What to do when you have finished work?

"It's important to have the system in place... I know every step I have to do after painting, which makes the business side a lot smoother." -Artist Teresa Haag

So, you have finished a work of art, and it has taken its rightful place of honor. You experience a sense of accomplishment and pride. Time to clean up the tools, clear the work surface and move on to the next masterpiece. Or that?

It's easy to put off the tasks of the art business, but in the words of artist Teresa Haag, "It's important to have a system in place." Teresa knows "every step [she has to] take after drawing, which makes the business side a lot smoother."

When you're done, follow these six easy steps to make your business work beautifully and find buyers for your art (all after a smile, of course).

What to do when you have finished work?

1. Take a photo of your art

Take a photo in good light to capture a true representation of your artwork. Make sure you have a decent camera, take a picture in natural light, and edit if necessary. so she knows they look right. If necessary, photograph any details, framing, or multiple angles.

This simple step will help you get promoted, get your business organized, and be a lifesaver in the event of an accident.

2. Enter the details in the artwork archive.

Upload your images to your stock management system and add relevant details such as title, media, subject, dimensions, creation date, stock number and price. These pieces of information are critical to you, as well as to gallery owners and buyers.

Not sure where to start your art inventory journey? Take a look at .

Here is the most interesting!

3. Add artwork to your site

Proudly display your new work on your artist's website and in . Don't forget to include all the necessary information - such as dimensions - and share some thoughts about the piece. You want buyers to see your new work available, so the sooner it appears, the better.

Then promote your art to the world.

4. Publish your work in your newsletter.

If you are using the site, for example, to create your newsletter, be sure to set aside your work for the next one as soon as you finish it. MailChimp allows you to create an artist newsletter in advance and send it out at any time.

If you're just sending out a plain old email, be sure to make a note to include your new work in your next email newsletter. You can customize the rest of your newsletter with these .

5. Share your artwork on social networks

Write a few tweets and Facebook posts about your new piece. We recommend using a free social media scheduling tool so you can schedule all your posts at the same time so you won't forget about it later!

You can read about planning tools in our article "". also, so don't forget to take a picture for that too.

Looking for additional marketing steps?

6. Email Your Collectors

If you have collectors who you know would be interested in this piece, write to them! Perhaps they have already bought a similar item in the past, or they always ask about a certain topic.

One of these people can buy the work right now, so you have nothing to lose by sending a quick email with a portfolio page attached.

Thanks to the Artwork Archive artist for sharing her workflow with us and sharing her ideas for this article!

Share with other artists what to do when you're done. 

We want to hear from you!

What does your workflow look like after you've completed your work? Let us know in the comments.