Do Artists Need a Website? The Best Places to Publish Art
Artists need a website. This article covers the benefits of having an art website. Additionally, it talks about other places artists should post their art.
An artist can be extremely skilled at their craft, but without visibility, no one will know they exist. Having a website gives artists a home on the internet – a place for people to discover and find their work.
Artists Need a Website Because There Are Huge Benefits
Websites Make it Easy for People to Find an Artist’s Content
Websites allow people to find artists organically through search engines. Additionally, websites enable people to search an artist’s name and easily find their art online. Also, websites serve as a tool to help people view an artists’s work all in one place. What’s more, is someone browsing an art site can stumble upon an artist’s past projects as well. Furthermore, having a website makes it easy for people to find an artist’s contact information.
Websites are Customizable
Having their own website allows artists to have total control over the design and aesthetic of their site. For example, this site is able to be made both mobile and desktop friendly. Also, the custom menu bar helps display the site’s most important topics, which can be changed in the future. The buttons, links, and fonts are all custom in order to compliment the artworks on the site.
Websites Help Make a Home for Artists’ Fans
Artists can create an email subscription signup form on their site so fans can get notified when there is new content. Also, having a website helps create a central hub for an artist’s fans. A website allows fans to view all of an artist’s work without having to find links or follow them on multiple platforms.
Additionally, having a website, allows an artist’s fans a place to chat with each other about the artist’s work. This will help further grow a community around the artist and create even more appreciation of their work.
Websites Allow Monetization
Another helpful thing about artists having their own site is that it allows them more control over monetization. For example, artists can show off their work on their site and have a place listed for clients to reach them. Additionally, artists can apply for Google Adsense to generate ad revenue on their site. Also, artists can make money by using Amazon Affiliate and recommending products on their site. Moreover, artists can set up a store right on their site so they do not have to share profits with third parties.
Websites Offer Analytics
Having a website enables artists to utilize analytics to grow their audience. For instance, analytics helps artists see where their traffic is coming from so that they can work on increasing it. Also, artists can see the gender and ages of their audience so they know who to market to. Moreover, analytics help artists to know if they are doing enough to increase their views. Furthermore, artists can find out their most popular content, so that they can know what type of content they should make more of.
Websites Convey Professionalism
Having their own site allows artists to have a more professional appearance online. Firstly, creating a website allows artists to create a custom url, which appears a lot more professional. Secondly, a custom website can be used as a professional looking portfolio to gain clients and apply to jobs. Artists may have a harder time gaining work if they give out a link to their Facebook rather than their own site.
Websites Make it Easy to Gain Traffic
Artists can use their website to drive traffic to their work. People will be able to find their work through search engines. Also, artists can create a blog tailored toward their target audience, which will help more of those types of people discover their art.
Additionally, artists can reach a wider audience by promoting and selling art online. In this day and age, artists no longer need to rely on publishers to decide to promote their art. Instead, they can promote it them self by using a website. Nowadays, artists can get their art viewed by the population simply by having a good website.
Websites Provide Security
If a social media or hosting site goes down/gets hacked, artists can lose years worth of content and all of their followers. But as long as artists periodically backup their website, their content will not be lost. Also, if artists have a email list of their site’s subscribers they will not lose their followers if a website has trouble.
Beginner & Professional Artists Need a Website
There are so many reasons why artists need a website, even beginner artists should make one. The sooner an artist starts a website, the sooner they can start learning ways to make it even better.
For example, websites take a long time to set up and start gaining traffic. So there is no time like the present to start one.
Additionally, the sooner an artist makes a website, the sooner they can start growing a following. And followers who find an artist’s website during its early days are likely to stick around for a long time. This is because these followers have been around so long they have developed a love for the artist’s work.
Another reason even beginner artists should start a website is to make sure that the website name they desire is not already taken. Over time, fewer and fewer choices for website names are available. Artists should buy their desired domain name before someone else does.
Furthermore, even beginner artists should start a website because young articles and websites do not rank well in Google. The earlier an artist starts working on their website, the better because they will have some articles that are at least a few years old.
Making a Website Does Not Have to be Hard
Website creation can be as easy or complex as an artist desires. Artists should not worry about being too young or old to create a website. One option is to use ready made website templates. Another option is to hire a professional to create a site. Conversely, an artist may know someone tech savvy that can help in putting together an art website for free. Finally, another option for artists is to watch tutorials on YouTube to learn how to make a website them self. This is the best option, as it is free, can be fun to learn to make a website, and the artist will know how to make changes to their site in the future.
Other Places to Publish Art Online
Although artists need a website, they should also publish on other platforms as well. Artists can use these other platforms to drive traffic to their site. For example, artists can put a link in a post that takes people their website. Also, artists can link their website in their profile so people will be able to find it easily. Moreover, an artist can mention on other platforms for people to go their website. If a post gets shared a lot or goes viral, this can bring a lot of traffic to an artist’s site.
However, artists should not rely too heavily on platforms that are not their own website. This is because social media platforms come and go, and they can lose popularity over the years. But artists can update their website to stay relevant with the times. Secondly, many sites make it hard to link to products, making it hard to sell anything on them. Thirdly, an artist’s work can get buried among millions of other artworks, making it hard for people to find their work. Fourthly, it can be hard for an artist to organize their content on a site that is not their own. Finally, not everyone uses social media, and some people only stick to using one platform. This means if an artist is not posting on multiple platforms, they are limiting their amount of followers.
Social Media Places to Publish Art
YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, Facebook, Reddit, Tumblr, Pinterest, DeviantArt, etc.
More Places to Publish Art
Webtoons, Tapastic, GumRoad, Patreon, Art Station, Linked In, Etsy, Red Bubble, Store Envy, etc.
Artists Need a Website – Take the Next Steps to Make One
Artists should first create lots of artworks so their website will not be empty. Additionally, before announcing their website, artists should do some prep and research to ensure its success. They should also customize their site and create their own branding. Also, artists should have people test out the functionality of their website and give them feedback. Moreover, artists should research how to drive traffic to their site using Search Engine Optimization (SEO). Finally, artists should read these tips to make a successful art website that works.
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