Three Months In
Today marks three months of my membership on FAA and it seems reasonable to review and assess what I've learned in that time. A friend of mine had been a member for several months before I joined and I believe I enterd the organization with realistic expectations. Initially,I figured it would take at LEAST six months and at LEAST 1000 views before even looking for a sale. Then I learned about bots and I've reassessed the value of quantity of views. The six month incubation period I still believe is valid(I have sold a few tote bags and greeting cards to people who know me) The print sold to an unknown is still the benchmark,either that or a an image theft. I'm still looking at the value of groups and contests. There are some groups that have been useless .Some very active groups with consientious admins have something to offer. The value may not be in generating sales,but I've learned a ton just by being exposed to others' work,es[ecially well established artists with a sales record.
That last point leads me to the best part of the FAA experience. The exposure to true artists,professionals and craftpeople has taught me that I can sell my work to a particular market. I don't see myself competing in the gallery/collector world yet. My work is better suited to the greeting cards,tote bags,throw pillows,etc.Knowing this allows me to develop a marketing plan to attract those customers. We'll see what the next few months to a year bring and I must say that I've found the last three monts very energizing,educational and best of all,FUN!
