The story we tell ourselves.

While recording the “ Ask Mark Art Show ” this morning I said something that I had not thought to say, but it came out and it has made me think.

I said something like when you are looking for a Gallery make sure they are doing social, not just emails as we getting to a place where people do not open emails like they once used to.

Now I am not saying a list of willing subscribers on email is not good we all use them, but I think in 2016 we should be doing more than that and so should Artists.

I think all Artists should be doing “live” Facebook if they have good internet access and videos, Twitter, Instagram and others as well.

I think that blogs are a necessity not something I should do one day.

Blogs tell our story and to connect to our buyer we must be telling them a story about our Art that they want to hear.

Now I know that sounds strange but today tv adds do not work, word of mouth is the prime source of advertising and internet is perfect platform for that.

The I phone is not the best phone on the market, but that does not matter because people talk about it and tell their friends how great it is and so their friends buy an I phone also and the word spreads.

My phone that cost one third the price of an I phone has a bigger camera and more features but that does not matter, because the people who are buying the I phone are not just buying a phone, they are buying a story that they can tell to themselves and that is far better than more features and a bigger camera. I can tell you how great my cheaper phone is but it is not an I phone and it does not tell a great story and does not make you feel special like an I phone does.

That is why people buy stuff that is not worth what they pay for it because they tell themselves a story and that story they tell themselves and how it makes them feel, makes the product far more valuable than what they paid for it.

Why do people pay very high prices in auctions for art that is worth much less?

Because of the story the auction house tells, then the buyer tells themselves a story about owning the art piece that they want to hear, this then reinforces the price that they pay, because of the story they are telling themselves and how that story makes them feel...

I have been telling Artists for so long now, story tell your Art, some have most don't, they just do not understand that people want to buy into the Artist story, the romance of the Artist, the studio, always creating, the lifestyle, because they want to tell themselves a story that makes them feel a certain way..

People buy Art because of the story the Artist tells and the story they are telling themselves, that's why they buy Art.