A Sales Process for Artists with Miriam Schulman (#140)

The sales process is rarely discussed in artist circles. We often
think of sales as a single step. Either someone buys your art or
they don’t. There’s’ so much more to it. Yet, many of us think of
sales as a dirty word, which is a bit ridiculous if we want to
grow our businesses and careers. Artists need to adopt a new
mindset surrounding sales in order to be successful.


My guest on this episode of The Art Biz is Miriam Schulman,
artist and founder of the Inspiration Place, where she helps
other artists learn how to profit from their passion or become
better artists. Miriam is the author of Artpreneur: The
Step-by-Step Guide to Making a Sustainable Living from Your
Creativity. In this conversation, Miriam and I review her
Artpreneur Sales Playbook and 10-step sales process.


Highlights




Miriam’s struggle with sales, despite her background in
finance. (3:30)




The evolution from general sales and marketing to effective
art sales. (6:56)




Curating your valuable contacts list. (9:05)




The importance of mindset in sales success. (12:30)




Developing a confident belief in the value of your art.
(14:47)




The first 5 steps of selling your art. (21:05)




Body language, previewing the process, and establishing the
decision maker. (27:37)




Sell with stories, not facts, and selling happy endings.
(33:10)




Overcoming objections with the right language. (40:07)




Close the sale by asking for it. (42:45)




This Week’s Action


This week’s action has two parts. Part 1 is to download the free
chapter of Artpreneur at schulmanart.com/believe.


Part 2 is to write out Miriam’s 10 steps in the sales process and
post them somewhere so you’re reminded that it is a process. You
need to be invested in the steps of the process in order for it
to work.


Mentioned




ArtBizAccelerator.com




Free chapter of Miriam’s book




The Inspiration Place podcast




Miriam on Instagram




The Cone Sisters




Dr. Aaron Beck’s Cognitive Behavior Therapy




Resources




Show notes, images, and listener comments




How to Price Your Art free report




Art Biz Connection artist membership




Quotes




“Once I started making the connection between sales in
general and selling for art and understood that there wasn't
a difference, I became a student of marketing and sales, and
that has made all the difference.” — Miriam Schulman




“Marketing 101 is investing in human relationships.” — Miriam
Schulman




“My art, going out into people’s homes, became ambassadors
for me.” — Miriam Schulman




“Mindset is everything. Mindset trumps talent.” — Miriam
Schulman




“Overcoming objections is about having compassion for the
buyer and knowing where they are coming from.” — Miriam
Schulman




About My Guest


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. Her art and story have
been featured in major publications including Forbes, The New
York Times, Art of Man, Art Journaling magazine, What Women
Create as well as featured on NBC’s “Parenthood” and the Amazon
series “Hunters” with Al Pacino. Schulman’s forthcoming book with
HarperCollins Leadership Artpreneur is scheduled to be released
on January 31, 2023.


First posted: ArtBizSuccess.com/sales-schulman-podcast