Digital art has been so successful in the digital world because it allows for creative expression in ways never seen before computers. It can be used to create pieces that are highly detailed and realistic, as well as abstract and imaginative.
Digital art can be used to create illustrations, animations, virtual reality, and video game designs. It is a medium that transcends the traditional two-dimensional boundaries of art and allows for more creative freedom.
Artists can combine different mediums, such as photography and painting, to create unique compositions, such as digital prints. The digital environment allows for quick, easy, and precise adjustments to be made, which can result in more dynamic and innovative works.
Learn how to sell digital art and prints on Shopify in the best possible way below.
What do I need?
- A Shopify store
- Fileflare Digital Downloads Shopify app (free plan available with unlimited bandwidth, orders & products)
You need this app because Shopify doesn’t have an in-built system for selling digital files.
They do have their own app, but it’s very poorly managed, has no upgrade options for when you grow, and got a bad rating as it breaks a lot. We go into it further in this article.
Quick overview
If you already have a Shopify store and have created your products on their Products page, then install the Fileflare app for free and begin uploading your digital art or prints to the app.
Next, simply attach those digital files to your relevant Shopify products, and now you’re armed and ready to start selling.
Once a customer places an order for a product, then any files attached to that product will be delivered instantly. Follow the guide below to learn more.
Look at these easy-to-follow video steps to see exactly how to use the app.
Why choose the Fileflare app?
The Fileflare app was created by Shopify experts who have built a lot of digital stores over the years. They know best how digital art & prints should be delivered. They have first-hand experience.
Plus, Shopify’s Digital Downloads app historically hasn’t been that great. Just look at the reviews and the ratings.
The Fileflare app features the best file protection features out of any other digital download app for Shopify. It also features the most user-friendly tutorials for everything.
How to sell digital art & prints on Shopify
It’s super simple to add digital art or prints. If you want to watch a video tutorial, scroll to the bottom and take a look.
Important preparation
- I am assuming you have already got a Shopify store. Create one if you haven't.
- You need to make sure that you have created your products in the Shopify dashboard “Products” page. You will need to create them before going to Step 1 below.
- Mark your products in Shopify as Digital. This can be done via the product editor.
Full video tutorial – sell digital art on Shopify
Written guide below video.
Step 1 – Install the digital art delivery app on your store
Once you have logged into Shopify, follow the next steps below.
You can click this link – Fileflare and then click the “Install” button to install it to your store.
When you get to the pricing page, scroll down and click the free plan or simply select a free trial of a paid plan.
Step 2 – Upload & attach the digital art prints to your Shopify products
Make sure that you have created your Shopify products in your store first. All your Shopify products will automatically sync to Fileflare.
- Go to Fileflare > click on "Products" and select a product
- Click the "Upload new assets" button
- Upload your files & click "Done"
- Now use the search box to search and select your uploaded files and then click "Attach"
If you have lots of assets and products, you can do this in bulk by attaching assets to products using a CSV. Please see our bulk CSV guide to learn more.
Step 3 – Customize your settings to suit your brand
There are a lot of different settings that you can use to set up the app. Here are some of those features:
- Using your own email for digital product delivery using SendGrid or SMTP
- PDF Stamping
- Display download links in the customers’ accounts and checkout summary page
- Set release dates on digital products
- Sell personalised digital products
- Connect an S3-compatible server
- API Access
- Updating files & notifying customers
- Customise email templates to improve branding
- Add & sell external URLs as assets, such as Dropbox links etc.
- Expire orders at a specific time or instantly
- Stats page
- Fraud protection – halt downloads if they’re high-risk fraudulent
- Restrict customers’ downloads to a number of IP addresses
- More storage allowance
- Data reports
Now you’re done!
That’s all you need to sell digital art or prints on Shopify. It’s much easier than you think. I hope this article has made you realise how straightforward it is. If you get stuck with anything, please contact us, and we’re always happy to help with stuff like this (for free!).
Selling large digital files? Go check our guide on the best route to sell large digital files on Shopify.
Marketing your digital products
Marketing is one of the most powerful skills in the world. You could have the best product, but if you don’t know how to sell it, then you’re not going to get any sales.
You need to make sure you have a solid list of platforms you can try to sell your digital art and prints on. Make sure that you have a plan, too.
The best marketing platforms (from our experience) are listed as follows:
- Influencers
- Google ads (YouTube and Google)
- Meta ads
- TikTok ads
- Twitter ads
- Snapchat ads
- Reddit ads
- LinkedIn ads
You will also need to get some help with creating video or photo content. This isn’t easy at all to do yourself as it takes so long to get the right stuff.
Where can I find content creators to help with marketing?
There is a wide range of places where you can find great content creators:
Social media
Simply look on social media and see their profiles. There are a lot of great creators out there these days who are super keen to create. Drop them a DM, and they will surely get back to you if you offer something.
Upwork or People Per Hour
Upwork or PeoplePerHour can be good for finding content creators but don’t expect the quality to be amazing. There are a lot of people on there who don’t really know what they’re doing. But you will find the odd gem here and there.
Word of mouth
Nothing is better than word of mouth, getting suggested someone by someone else who has had a great experience.
Mistakes to avoid when selling digital products
There are a lot of mistakes you can make when selling digital products. I would highly recommend you check out our guide 19 mistakes to avoid when selling digital products guide before you start!
If you have any questions, just contact us.
What are the best digital products to sell?
The question is, what digital products can I sell? We have one of the most successful digital download apps on Shopify with tonnes of data. We’ve compiled the best-selling digital files to help give you inspiration on what you can sell.
In short, there are a few that really sell more than others. See our list of the best-selling digital files:
- PDF files (best-seller)
- Zip files
- Images
- Audio files
- Video
- Documents
- Digital art
Surprised? It’s quite awesome seeing what the most popular file types are for selling on Shopify. If you are looking for more inspiration on what to sell, visit our guide above.