Printery, that specializes in canvas prints and uses high-quality materials, archival inks, and advanced printing techniques.

Standard printer papers and cartridge inks like those purchased at big-box stores may look okay at first but are of much lower quality overall. High-quality archival ink and paper can better reflect the original piece's vibrancy and last much longer.

Invest in a Quality Scanner

When turning a physical piece of art into a digital file for distribution, you'll often find yourself at the mercy of your scanner's ability to transfer the subtleties of your work. Some quality is inevitably lost when transferring a physical art piece into a digital copy, but you'll want to ensure this loss is as imperceptibly as possible.

Thankfully, modern, high-quality scanners can make that drop in quality almost impossible to notice. However, you must invest in a top-end scanner if you want your original piece's complete clarity to shine through.

Develop a Sound Pricing Strategy

It is essential to calculate your time, the cost of production, including printing, materials, and your desired profit margin, and then set your prices appropriately.

Also, it is worth it to take the time to research the market to ensure your prices are competitive and reflect your artwork's value.

Here at The Stackhouse Printery, we want to help you create the prints you need to make sales. We can help you create canvas board prints that maintain the quality of your original piece while making it easier to distribute to buyers. Contact us today to start turning your hard work into something that will sell.