Learn from Two (Very Different) Open Studios [23]

How do you do it? Open studios events vary widely across the UK and around the world. In this episode, we share our very different experiences, contrasting an event that spans over 3,000 square miles with one that covers an area of just 3 square miles. We discuss the things we got right, the lessons we learned, and what we’d like to change going forward.  We also dive into our sales and wonder how many of them were due to event publicity versus our own following online or past collectors. Despite the fact that our two events varied in almost every way, we agree that the experience was an extremely positive one - not only from the perspective of sales, but also because the events allowed us to meet people we have previously only known online, and to have lovely, encouraging conversations about our work. If there is an event in your area, we both agree it’s worth getting involved. A few thoughts and ideas:  People enjoy seeing work in progress, sketchbooks and anything you can do to show how you make your work It’s a plus to have things at all different price ranges so that people can choose the level of investment that suits them … this can include cards, prints or small works on paper.  It’s a good idea to offer an incentive for visitors to leave an email address - perhaps a raffle for a small painting? If someone likes a painting but doesn’t buy, get an email address and follow up with a photo. How it feels isn’t always how it actually is, so track your data (counting visitors, sales etc). Follow up after the event with an email thanking visitors and collectors. This week, we also introduce our new Ko-fi.com page.  This is an easy and inexpensive way to help support the podcast. We hope to offer more than just our weekly chat, but the demands of the podcast are making that challenging. Your support would enable us to hire some help. If you’d like to help out with a one-time or a monthly donation, you can "buy us a coffee" us at Ko-fi.com/artjuice In this packed episode we also discuss the surprise of finding you enjoy something you didn't want to do, and the importance of facing challenges - even if we would really rather have a duvet day. Mentioned:  Find out more about Alice's upcoming class: https://alicesheridan.com/artists/ Contribute at Ko-fi.com/artjuice Listen to the "Own It' podcast at https://ownitthepodcast.com/232-getting-out-of-your-own-way-louise-fletcher/ Follow us on Instagram: @alicesheridanstudio  @louisefletcher_art   Credits "Monkeys Spinning Monkeys" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License