The post Premature Social Networking appeared first on Art Biz Success.
]]>This TV show with a muscled drill sergeant as its star teaches some of the best business lessons on TV while trying to revitalize failing restaurants. It’s no wonder the restaurants are in trouble when they haven’t figured out food costs, don’t know what their projected earnings are, and lack leadership.
Can you imagine opening and running a restaurant – or any business – without having these basic pieces in place?
That’s exactly what you’re doing when you jump on the social networking bandwagon without building your business foundation.
Since announcing today’s start of my No-Excuse Art Biz Bootcamp, I have received several pleas: “I wish social media was a part of the Bootcamp. I really need that.”
Why Social Media Isn’t Included in My Art Marketing Bootcamp
I created the Bootcamp to help you lay the foundation for your marketing. (This is why I say it’s not for people who already have this in place.)
Too many artists view social media as a cheap and quick solution for all of their marketing. When this happens, everything else is often abandoned. “Facebook is great! Why do I need a blog or a newsletter?” This is premature social networking.
Here’s what I know:
- People are unlikely to follow you until you give them reason.
- People are unlikely to join your Facebook page until they see you are building a lively career.
- People are unlikely to share your art until you have a strong website that shows off the work.
- People are unlikely to continue following you, liking your fan page, and sharing your art if you aren’t nurturing your relationships.
There’s no getting around it: You must have your foundation in place in order for social networking to be useful to your art business.
The Bootcamp was created to help you build that strong foundation for your marketing, so that social networking, when implemented, will be more effective.
The groundwork you must lay for your marketing includes your using your mailing list, creating or improving your website/blog, becoming an articulate advocate for your art, networking, and much more.
You probably already know this, but are you doing it? Knowing and doing are two different things.
If these are missing pieces in your art business, I invite you to take a look at the No-Excuse Art Biz Bootcamp that begins soon.
If you have built your solid business foundation, congratulations! Be grateful that you’ll never appear on a future episode of Art Biz Impossible.
The post Premature Social Networking appeared first on Art Biz Success.
]]>The post Is Twitter a Perfect Platform for Introverts? appeared first on Art Biz Success.
]]>I imagine there are many other artists out there who feel the same way she does.
As I was fumbling to respond to the concerns, audience member Andrea Meyer, a writer, entered the discussion. She said that she loves Twitter so much precisely because she’s an introvert.
I was intrigued enough to ask for a follow-up phone interview with Andrea, who obliged.
Andrea said that in social situations, it’s often hard for introverts to think on their feet.
Introverts often can’t get a word in edgewise in an in-person group conversation. The extroverts are taking charge while the introverts are churning over their response.
After a little time has passed, it’s too late to speak up. The conversation has moved on.
Not so with Twitter or other forms of social media.
Twitter seems like an instant platform, but it actually gives you a little time to respond and still participate in the conversation.
It’s a level playing field. Introverts get just as much screen space as extroverts.
Are you an introvert?
Is Twitter (or another social media site) a perfect platform for introverts?
The post Is Twitter a Perfect Platform for Introverts? appeared first on Art Biz Success.
]]>The post High-Quality Connections on Twitter appeared first on Art Biz Success.
]]>I’m a devotee of TweetDeck for reading and sending tweets – so much so that I’ve neglected taking advantage of the interface Twitter installed last fall. Here are some Twitter features I recently explored more in depth and will be using more often.
Review Who to Follow Suggestions
One of the things I like most on the Twitter interface is the Who to Follow suggestions on the Home page. These can be promotions like this top suggestion to follow Vegas vacation tweets that aren’t up my alley.
More often, they’re spot on and include Twitter users that tweet about art. These are my kind of tweeps.
Just click on names to see if they’re worth a follow. Refresh to find more suggestions.
Search for People to Follow
From that same page, click on “Browse interests” at the bottom of the Who to Follow section. (You can get to this same page by going to the Who to Follow tab at the top of any page on Twitter.) Here, you can browse by Twitter categories, such as Art & Design, or you can conduct a search on this page.
For example, let’s say you paint or photograph lighthouses. Just plug in the word “lighthouses” and voilà! You find all kinds of people tweeting about lighthouses. Those are your tweeps.
