Today, the internet is an essential tool for many business sectors and Art is no exception! Digital will allow you to gain visibility, find new customers and also to communicate more easily with your artists. In this way, you will contribute to the development of their career, which in turn has positive repercussions for your gallery. In this article, we offer you the advice that will allow you to accompany your artists in their digitalisation and help them to create an online presence.

It's been said before, but we’ll say it again: Instagram is the most important and most used social network in the art world. According to the 2018 Hiscox report, 32% of art buyers noted that social media had a significant impact on their decision to purchase; and of the collectors surveyed that were under 35 years of age, 79% use Instagram to discover new artists.

With an Instagram account, artists can build a virtual portfolio, which allows collectors to better understand their worlds and their works. But Instagram is also a platform that encourages a more personal relationship with followers, it is a space for communication. Artists should therefore find the right balance between professional photos of their works but also spontaneous photos showing their studio or their sources of inspiration. Sharing is very important and Damien Hirst is an example of this; the English artist started sharing anecdotes on the social media in January 2018, leading to a rapid increase in followers.

A few tips:

• Don't forget to use tags and hashtags. Ask your artists to tag your gallery in their artwork photos and do the same by tagging them in your posts. Hashtags are important because they allow people who don't know you to discover your gallery when they do keyword searches.
• You have to be regular in adding content, otherwise your Instagram account will get lost in the crowd.
• High quality images. Pictures are your showcase on Instagram. They must be of very good quality. We advise you to take one of the work, one from further away (to illustrate the size) and one that zooms in on the details.

Today, many emerging artists are represented by several galleries that may be located around the world. This is not only an advantage for your artists, but also for you, as it can help you build links with other gallery owners and create a network of partners around the world. Social networks can be an additional way to communicate with them.

You can also share with them new ideas and strategies to adopt online. Follow creative accounts that will inspire you and empower you to become more successful. For example, you can use Artsper's account as a model. Every day we publish several posts on Instagram where we showcase our artists and gallery partners.

There are other platforms other than Instagram that are also dedicated to artists and there are also social networks dedicated to artists and art, such as DeviantArt or Are.na. This can be another way for your artists to communicate with fellow artists or personalities from the art world.

Technology facilitates access to more data/statistics than ever before. This data can help you understand what is popular with your collectors, what will sell best. You will be able to help your artists by sharing this information with them, as it can have an impact on their work.

Each week you receive an email from Artsper, telling you the number of new followers for each of your artists and the number of times your work has been added to wishlists. Don't forget to take a look at it to get an idea of what attracts the most collectors. Then take the opportunity to publish the most appreciated works or styles on your social media.

Tips :

• Share in your stories the publications that you have liked.
• You can share articles about the art world such as those by Artsper
• Talk about your gallery's current events such as your exhibitions
• Feel free to comment on and like the photos of the accounts you follow! 

Stanford has published a recent study showing that collectors are more inclined to buy the works of artists they follow on social media and are used to seeing in stories and other news.

Now more than ever, you need to communicate with potential buyers through stories about your artists and your news.

Everything you need to know about stories:

• A story is an image or video that remains on display for just 24 hours. It is therefore an temporary publication that you can publish from time to time to talk about a news item - such as an exhibition, for example. 
• Don't forget to use tags and hashtags. Ask your artists to tag your gallery in their photos of works and do the same by tagging them in your posts. Hashtags are important because they allow people who don't know you to discover your gallery when they do keyword searches.
• You have to be regular in adding content, otherwise your Instagram account will get lost in the crowd.
• High quality images. Pictures are your showcase on Instagram. They must be of very good quality. We advise you to take one of the work, one from further away (to illustrate the size) and one that zooms in on the details.

They were our essential tips to help your artists develop their career thanks to an online presence, now it's up to you to share these tips with them!