Your gallery artist roster and their artworks are the stars of your website.  I know you want to present them online in the best possible manner, so they get the attention they deserve and inspire art sales.

You can do many little things to present them assiduously while also enhancing the online viewing experience for art collectors visiting your website.

Here I have outlined simple ways to make your gallery’s artist roster, portfolio, and biography pages more valuable to prospective art buyers.  When art collectors shop online, they expect comprehensive information and an exceptional browsing experience. 

Gallery Artist Roster Page

• The most effective design for an artist roster page is a grid style with artwork images and names.  Roster pages comprising only a list of names frustrates the viewer who may be browsing.  All that clicking back and forth makes it difficult to find art that appeals to them.  Images help the discovery process.
• If you represent many artists working in a variety of mediums, organize your artist inventory page by medium to enhance the viewing experience.  This layout helps alleviate being overwhelmed with too many choices.
• You might also feature artists on this page who were part of your past, current and upcoming exhibitions.

Artist Portfolio Pages

• Adding text, along with images and necessary information (title, medium, size, and price), about the works in the portfolio is essential.  Search engines rely upon the on-page text with keywords to index correctly in search results.  For potential buyers, the descriptive text adds a greater understanding of the work and improves the ability to connect emotionally or intellectually.  This content strategy makes being on the website more exciting and helps an art collector identify with a specific piece in the portfolio.  That’s what it’s all about…. Right?
• Most gallery artist portfolio pages use only the artist’s name as the headline.  The headline is valuable real estate for both viewers and search engines.  It is an excellent opportunity to communicate something important.  After all, viewers probably got the artist’s name on the roster page.  A headline may spark curiosity and persuade the reader to explore further.  Headline ideas might include something about what the artist is best known for or an unusual technique.
• Many art gallery websites still post small images of artwork that leave a lot of white space on the page.  This design element is a waste of visual real estate.  Present artwork images that allow the viewer to see it as large as possible and even zoom in on the detail.
• Post multiple images of a piece, including the work framed and unframed, detail shots, and a wall view with a piece of furniture next to it to give a better idea of scale.
• Include an inquiry link on every artist portfolio page or for every artwork depending on the program you use.  Make it super easy to contact the gallery for more information.
• Provide relevant information for making a buying decision, such as price, edition, framing options, condition reports, provenance, and authenticity information.
• Other information vital to considering a purchase online includes gallery policies, such as return policy, shipping, financing, approval policies, etc.  Don’t make potential buyers have to go searching for this information.  Place links to where they can find this information elsewhere on your gallery’s website.

Artist Biography Pages

• Use storytelling on your artist bio pages to help collectors understand what drives an artist to create and why the gallery is passionate about supporting that artist.  Make the story unexpectedly interesting.  Standard CV information makes a dull bio page and is a missed opportunity for building SEO.  An artist’s story aims to create a connection between the potential art buyer and what the artist is trying to accomplish with their work.
• Tell stories visually as well.  Please include photos of the artist at work in their studio, past show pictures, and videos on the artist’s bio page.  Doing so helps site visitors to have a more comprehensive understanding of the artist.  If possible, include images of the artist’s work installed in client spaces.  These visuals help buyers imagine how pieces might enhance their living space as well.
• Use headers and sub-headers to allow visitors to skim a page and quickly find information that most interests them.  Also, remember that reading online is best with short paragraphs.
• Link back to other pages of your website.  For example, any past blog posts or media write-ups.  This keeps people on the site longer and more engaged.

To the Point

Your website as a sales and marketing tool should educate and entice viewers to take the next step by exploring additional information on the gallery website to learn more, contact the gallery, or ultimately make a purchase.  Not every artist can have a show in the gallery every year, but you can present them online in a more complete and informative way.

Web surfers demand easy navigation and expect to immediately find the information they want.  A poor browsing experience or slow page loading can affect your website’s drop-off rate and search engine index results.  Search engines favor websites with rich content that is continuously being refreshed.  Don’t let your artists’ portfolio and bio page get stale.

Sometimes artwork speaking for itself may not be enough to grab and hold a site visitor’s attention.  Storytelling, both through text and visuals, can be very compelling when getting collectors to envision living with a particular piece.

Use these easy suggestions to make your art gallery’s website a marketing and sales powerhouse for your artists and a delightful experience for your site visitors.

 

You may also enjoy these related articles:

Top 5 SEO Considerations for Optimizing your Art Gallery Website

Easy Steps to Audit Your Art Gallery Website

Strategy and Best Practices: Building an Art Gallery Marketing Foundation

 

Did this article add fuel to your gallery business?