[SFM in KY]

Just wondering if this might bring in a bit more extra money during these troubled times. We could atv to the properties in the summer and snowmobile over in the winter so it would always appear that the place was being watched. Anybody have any advice or comment on this idea? sis

When my parents lived in Montana in the summer and Arizona in the winter, they had someone watching the Arizona place during the summer, much like the situation you had. Basic "systems check" ... made sure there wasn't any damage that could cause problems, keeping a bucket of water filled to add a bit of moisture to the air in the house, etc. Don't remember what they paid for it but they said that the people that did it had quite a few places on their list and did pretty well.

I would think ... if you are in an area where there is some year-round access and particularly if there has been a higher number of robberies in the area, that it would be something people would be willing to pay for.

You might check with the local sheriff's office and find out if they are getting more calls about robberies and/or vandalism in the rural areas. They would certainly be aware of "patterns" and are usually good about cooperating with people trying to help.

 

[SFM in KY]

Husband and I are in Kentucky, small farm, with horses/ponies ... and rabbits ... horses are marketed through the Internet and the rabbits will be. The rabbits are primarily for our table, though we are trading some locally for garden produce and I suspect there will be some local market for breeding stock and pets in the future.

I've had artwork as a home based "business" most of my adult life, sometimes mostly just for gifts for family and friends but at other times I worked at it with booth space at shows.

All of my experience is pre-Internet ... I've only had Internet access since I moved from Montana 9 years ago, to Kentucky, and here still do not have high speed available.

For all of the years in Montana, most of my work was commissioned portraits of horses and dogs for the owners ... had a booth and attended several dog shows and stock shows during the year and would take photos of the animal there to work from. Also did a couple of local art shows every fall for the Christmas market. Did almost no advertising, most of my work came from referrals or contact through the booth and had work on display at one of the local galleries most of the time.

One major problem I've found is that the art shows in this area are primarily craft shows and that is what the people attending are looking for. I've talked to the few "fine art" people I've seen and they pretty much say that their sales locally are abysmal, so I have ruled out art shows as a marketing plan. My experience in the "west" seemed to be that the people were more focused on "fine art" ... paintings, etc. ... while the people in this area seem to be primarily looking for "fine craft" ... quilts, baskets, pottery.

The difference in buying demographics ... and now the economy ... have been a major obstacle for me in developing a market for my artwork.