How to Sell Your Art: Finerworks

In previous posts, I've given extensive information about how to create your own printing shop (see Getting the Materials and Printing and Shipping). But what if you you are just getting started, and are not ready to invest in a home-printing situation?

No problem, you can still sell your art! The first year I sold paintings, I did so with a third party printer. There are countless options out there (just google "giclee print services"). The one I chose to use was Finerworks. Their services are excellent, for several reasons:

• Upload endless high-res files — there doesn't seem to be a limit, as I've uploaded hundreds of large paintings, and no one has told me to I need to stop!
• They provide numerous paper options with thorough descriptions, so you can easily achieve the look and quality you are seeking (although I do recommend ordering your prints just to make sure it's what you want).
• They send directly to my customers. So I never had to have a large number of my prints on hand. As soon as somebody ordered, I would go ahead and order it on Finerworks and have them send directly to my customer, using their...
• Dropship option — This, I think, is their stand out feature. Dropshipping means that they will send your prints to your customers and make it look like it is from you. They will include your logo and contact information, and will not put any pricing information on the receipt. Just wonderful. Learn more about their dropship option here.
• Prices are reasonable
• Great customer service. If a shipment is damaged in the mail, or doesn't arrive, they are happy to resend.
• I periodically sent prints to myself, just to check their system, and was always impressed with the speed, packaging and quality of the prints that arrived.

As you know, I did eventually switch to having my own print shop. This was to increase profit margins, to be able to sign prints, and to have even more custom packaging. But I would highly recommend them to anybody starting out, as an easy way to test the waters. In fact, I still use them when I travel, and as a back up plan if I become overwhelmed with orders.

Good luck to you on your endeavors! I hope this helps! And if you are interested in this route, you can learn more with my post on How to Make Art Prints: Scanning.