Screen views such as this one show why your Twitter bio is so important. Having a keyword or two in your bio helps other Twitter users find you and, if your bio sounds interesting, we might follow you immediately or look up your tweets.
Share your Twitter tips or questions below.
The post High-Quality Connections on Twitter appeared first on Art Biz Success.
]]>The post Give Your Twitter Bio a Boost appeared first on Art Biz Success.
]]>Twitter allows a whopping 20 characters more than the standard tweet for your bio, so try to differentiate yourself from other artists in a maximum of 160 characters.
In your Twitter bio, tell us about your interests so that we want to follow you. Intrigue us. Make us want to know more. Make us laugh.
For inspiration, here are some of my favorite artist Twitter bios, which I feature in the 2011 edition of I’d Rather Be in the Studio: The Artist’s No-Excuse Guide to Self-Promotion.
Park ranger turned fiber artist, out to change the world, one felt hat at a time—Carrie C. Mulligan, @ccmfelthats
The Cycling Artist—London based professional artist, computer geek & perpetual academic—Tina Mammoser, @tina_m
If you like conceptual art, think about honking—Michael Mayer, @studiomayer
Using hammers and a torch to make the world a more beautiful place—Wendy Edsall-Kerwin, @wtek
Can yours compete? Share it here or point us to some of your favorite artist bios on Twitter.
The post Give Your Twitter Bio a Boost appeared first on Art Biz Success.
]]>The post Proof that Twitter Can Help Your Art Career appeared first on Art Biz Success.
]]>
I just joined Twitter a few weeks ago after learning about it in an art marketing workshop.
I started following the editor of Southwest Art magazine and she posted something saying she was looking for figurative artists.
I replied to her tweet with info on two friends of mine that are figurative artists and she is now featuring both of them in the January issue!
On top of that I saw a repost from a gallery looking for new artists to show and I landed myself a solo show! Not bad for a few weeks on twitter. Twitter is a powerful tool!
Notice that this isn’t magic. Nor is it rocket science.
Athena didn’t just sign up for Twitter. She participated in the conversation.
She was helpful to a magazine editor and she responded when someone put a call out.
Remember that social media is about being social. It’s about being helpful, kind, and generous.
Do you have a good Twitter-to-riches story?
The post Proof that Twitter Can Help Your Art Career appeared first on Art Biz Success.
]]>The post Texting and Tweeting Shortcuts for Artists appeared first on Art Biz Success.
]]>
I submit the following shortcuts for artists who text and tweet.
LTA = Love that Art
LTP = Love that Painting/Photograph/Print
LTS = Love that Sculpture
LTJ = Love that Jewelry
(you get the gist)
OMP! = Oh My Picasso! (or whomever your art god is)
WMAOITS = Working My Ass Off In the Studio
PTHOOMA = Promoting the Hell Out of My Art
OBITS = Oughtta Be in the Studio
GYAITS = Get Your Ass In the Studio
SWSD = Stop Whining, Start Doing
MGF = Must Get Food (when you just can’t tear yourself away from the studio)
CC = Copycat (you know who I’m talking about)
PBN = Paint By Numbers
TMTOT = Too Much Time on Twitter
TMTOFB = Too Much Time on Facebook
TMTOE = Too Much Time on Etsy
NTBM = Not To Be Missed
MS = Must See
VI = Very Interesting (when you don’t have anything else to say about it)
DDIYBM = Don’t Do It Yourself, Buy Mine
WWAD = What Would Alyson Do? (Lots of artists tell me they invoke my spirit in certain situations.)
Care to leave your own?
The post Texting and Tweeting Shortcuts for Artists appeared first on Art Biz Success.
]]>The post Beyond SEO: SMO appeared first on Art Biz Success.
]]>Publishing date: 2010
Don’t just SEO (search engine optimization) your website — SMO your Facebook and Twitter.
There’s been a definite shift in the Web marketing industry. Before, it was all “SEO SEO SEO.” Now, you’re hearing more of an “SMO SMO SMO” tune.
Social media optimization is the new way to position yourself to your audience (and search engines) to better increase your visibility. With one tiny swap of one tiny letter, you’re left re-engineering your web marketing strategy to better service your content with the social media channels your audience is on.
