Episode 160: How to Make Money as an Artist with Miriam Schulman
Like so many people, Miriam Schulman wanted to be an artist but was told she couldn’t make a living from her art.
And she believed the lies.
She pursued art in college and with her first corporate job. She then shifted to work on Wall Street until it became very clear to her that this was not what she wanted for her life. Everything changed when she took a job that taught her how to sell and she realized she could use that skill to sell her art.
Miriam Schulman is an artist and founder of The Inspiration Place, where she helps other artists learn how to profit from their passion or become better artists. She’s helped thousands of artists around the world develop their skill sets and create more time and freedom to do what they love.
In 2020, Miriam recognized there was a confluence of people who were looking for more meaning in their lives, and for many, that meant leaving their jobs. Whenever there is an existential crisis where people are looking for more meaning in their lives, that’s where art comes in. Art really matters.
There were so many people looking to take their creativity and make a living from it. In her upcoming book, Artpreneur, Miriam said she wanted to recenter women and make sure there were a variety of voices. Too many business books are written from the male perspective, and there’s no woman in the book at all.
Perceived value
Miriam noted that one of her first classes was a $97 water color portrait class. The next time, she offered it without changing anything, but upped the price to $197. She said she got much better reviews. People paid more attention; they finished the class and they valued it more.
Now, the class sells for $497.
“Sometimes we lower the price, we think we're making it more affordable. No, you might be doing your clients a disservice right, because if you make something too cheap.”
Love letter to email
When it comes to marketing, Miriam still believes email and even physical mail are tops. She says you can identify one to 200 people who are your hottest prospects for something, it pays to send them physical mail. She suggests save the dates, and postcards for awareness, and even taking your sales page and turning it into a printed booklet.
With email, she notes the engagement rate is higher, and you have more control over who will see your message. In her book, she offers advice about how to nurture relationships as well as practical lists like which words to use in your messaging.
The Belief Triad
The Belief Triad is belief in yourself. Belief in your art or your product. And belief in your buyer.
She notes people don’t really talk about belief in your customer, belief that they want what you have. When you believe in them, everything you do will be better.
Artpreneur: The Step-by-Step Guide to Making a Sustainable Living from Your Creativity will release on January 31, 2023 from HarperCollins Leadership.
