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Income Streams for Artists
We’ve established time and time again that artists deserve to make an income from their artwork.
And adding multiple income streams to your art business is one of the best ways to make that cash flow more steady and healthy.
Here we’ve got a big, beautiful list of ways that you can implement a powerful new income stream into your art business.
Let’s jump in!
Teaching Art Lessons
This first one is near and dear to my paint-speckled heart because it is one of the biggest (and easily the most consistent) income stream for my own art business.
As you start to gain an audience online, people are naturally going to want to become like you as an artist – and this doesn’t have to be a scary thing.
Teaching is not only a wonderful way to give back to your community that so dearly wants to learn from you, but it’s also a powerful way to secure you as the expert in your art niche. Not to mention it can be a powerful income stream for your art business.
Starting my monthly painting membership using the platform Teachable was one of the best things I EVER did for my art business. I took content that I was already making, and turned it into a recurring revenue stream for myself.
Teaching comes in all shapes and styles too – anything from monthly memberships, to downloadable eBooks, to in-person lessons.
Original Artwork
This is where most artists start since you have to, you know, create the artwork before you can turn it into other revenue streams.
Original artwork comes at a higher price tag, so while it can be a powerful revenue stream for artists, it often leaves a portion of your audience without a way to own your artwork.
Which leads us to…
Prints and Reproductions
Creating prints and high-quality reproductions of your artwork is a great way to make your original art sales go further while creating a lower-priced option for more of your audience.
Creating a line of open-edition prints with unlimited runs can be a wonderful way to increase your art revenue.
Want to add a little excitement in the mix and offer something that is a little more fleeting? Limited print runs or closed-edition prints take advantage of the fear-of-missing-out and help customers take action to get their hands on something more unique and limited.
Art Products
This one is such a huge topic, and one that I have recently embraced myself.
Art products can refer to just about anything – art cards, greeting cards, tote bags, tapestries, you name it.
In early 2021 I created a tarot deck with my artwork and launched it on the crowdfunding campaign platform Kickstarter. The initial campaign brought in nearly $20,000 within 30 days, and since then the tarot deck has been selling exceptionally well in my online shop.
Print-On-Demand Sites (POD)
Though these sites usually only bring in a trickle of traffic, they have a very low barrier for entry so they can serve as a great option for beginner and emerging artists to get their feet wet when it comes to introducing new income streams to their art businesses.
Not sure which one to get started with? This list will help you to choose a print-on-demand service that works for you.
Commissions
Once your audience starts to grow online, you’ll likely attract people that dream of having custom one-of-a-kind artwork from you.
Commissions have always had a dear place in my own art business, as I’ve done nearly 100 pet portrait commissions for the most lovely customers across the globe.
Not sure how to get started with offering custom commissions? The Commission Crash Course is the answer you are looking for!
Patreon
Patreon is a neat way to grow a community around your artwork and personality as an artist. By offering exclusive content and a more intimate view into your art and life as an artist you can grow a powerfully passionate audience that will not only be paying a monthly fee to get access to that insider content but also will have a higher chance of being nurtured into becoming valuable customers of your artwork.
This by no means is an exhaustive list of income streams that you can add to your art business, but I hope it has gotten your gears turning on how you can add your next revenue stream.
Which of these are resonating most for you?
Dream of making money from teaching art skills? Or would you love to see your artwork printed on products and sold around the globe?
There is something for everyone!
Want to take an even bigger flying leap towards your (inevitable) success as an artist?
Watch my FREE masterclass training, Scale Your Art Sales.
It’s the online class for beginner artists that are filled with a fiery creative passion, and want to grow an audience online that actually want to BUY their artwork