Social media, branding and how to pimp yourself out, take it up the *^$@()^^!@# and enjoy it! So this is the part where I prattle on about web design, customer volume statistics and how "social media can work for you" but I'm gonna lay it at you straight. Much of this "corner stone building" as I call it, feels like completely whoring yourself out in the vain hopes that MAYBEEEE someone in the industry will stumble along and find your page. They'll, of course, would then be stunned by the variable delights that you've digitally jizzed out and email you immediately with job or commission.... but the reality is, you are a tiny speck in a vast and ever expanding metaverse, swimming up stream against a torrent of other highly talented people. Sounds bleak huh.... because it is butterup!!! You have to do everything you can to ensure that you do stand out. You have to fight tooth and nail so that future client / employer takes more that a corner rounder peek at the goods! This is why I refer to things such as web design as corner stone building.
Succeeding at anything in life requires a few key elements (well in my belief anyway) talent, perseverance and a well strategised plan of attack. Social media presence, web sites, a body of work, established brand identity, deeper contexturalisaiton of your work... these are the battle plans that must be laid down in order to create a solid base you can then start using to becoming a viable creative entity. Understanding that you, as a creative, are your brand is one of the pivitol steps to this. Your brand for all intents and purposes is the big umbrella of your own personal army, your work... foot soldiers in that noble brigade. They are your men on the ground, the poor souls you sacrafice to the trenches for the greater good (quite literally some times!) All of these things, like a good regiment, need to work in complete harmony all understanding their place. It took me a year and a half to really start getting my head around all of this and the larger picture. To be honest, its a constantly evolving work in progress but I think thats just the nature of handling the business of being an artist. Its a constant re-evaluation about who you are as a creative. So really all I can do is break down for you what I've learnt thus far. Facebook
This is your golden nugget of a platform right now. It's the easiest to life hack (with its users mostly in the older demographic, millennia's and above) and by far a great tool for your marketing with its statistics interface.
Ok... step one... and ready for this... its the biggest piece of wisdom I could ever share with you when it comes to not only facebook but your professional life....
Go and hunt down EVERY single person you can that works in the industry you wish to align yourself with and add them! You have NOTHING TO LOOSE!!! Everyone from other artists to PR, Management, Journalists, Critics, Galleries, Cool peeps throwing cool parties... future people you find interesting and hope to work with some day... EVERYONE! Its a quick, efficient and easy way of connecting with people. Just doing that and nothing else has an amazing impact on your FB presence. I say this about life as well because networking for an artist, is life!!! It's what pays your bills and get's you those jobs. Facebook is your social butterfly platform, where you get to pop in and out, see what everyone else is up to and ease yourself in. Its where you can be a bit more liberal with the things that you say as well (within reason) and use its stories to beta test what would works better with your market demographic to then utilise across your other platforms.
With facebook I have two primary pages. A "Personal" page - Don't be fooled by it's title this is still very much a professional page... its like the lifestyle magazine of my brand. Its where I post excerpts from my life. Talk about the higher Kaupapa that goes into my brand. For me I talk about a lot of social and environmental issues, as this is the focus of most of my work, and is constantly feeding back into that brand image.
Another handy dandy feature of Facebook are the statistics it will spit out at you. Get familiar with them! They will tell you everything from the demographic you appeal to most, to optimum
times to post and so much more. Watch them closely, look for the patterns, use it to your advantage.
Work page - (I've been a bit slack actually getting this up and going, using my private page to facilitate both....like I said, work in progress) - this being strictly for work pieces only and is your beta testing for your instagram (which is for your creme de le creme pieces) .
Facebook Stories
This is where I have a far more private conversation with my customer base. Little peeks into both my private life and process around my work (behind the scenes if you will).
My number one rule around social media is understanding that my life does not revolve around social media! I tend not to include much of my intimate personal life or take to much to heart what goes on in that world. It is a cold hearted business tool. It can be hard at times, we can all get wrapped up in the vortex that social media creates.
Videos - A whole other beast, a powerful tool. If you can master a few premier skills (doesn't need to be anything fancy) and can roll together quick 2 minute videos of short sharp snappy advertising.... your onto a winner. If I am being completely and utterly honest on this front, nerves have gotten the better of me and I haven't been as on my game with this one as I have potential to be.. work in evolution! Instagram
As stated before instagram is your creme of the top. I was actually rather split as to how to run my insta. I noticed two distinctive patterns emerging with insta feeds. They are either these highly polished designer run feeds. Portfolios tight and instinct. Or run as a dairy with high amounts of promotional content around the artists life. While I loved that... my life just isn't that interesting! Well not for the next two months anyway (inside joke), so I went with the stream line version for now, a tight, sysinct portfolio of my work. I constantly edit this out. I'm not sure if that's a good thing or not but I do. Like most things in life, I'm bluffing my way through it learning what I can as I go.
