I’m back on YouTube, here’s why…

Welcome to Spring and, with it, ​art fair season​—You can almost taste the pretentiousness.


Overcoming Objections

I read an article today on how marketers use copywriting to handle objections. I'm not sharing the link because it's not a great article, but it got me thinking about how creatives do not know how to handle objections because they don't practice countering them.

The strategy is simple and, with practice, can shift how we talk about our work whenever we are involved in a dialogue with potential buyers. All it requires is some paper and creative thinking.

  1. Take a single sheet of paper and fold it in half. On the left, write down any objections you might receive from a casual observer of your art.

  2. Write a creative counter-objection for every objection on the right side of the sheet. Make sure the answers are direct and conscientious, not pushy or overly salesy.

  3. Practice the counters over and over to yourself until they become a natural reaction anytime someone shares an objection.

One thing you'll have to hone is discerning when someone is legitimately interested but uncertain vs. someone who's being courteous and can't give a hard no to the artist to their face.

Also, some objections may have multiple answers, so find an elegant way to address the individual's genuine concerns. The objective is to have people fall in love with your work, not become burdened with a high-pressure sales experience.

Even if someone isn't ready to purchase, your final counter-objection would be to guide them to your email list sign-up form (use a QR code).

If you don't have an email list yet, ​I highly recommend Beehiiv​* to get started free.

Or you could keep doing what you're doing and not make sales when faced with opportunity—it's totally up to you.

*Partner


Thirteen months away from YouTube, and this is what I've learned.

This morning, I launched my first video in a very long time. I stopped because that's what I do, and I restarted again because I recognized how much of an opportunity was lost—or was it?

​In the past year, I've learned a lot more about where I need to be (namely, here), and now I'm using both my Dave blog and YouTube as the other two legs of the tripod. It's going to get wild.


Art Snacks: Dimitry Mak

​Aside from being a phenomenal portrait and live music photographer, Dimitry Mak is one of my favorite creative business advocates on Threads. He's always supporting artists of all types and shares a positive view on becoming greater than our previous selves.

Website | Threads | Instagram


Not as Interesting as We Think #5

This time, Julie and I navigate the mirk and mire to identify who we're serving, and I'm willing to guess you probably fall into one of three categories. You'll just have to watch (or listen) to find out what they are.


Biz Bites

  • 💵 Shopify being the best e-commerce solution is a hill I will die on, and though it does not take a reasonable amount of energy to do well, there are so many great examples of how to make a shop look amazing.

  • 🎥. Do you have the chops to be a successful content creator? Mr. Beast hopes you do, but maybe not.

  • 💥 You want to make an indie comic but are scared, perhaps for good reasons. These four comic pros have some advice for you.

  • 🍎 There's more than one way to skin an apple (I hate the cat reference), just as there are so many ways to accept payments now. So, if you're letting the payment issue keep you from selling, cut that out!

  • 🧵 Threads rolls out trending topics across all U.S. users, and the response is a collective meh.

  • Gumroad no longer allows (most) NSFW content, which means #freethenipple is due for a resurgence.

Art Bites

  • 🪱 I saw Dune: Part 2, and there are two things I need to say about it. First, go see it. If you haven't seen Part 1, do that. It's a beautiful film and deserves all the awards it will undoubtedly receive. Second, Timothée Chalamet will be the biggest star of his generation.

  • Can a trip to a different country change how you make art? Gawx thinks so.

  • 🧠 If you need me, I'll be staring endlessly into the metaphysical realm of Daniel Martin Diaz.

  • Character design is fun, even if I'm terrible at it. Perhaps if I had read Rosie Hilder's article on 33 expert tips for character design, I'd be better.

  • I'm a big fan of DJ music channels on YouTube. Watching (listening) to a full-length video from these creators is a great way to support the artists, but when Crab.Culture starts putting their equipment into coffee houses and pizza parlors for a different ambiance; I can't help but wonder what the employees might think of having to work around the Zennial spin doctor.

Dessert

Dave Conrey

I’m an artist, designer, and the founder of The Hungry, a weekly newsletter sharing news, stories, and insights on navigating the creative business world.

https://thehungry.art
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The art industry is overdue for massive change—Here’s why