Because we’re the visually orientated types, I’ll summarize what I’m talking about in an artistically pleasing chart before going into a tad more detail.
Some have gone as far to say that SEO is dead, but I’m not that much of an extremist. Besides, SMO derived as a part of SEO, so if one part dies, both parts die.
But SMO is slowly creeping up on the important factor scale when it comes to how visible and attractive a website — nay, a brand — is going to be. This has even further been intensified with the recent announcement of the Facebook/Bing partnership to integrate social results into search results.
We’ve all seen the power of a breaking news tweet or a trending article that’s been passed around Facebook, Twitter and the blogosphere more times than the number of words in said article. More likely than not, there’s good, quality content at the crux of what goes viral. Take something like Atomic Tom’s iPhone Subway Performance. Or Andrew Wyeth’s “Helga.”
This new paradigm is good news for artists, especially those who aren’t technically inclined.
Instead of focusing more attention on manipulating your website’s coding and tags, you can ease back into doing what you do best: producing quality, visually appealing content (whether it’s a blog post, photograph, oil painting, whatever) that will grab your audience’s attention and encourage them to further spread your content to their network. They pass it on to theirs, people in their network discover a new person to connect with (you), and just like that you’ve built up a greater following.
In addition to using your already established social networks, there’s also a new website specifically for artists to better connect them to the right people in the art industry.
UPDATE: ARTRISE LINKS ARE NO LONGER ACTIVE
Artrise is an art social network for all types of artists — photographers, musicians, digital artists, sculptures, you name it — that lets you upload your art and get feedback from peers, meet more people in your industry, and even browse for jobs or events so you can make some money off your art. They’re also currently running a an art contest for users to upload art to their Facebook Wall, get your fans to like it, and the artwork with the most votes wins a grand prize of $1,000. Not a bad way for you to get noticed, and make a little extra cash.
At the root of SMO, though, is creating your presence on any social media channel to be as engaging as possible. This can be done with things like creating a Fan Page, having custom tabs designed to match your personal brand that will reel through some of your latest artwork — You used to be able to also add these to you personal profile page, but Facebook nixed that option on November 3— designing a custom Twitter background that matches your brand while displays some of your artwork, and, again, making sure your written content is up-to-date and enticing.
Here are some basic questions to ask yourself to make sure your website (and hopefully that includes having your blog hosted on your domain) and your social media channels are social media optimized:
- In my online gallery, did I integrate the Facebook Like and Share button on all my artwork and images?
- Am I leaving enough room in Twitter posts so people can retweet me without editing a post?
- Am I consistently putting up good content and good artwork that I’d want to look at if I were someone else?
- Am I making the most of my Facebook page by having a custom landing page that features some of my latest artwork?
About the Guest Blogger
Erin Everhart is a digital strategist, marketing planner and content developer.
The post Beyond SEO: SMO appeared first on Art Biz Success.
]]>The post Using Twitter to enhance your search-engine ranking appeared first on Art Biz Success.
]]>I recently discovered something interesting about Google and using social media.
First, a little background.
I am the village kaleidoscope maker in a small town of roughly 700 people in NW Iowa. Living in a sparsely populated area, I rely on tourism and the Internet to market my kaleidoscopes out of my studio/gallery.
Kaleidoscopes usually have “objects” (beads, etc.) which you view through a tube of mirrors. A teleidoscope is a type of kaleidoscope that has mirrors and a clear marble, which you use to look at the world around you.A teleidoscope makes it easy to turn your rose garden into a kaleidoscope image.
Many kaleidoscope artists have used dichroic glass as some or all of their objects in a traditional kaleidoscope, but I added a twist. On Thursday January 14, 2010, I made a simple innovation and placed a piece of dichroic glass between the clear marble and the mirror tube in one of my teleidoscopes. It was amazing!
Thinking there were probably lots of other kaleidoscope artists out there doing the same thing, I did a Google search for “dichroic teleidoscopes.” No results.
So on Sunday, January 17, I put a Web page up with the words “dichroic teleidoscope” and “dichroic teleidoscopes” all over the place hoping to get listed soon on Google as not only the top choice, but the only choice. I checked every day, but nothing for four days.
