Calling all artists! Do you want to turn a profit from your creative passion? Whether you’re a painter, photographer, printmaker, illustrator, henna artist, embroidery savant, or a mixed media aficionado, you can leverage your favorite art form to create unique, handcrafted greeting cards to sell.
Our customers share all kinds of stories with us about how they pair our blank photo insert cards with their own art. And the good news is, if you plan to make and re-sell your own cards, you qualify for wholesale card pricing.
Here are a few ideas to consider as you plan to start selling your own art cards.
Sell Art Cards At Local Shops
What are some of your favorite shops in town? Do you have any friends or family members who own or manage a brick and mortar business?
Stop in at local boutiques, flower shops, jewelry stores, hospitals, restaurants and cafes, yoga studios, and pitch the idea. Bring a few of your favorite handmade cards to show off. Be prepared to talk about pricing and your wholesale or consignment policies. If there’s interest, you may find an opportunity to create a custom line of art cards exclusively made for one location.
Sell Art Cards at Pop-Up Markets
Many cities have spring and summer farmers markets, art shows, cultural events, vendor shows, business expos, and craft fairs that attract lots of local shoppers.
Chat with your park district, chamber of commerce, or do some searches for upcoming local events on Facebook or Google. Ask your friends and family members if they’ve attended any fun art shows or craft fairs, and start making a calendar of the dates.
Check with your local schools and churches, too. They often organize these types of events annually as fundraisers for their organization. A few things to keep in mind:
- It’s a good practice to attend a few of these events yourself, to get a feel for the crowd and attendance so you can assess if your art cards will appeal to the audience.
- It’s also a good idea to help you assess whether the traffic at each show will justify the booth fee that the organizers are charging for vendors.
Keep in mind that many outdoor events are rain or shine, so doing this type of setup will require you to invest in a sturdy tent with weights, tables, display materials, business cards, signage, and in some cases, liability insurance.
But don’t take our word on all this, take Bonnie’s:
Sell Art Cards on Etsy
Etsy is a well-established and fast-growing online marketplace for makers to sell their handmade goods and art.
While there are a plethora of options for selling your art cards online (and we encourage you to do your own research to find the platform that’s the best fit for you) Etsy is fairly simple to use, has a reasonable fee structure, and is backed by leading e-commerce research and major marketing power.
You can also search Etsy for art cards in your specific style to see how other makers are pricing and titling their cards to get ideas for your own Etsy shop.
How to Price Your Art Cards
Do your market research to see what the going rate is for cards in your area. You want to be sure that you’re not just covering the cost of your time and materials, but also including some profit margin, and considering any overhead for things like marketing costs and booth fees, and insurance, while still being affordable to your customer.
Average art card prices typically range from $4-$8 per card, depending on the level of detail, materials used, and the complexity of your art. If you’re selling originals or limited edition prints, you may be able to sell for even higher.
Another aspect to consider is wholesale vs. retail pricing. Many artists require a wholesale minimum of at least $200. In order to appeal to a larger audience, you may want to offer two types of art cards at two different price points: a basic and a deluxe version, or two different size options. Some artists offer a discount when a customer buys multiple items to help move product and increase their average sale amount. For example, you could set your price at $6 per card, or 3 cards for $15.
A good formula to follow when pricing your handmade art cards is this:
Supplies cost + time cost + overheads x 2 = wholesale price x 2 = retail price
Read more about pricing your handmade cards here.
How to Market Your Art Cards
Get creative with your product photography and include lifestyle shots to bring context to your product. Professional quality photos can go a long way in helping you build a polished brand. You can even achieve this with your phone and some natural lighting, a simple background, and a few props that you already have lying around the house.
Next, think about your story—what inspires you to create? What do you love most about your medium? Take a deep dive behind the scenes and show your process. Look at other artists you admire and pay attention to their writing style. What language do they use?
Once you have some photos and some written story elements, you can start marketing your art cards using Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest. These are three great platforms to share your images and your stories—and get discovered.
If it suits your style, consider starting a blog. Being active on social media helps attract potential customers, and gives you a polished and professional look when approaching shops about wholesale opportunities.
Many juried art shows also ask for your social media links. Having a solid online presence boosts your credibility and your chances of being accepted to these events.
Now, Go Make Your Art!
We hope this inspires you to get your handmade cards out into the world. With a little planning and research, you can make money by turning your art into greeting cards. If you’d like a deeper dive on making money from your art, find more greeting card selling tips here. Leave a comment below if you tried any of our tips! We’d love to hear your feedback.
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