THE INSPIRATION PLACE PODCAST
Martha Brane: Because of the software company I had. I understand how many challenges there are to getting a business going. Plugging through things and hopefully that you’re on the right track. But so many artists just take a class, they start to paint and they don’t have any sales and marketing. And I go, what are you doing? They’re not doing the sales and marketing and they’re not reaching out to get that.
Speaker 2: It’s The Inspiration Place podcast with artist Miriam Schulman. Welcome to The Inspiration Place podcast, an Art World insider podcast for artists by an artist, where each week we go behind the scenes to uncover the perspiration and inspiration behind the art. And now your host, Miriam Schulman.
Miriam Schulman: Today’s guest has a career that has seamlessly blended technology and creativity. She has taken on many roles, including a wife, a mother, a nana and a pioneer in the computer industry. In the early 80s, she founded a software company that developed the first personal computer golf game that sold nationwide. Despite those accomplishments in technology, Art entered her life much later, fueled not by formal training but by an inner passion for creativity and exploration. But one of the main reasons I invited our guest to the podcast today is because she is one of my successful Artist Incubator members, and I know you’re going to love hearing the inside scoop on what has made her the success that she is today. Please welcome to the Inspiration Place. Martha brain. Well, hey, Martha, welcome to the show.
Martha Brane: Oh, Miriam, thank you so much for having me. It certainly is my pleasure. Very big pleasure. Very much so.
Miriam Schulman: Okay, so my job here, as I told you before we hit record, is to make you feel as comfortable as possible. I know going on podcast is not something that you do every day. Is this your first time on a podcast?
Martha Brane: Yes it is.
Miriam Schulman: Oh, congratulations.
Martha Brane: Yeah yeah yeah.
Miriam Schulman: And probably not the last.
Martha Brane: I hope not. I plan on it being many more.
Miriam Schulman: Okay, so I know I’m not allowed to share how old you are, but I do want to let people know that you are grandma.
Martha Brane: Yeah. And you’re.
Miriam Schulman: And your baby. Your your daughter is. How old?
Martha Brane: 52. Well, I’m okay with that. I actually am okay with that because, you know, back in the day, we had children. A lot of them had children young, very young. So, you know, then people can figure from there they’ll know I’m not a, you know, spring chicken.
Miriam Schulman: Well, one of the reasons I did want to start there, Martha, is because I do have so many artists who are within ten years of you, plus or minus.
Martha Brane: Sure.
Miriam Schulman: Who like and even the younger ones who feel like it’s too late for them. And yeah. When did you start focusing on your art?
Martha Brane: When I was 50.
Miriam Schulman: Okay. So. Yeah. And you’ve really come a long way I want. This wasn’t in your bio, Martha, but you’re represented by more than one gallery.
Martha Brane: Right?
Miriam Schulman: And you’ve had some recent success since you’ve joined the Artist Incubator.
Martha Brane: Oh, definitely.
Miriam Schulman: Let’s talk about that.
Martha Brane: Okay. Well, I want to go back just a little bit about before the recent successes. I think that what you have done was to set up the stage for the recent successes.
Miriam Schulman: Okay. So why don’t. That’s a good point. Let’s circle back. Because I do like to normally start in this place is what things were also like before you joined, because often I’ll have a guest on the podcast and Artist Incubator success story, right? And what goes through my listeners minds is that, well, she was always successful and you have had a lot of success, but I do want to paint like a truer picture of like what it was like before you joined and what led you to that decision to make that jump?
Martha Brane: Oh, definitely. That that’s where I feel, you know, I feel really comfortable in sharing that because I had been successful and I had sold a lot of paintings. But I also realized that I was not up to date with the current technology of selling online and and having an online presence of something deeper. So that is where I came in to looking for some good sales and marketing current up to date that would help me make the next leap, which has been the case. So even though I had a website, I needed to do a lot of changes to make it more up to date. I was interested in publicity. I didn’t know where to begin. The email marketing was certainly something. I had done a few emails, but I didn’t really have a handle on that at all. So I really felt like in order for me to make the next leap, I needed to get more sales and marketing involved with my work because I felt like my work was really getting very strong and I wanted it to be out in the public more. So that’s where it that’s where it all began with me. So going back and starting in the class, to be able to have someone to that has the resources and can show me this is what you do with the website. This is what you need to needed to be thinking about publicity. So it’s not just a the how to do’s, but it’s the resources there that I had to then move on to the direction that I was interested in going in.
