Building your Database

This technique is a tried and proven way of gathering names and contact information for your database, in other words, finding potential customers.

Go find yourself a fishbowl, about 20-25cm diameter, doesn’t need to be too fancy, you don’t need water, gravel, plants or fish…. just the bowl!

Take it with you every time you put on an exhibition or have a display. Put it front and centre where everyone can see it and offer a prize in return for their card, something like

“Lucky Draw – winner receives a beautiful matted 30cm reproduction
of my favourite piece, “Fish in a Bowl”

… maybe even let them choose their own favourite. Print a small sign for in front of the bowl telling them what they can win.

This is a great way to capture names but there’s a problem… not everyone carries cards. Here’s how you overcome this to get as many names as possible. Print some blank forms, business card size on A4 paper and cut them to size. All you need is First name, Surname, Email and Phone.

Encourage people to enter – for the low cost of a small reproduction, you are getting the names and addresses of people who love your work… but may forget you the moment they move to the next display, or by the time they get home.

Don’t start the day with an empty bowl… arrange a few dummy cards in there, it will encourage people to enter.

An email follow-up from you a few days after the show, with links to your website and social media pages, will remind them of what they saw and maybe you can even offer a special… “Sorry you didn’t win the Lucky Draw but if you purchase one of my reproductions before the end of the month I will include a set of cards valued at $XX”. Another offer might be a limited one off discount on anything they link in your shop – order within 72 hours and receive (whatever you want to offer).

Be sure to mention the competition winner’s name so people know that there was a winner, Even better, get a pic of the winner with their prize and post it on Facebook and in the email! If they aren’t local, then ask them to send you a photo when they receive it.

Make sure you enter these names into your database, tag them with the name of the show so you know where they came from and then follow up again with your next newsletter.

Oh, and don’t forget to email the winner and let them know how excited you are for them.

Here’s a cool idea… Offer them the ability to ‘trade in’ their prize (remind them of it’s value) on any other artwork, of any size. Say the prize is worth $100, they could trade in the prize and buy a $400 Reproduction for $300. Why do this? if they just take the prize, it has cost you say $25 but if they trade in and buy as per the example, you make $300 less the cost of production, say around $100 - you make $200! 

Here's 25 proven ways to build a database...

1. Exchange Business Cards - don’t give a card without receiving a card or getting them to write their email on the back of one of yours!
   
   
2. Have a Sign in Book in your Studio/gallery - all you need is first/last name and email
   
   
3. When you make a sale - record the buyer’s name, address, email, phone etc
   
   
4. Host an Event - can you do an open house/garage/studio/front yard sale - get details upon entry
   
   
5. Add the details of your doctor, dentist, plumber, vet, anyone in your contact list that has done work for you - that you’ve paid money to!
   
   
6. Put up an A-Frame on your Footpath with your website and a QR Code
   
   
7. Ask everyone you talk to, say things like… “have you seen my website? No? What’s your email address, I’ll send you a link”  DON”T LEAVE IT UP TO THEM!
   
   
8.  Encourage Forwarding and Sharing - ask people to share your details.
   
   
9. Have you invited all your ‘FB and Insta friends’ to follow your business page?
   
   
10. Do you have a “Call To Action” button on your Facebook page?
    
    
11. Do you have good contact details on your website? 
    
    
12. Do you have a Newsletter Sign-up form on your site?
    
    
13. Does that Sign-up form also act as a Pop-up?
    
    
14. Do a social media giveaway ( a small reproduction) in return for shares of your page - random draw for the winner.
    
    
15. Direct Mail - do a letterbox drop using the DL’s we discussed last week in areas you think might be your sort of clients.
    
    
16. Consider sharing lists with complimentary business - you promote them and they promote you.
    
    
17. Create an online community and invite others to join.
    
    
18. Run a competition - different to a giveaway - they have to provide something in order to enter, maybe choose 3-6 artworks and ask them to write a story about their favourite piece and what it does for them. Best story wins!
    
    
19. Offer a free download from your site - Not art, but an article about art and how it can enhance your home, tips on hanging and decorating with art. They have to provide an email address to receive it.
    
    
20. Find some social groups, networking groups, Zonta, Lions, Etc and offer to do a talk about your art. Have a sign-in register and offer a prize - a small reproduction!
    
    
21. Try and find someone who does podcasts about interesting locals and see if you can score a spot with them.
    
    
22. Do a guest post on someone else’s blog.  For example, if you’ve got a great story and great photos (really important) we could even put it on our blog!
    
    
23. Add QR Codes to all your brochures and business cards - it’s OK, all the young kids know how to use them and if you’ve been to a restaurant lately, you do too!
    
    
24. Old School - run an ad in the local paper if you are having an event.
    
    AND FINALLY...
    
    

EVERY EMAIL YOU SEND OUT SHOULD HAVE ALL YOUR CONTACT INFO!!!!!

Something like this...