Behind the Scenes of My Business

by Miriam Schulman October 20, 2014

This blog post is part of a series of posts called an artist blog hop. Think of a blog hop as blogging "chain mail." Someone links to me and I have to link to three more, and each of them must find creative bloggers. All of us must answer the same questions about our creative process.

Thanks to my friend Lucy Parsons who tagged me in her blog post. I love building connections with other creatives and seeing what makes other folks tick. You can read about Lucy in my blog post, Quintessentially British Quality in Home Decor.

To participate in the blog hop, I have to answer a list of questions creative bloggers and then tag other creative business owners.

So, lets go behind the scenes of my business….


Currently I am working on a 30x30" commission of an African Mask in watercolor.Discover more of my African art inspired by drawing museum artifacts.

What’s your two to three sentence bio?

I embrace the creative life with wholeheartedness in Scarsdale, New York. I studied art history at Dartmouth College and abandoned a career in finance to work on my art full time. My watercolor and mixed media paintings have been seen on NBC, published in art magazines and home decor books. In addition, the Hudson River Museum and Katonah Museum of Art carry my artistic accessories in their gift shops. Discover my watercolor and art journaling secrets in inspiring online classes at The Inspiration Place.

I put pride in all that I do especially when it comes
to packing up sales, one of my favorite parts of my
business.

What’s your favorite part of your job?

I love packing up sales... that is definitely the most rewarding part of my job knowing that my creations are treasured by others.

What’s your least favorite part of your job?

Taxes!

What are the top three tools you use the most in your work?

Watercolor, the computer, camera.

What business goal would you love to reach before the end of the year?

Right now I am recognizing that growing my mailing list is my number one priority toward building my business for long term growth and so I am working on some advanced marketing strategies for improving my lead generating funnel. My goal is to double my mailing list by the year end.

Who are three creative gurus that inspire you?

There are three women who have really helped me take great strides in my business with their newsletters, blogs and online classes. They are Amy Porterfield who has a comprehensive facebook marketing course, Melanie Duncan who is a New York princess who lives life large and shows you how she did it and Allyson Stanfield who has dedicated herself to helping artists achieve their dreams. If you stop by their sites, please let them know that Miriam of SchulmanArt sent you!

What do you listen to while you work?

Currently I have my radio set to WQXR which is a public classical music station. The music is relaxing, but I also enjoy that they have far less commercials than my other favorite radio stations. I also like to listen to books on tape, and online classes or webinars.

Are you a night owl? This owl print would look
great in your home!

Morning person or night owl?

I am really neither a morning person or a night owl. My husband is a rooster and wakes the entire family up at the crack of dawn so I find myself sleepy by 10pm. I work the best in the morning after exercise and a fresh cup of coffee but then I usually get a second wind after dinner. So sometimes I lose track of time at night and find myself up at midnight working on a project .

How many employees do you have and what are the main things they do for you?

Lately, I became overwhelmed with all that my business requires so I just hired a part time studio assistant who is super talented and I will introduce her in a future blog post. She is going to help me with my social media and online tasks and all the other nitty gritty that goes on behind the scenes.

What’s your favorite social media platform?

My favorite social media platform varies but I think youtube is my current favorite. You can subscribe to my videos here!

What’s your least favorite social media platform?

My least favorite social media site also varies but I think I have a love hate relationship with facebook. Facebook is such a great tool for advertising because they have so much data about us... and isn't that scary? My fanpage is a lot of fun and I try to share loads of inspiration there. Come connect with me!

What works best when it comes to marketing your business?

The number one trick to marketing my business is listening to my customers and understanding what they want and need.

Surround yourself with inspirational quotes
and positive people! Discover all my inspirational
art!

What’s your top tip for someone who wants to do something similar to you for a career?

Don't be afraid to invest in learning and advertising. My business always takes great strides forward when I invest in those areas. Always look to those more successful than you for advice and surround yourself with positive people.

Tag! You’re it….

For my part, I had to choose a few creatives to tag. (in no particular order)

First I tagged Andrea Gomoll of Cre8tive Cre8tions. I found Andrea on youtube and love her colorful whimsical style.
Jessica Sporn is the next artist I tapped. Jessica's art found its way into my home through the wonderful watercolor designs on Judaica greeting cards. I also have met Jessica at an artist retreat and follow her blog.
Finally I tagged Danita , a Mexican artist who creates dolls and other lovely mixed media art.

Just follow these steps:

Here’s how you play:

Copy and paste the questions below and then answer them and publish as a blog post.{you don't have to answer every question....I know I didn't!}

At the bottom of your post, tag anywhere from 2-10 bloggers you want to see answer these questions. (I also suggest hitting up your tagged people via social media just to let them know you tagged them to do this tag challenge.)

Use the title: Behind the Scenes of My Business. Once you’ve hit publish, leave a comment below with the link to your post.

Use the hashtag #MyBizBlogTag when sharing on social media so we can all find your awesome posts!

If you want an intro to include at the beginning or end of your post, here’s one:

Thanks to artist Miriam Schulman who tagged me in her blog hop. You can read Miriam's answers to these questions in her blog post.

Easily copy and paste the questions below

Question 1: What’s your two to three sentence bio? (You know, what the heck do you do?)

Question 2: What’s your favorite part of your job?

Question 3: What’s your least favorite part of your job?

Question 4: What are the top three tools you use the most in your work?

Question 5: What business goal would you love to reach before the end of the year?

Question 6: Who are three creatives that inspire you?

Question 7: What do you listen to (if anything) while you work?

Question 8: Morning person or night owl?

Question 9: How many employees do you have and what are the main things they do for you?

Question 10: What’s your favorite social media platform?

Question 11: What’s your least favorite social media platform?

Question 12: What works best when it comes to marketing your business?

Question 13: What’s one thing about your business that your blog readers probably don’t know?

Question 14: If your business were a fashion accessory, what would it be?

Question 15: What’s your top tip for someone who wants to do something similar to you for a career?

Even if I didn’t tag you, you’re welcome to take part. Just follow the instructions above. Don’t forget to come back when you’ve published your post and put a link in the comments. If you’re not a blogger and still want to play, just answer the questions in the comments below!