The vast majority of collects that arrive on an artist website stay a few minutes, and then leave, never to return again. It is nearly impossible to develop a relationship (and sales) in those few short minutes.
In order to sell your art online, you must develop a relationship with your website visitors. The longer they remain on your website, the more personal your relationship with them becomes, and the more likely it is that they will finally make a purchase.
How to Keep Collectors on Your Art Website Longer
It is possible to keep your visitors engaged longer through simple website design tweaks which help to increase engagement. Each page on your site has a certain purpose, but the main objective is to keep visitors on your site, connecting with and engaging with your content as much as possible.
Here are nine simple design hacks you can do to keep visitors on your art site for a longer period of time:
1. Reduce Website Clutter
Keep the appearance as minimal and straightforward as possible. Reduce the amount of clutter on your website that might be distracting or make it harder to read. Make sure that your font is large enough to be easily readable. If your collectors have to strain their eyes, they will move on.
2. Organize Your Website Content
When writing about your artwork, make use of headings and bullet points to draw attention to what you would like your reader to pay attention to. These could be the most important features of your artwork or details of an upcoming event. Make it unnecessary for your visitors to filter through large amounts of content in order to discover what they are looking for.
3. Use Beautiful Photography
It should go without saying, but beautiful photographs of your artwork should be the key feature of your website. Show your artwork from many perspectives: on display, full shots, from all angles, and detail shots. Don’t skimp on good photography.
4. Use Videos of You or Your Artwork
People will be more engaged if you have videos for them to view. If you are shy about talking about your work on video, don’t worry. How about some videos of the artwork from different angles. The videos do not have to be long – less than a minute can be intriguing and engaging.
5. Give Your Website Visitors Something To Do
Give your website visitors something to do while they’re on your art website. Provide users with areas to write comments, surveys or polls to participate in, social networking material or buttons, and calls-to-action that encourage them to participate.
6. Give your Website Visitors Access to Your Art
People shouldn’t have to fill out a form or sign up for a subscription in order to appreciate all that your art website has to offer. Don’t make them open an account just to view the art.
7. Avoid Elements that Slow Your Website
Avoid using distracting pop-ups or other elements that might cause computers to slow down and visitors to become distracted from your content. This includes remembering to properly size your images!
8. Offer an Exit Deal
Consider including an exit pop-up that provides a discount, special deal, or another incentive if they choose to stay on your site.
9. Make Sure Your Artwork Lives Up to Your Promise
Make certain that the artwork on your website lives up to the promise that drew them in. Remember, your collectors are here to be engrossed in your interesting and engaging artwork. If you don’t deliver, they will move on to the next artist.
You must build a relationship with your website visitors in order to sell your work online. The longer they stay on your website, the more intimate your relationship with them gets, and the more likely they are to make a purchase. You can capitalize on this principle by editing your website to increase the amount of time your vistors stay and engage with your artwork.
