OK so if you’re reading this, chances are you’re an artist of some kind, whether it be a traditional painter, a photographer, or someone who likes to doodle in the margins of their paper while sitting through meetings at work. Does the idea of selling your artwork on greeting cards entice you? Wouldn’t it feel magical to walk into a store and see YOUR art for sale on the shelves?? Watching customers browsing choose YOUR card to pick up and enjoy and spend money on? To send to someone they care about… because they LOVE it?
If you answered yes, you are in the right place! Today I want to share with you 5 easy steps to start selling greeting cards right now! SO, without further ADO (<--this word always cracks me up for some reason) here is the list:
1. Create artwork perfect for greeting cards.
Chances are you already have this part covered... Go back to all that gorgeous art you’ve already made that hasn’t yet seen the light of day! OR if you have yet to create art specific to cards, now is the perfect time to start! Every medium is welcome so stick with your personal favorite. Find a cozy spot and start creating! I mean how fun right?? (*If you’re like nope…this is not fun, then that would be your sign to go ahead and exit stage left. Perhaps being a card designer is in fact NOT actually for you! And that’s ok! But it’s worth mentioning because the WHOLE reason I’m so passionate about being a card designer is because it is, and should be, FUN and fulfilling for you.)
If you need ideas about what to actually create for cards, I got you. Click to download my free PDF that will help you get started with some solid card ideas!
2. Get your artwork into a digital format. Perhaps you create your art in Procreate on an iPad and so you’ve already nailed this step. If instead you create your artwork by hand, it’s time to scan it or take really well-lit, high quality, high resolution photographs. (Don’t have a clue how to digitize your art? If this concept has you bristling, check out my class Greeting Card Academy where I will teach you exactly what to do even if you don’t own a computer or have ANY computer skills at all!)
3. Organize your artwork into a simple digital portfolio. Ideally you have at least 6-12 designs to now showcase together in a clean and simple portfolio. You can create your portfolio in a page layout program like Adobe InDesign or online for free through websites like Behance.net or Canva. You can also add a portfolio page to your personal website if you have one.
4. Make a list of greeting card companies you admire. Now it’s time to do some research. Get out into stores and start flipping over greeting cards to make a list of greeting card companies you feel your art would be perfect for. Once you have the list, search each of them online to find their contact information. There are more companies out there than you likely realize so take some time and do the work to find them!
5. Pitch your portfolio to them. Take the contact information you’ve gathered and craft a well-written professional email introducing yourself and sharing a link to your greeting card portfolio to see if any of the companies you’ve found are interested in licensing your artwork for use on their greeting cards. ***It’s important to note that pitching your work can take time. The companies you contact may not respond at all if they don’t have a place for your work at the time. This does not mean no and is nothing personal. Continue to reach out and share new card art with them as you create it. It can often take several different rounds of pitching before you get a yes. But all you need is one YES to get your greeting card career off the ground. That one yes can turn into a lifelong, lucrative relationship with a company, so keep at it! If you want to learn more about the earning potential involved with licensing cards, be sure to read my previous post.
Be sure to grab my free PDF download with all of the steps I’ve listed here for your reference!
If you’d like to go more in depth and learn exactly what to do (and what NOT to do) to get your cards licensed, exactly who to pitch to, templates to craft your pitches & portfolio, and so much more, check out my self-paced online class, Greeting Card Academy! Together, we will create a professional greeting card portfolio, and I will walk you through EVERYthing you need to know to pitch it and get your cards published.