Miriam Schulman: I do want to share with our listeners that you are part of the inner circle, and I remember when you came for that discovery call and you brought your darling husband with you. So there must have been some trepidation about taking that next step, or he might have had some anxiety on your behalf. Would you like to share the feelings that one or both of you were having then?
Martha Brane: Oh, I’d be I’d be happy to. I was really on board with doing it. And my husband, Louis, has been extremely supportive of everything that I do, and I just wanted him to hear what it was that I was embarking on. So so that he could be a part of the team of me going forward. Because now all he hears is Miriam said this. Miriam said that I’m doing this because Miriam is like that. And he goes, and I go, well, we were talking about this morning. I said, I think you know Miriam pretty well by now. And he goes, yeah, I think so. It’s been great because the, because the, the information that you have shared with me has made all the difference in the world, in where I am today, into the, my art and where I can see also the vision of how much farther I can go. And a lot of people at my age wouldn’t be thinking about how much farther you could go. And I go, why not? What’s to hold me back? Why wouldn’t I try? I mean, and if you don’t try, you’ll never know. And I’m always into for trying new things and just see what I can do. So. So I’m all up and ready to keep moving along on what I’ve where I’ve been going. And, and my whole emphasis was to go more into a business to business type transactions or with my art, as I had done years ago. I was very familiar with that and liked working in that environment. So I’m in a galleries. I also now am going to drop a collection to a national fine art print that does business to business transactions, which I’m thrilled. I’m working on the collection now, and, uh, that should drop sometime this summer.
Miriam Schulman: So that is the organization that’s in Atlanta, correct?
Martha Brane: That’s correct. Level 57.
Miriam Schulman: Congratulations. Can you share some of those details you’ve shared previously with me about, like, what kind of reach that this organization has been able to do for you.
Martha Brane: Oh, this the level 57, as I said, is an is a national company. They’re the biggest fine art print company in the US. But they do all business to business. So they they sell to some retailers like Ethan Allen as an example. And they also sell directly into healthcare, hospitality and those type of markets. So and they’re also expanding internationally. So I feel that my work will be shown across the United States, which I’m was one of my goals about. The type of work I’m doing now is that it’s based in a very positive, happy type Pieces. And so just like you can see in the in the background, there’s my happy bluebirds. And I just enjoy sharing those and hopefully bring some happiness or some, you know, smile to people’s faces. That’s just what I’m about.
Miriam Schulman: Okay. What has been your biggest surprise, Martha, about what you’ve learned through the incubator and the inner circle in terms of your how to present yourself in your marketing and your sales?
Martha Brane: Oh, the biggest surprise. I think the biggest surprise has been my change in my mindset. The mindset is integral in making anything happen, and I think that your programs like your ass, Miriam, anything. And of course in the inner circle where we get direct contact with you as to what else we might should do. But I have to say, to begin with, I was concerned that maybe I bit off more than I could chew. I had that concern and listening to the momentum maker Mondays were phenomenal. They just really help you look at how you’re thinking and how to see that a lot of your thinking is from years ago that you need and maybe and a lot of that thinking is not true. You really need to to look at where it is. So going through that momentum maker Monday is the first month or so was integral in helping me change my mind of how I was perceiving what I’m doing and moving forward.
Miriam Schulman: Hey, I wanted to interrupt this juicy conversation because if, like Martha, you’re a mature Our artist with brilliant work and no roadmap. Or you’re a queer creative looking to reclaim a voice in a space that historically have been built to silence you, or you’re a neurodiverse creative who is rejecting the old templates or professionalism. Or perhaps you’re a grieving artist looking to use your pain to reframe it as sacred fuel. Or perhaps you’re just a spiritual entrepreneur tired of branding your intuition into a sales funnel? You’re my people. And whether you join us for the boot camp happening at the end of April, that’s SchulmanArt.com/bootcamp. Or if you’re listening to this months later and you want to learn more about my programs, about my philosophies, and how I work, you can go over to Schulman Art. Schulman Art s h u m a n r t slash masterclass. I’d love to have you join me so that you can get to know how you can sell more of your art without burning out. Visibility is a sacred act, not just a marketing tactic. Pricing your art is about your self-worth, not a spreadsheet. Promoting your art is a form of creative devotion, not just noise. And your art matters beyond productivity, likes and sales. If you’re looking to make a sustainable living as an artist and you want to protect your creative integrity, you have your home here inside the inspiration Place and it would be my honor to show you the way. So again, head on over to Schulman Art. To learn more about what life is like inside the Artist Incubator. All right, now let’s get back to the show. One thing I definitely want to unpack with you today is I have been sharing here on the podcast and my YouTube channel, color trends.
