Worrying About the Economy with Elaine Luttrull (#141)

02/16/23 • 39 min

We’ve spent many months worried about inflation and a possible recession that may not ever happen. It would be terrific if we didn’t have to concern ourselves with such things, but the economy affects everyone’s business in one way or another.

Today’s guest on The Art Biz is Elaine Grogan Luttrull of Minerva Financial Arts, a company devoted to building financial literacy and empowerment in creative individuals through education and coaching. We recorded this episode several months ago when the economic landscape seemed a little bleaker than it does now. This is a lesson in economics and how your art business is affected by the larger economy. We define and discuss inflation, recession, the Consumer Price Index, and Gross Domestic Product. We talk about your revenue mix, why selling lower-priced items might not be the way to go right now, bundling, and raising your rates and prices.

First posted: artbizsuccess .com /economy -luttrull -podcast

Highlights

Defining inflation and its effect on every aspect of pricing. (1:50)
What exactly is a recession and what role do rising interest rates play? (5:35)
The impact of these economic factors on artists. (12:48)
Combating uncertainty with effective business strategies. (15:32)
Your target client in times of economic uncertainty. (20:05)
Opportunities that are presented in challenging times. (24:16)
Consider potentially terrible ideas to get to the good ones. (33:03)
Seven strategies for artists to use during inflation and recession. (33:04)

This Week’s Action

Your first action for the week is to look at your expenses and see where you might be able to save. I suggest keeping a list of all ongoing subscriptions as well as regular expenses and reviewing it every so often.

Your second action is to check out Elaine’s $15 course on inflation and recession by following the link below.

Mentioned

Resources

Show notes , images ,

First posted: artbizsuccess .com /economy -luttrull -podcast

Highlights

Defining inflation and its effect on every aspect of pricing. (1:50)
What exactly is a recession and what role do rising interest rates play? (5:35)
The impact of these economic factors on artists. (12:48)
Combating uncertainty with effective business strategies. (15:32)
Your target client in times of economic uncertainty. (20:05)
Opportunities that are presented in challenging times. (24:16)
Consider potentially terrible ideas to get to the good ones. (33:03)
Seven strategies for artists to use during inflation and recession. (33:04)

This Week’s Action

Your second action is to check out Elaine’s $15 course on inflation and recession by following the link below.

Mentioned

Resources

Show notes , images ,

Previous Episode

A Sales Process for Artists with Miriam Schulman (#140)

The sales process is rarely discussed in artist circles. We often think of sales as a single step. Either someone buys your art or they don’t. There’s’ so much more to it. Yet, many of us think of sales as a dirty word, which is a bit ridiculous if we want to grow our businesses and careers. Artists need to adopt a new mindset surrounding sales in order to be successful.

My guest on this episode of The Art Biz is Miriam Schulman, artist and founder of the Inspiration Place, where she helps other artists learn how to profit from their passion or become better artists. Miriam is the author of Artpreneur: The Step-by-Step Guide to Making a Sustainable Living from Your Creativity. In this conversation, Miriam and I review her Artpreneur Sales Playbook and 10-step sales process.

Highlights

Miriam’s struggle with sales, despite her background in finance. (3:30)
The evolution from general sales and marketing to effective art sales. (6:56)
Curating your valuable contacts list. (9:05)
The importance of mindset in sales success. (12:30)
Developing a confident belief in the value of your art. (14:47)
The first 5 steps of selling your art. (21:05)
Body language, previewing the process, and establishing the decision maker. (27:37)
Sell with stories, not facts, and selling happy endings. (33:10)
Overcoming objections with the right language. (40:07)
Close the sale by asking for it. (42:45)

This Week’s Action

This week’s action has two parts. Part 1 is to download the free chapter of Artpreneur at schulmanart.com/believe.

Part 2 is to write out Miriam’s 10 steps in the sales process and post them somewhere so you’re reminded that it is a process. You need to be invested in the steps of the process in order for it to work.

Mentioned

ArtBizAccelerator .com
Free chapter of Miriam ’s book
The Inspiration Place podcast
Miriam on Instagram
The Cone Sisters
Dr . Aaron Beck ’s Cognitive Behavior Therapy

Resources

Show notes , images , and listener comments
How to Price Your Ar...

Next Episode

Activate Your Marketing for a Bigger Audience (#142)

The vast majority of the marketing we do is passive. We send emails, post to social media, and broadcast podcast episodes. Then we wait and hope for positive results.

For better results, activate your marketing by thinking of all the ways you can communicate on a personal level. Yes, active marketing requires more work, but I promise you’ll get better results and enjoy it more.

In this solo episode, I walk you through how you can activate your marketing for 5 art business scenarios.

Read the "almost" transcript, find links, see featured artists and leave a comment

Highlights

Personal note about your kindness the last couple of weeks. (0:00)
Your list is more than people who have opted in for your emails. (3:04)
Ensure you’re not wasting time on social media. (5:11)
Action: Create a reliable content calendar for a framework that provides direction. (6:36)
Improve exhibition and sales venues. (7:09)
Action: Make a spreadsheet to track potential venues. (7:30)
Receive more benefit from your exhibitions. (8:33)
Boost relations with your galleries. (11:03)
Do you teach? Fill your classes and workshops. (14:06)
We need both passive and active marketing. (15:38)
Please email me your questions and concerns: [email protected] (16:13)