Faculty Syllabus

For this course, students must:

• Have at least 4 different completed pieces of their own artwork ready to market and sell online (highly similar pieces won't count).
• Open a public e-commerce website, where they will sell those pieces of artwork.
• Have a valid ID in order to create online accounts.
• Post publicly to Instagram.
• Create marketing materials for their business.
• Have a basic understanding of design and composition. This class is designed for students who are already artists, and as such, a basic level of design and composition skills is expected.
• Able to comprehend and communicate via written text, at a college level. A large portion of the curriculum and assignments are text-based.
• Not use AI for any class projects, unless given explicit permission by the professor on a per-project basis.
• Feel comfortable Googling any issues that arise before resorting to asking for outside assistance. Questions are encouraged, but if the answers are easily Google-able, the student will likely be asked to do that instead. Self-sufficiency is a necessary trait for entrepreneurs. 
• Be willing and able to devote 5-10 hours a week to this course.
• Be able to access their ACC email periodically for potential correspondence.
• Be respectful and professional at all times. A negative attitude is detrimental to a successful business, and as such, will negatively impact your grades in this class.
• Be able to meet all class deadlines and due dates.
• Be willing and able to spend $150 - $400 in reading materials, subscription fees, tools, and supplies, over the course of the semester. There is no textbook for this course.

The syllabus for the Spring 2026 Edition of Business Practices for Artisans can be found in its entirety at the link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1hZSLvqCBY9xfCT-FRJJUcH9hhYBlIZAA/view?usp=share_link

Required Readings:

• The War of Art, by Steven Pressfield
• Steal Like An Artist, by Austin Kleon

Course subjects are as follows:

• Module 1: Mindset & Pricing
• Module 2: Branding & Instagram
• Module 3: Customer Service & Photography
• Module 4: Online Shop (Part 1)
• Module 5: Custom Order Shipment
• Module 6: Online Shop (Part 2)
• Module 7: Money Management
• Module 8: Instagram Extended Reels

By the end of this course, studious participants will be able to:

1. Embrace the thriving artist mindset and push past class-based prejudices.
2. Implement sustainable pricing for their art.
3. Create a brand that fits who they authentically are as an artist.
4. Produce high quality product photography and lifestyle visual content that matches their brand.
5. Perform basic photo editing and graphic creation.
6. Create an e-commerce website, that is fully functional and has at least 4 active and purchasable product pages.
7. Implement customer service and customer interaction policies that will create a loyal customer base.
8. Ship products to customers in a safe and timely manner in on-brand packaging.
9. Utilize social media to gain brand awareness.
10. Build money management processes that will create sustainable growth for their business.