Emile Haffmans

With the art market still adjusting to new conditions, galleries are rethinking how they connect with collectors and sell work. In our interview, Emile Haffmans, founder of Art World Marketing, shares what he’s seeing across the sector and where galleries should focus right now instead of waiting for the market to recover.

Q: The art market has been slow for a few years. What should galleries be doing now instead of waiting for things to “recover”?

A: In terms of marketing, I understand the instinct: when sales slow down, it feels natural to pull back on marketing spend. But we've watched this pattern play out repeatedly, and galleries that maintain or even increase their marketing efforts during downturns tend to recover faster and stronger. While one gallery pauses, another is gaining visibility, building relationships with new collectors, and positioning themselves for when buying confidence returns.

What's interesting is that the market isn't uniformly slow. Work under $5,000 continues to perform well, and most galleries can identify specific artists or mediums in their roster that are still selling. The strategic move is to lean into what's working, and use your marketing to spotlight those artists and price points rather than trying to push everything equally. It's about being adaptive rather than waiting passively for market conditions to change.

The galleries we work with that are doing well right now aren't doing anything radical. They're simply staying visible, staying engaged with collectors, and using this time to build the digital infrastructure that will serve them for years to come.

Q: Many galleries still make most of their revenue offline, while online sales remain below 10%. Why is this gap so persistent, and what needs to shift?

A: The art world has always valued creative innovation: new artistic voices, bold exhibitions, experimental programming. That's where galleries naturally focus their energy and resources, and rightfully so. But when it comes to innovating how art is sold and discovered, there's been more hesitation. I think that's understandable. The traditional model of art fairs, opening receptions, and personal collector relationships has worked beautifully for decades.

The pandemic forced a bit of a shift. According to the Art Basel UBS 2025 report, 18% of all art sales now happen online, which is 76% above pre-pandemic levels. That's a massive change. What it tells me is that collectors are ready and willing to buy online, but many galleries haven't yet built the infrastructure to meet them there.

The gap persists because there's often uncertainty about where to start. A gallery might have a website, an Instagram account, maybe a presence on Artsy, but these exist as separate efforts rather than working together as a cohesive system. The galleries bridging this gap aren't abandoning vernissages and art fairs. They're adding digital channels that work together with those traditional touchpoints to reach collectors they'd never meet otherwise.

Q: Digital marketing can feel at odds with the relationship-driven nature of art sales. How can galleries use it without losing authenticity?

A: This tension is real, and I think it's one reason some galleries hesitate with digital marketing. But I'd argue that digital channels, when used thoughtfully, can actually deepen relationships rather than replace them.

The best platforms understand this. Online viewing rooms and digital shows on Artlogic or Artsy allow galleries to showcase work with context and narrative, not just listings with prices. You're creating a curated experience that honors the artistic process.

What works well is thinking of digital marketing as relationship-building at scale. An Instagram post keeps collectors engaged between visits. A newsletter shares exhibition stories. Your website lets someone experience your gallery's vision before they visit. The authenticity comes from staying true to how you talk about art, just through different channels.

Q: You work exclusively with galleries around the world. What patterns do you see in those who grow their online sales compared to those who struggle?

A: The galleries that grow online sales think in systems rather than isolated efforts. They're not just posting on Instagram or updating their website occasionally. They're creating a cohesive presence across multiple touchpoints that work together.

Instagram, for example, is brilliant for nurturing collector relationships and staying visible, but it might not drive direct sales. The galleries doing well combine it with a well-optimized website, regular newsletters, and presence on art marketplaces like Artsy. Each channel has a role: Instagram builds awareness, the website provides depth and credibility, newsletters maintain engagement, marketplaces reach new audiences.

What I've noticed is that struggling galleries often have these pieces in place but treat them as separate tasks. The successful ones think about how a collector moves between these channels and create a consistent experience across all of them.

Q: Some galleries still think of marketing as a cost rather than an investment. How do you help them rethink that, especially in a tougher market?

A: I remind them that there are often multiple galleries representing the same artists, working in similar price ranges, offering similar art types, and often even on the same street. When one gallery pulls back on marketing, another is gaining ground. That competitive reality doesn't pause during slow markets.

But the more compelling argument is how certain marketing efforts compound over time. Take search engine optimization as an example. It's about making your website easier for collectors to find online. The first three to six months often show minimal results, which can be discouraging. But once it takes hold, the efforts of all those earlier months start to compound. Traffic builds, rankings improve, and you're generating collector inquiries that cost nothing beyond the initial investment.

That's why I always frame initiatives as building assets, not spending money.

Q: Looking ahead, what do you think will separate galleries that thrive over the next few years from those that simply maintain?

A: A willingness to adapt and experiment. The galleries that will thrive aren't necessarily the ones with the biggest budgets, but the ones paying attention to how collectors are discovering and buying art.

We're already seeing shifts in how people search for things online. AI-driven recommendations are changing user behavior across industries, and the art world won't be immune to this. A collector might soon ask a platform directly for recommendations rather than scrolling through lists of available works.

Being found that way is part of many of our gallery marketing strategies at Art World Marketing already, and we will soon introduce a platform called ArtPush for this. Ultimately, galleries that understand these changes and position themselves to be discovered in new ways will have an advantage.

But innovation doesn't mean chasing every trend. It means staying curious about how the landscape is evolving and being willing to test new approaches thoughtfully.

Q: Collectors often buy through emotion as much as logic. How well can that experience translate online, and where does it fall short?

A: It's a fair question, and I think the answer is both encouraging and honest: online can capture a lot, but not everything.

What online platforms do well is provide the information and visual experience that begins an emotional connection. High-quality images, detailed provenance, artist statements, installation views showing context. These tools help a collector imagine living with a piece. But there are many elements of a work that can't be replicated, like the texture, and often the scale.

Collectors vary enormously in what they need. Some are entirely comfortable buying significant works online. Others need multiple gallery visits before committing. The most successful approach isn't trying to force online to replace in-person experiences, but using digital channels to start conversations that can deepen however the collector prefers.

Q: More collectors are buying from abroad without seeing work in person. How can galleries build trust and connection across distance?

A: Transparency is everything. When a collector is considering buying from a gallery they've never visited, they're asking themselves questions: Who am I buying from? Why should I trust them? Is this an established gallery? How can I reach them if something goes wrong?

The galleries that succeed internationally answer these questions before they're even asked. They have clear information about their history, their expertise, their location. They show past exhibitions, share client testimonials, make it easy to contact them directly. High-quality documentation matters too: detailed condition reports, multiple images from different angles, accurate dimensions.

But beyond the practical elements, responsiveness builds trust quickly. A gallery that replies within hours, offers to arrange viewing appointments or video calls, and communicates clearly throughout the process makes distance feel much smaller.

Emile Haffmans founded Art World Marketing, a digital marketing agency that works with art galleries to build sustainable online sales channels. Learn more at artworldmarketing.com or connect on LinkedIn.