Sell It With Cartfly

Cartfly Featured Merchant: Hotrod Dolls

Lesley Slenning, from Las Vegas, is a photographer who gets her inspiration from a different time and place. "I love custom motorcycles, classic cars, heavily tattooed people, rock n roll, and eras that are long gone but not forgotten." She is inspired by pinup, glamour, and high fashion photography, and enjoys mixing it up with the world she lives in. Wanna know more...

What prompted you to get your site get started?
When I started to get more serious about my photography I decided to start a website to feature my work. At the time I just thought it would be something fun to do. I had no idea what I was doing and my first website was horrible. As time went on I started to learn more about how to build a website and created HotRodDolls.com. I also discovered MySpace which has been a wonderful way to promote my work as well.

Who are you going after in terms of customers?
I am a freelance photographer that is available for private session/commissioned work, commercial, portraits, editorial, promotional shoots for bands, and model portfolios.

Do you have things like referral programs in place? If so, how does this help your business?
I get most of my business from word of mouth, my website, past publications, and my MySpace page.

What advice can you give people who want to start an online business?
I don't know if I would consider what I do an "on line business." My website is mainly to showcase my work to potential clients that would be interested in hiring me for photo shoots. So I honestly don't have any advice for people trying to start that kind of business. I would say that starting any kind of business takes thick skin, a lot of dedication, hard work, and patience.

How many different products do you sell?
I sell signed prints of my work in my Cartfly store along with autographed magazines which my work was featured in.

What are some of  your best sellers?
My most popular print is the Pinup Dream Machine photo of Asia DeVinyl.

What can you tell me that people might want to know about you/your company?
There is nothing in the world that I would rather be doing then taking photographs. I am truly in love with photography and I put that passion into everything I shoot!

How did you find out about Cartfly?
I found out about Cartfly from my friend and model Amina Munster.

How has Cartfly helped you?
Cartfly has been a great way for me to sale prints of my photographs.  It's so easy to use and update.  It's also another great way for people to discover my work. I love Cartfly!

You can also find Lesley's on Deviant Art, Twitter and Model Mayhem. Look her up and send her some love!

Featured Cartfly Merchant: Spaceboy Johnny Osborne

Daryll Osborne is obsessed with "tits-n-bums and hotrods" and these themes permeate  throughout his artworks. His mediums of choice are oils, acrylics, watercolors, gouache, pencil, digital as well as sculpture and his subjects vary from zombies and pinups, to cartoons, mermaids and of course custom cars. If you happen to be in Australia, his work is available for viewing and sale at the Kustom Lane Gallery in Melbourne but is of course online for the rest of us.

With an introduction like that, what more could you possibly need to know about this artist?? Osborne's interests run the gamet and include  Kustom Kulture, Rockabilly, Psychobilly, Gothettes, visiting cemetaries, pin-up gals and dancing. He drives a hearse and also produces high quality clip art graphic images for MyPSPTubes.com.

Osborne had a "desire to get my art seen like everybody else on the net" and started his "very easy to set up" Cartfly store for just that reason. You can see his shops on the official Spaceboy Johnny website and MySpace page. Osborne knows "it's important to have many avenues that people can use to buy from you" and this was a no brainer. "Honestly, it's a big world and we cant all be selling all the time. It can take a long time to get noticed and build a fan base."

Be on the look out for more sites from this entertaining entrepreneur. "I am soon to start a new dot com and MySpace under the name 'Tittylatte' to market just my girly art." We can't wait!!!

Featured Merchant: Matthew Dunn

Matthew Dunn, a Melbourne, Australia based artist is working on his second book in a series of graphic novels all gathered under the title of Lonely Monsters. Lonely Monsters is set in a world 12 months after a Zombie outbreak has occurred in Australia and threatens to spread to the rest of the world. Dunn also produces a weekly webcomic Savage Bastard, sells art and t-shirts and works on various freelance illustration and storyboard projects.

Just like our other Featured Merchants, I had the chance to interview Matthew and he had lots to say.

CartFly: Who is your target audience?

Dunn: A lot of my work is geared towards people that are into comics and horror, but a lot of the work is open enough to grab the attention of others.  With each book I release the theme of my work will shift, so the possible audience will probably shift a little with it.

CartFly: What advice can you give people who want to start an online business?

Dunn: Be patient, be focused, don't give up, and make sure you have fun doing it.

Cartfly: What are some of  your best sellers?

Dunn: The graphic novel pack is popular, which includes the graphic novel, a signed print, and a fantastic soundtrack CD produced by a US-based band known as The Hope Symphony. Prints are also being received well.

Cartfly: How many different products do you sell?

Dunn: At the moment I sell my graphic novel Lonely Monsters along with original sketches and signed A3 prints. I'll be adding some t-shirts in the near-ish future.

CartFly: What can you tell me that people might want to know about you and your company?

Dunn: My company is basically me, at home, drawing comics, zombies, girls and other fun things. I occasionally leaving the house to try and sell stuff.  My second graphic novel is in the works and will be released in the latter half of 2009. In the mean time, I'm doing various freelance jobs here and there...so I can make more money to by more 3A toy robots.

Cartfly: Why should people do business with you?

Dunn: I'm upfront, efficient, honest, and definitely won't screw anyone around...as I myself hate being screwed around.

CartFly: How has Cartfly helped you?

Dunn: I have been selling my art locally but wanted to make it available to a larger audience. Print-on-demand services can be quite good, but they don't have the direct hands-on approach I was wanting to establish, so my journey led me to Cartfly. It's has provided me with a very user-friendly online home and helped get my art out to a wider audience.

You can find Dunn's Cartfly store on his blogs (above) and MySpace page. If zombie's are your thing, there is also a great review of the first Lonely Monsters book here. Good luck with the second one Matthew...we can't wait to read the stories of other survivors!!

Featured Merchant: KoiStudios

For an artist, Stephanie Amos has a pretty interesting story. At first, college was not her thing so for 5 years she became a commercial fisherman on the Bering Sea...possibly the toughest girl ever ; ) After a knee injury, she decided to give the school thing another try and went back to study art. She is now focused totally on her passion and operates KoiStudios as the channel for her painting, sculpture and a photography.

Stephanie started KoiStudios online in 2005 due to the lack of art enthusiasts where she was living. She joined sites like EBSQ, Hometown Art Gallery, and Boundless Gallery and has been leaving her mark ever since. "I'm a small business owner that likes to work one-on-one with my customers. My main goal is to touch people with my art, so if something I made speaks to you, then I've done my job." Apparently she is touching many people out there as she has built a great referral business through her friends, family and clients. "I'm loyal, honest and here to make you happy."

I asked Stephanie what advice she could give people who want to start an online business and she replied, "Make sure to have a website and an email address where you can be contacted. These are a must for doing business." She also has a MySpace page, a blog and her multiple Etsy shops where she sells her paintings, sculptures, photography and pottery.

Stephanie stumbled upon another artist featuring their work on MySpace through a Cartfly store so she "decided it was time for me to get one too. Cartfly draws a lot of attention with its simple design layout and easy checkout process." Just like many of you merchants out there, Stephanie did not want to feel left behind, so register for your free Cartfly store today!!