All artists wanna sell lots of art and get lots of press and have lots of shows and be lots of famous, right? Well, any artist who's made it will tell you that achieving these goals is a long, arduous, step-by-step process. That said, there's no shortage of artists out there who not only want it fast, but who also believe they can get it fast. For those of you who fall into that category, there's no shortage of promises and propositions floating around, offers to streamline the process and advance you to the endgame, some of which sound immensely compelling, and all which can be yours for varying amounts of outlay-- either cash or art or both. Yes, in exchange for your hard earned dollars, you can have endless opportunities to be in artist contests, competitions, exhibitions, annual juried shows, included in annual directories or guides, get gallery representation or exhibitions or shows, and more.

Unfortunately, many of these promises turn out to be wastes of time or money, or worse yet, outright scams. We all want it now, but please, whatever the proposal, use common sense and investigate it first. Maybe much of what you're about to read is stuff you already know, but just to make sure, we're gonna review and refresh anyway. Keep in mind that not all "opportunities" similar to those itemized here are problematic, but they should be regarded with caution. There's hardly anything more irritating than sending your money or your art off into the cosmos and receiving little or nothing in return, or worse yet, getting hoodwinked by a hustler. So let's play safe, play smart, and bolster the knowledge base...

CAREER MOVES THAT GET YOU NOWHERE FAST:

* Paying for mailing lists of galleries, agents, collectors, or any other arts-related professionals, businesses, or institutions that can supposedly advance your art career. This is almost always a complete waste of time and money, not only in terms of buying the lists, but also with respect to costs of designing and printing mailers. Mailing lists tend to be arbitrary and non-targeted (and often not even accurate), meaning that the overwhelming majority of recipients will have absolutely no interest in your art right from the start, and the rest will likely have no interest either because they have no idea who you are or why you're mailing them. Research potential contacts one by one to determine whether your art is right for them; getting personal is the only way to go.

* Pay-to-play galleries that want a chunk of money up front to give you shows or wall space, especially those that tantalize you with the prospect of exposure in major art centers like New York or London, especially those with fees ranging into the thousands of dollars. To begin with, what incentive does any venue have to sell your art when you pay them in advance? And how about this one-- do these galleries even know who you are or what your art looks like or are they just spamming you off some email or mailing list they bought? (Hint: I occasionally get offers to show my art at pay-to-play galleries, but guess what? I'm not an artist.) By the way, some of these galleries make it seem like all artists pay for their shows, no matter what galleries they show at. THIS IS NOT TRUE AND IT NEVER WILL BE. And some of these galleries make it seem like they have a selection process for the artists they exhibit. You know what that process is? You write them a check; they give you a show.

* Pay-to-play show offers that promise reviews of your art, exposure to curators or museums, significant advertising, and other forms of art world publicity. Verify all such claims. Which curators will see the art? What publications will print the reviews and are they in-house (published by the people giving you the show) or ones widely respected in art world? Which critics will write the reviews? What publicity will you get? Where will the advertising appear? What past successes can the gallery report? Do they even know who you are and what your art looks like or is their offer simply part of a mass mailing or emailing?

* Pay-to-play competitions, juried shows, contests, or annual exhibitions, especially those held at retail galleries, especially those without a history or tradition or without recognizable jurors or sponsors or locations, especially those with healthy entry fees. Verify the history, tradition, significance, and jurors of any such offer before entering or sending money. For example, I received an offer not too long ago about a competition that had supposedly been going on for the better part of 20 years. I emailed the sponsor and asked them to email me the winners of the past shows and-- you guessed it-- I never heard back.

* Pay-to-play books, magazines, or other types of directories that offer to include your bio and images of your art in exchange for anywhere from hundreds to thousands of dollars. Some publishers claim they send their publications out to thousands of international dealers, curators, museums, distributors, and collectors. Any such claims MUST be verified, not only in terms of whether the purported recipients actually receive the publications, but more importantly, whether they take them seriously. Before you send any money, ask for the names of 20 museums, galleries, or significant art world notables who receive the publication, and then selectively contact them to see whether they're ever heard of it, seen it, or taken it seriously.

