Setting your open studio days

A collector who can see that your studio is open on Saturday from noon to five does not need to write to you, wait for an answer and negotiate a time. They can just put it in their weekend. That is the whole point of open studio days, and it is why the Studio Plan is built around them.

This chapter covers how the dates work on your page, how far ahead to plan, what a visitor actually sees, and what to do when a date no longer suits you.

1. How it works

Open studio days are part of the Studio Plan. You add them in the studio section of your page, where you edit everything else. For each open day you set:

• The date
• An opening time, for example 12:00 PM
• A closing time, for example 5:00 PM

Once saved, the dates appear on your public page under Open for visits, together with your exact address and a map. Collectors can see the days without asking you anything.

Your calendar tells people when the door is open. It is not a booking system. Some visitors will write first to say they are coming, most will not. Plan for people who simply turn up during your hours.

2. What a visitor sees

It helps to look at your page the way a stranger does. With open days set, a visitor sees:

• A clear list of dates and hours
• Your full address and where it is on the map
• The option to message you anyway

Without open days, your page shows an invitation to send a message and make an appointment. That still works, and plenty of visits start that way. But every one of those visits has to be arranged by hand. Dates turn a maybe into a plan.

3. How many dates, and how far ahead

Start with fewer dates than you think. One open afternoon a month, kept reliably, beats four that you cancel.

• Plan three to six weeks ahead. Most people plan their weekends a week or two out. Dates that are already on your page when they start looking are the ones they can use.
• Always have at least one date showing. A calendar with nothing on it reads as closed. Before your last date passes, add the next one.
• Keep a rhythm. “First Saturday of the month” is easier for people to remember and for you to keep than a scattered set of days.

4. Choosing days and hours

• Weekends are when people visit. Saturday and Sunday afternoons are the obvious choice. A weekday evening can work if your building or neighborhood already has foot traffic then.
• Four to five hours is enough. Long enough that people can fit it in, short enough that you can stay fresh. Noon to five is a good default.
• Pick hours with good light. Your work looks best in the light you painted it in. If your studio gets afternoon sun, open in the afternoon.
• Leave time on either side. You need an hour before to set up and some time after to clear away. Getting your studio ready for a visit has the checklist.
• Check your building. Some buildings lock the street door on weekends or switch off the elevator. Find out before you publish a date.

5. HEYATELIER Weekends

On the Studio Plan you take part in HEYATELIER Weekends automatically. A group of studios in one city opens on the same weekend, so collectors can walk from one to the next. When a Weekend is announced for your city, you choose that date in the same place you set your open days. Your first HEYATELIER Weekend covers the preparation.

6. When a date no longer suits you

It happens. A deadline, an illness, a family thing. What matters is that nobody stands in front of a locked door.

1. Remove the date from your page as soon as you know. Not the night before. Every hour it stays up, someone can plan around it.
2. Write to anyone who told you they were coming. One short, specific message: “I have to close this Saturday, sorry. The next open day is the 14th, or I am happy to find another time with you.”
3. Put a new date up. A cancellation followed by a new date reads as busy. A cancellation followed by an empty calendar reads as gone.
4. If you only find out on the day, put a note on the street door as well. People do not check a website on the way there.

If you are closing for a longer stretch, a summer away or a big show to finish, just leave the calendar without dates. Your page and your work stay online, and people can still message you.

7. If you stop the Studio Plan

Your open studio dates move to unpublished in your account. They are not deleted. If you subscribe again, they come back and you can update them. Your page itself stays online as a free page.

The short version

• Open days are on the Studio Plan: a date, an opening time and a closing time
• Visitors see your dates, your address and a map, and can come without writing first
• Plan three to six weeks ahead and always keep one future date showing
• Weekend afternoons, four to five hours, when your light is good
• Check that your building is open on the days you pick
• If a date falls through, remove it right away, tell anyone who said they were coming, and add a new one