December was a planning month for my business. I did an evaluation of 2018, what worked, what didn’t work. I split my business into three parts: Illustration, Gallery Work, and Products/Etsy Shop.
Illustration – Postcard mailer was successful. Got two repeat clients out of it. Financially was so-so, I broke even on my marketing costs. For 2019 I plan to increase my mailer frequency to at least twice a year for editorial clients. I also plan to send a mailer to book publishers in 2019.
I also did an evaluation of my marketing costs. I added up the numbers, and one postcard mailer costs roughly $300. This cost could be lower depending on what items I get printed. The coasters I made were the most expensive to print.
Marketing plan for Illustration – I plan to send out a postcard mailer in the first quarter and third quarter. I also plan to research book publishers, and develop a mailing list that I can mail a promo postcard to.
Gallery Work – My group show at Dundarave was well attended. Didn’t make any sales from the November show, but I did have sales from the gallery in the summer and fall. Overall, Dundarave has been good for me both developing as a printmaker, and selling my art.
There are three all member group shows at Dundarave in 2019. I also would like to work towards a solo show proposal for 2020. There is a printmaking residency in Milan, Italy that I plan to apply for. It is a month long residency, and they pay for your rent and also give you spending money for travel, food etc. I also plan on keeping an eye out for the Vancouver Art Gallery Art Rental program application.
Products/Etsy Shop – I have had lots of positive feedback for my blog, so that is encouraging, that people read it and enjoy it. I have had sales from sending product announcements via e-mail. So e-mail marketing for my shop has been successful. Also the notebook I designed was pretty popular, so I will definitely make more notebooks.
Pacific Market is a new Vancouver based artist shop that just opened in December. You can rent space for four weeks at a time. It’s in a good location (Broadway and Granville area) and priced reasonably. I plan to apply for space in the second quarter, and give it a go for four weeks. In 2019 I also plan to research licensing your artwork, as a way to earn passive income.
I also need to upgrade my computer and software in 2019, so that will be a big expense. I am planning to buy a MacBook Pro, this way my computer will be more portable, and I can do more work in coffee shops, which I really enjoy. My Photoshop is WAY out of date, and keeps crashing on me. So I worked backwards – to update Photoshop I need a new operating system. To update to a new operating system, my hardware is too old. So, new computer it is! My computer is pretty old anyway (8-ish years). Plus I think it would be nice to have a laptop, and be able to do more of my work in coffee shops.
So that’s what I have in the works for 2019! What are your goals for 2019?
Erin Taniguchi Illustration Blog 