Martha Brane: Are.
Miriam Schulman: And I know that you were very resistant to that advice. So let’s talk about that. First share with for people who cannot see the painting behind you, share with them your color palette and your feelings around that.
Martha Brane: Okay, my love of colors are blues and greens, so most everything that I do centers are around that theme. And so when the brown tones came into being the color trend to mocha something. Mocha I was merriment. You had said to me, oh well, you need to integrate that. And I went, that’s not one of my colors. That was my that was my very first, you know, like, no, I don’t do that. And then I got to thinking about it and I said, well, no, I’m, I’m up to the challenge. How would I integrate that into my work? So I started to really think about it. And then especially with the level 57 and it being into the national market and into interior decorators and things, I said, you really should figure out how that goes. And I like the color, but I just haven’t integrated it with my work. So I turned my head. And so that was part of that mental focus. So then I started thinking how I could do it. So then I realized that in my bluebirds. Because in this like this particular painting behind me. The outside circle could be any color. And I had it gray and in a gray tones, which is where I. Normally go. But then I said, oh no, I think this one will look great in brown. So I actually have painted. This is the second time I painted it another brown. That’s a warmer tone, but I’m now I’m, I’m, I’m getting ready to do some seagulls and those seagulls are going to have brown in them. So I’ve, I’ve decided that I can figure out how to do this was actually brown and blue go well together. So I was it’s just was a focus. You got to change your mindset about how you think about things.
Miriam Schulman: And it looks amazing. I also wanted you to share what some of the art consultants said to you about Brown.
Martha Brane: Oh yeah, that that the art consultant for the for an installation in Fort Lauderdale had said that she was looking for earth tones. And as soon as as soon as I saw that, I said, okay, where’s the brown? And definitely realized that I’d be missing out on a lot of opportunity just because I wasn’t using Brown. And I, you know, I feel like, okay, well, I think there’s a message there. I think I need to integrate it and, and learn how to be more open to things like that. So so it’s been good. I’m, I’m happy that I realized that.
Miriam Schulman: And then the question that that asks is, do you feel that having that constraint of introducing earth tones, that that hamper your creativity or expand it?
Martha Brane: Oh, it definitely expand. Definitely. Sometimes you just need you just need I don’t know, I don’t want to say a hammer, but sometimes you just need some little thing to go, okay. And then think about it. Realize that it’s like solving any other problem you have with art or life or things. You just need to spend some time concentrating on it and figure out how you can do that. So it’s a mindset, but I got that one turned. I love.
Miriam Schulman: It. Okay. So now we’re going to we’re going to unpack a little bit more of the details behind your success. Because that’s the question I get asked a lot. Well Miriam I want more I want more details. How did she do it? So I wanted to talk to you about your email marketing and your list building. I know that you already had a list when you started, right? So share with us what has been the success of using email marketing for you?
Martha Brane: For me, email marketing has just been trying to get more. I had been doing it for on a weekly basis before the before I started in the year program. And what I have found is that I needed to make them more what I call user friendly and make them more open and and that has and I have seen a trend change in looking at the MailChimp statistics in that there is more open and more click through. Now that I’ve changed the dynamics of what was written into the emails, and that had to do with what you would have taught and how to communicate, how to build a relationship. Those things are, you know, critical in everything, and it doesn’t matter. It’s the website or publicity or email marketing. Any of it is that you communicate on the level of to the other person of what is important to them. So. Yes. Yeah.
Miriam Schulman: Even if you use AI to help you.
Martha Brane: Oh, definitely not a writer, but I’m also have learned how to edit and do much better on that. At least it gives me something to start on. And that actually has been a big help to me, because that has always been a deterrent, because I go to when I go to think about writing, which is not my strong point, I go, oh, what am I going to write? And now I have something, at least to start with, and go from there. It’s just like an idea and a painting. You have an idea and then you start. You don’t know where it’s going to go, but it gives you some structure to work from. And so that’s been a big help and a very big help actually.
Miriam Schulman: Let’s see if we can, before we wrap up, give three tips that listeners can use in terms of how to change their Emails, because sometimes I’ll hear from people who they read my book, or even sometimes people inside the incubator be like, I think I’m doing everything right, but really they’re just missing something. That’s a little bit of a nuance. That is one of the benefits of when you do upgrade to Inner Circle is you do get my eyes on your email so I can point out to you like, oh, remember I told you this one thing, here’s where you can make it better. Tip one email subject line. Do you remember what it was before and then how we’ve changed it?
