Don't Delay Your Mailing List

I received an email from Dana Wilde, who was reading a very popular and well-written book of advice on artists’ careers. She was understandably overwhelmed at the suggestion that she was supposed to send out huge mailings to everyone (museums, critics, galleries, arts organizations) all over the country--every time she did a mailing. This stopped her from even starting a mailing list when she first read the book a few years ago. Now, she asks what the best mailing list is to purchase. Here is some advice I gave Dana.

Dana Wilde, Brown Journal 2.  (c) The Artist http://www.danawildeart.com

►Don't delay. The longer you wait to begin or to update your mailing list, the more work you make for yourself. You don’t want to have something to tell everyone and then have to carve out time to input names into your computer.

►Don't purchase a mailing list. Build your own from scratch. Lots of people will eagerly sell you a mailing list, but you’re going to become annoying to gallery dealers and curators who have nothing to do with your work. No purchased mailing list can be as valuable to you as the one you build with a keen eye on your long-term goals. Having said that . . .

►Give yourself a break. Forgive yourself for not starting earlier and don't look back.

►Do only what you can, but do it consistently. Input 20 names a week until everyone is in there. If you work better with large projects, set aside a day or two to crank it out. When it comes to updating, add and correct names and addresses in a way that makes sense. If you make lots of sales, meet lots of people, or have seasonal sales, you might need to do this weekly. If you are slower at getting your work out, monthly updates might be sufficient.

►Break up your mailing list into categories so that you can do targeted mailings. This is where searchable databases become invaluable. Enter names according to buyers, prospects, friends, family, out-of-state, and so forth. Make a note of those who should be on a holiday list. You don’t have to send every single mailing to every person on your list.

►Add only the museums and galleries that make sense for you--ones you REALLY want to get noticed by. This will be a gradual process, but curators and dealers expect you to be in tune with their offerings. You can only accomplish this by researching, visiting, and paying attention. If you don’t have an amazing résumé full of outstanding accomplishments, do not add the Museum of Modern Art to your list. If you make wildlife bronze sculpture, do not add the Museum of Contemporary Art to your list. Take a look at my Art Biz Report “Approaching Galleries without Fear: An Easy and Comfortable Strategy for Artists.”
http://www.artbizcoach.com/resources/reports.html 

►Use software that makes it easy on you. While names and addresses are waiting to enter your computer, keep everything in a file folder so that it’s in one place when the time comes.