Tag Archives: festivals

Social media success without the sleaze: Learn how to market your art the right way

Did you know that the most popular time to send an email for a marketing campaign is Tuesday at noon? Souce I don’t care either but I find the concept of email marketing campaigns tricky for a business because when you initially signed up to get my download, I just became long term spam potentially ☹️ But if you want or need my product, you need my pointers and information and I become your hero 🙂‍↔️

Between you and me, in the vast wasteland of email subscriptions, the sheer number of abandoned fake emails and unsubscribed newsletters that I have actively worked on getting rid of would make any mother proud. True story.

Artists have the worst click-through rate and highest bounce rate when it comes to email marketing. So I suggest not to do it annoyingly. You can however be not annoying and do simple things like update people on your next show, or if you’re having an open house or if you are selling courses and you have a promotion. Like once maybe twice a month. I promise you I will not unsubscribe if your information is pertinent, informative, something I’m interested in knowing more about and I like you. Not annoying.

We don’t need to reinvent the wheel when it comes to marketing, but the ironic part is, I’ve read a number of fairly strongly worded articles about copying your art friends with your social media strategy. Ironic because we are all so different. Us artists thrive and build our success on what makes us unique. Right?

Well, on the flip side, art is the ultimate way to connect and to speak to your tribe 🤷‍♀️ So what separates us from everyone else? Your unique voice. It’s because once upon a time you decided to niche down and also get a super good skill set. As Steve Martin once said (and Cal Newport reiterated) be so good they can’t ignore you. Then the world is your oyster. You are set apart🤘

So in conclusion, marketing isn’t about selling poorly thought out ideas. It’s about connecting. Find your unique voice first. Then, you begin asking where am I going to find my audience that will spend the money I am asking for? Which festivals? Will I have an open house? Am I starting out with just friends and family and awareness is most important? Money will come later? It’s a little bit different when it comes to art because our “product” isn’t a one and done type of thing. We’re selling a story and an investment here people. Something that the client can take with them and remember you (and the story) forever. Yeah, a bit overwhelming. Similar to like leaving a legacy. Like having a child. Jk. Sort of.

How to Stand Out on Pinterest as an Artist: Tips for Growing Your Creative Audience

Discover proven strategies to make your art shine in a crowded Pinterest space.

Since you’re likely doing this social media thing on your own and standing out can feel like you’re looking for a needle in a haystack. The recommended posting frequency is 3-5 times per week if you’re aiming for growth. How many times per day of those 3-5 times per week? 1-2.

Yikes. Between art and posting (because you likely have more than just Pinterest), how will you ever get it all done? As I have said before elsewhere, schedule your posts and focus on engagement. Engagement is heads and tails more important than likes. Consistency is needed for growth and authority. Engagement allows your fans to meet personally with you. It gives you authenticity and a realness you might miss otherwise. Social media is still somewhat impersonal, real interaction breaks that barrier.

Once per week ensures consistency. Twice enables you to reach different audiences at different times.

What kind of growth can I expect? Again, once per day three times a week enables consistency. Twice per day three to five times a week enables a steady increase over 3-6 months. In saying that, the quality of your pins matters as well (sorry). A quality pin is a bit subjective, but keep it simple. Your niche also matters too. you can expect to double your monthly views with this strategy.

At the end of the day, put your focus on creating high quality pins that resonate with your audience. Consistency and quality are key to creating a loyal following and also driving traffic to your website or long form content choice.

Why AI Will Never Replace the Unique Creativity of Artists

I wrote this for my Facebook page.

I’ve been learning a lot about AI and how to use it. And as a traditional artist (uses oil paints, charcoal, pencil, physical stuff, etc.) and who took way too many art history classes, it reminds me of learning about when the camera first came out (late 1800s or so). Everyone lost their minds over it saying it wasn’t “real art”. It’s just a replica. (Some people say the same about painted, photorealistic art saying it’s “just a copy and there’s no imagination or interpretation—the purpose of art they say) 🤷‍♀️ But that’s a topic for another day.

Then Photoshop and the like came out. Computer graphics improved and artists lost their minds again. “It’s a computer, it’s not real art, it’s fake, and will take away from artists and replace them”, etc etc). But we adapted and learned how to utilize it. Myself included.

And now we arrive at AI and everyone is losing their minds again. Writers and artists alike. So I believe AI will take a turn like that in the past. We’ll learn to adapt and understand how to use it 🤷‍♀️

So there’s a (very expensive) history lesson in art and its evolution. Roughly speaking.