* Pay-to-play websites offering to sell your art online for a fee. For instance, I recently received an invitation to sell my art (I'm not an artist, remember?) on "one of the world's most important art sites." Corroborate all such claims with concrete proof, in this case, that this website is indeed a major online player. (You can check any website's traffic and rankings on www.alexa.com.) Selling art online is never easy, especially if you're not well known, especially on a website that offers thousands of works of art by hundreds of artists (selling art with these odds is like winning the lottery).

* Unsolicited offers from total strangers to build you a website that will sell lots of art.

* Unsolicited offers from total strangers to get you high rankings on online search engines.

* Anyone who wants money to be your agent, broker, or representative. As with pay-to-play galleries, these individuals have no incentive to peddle your art when they get paid up front. If you want to pursue a fee-based agent or representative, ask for names of artists who they represent. Get at least five names and find out how often and how much those artists sell through that agent or representative.

* First-time contracts with dealers, agents, or galleries you're not familiar with that require long-term exclusivity agreements (greater than six months or a year), reproduction rights to works of your art that pay no residuals or royalties to you, or similarly one-sided concessions.

* Offers to purchase instructional books or courses that supposedly teach you how to make big money selling art on eBay, online, or in any other circumstance.

* Any pay-to-play offer from anyone who does not know who you are or what your art looks like.

POSSIBLE SCAMS:

* Offers to purchase your art, the purchase to be paid for by one party, and the art shipped to another party. This often results in a complaint that the art was never received and a subsequent request for a complete refund.

* Offers to pay for your art in forms of cash, including wire transfer to your bank account, money order, Western Union, cashier's check, or personal check-- especially when the amount of the payment is greater than the cost of the art (you're supposed to cash the money order or whatever, then send the buyer the art plus the amount of the overpayment. The bad news? The check or money order often turns out to be counterfeit).

* Credit card purchases (assuming you accept credit cards) where the name of the purchaser does not match the name on the credit card. Require the cardholder to personally contact you and verify that the charge is legitimate, and that he or she knows the buyer. And don't forget to get the card's security code. And ship the art only to the address of the cardholder.

* Email requests to buy your art, but that do not mention you by name and contain no specific information about either you or your art.

* Email requests to do business with you where you are asked to reply to an email address different than the originating address (unless the sender has a verifiable explanation for using an alternate email address).

* Anyone who contacts your gallery, agent, or representative claiming that you're in trouble, that you need money, and to send that money to a third party fast-- either by wire transfer or by Western Union. Believe it or not, this scam is actually going around, and I've heard of at least one gallery falling victim to it.

* Unsolicited communications from anyone you don't know claiming to have a piece or pieces of your art sold, to send them the art, and that they'll pay you either upon receiving it or after they get paid for it. These may occasionally be legitimate, but make sure you get references and verify whom you're dealing with before shipping anything off in the mail.

* Unsolicited or unqualified requests to send samples of your art to dealers, galleries, agents, or representatives you're not familiar with.

TIPS FOR EVALUATING OFFERS OR PROPOSALS:

* Find out how they heard about you. Ask what they know about you. Ask them to describe your art. If they're so sure they can advance your career, you would assume they know who you are and what your art looks like. The truth? Often, you're no more than a name on a bulk mailing or email list, and those making offers have no idea who you are.

* Ask for references. These include names of artists who have sold well, gotten shows, gotten reviews, or won prizes as a result of their participation. Verify that whoever or whatever it is has the reputation or influence they claim to have in the art community.

* Search online using the title of the event, or the name of the gallery or individual making the offer. Exercise due diligence here; don't just read a few top search results (those results may belong to the parties making the offers). And watch out when all you come up with are press releases written by the parties making the offers, and posted on free press release websites.

* Search online using the names of the individuals or businesses along with words like "scam" or "fraud" and see what comes up. You might be surprised.

* Speak to a principal either by phone or in person.

* When verifying claims, never accept generalities. For instance, a statement like "this publication will be distributed to museums worldwide" is not adequate. You want specific names and contact information.