What happens if I've been selling through galleries and hotels for years and never kept a collector list?

Unfortunately, many artists in their 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s, and beyond sold exclusively through galleries, hotels, and art shows but never maintained their own customer information. They didn’t understand the business model of selling direct—which isn’t about avoiding commissions, it’s about maintaining customer information so you can turn buyers into collectors and market to them in perpetuity. If you’re in this situation and don’t have a collector list, you’ve missed out on building your most valuable business asset. However, if you’re hearing this now instead of 20 years from now, there’s still time to start. Begin building your list today by selling direct and capturing every customer’s information going forward.

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Asked by general teaching · Answered by Patrick Shanahan · art-marketing-podcast · 2021-06-07