I'm using my Insta story much the same way as I do with facebook, however I try to keep this far more editorial and have content on there I don't have on facebook. More of my process than anything. I have just recently started understanding how you can live stream sessions with other peoples instagram and build off their following. God the rabbit hole that is social media is crazy. It probably consumes 40% of my time. In saying this, I am trying to manage 5 different companies social media at the moment.... I don't recommend it!!
Saturnoart - Instagram Page. Diary/ Blog layout
(2018). Retrieved from https://www.instagram.com/saturnoart/?hl=en
I keep the images of myself to a minimal on this platform also. Infact I am frequently deleting them off there. I'll leave an image up of myself for a few days but it normally gets deleted not long after. This is totally a personal choice. I fear my sex at times will dictate the career that I wish to have and until gender stereo types are completely broken.. I want to insure I am doing everything I can to allow my work to speak without bias on this platform. Website
As I see it, your website is your CV as a creative/ designer. It houses your most valuable information and reflects your instagram.
When building my site, I looked at a lot of design based sites. I really do love minimalism and clean lines. But I wanted to make sure that my web space was also reflective of current trends happening in that space. Looking at artists such as Daniel Spatzek (website video walk through below) I loved his combination of punchy script as well as video movement. And while I am no where near as cleaver as Mr Spatzek with coding or gif animation... I am skilled at finding others with those skills to do those things for me.
After an initial conversation with a peer, I was able to have her create a gif for my home page, listing her brand as kudos for this on my own website and a promise to pass on any work of that nature that comes my way. A lot of artistic relationships are built like this. Artists are fantastic for the "I'll scratch yours, if you scratch mine" adage.
So with this in mind I developed over the corse of a year, my website. Constantly editing and tweaking. Its at a stage now, where I like the direction that its heading in, it could still do with a few teaks here and there and cleaning up a little more but its solid. I am sure that give me another year and it may look totally different again!!!
It was important for me to insure that everything was a reflection of the other. That the visual language that I was creating carried across all my different sites as well as linking back to one another. I spent a good day making sure off of this worked correctly. Buttons on websites, website addresses on all my other pages, links to insta and all the other good stuff in a nice, neat, pleasing package.
Blogging
This goes hand in hand for me with my website. I'm a bit lucky really.... I love writing! For me, this was a prime place that I get to get out all my thoughts and process around my work as well as have a space for the journalistic pieces I do for online publications like NZ Daily blog Spot and the young liberal.
In fact it was a place for me to really collect all of the different projects that I do and chronicle them. I am always involved with so many different projects at one time, across so many different feilds, that some time its far easier to just direct people to this space if they want an over view of what I do.
I find blogging also strangely therapeutic. It may also feed into my ego somewhat. I have moments of fear I'll get labeled the "chick that makes the weird crap" and be passed over for my intellectual aptitude as well.... in fact its the thing that terrifies me most about my career. So having the ability to blog about the depths of of thought I put into pieces makes me feel comforted, safe in the fact that I am doing everything I can to insure that is not the case. Alliances and Networking
Ahhhhhhh this is really where you get to feel like a social prostitute... but hold your head high friend, this is just how business works. As a creative, its your job to put yourself in positions to make connections. Whether this is up skilling with seminars (such as Semi Permeant conference held annually in Auckland) or smoozing at the latest gallery opening, it is an essential of the working creative. I personally hate it. I am NOT a people person, despite perceptions around me. I am actually, most of the time, an anxiety filled, awkward, inner geek in hiding.
I have learnt coping mechanisms to help me push through those things that have been indispensable in my professional career. Once upon a time... the coping mechanisms were not so healthy (totally thought I had an inner rock star dying to live her life like Iggy Pop) but living the drugs, sex and rock n' roll life did teach me to don a public persona. Like a character or armour that help me boss bitch it up in public and not make a stammering fool of myself! Then I get to go home, half hyperventilate and return to my hermit ways, actioning what ever connection I have gained from my brief dalliance with society.
Admin
I HATE admin.... with a passion!! In fact, I just hired an accountant so that I can start cutting down the amount of Admin that I have to do. Next on the list is someone to run my web space and social media if I can swing it.... HA!!! Admin consumes a ridiculous amount of time and as an ex secretary... I had hoped my days of it were done. Its the silly things that tend to hitch me up. Like changing the titles on photos added to my website or replying to the millions of emails I get a day... or chasing up that application date (man I need a wall calendar) I am not the best at keeping dairies for myself. One of those "know I need to do it, I'll get there" things. One more year of my degree.... hopefully I'll have that cracked by the end of this. Or reduce down the number of projects that I'm working on so its a bit more manageable.... or I may just go crazy....
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy....
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy....
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy....
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy....
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy....
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy....
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy....
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy....
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy....
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy....
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy....
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy....
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy....
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy....
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy....
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy....
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy....
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy....
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy....