Organizing an Art Exhibition in a city needs a full fledge event management process and requires lots if money and time. Budding artists find it very difficult and surprisingly many of them gave up at the beginning itself. Internet is a sea of information and services and there are lots of services available for artists also. There are some good online art galleries available on internet but it is always better to go for a survey before buying or renting an Online Art Gallery. The survey may be taken with keeping the following in mind:



1.Reputation of the website: There is a huge number of websites available on internet but very few of them deal with artwork or gallery services. It is better to select a website which deals exclusively in art and gallery services in stead of going for a big online shop. For an example, if you are looking for an electronic item say a digital camera and you have two places to visit for a buy. One is a big departmental store which sells digital cameras also and other is an exclusive showroom for digital cameras only. Which shop gives you the best buy? Of course an exclusive showroom for digital cameras. The same way it is always advisable to go for a good website which exclusively deals with artworks.

2.Other associated services: There are few good websites available online which apart from providing online art galleries offer a series of associated services which an artist may need. For an example, a website providing a database of suppliers of art materials like oil paints, thinners, brushes, canvas, framing services, papers, other raw materials, contact information of nearest art galleries, etc. will definitely help a lot. These website become a dream destination for an artist.

3.Contents of website: Lots of websites claiming for their online art galleries services are nothing but picture galleries. This is suggested to select some content rich websites in stead of wasting time and money in such picture galleries. Making a small survey will take some time but that will be a well spent time. There are a few good websites which are designed from artists as well as collectors point of view. These websites are very rich in contents and provide a good stock of reading materials like a series of good literature or art, art newsletters, current trends, art tips, art critics, art news, ongoing art exhibitions etc. A simple survey may result you a dreams destination on internet.

4.Gallery Rentals: There is no comparison with the rentals of an Art Gallery in a city and an Art Gallery on Internet. Rentals of Online art galleries are always very low. But why to pay more when the same platforms are available on lower rentals. The online art gallery rentals are as low as US$ 9.99 per year which is quite affordable. Gallery rentals are gradually going down and some of the websites are even providing free online art galleries, of course with limited facilities.

5.Commission on sell: This is one of the most important factors which an artist must keep in mind before buying an online art gallery. Many website are charging a commission of 20-30% on sell value, which is in higher side from artist point of view. It is advisable to go for a small survey to win the best bargain.

6.Multiple Payment modes: The time has gone when people used to send and receive payments by traditions methods like Cheque, Demand Draft, money order etc. Artists should keep in mind that many of the people who buy or sell online, hate delay in payment. A payment collection method from credit card, wire transfer or Paypal etc. gives a flexibility to online buyers as well sellers. Check out for these facilities with the Online Art Gallery service provider. A few good website are very much flexible with their payment modes and provide both traditional as well as modern e-payment system also. Do not forget to verify the security level for payment gateway system.

7.Statistics for Online Art Gallery: Majority of the people visiting your online art gallery have to be art lovers or collectors. It is always suggested to go for websites which display gallery statistics like number of page viewed, clicks on images, number of unique visitors, duration of visitor’s stay etc. Although, it is little difficult to get such websites but good websites provide these statistics free on request. Website statistics helps you in understanding the demand and taste of visitors which are most likely art lovers or collectors in case of a good online art gallery.

8.Query Resolving Power: There are millions of websites available on internet and everyday thousands of new websites are coming up. Therefore it may take some time to select the best online art gallery on Internet. Many of websites have just been launched for the sake of nothing and do not care for their visitors at all. The easiest way to find out Query Resolving Power of a website is to send them a query. You can easily figure out the level of dedication they have for you from their response. More precisely, evaluate the clarity of their response and time taken in replying you. Also check whether they encouraged you for more queries or not. A professional website provides two way communications and encourages you for unlimited queries.

9.Traceability of website’s corporate office: A genuine and good website always displays their contact details like address, telephone numbers, e-mail etc. By providing these information websites establish a trust in you.

10.Discussion forums: A discussion forum in a website always helps but it has to be a live forum.

This article is submitted by one of the volunteers associated with www.artilysis.com

a website which provides online art gallery and other associated services at lowest rates.