SEO
Words are critical in SEO.
Photographs are critical in SEO.
Words are strategic.
Photographs reveal the priceless qualities of your art.
Words can nurture that "love at first sight" for your art.
Photographs of your art will reach out to the viewer and connect.
Words can describe art in terms that are personal and relatable as from your real memories or from your imagination.
Photographs of your art must be high quality.
Online the most important words for search engines are located at the top of the page followed by words in the description.
Photographs of your art should be considered part of your art profile.
Try new things. Serendipity is the artist's friend. Be different.
Sales process - all are essential:
- Words are about 5%.
- Compelling photographs are about 5%.
- Art is about 90%.
- SEO is very important but because of competition in the marketplace, SEO alone is not enough to create an art career.
The name (SEO) you give to your painting is a selling point.
- "Street Scene in Nebraska" is not as artistic as "Sunset at a Charming Outdoor French Cafe while a pair of lovers share a romantic dinner."
- It can remind you of a romantic meal you once had at a lovely sidewalk cafe with someone you loved, maybe dozens of years ago.
- All the memories and emotions of that tme come back to you. At this moment you are taken there again.
- It's a connection.
- It's a feeling that you enjoy.
- "Sunset Outdoor French Cafe lovers romantic dinner" are potential keywords.
- A lot of art is given as gifts so it has to be "friendly."
The subject has to be important to the viewer.
Identify the attributes and uses of your art that make it unique and interesting.
- Be different
- Subject
- Colors
- Theme
- Medium
- Size
- Hidden message (joy, love, uplifting, anger, sadness, depression)
- Locale as the subject
- Locale/room for final display
- Who would like this art if they received it as a gift
- Offered on the right products - gifts, decor, mugs, flags, clothes, etc
- Trends/fads come and go quickly - don't invest heavily
Steps in the sale.
- SEO will help you get found in search.
- Great photography of your art will do most of the selling for you. (Great closeups, use a plain light color background)
- Tell everyone about your online presence - shop, gallery, page, boards, etc.
- Learn how to use Social Media.
Free advertising
- SEO is qbout 50% of success in gaining attention
- Real content is the other 50%
- Pinterest - search engine - set up your own gallery for free
- Facebook - search engine - set up your own gallery for free
- Twitter - share your content, including images, for free
- Linkedin - set up your own gallery for free
- Google - search engine
- Instagram - search engine - set up your own gallery for free
- Etsy - search engine - pay $.20 per listing and renewals, sales fees
- Ebay - pay only if you sell
Social Media
- Social Media is about being social.
- People who post only their own sale products on social media are mostly ignored.
- Social Media is about giving encouragement and support.
- One in four posts (or less) should be about your business.
- Share positive material.
- Encourage others.
- Being nice is more important than all the advertising you can buy.
People like to see:
- Lots of quality content
- Pleasant, bright, great photographs of your art
- All things being equal - the photographs of your art will make the sale
- Description
- Story
- Work in progress photos
- Description of processes
- Share details of techniques used to establish something unique.
- Share content about the search for a subject and the challenge of capturing the unique personality of it.
- Story - artistic license allows for a little embellishment, but if you go too far you won't be able to remember it when you need it.
- Video
- Video transcript
- Be different
Your art
- Be different.
- Be unique.
- Be colorful.
- Be popular - visible everywhere.
- Be relevant - have a message that is meaningful.
- Post frequently - update and renew listings.
- Make conversions - views - favorites - sales.
- Don't just paint things you like.
- Consider the marketplace.
- Think like a customer.
SEO
- Titles
- Descriptions, using keywords at the beginning with a descriptive text
- Unique, different product title and descriptions
- Google search engine has about 80% of web searches using a formua which changes without notice
- You should search any possible keywords
- Examine the lists provided by Google in the results
- Examine the resulting websites that come up in the Google results
- Record the search terms in the menu on the Google search bar
- Record the search terms at the bottom of the Google search page
- Your content has to be relevant to your product.
- Google will reward you for valuable content.
- Adjusting the SEO will move your site around in the search results
SEO Development
- Description of the product
- Title of the content
- URL - website page name should be brief and descriptive for search engines and visitors
- ALT tags - descriptions for images that are read by search engines and assistive devices for the visually impaired
- Repetition should be minimal
- Do not repeat the word "art" over and over in text. It's called "keyword stuffing" and is penalized by search engines.
- Words that are written into an image are not searchable or read by search engines.
- Content should be current and updated frequently to appeal to search engines.
- Images should be accompanied by descriptive keywords.
SEO advanced:
- there are many blogs, forums and groups that offer insight into the ever changing world of SEO, which can be found through Google search.