On Thursday, January 21, I made a reference to dichroic teleidoscopes on Twitter and the next morning Google already showed a result!
I don’t know what will become of these efforts, but I am pleased that my Twitter posting was indexed by Google. I imagine that continuing to mention and link to my Web page on Twitter—without overdoing it and annoying my followers—will help my long-term goals. I’ve found Twitter to be a much quicker way to get noticed for a new idea.
Go to Twitter right now and type in “dichroic teleidoscope.” My tweet is in the top 5 results!
Leonard Olson is a maker of kaleidoscopes, teleidoscopes, and dichroic teleidoscopes. He’s a firm believer in the power of Twitter! You can follow him on Twitter and see fabulous photos from his creations and become a fan of his on Facebook.
The post Using Twitter to enhance your search-engine ranking appeared first on Art Biz Success.
]]>The post Tweet Makeovers appeared first on Art Biz Success.
]]>The players? You and your Twitter followers.
The scene? Pick one.
But you opt for: “Congrats on the photo-video exhibit in May @xxx !”
Why? Unless your followers are also following @xxx at the right time, they will have no idea why you’re sending your congratulations. Acknowledge the accomplishment by naming it.
But you opt for: “Artists: Learn how to improve your tweets on the Art Biz Blog http://…”
Why? “New blog post” doesn’t tell me anything! There’s a bazillion blogs out there. Why should I stop everything to read YOUR blog post? What will it do for me?
But you opt for: “Artists who want tips for their statements should read this from @xxx http://…”
Why? “Great advice” might not be advice I’m needing or wanting at the moment. And the link could go anywhere–especially if you’re using a link-shortening service like tinyurl.com and the true URL is hidden. Tell me what I’m going to get if you want me to click on it. Also, if the author of the post you’re linking to is on Twitter, be sure to give them a Twitter plug by adding their @name.
But you opt for: “Cute kitten alert! This video will make you laugh out loud http://…”
Why? See reasoning under scene 3. In the tempting tweet, I have no idea what the video is about or why I’d want to click on it. Give me something to cling to–something to entice me.
The post Tweet Makeovers appeared first on Art Biz Success.
]]>The post Think Before You Tweet appeared first on Art Biz Success.
]]>It’s easy to tweet about anything you’re doing at the moment, but I contend–regardless of what anyone else says–that we don’t have a lot of patience with tweets that are too personal. If you’re tweeting to build relationships and business, keep your personal tweets to a minimum. These include: “I need to get a haircut,” “It’s snowing!” and “Good morning Twitter followers!” (If all of your followers are friends and family, you’re free to ignore this advice.)
The best tweets are worth retweeting and/or add value to the conversation. Let’s look at five tweet types (Can I call them twypes???) that are more likely to hit a high note.
1. Informational Tweets
These tweets are your way of helping out your followers. You can retweet a link to an upcoming webinar you’re attending or an online coupon you discovered. You can also tweet a link to an online article that might be of interest to your followers.
2. Entertaining Tweets
People love to smile and laugh! You can provide the fodder for their joviality by tweeting about a funny video or a humorous quote. You could also BE funny and that’s good enough to win you lots of followers. If being humorous is in your nature, let your personality shine on Twitter.
3. Inspirational Tweets
These are among the most retweeted–at least in my circles. Post a good quote (referencing the source, of course) or make up one of your own. Links to encouraging videos work well, too.
4. Congratulatory Tweets
If you really want to make friends on Twitter, mention others’ accomplishments in your tweets. Think about it. It’s like you’re a teacher standing in front of a roomful of students and praising one of those students in front of everyone else. Didn’t you love it when that happened to you as a child? Well, adults like accolades, too!
5. Promotional Tweets
This is last on the list because you should be promoting yourself less than 5% of the time on Twitter. For those of us who didn’t like math class, that’s 1 in 20 tweets.
FINAL WORD: Remember that Twitter is a SOCIAL media. What interests people in a face-to-face conversation will also interest them on Twitter. You wouldn’t walk up to someone at a party and say “Hi, I had oatmeal for breakfast.”
The podcast is an audio version of this content.
[powerpress url=”http://artbizsuccess.com/audio/thinktweet.mp3″]
The post Think Before You Tweet appeared first on Art Biz Success.
]]>