Martha Brane: Yeah, well, I have always had the subject line to be an emoji heart, and it used to say new painting and emoji heart. So I had the two red hearts up and I used that actually as my branding, so that when it came through on the email, you would notice those two red dots which.
Miriam Schulman: Which by the way, the emojis were a great idea. However, tell us what you’ve changed.
Martha Brane: Oh, I’ve now I’ve tried to change it to little queries as to how they might want to open it and look at it further. So I’ve changed the writings of them, of using words that make you go. I wonder what she’s talking about more than anything else.
Miriam Schulman: Yeah. So what I had pointed out to Martha is that she was using the words new painting every single time. Right. And people won’t necessarily be curious then to open the email. And this is a big mistake, I see not just with artists, but other people too. There’s a pretty well known decorator I follow and she does a good job with the email itself, but her subject line is from the desk of every single time, and that doesn’t really make you want to open the email, because all the subject lines are the same. Okay, so that’s tip number one. Vary your subject line. Tip number two is going to be removing basically what I like to call this was advice that worked in 2010 or 2015, but doesn’t work in 2025 because things have changed. What was one of the big things that I made you change, Martha, about your email?
Martha Brane: Oh, well, that that was that was definitely it. I had the picture across the the front of one of my paintings and me, before you even got Started into the email so that all went away. And now and let.
Miriam Schulman: Me just interrupt you, because I want to make sure that the listener knows what we’re talking about. So again, this is not just special to artists. I see a lot of people doing this and that’s having an email banner going across your email. Now, ten years ago, people did this because it made them look more professional. So I get why you would want to do that, but what it does to the person opening it, first of all, it signals to them what I’m about to read is a newsletter. So that is no bueno. And the second thing it does is it starts your email with a picture and a link, which does trigger some deliverability issues because Gmail or other email programs will are more likely now to interpret your email as being a newsletter, which means it will be more likely to end up in people’s promotion tab instead of their inbox, or even in their spam filter, which we don’t want to happen. So that was tip number two. Do not start your email with a banner. So tip number three, we talked about the subject line. We talked about how you changed how you start your emails. What is the biggest change you’ve made about ending your emails?
Martha Brane: Ending my emails. I didn’t have anything except for my address and how to get in touch with me. The the general things. So what Miriam had said to me is that you need to have a mini bio. So now I have written a mini bio and put it at the end of the email. And I realized that that was really what should always have been there, because most of the time people will get on and find you in different ways, but they really don’t know much about you. And this is your chance to tell more about your story.
Miriam Schulman: Yes. And also sometimes they get on your email list and they forget how they got on your email list. And it’s a great way to remind them who you are. And I always think it’s a great idea in that little mini bio to put a nice, happy, smiling picture of yourself because it just helps remind the person reading your email that there’s a human being on the other side.
Martha Brane: Right.
Miriam Schulman: Okay.
Martha Brane: You know, I cannot thank you enough. You know, you are such an incredible resource for artists. Really. I mean, so many artists just they go, you take a class, they start to paint, but they don’t have any sales and marketing. You know, I had some years ago, but it’s not relevant to today. The the general idea that you needed is but the rest of it, I really felt lost. And that was when I had listened to the your incubator messages and I kept going, this is the woman I want to work with. I this is right on where I want to go. I need to know these things in order to move on. And I actually believe that my website, with all the changes that I made that you had said, okay, change this, help with the about page and stuff made the difference in me getting like a level 57 and this installation because it looks more professional, no question. You know, it relates more to the people than it did before. And and I find it astounding. I look at artists websites all the time and, and most of them are not trying to relate to the people looking at their work. It’s just really fascinating.
Martha Brane: And even the pieces of art that I’ve had purchased, I don’t get emails from these artists. Yeah. And these are some national artists. And I go, what are you doing? But I think it goes back to the fact that they spend all their time working on their art, trying to create a better painting, which you have to do that and try to get in a gallery, and some of them don’t even do a good job at that. And they’re not doing the sales and marketing and they’re not reaching out to get that. But I don’t, like I said, until I came across you, I’m like going you’re demeanor. You’re you have such a great way of relating with people. When I listen to what how you speak with me and how you speak with the others. You always have a kind heart. And that means a lot to me too, is to that is that you’re trying to build them up. And that’s part of what your job is, and you do a great job of that. So I just go, I can’t. For me, one of the motivators is I spent so much money by damn sure I’m going to get my money’s worth, you know?
Miriam Schulman: Well, I say this to people when they ask me what percent of people get the results. I said 100% of the people who do what I say.
