Artists: How to get noticed and make money from digital art

Art is art, it will always be a universal expression of creativity, imagination and storytelling, whether through music, painting, sculpting, or even digital art. And you should be paid for it.

You’ve spent a lot of time and effort honing your craft to accomplish something personal and meaningful, and yet your audience is limited to your social media, your friends, or your own website. Here’s how to get your digital art noticed, and make money from it.

For those that haven’t heard of IMVU or remember virtual worlds from a decade ago, IMVU is not only the original lean startup, but is also the largest avatar-based social network and is growing. While the Executive staff reels off enviable metrics such as 200 million users who can explore over 10,000 rooms and purchase over 40 million items made by 40,000 creators, there’s no question that the backbone of the IMVU platform comes from the Creator community who boast earning potentials that rival worldwide entry-level salaries.

Be Your Own Boss

Hungry amateur artists are finding new ways to turn a dime on the Internet. Now they are streaming on Twitch, funding their talent on Patreon, or uploading sponsored videos on YouTube because content creation is the new way for creators to make money.

IMVU Creator: @Izis

“I create for IMVU because as a creative person, I was looking for more opportunities to create beyond drawing and painting. I love PhotoShop, and I love how IMVU gave me the opportunity to incorporate fashion into my creativity. Today, I get paid by IMVU for the sales of my designs, which motivates me to create more everyday.” — Izis

Being a Creator on IMVU is a bit like starting your own brand in the real world. Whatever you choose to create — avatar DNA, clothing and accessories, or furniture for chatrooms — you have an opportunity to make a name for yourself with the potential of being recognized by millions of IMVU users. To get started is fairly simple and comes with a few requirements, but nothing more difficult than the graphic design, 3D mesh, or animation talent that you bring to the table. Once you get started, you become your own boss.

Just like any other small business owner, the benefits speak for themselves. Work on your own terms and on your own schedule. Control your income sources. Create anything you can imagine. You retain full control. Want to run ads or partnerships with other Creators? That’s cool with us. You focus on creating, we’ll take on the heavy lifting: deal with customer questions, chase down declined payments, shield you from chargebacks, and catch fraud before it hits your balance.

No hidden fees. To be an IMVU Creator costs less than $10 per month and each Creator cashes out 100% of their royalties with no fee.

Marketing yourself? We’re here to help.

“Creating for IMVU was a hobby first. I wanted to create things which my friends and I would enjoy. Creating didn’t come naturally, and I was young when I started 10 years ago. IMVU offered an opportunity and a community to allow me to develop my skills and improve with each product. Later earning credits and then money was rewarding and meant that I could have a hobby that led to a profit.” — @Jamo

Join over 40,000 artists who have access to a captive audience of over 200 million people who spend an average of 150,000,000 Credits per day. (Ask us how much that is in dollars.) Many of you spend hours on Instagram scrolling, liking, sharing, following/unfollowing or lost in site maps, writing about yourself (ugh) and trying to sell your content.

How about this? Create something brilliant. Upload it with a simple title, name your own price, and add a photo. Done. Yes, it helps to share your designs with your fans and let them know when you have created something new, but we also have programs to help introduce you to the growing IMVU community.

IMVU supports the Creator Community with opportunities to grow your following by being featured in the IMVU newsfeed, Creator Showcase, and other widely visible IMVU Creator programs. As VIPs of IMVU, Creators are recognized as cornerstones of the community.

When opportunity knocks…

Last year, IMVU paid its Creators over $8 million, and this year the forecast looks even better, with the top Creators making an income that rivals a full-time salary in most geographical areas.

Creator: @Prim

“It was after a year that my creating really “took off” — and only after 6 or 7 months of consistently making more than I ever was. I quit my job and put my full focus on IMVU. It’s now been 3 years, I’m always learning new things and have multiple accounts making more than enough money for a “comfortable” life.” —  @Prim

If you’re an illustrator or an artist, IMVU is a great place to use your skills as a graphic artist, which is a highly visible, widely recognized role seen on IMVU clothing, accessories, furniture, room decorations, and more. Enjoy the benefit of having an ongoing revenue stream through your catalog exposed to over 200 million users every month.

If you are a 3D artist, you can import your 3D content using our FBX importer and then make it available to over 40,000 Creators ready to derive from your 3D meshes, using our unique derivation system. Enjoy getting paid every time another Creator sells a product with your original mesh. One mesh could potentially equal over 1,000 different derivations = money in your pocket every time one of those 1,000 derivations sells. 

Creator: @Whims

“I’d never done ANY digital art before, so I bought myself Paint Shop Pro and read tutorials. Eventually, I was able to hone my skills to the point where my efforts became profitable, and the rest is history.” — @Whims