5 Tips on Building an Effective Website for Artists

What follows are five effective tips for building the type of website that will garner a maximum response. Your website should focus visitors on the works you have created and minimize any distractions.

Buy your Own Website

You don't want to use any "free" web hosting services because they are never free. They are paid for by distracting advertisements and have domain names so long and confusing that no one will ever work their way back to the website. The myriad of ads will make your art look bad and worse, gives the website the appearance of being cheap and tawdry. This is why having your own website will work wonders for your art. Plus, purchasing a good website today is very cheap and well worth the effort.

Be Sure its Mobile Compatible

Today, more people use mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets to surf the web. This means that your website needs to be compatible with these devices in some manner so that your work can stand out. While your artwork may not look stunning squeezed down to a 4" screen, if your website is compatible then at least it will be functional and useful to those who want to view what you've accomplished.

Remember Image Sizing

One of the biggest problems that many websites for artists have is that their images are simply too large or take up too much space. This can be problematic for downloading your website and the slower it goes and the more likely people will go somewhere else rather than wait. This means that you have to be extra careful about the size and type of image that you display. For example, a.jpeg displays nearly as well as a.bitmap, but takes up only a fraction of the space. It's okay to use one big image on the home page, but limit your pictures to something reasonable for the rest of the pages so that they load faster.

Be User Friendly

This means make your website as friendly and open to visit as possible. You don't want to force any registration, passwords or the like. Plus, you'll want your website to be as easy to navigate as possible so that visitors can find everything that you have to offer. Think of your website as a free gallery for everyone to see and visit.

Be Clear about Purchases

When offering your works of art, the prices you charge should be reasonable for the effort that you put in. Be sure that you make purchasing the art easy and simple, plus you will need to offer a return and refund policy. If you don't, then expect few sales at best since many buyers will want to see the art with their own eyes first.

By following these tips, you can create a more effective website for artists that work for you.

By Matt McWilliam