Martha Brane: Exactly.
Miriam Schulman: And that’s the the problem is that when people ask me that question is like, well, how am I supposed to answer that? Because not everybody takes my advice and I appreciate what you what you shared. I know I’m very direct because.
Martha Brane: I have to be.
Miriam Schulman: I’m very like, but it comes and I don’t sugarcoat things just because I like to receive direct feedback and not second guess it.
Martha Brane: Me too. Me too.
Miriam Schulman: So.
Martha Brane: Me too.
Miriam Schulman: Because it’s. It’s too hard to get lost in the subtleties when you’re trying to be nice and people miss out on what you’re really trying to tell them.
Martha Brane: Right. No, I know, I think you do a fantastic job, and I realize that it’s mostly mindset. Yeah, mine mindset is the problem.
Miriam Schulman: Mindset is a lot more than people. Ever. Yeah. And I do tell people that as they go through the boot camp. But I know that people want to hear mostly about the money and they don’t understand, like how much they are sabotaging their own success.
Martha Brane: So and I understand it too, because I know that I’ve had to push through at times too. So I mean, everybody does. I know everybody does. I know, I know. Right, right.
Miriam Schulman: We all do. We’re not we’re not like we haven’t reached.
Martha Brane: We’re not a robot.
Miriam Schulman: Exactly. We’re not a robot. And we haven’t reached that evolved nirvana state.
Martha Brane: So we’re all exactly up there on the top of the pyramid, right? Yeah, right. I know, I know, I know, I just find it. I just have found the whole experience just extremely fascinating, actually. I’ve, I’ve enjoyed seeing what other people have to say, what they do, because I don’t have that connection of artists here in Gainesville. And I had tons in Charleston when I was there. But yeah, it’s it’s just really different. I need it. I’m not I’m not going to spend all my time trying to hunt the internet and try to find this. And then that’s what you that’s your.
Miriam Schulman: That’s my job to do that for you. And also because I work with so many artists, I see what other people are trying so and what works and what doesn’t across not just for myself now. You know, I brought 20 years of my own experience, but now I have the experience of working with dozens of other artists and seeing what works and what doesn’t work.
Martha Brane: Across.
Miriam Schulman: Many different genres.
Martha Brane: Well, it’s not only that, it’s how you’ve built your business. That’s what I look at, too. I go, oh, well, listen, because of the software company I had, I understand how many challenges there are to getting a business going, getting it started, keeping with it in your mind how you have to keep, you know, plugging through things and hopefully that you’re on the right track and then you go, okay, well, that didn’t work. Let me go over here. And there’s a lot of maneuvering to go on in doing that. So, you know, my hats go off to you in that regard too, is how you built your business and what you’ve done. I mean, I go, this this chick is. Yeah. So I can sing your praises all day long.
Miriam Schulman: Thank you. Martha. Is there anything else you want to share with artists out there before we end this podcast?
Martha Brane: I do. I’ve said I have thought a lot about this and being on the podcast that, you know, we take a lot of art classes and things to get our art better, but we really need to also make sure that we take some classes in sales and marketing, and particularly with you, you are focusing on art, and it makes it easy for people who are not familiar with sales and marketing, have not been doing sales and marketing to be able to integrate their art with it. They don’t have to say, oh, this is another subject you’re talking about art. And you put in and you keep reiterating the different things that are going on in the art world, which I find just really fascinating, and I think that you just have to do it. You have to be positive, you have to try new things and just see what happens. Because if you don’t try, you’ll never know.
Miriam Schulman: All right. All right. Martha, thank you so much for being on today’s show.
Martha Brane: Oh. Thank you.
Miriam Schulman: How much fun. And it’s been such a privilege to coach you on your journey. All right, everyone, thank you for being with me here today. And I will see you the same time, same place next week. Until then, stay inspired. Bye for now.
Speaker 2: Thank you for listening to The Inspiration Place podcast. Connect with us on Facebook at facebook.com/schulmanart, on Instagram @schulmanart and of course, on SchulmanArt.com.
Subscribe & Review in iTunes
Are you subscribed to my podcast? If you’re not, I want to encourage you to do that today. I don’t want you to miss an episode. I’m adding a bunch of bonus episodes to the mix and if you’re not subscribed there’s a good chance you’ll miss out on those. Click here to subscribe in iTunes!
Now if you’re feeling extra loving, I would be really grateful if you left me a review over on iTunes, too. Those reviews help other people find my podcast and they’re also fun for me to go in and read. Just click here to review, select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” and let me know what your favorite part of the podcast is. Thank you!