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Posts Tagged ‘Social Networking’

Not really.  You do need a web presence, which at a minimun should be a blog, and a gallery site.  And I am convinced that you can get a decent gallery system going by using Imagekind or redbubble.  Welcome to my 30 Day challenge to my self .

Goal: Come out of no where using free services, sell two original paintings and 5 prints in 30 days or less.

First I need to establish accounts using the following services:

Yahoo Email:   _____________________________________________________

Flickr (hook to Yahoo Email):  _________________________________________

Imagekind Site: ____________________________________________________

Start A Blog With a New Alias: _________________________________________

Twitter Account: __________________________________________________

Facebook: _______________________________________________________

MySpace: _______________________________________________________

Squidoo: ________________________________________________________

Paypal: _________________________________________________________

This is the check list I am starting with.  I offer it to those of you who would like to try the challenge.  You of course will not have to get new accounts for everything.  I am gettng new accounts for everything to prove a point.  When I establish my accounts, I need to fill out a planned profile.  My profiles will all be linked to a well developed artist statement.

In addition to the above you should have a body of work of 30 pieces that you believe the world will want and a killer artist statement.

Good Luck, More on this latter this evening.

I found the following paragraph on brighthub.com

“Flickr is a social photography website affiliated with Yahoo, so you will need a Yahoo ID to sign up. This site is good for connecting with other artists and whet people’s appetite for your artwork, but I must mention it is not a place for selling. Actually none of the social networking sites are, a constant commercial is a turn off. On this site, you can use your website URL as your user name, so when ever an individual looks at your photos, they will have your website to go to if they are interested enough to want to learn more.”

http://www.brighthub.com/office/entrepreneurs/articles/49064.aspx

Be careful not to use Flickr for commercial purposes, it is expressly forbidden in their terms of agreement.  But you can use it to store and sort all photos of you art. It can be a data base for storing all you art work.  If you are storing photos of your artwork on Flickr as a way to track you inventory make sure your description includes the following:

1. Name of the Piece:
2. Where is the Physical Piece: ie collection of the artist
3. where else s this piece on line
4. Date of creation:
5. Support: Canvas board, paper
6. Medium:
7. Technique:
8. size: height by width by depth
9. Notes: Tell a short story about the piece

You can copy the above ans use it as a template for each photo of your artwork you upload to flickr past the above.  The above list is abbreviated from Alyson Stanfield’s Great Book I’d Rather Be in the Studio!

In addition to using Flickr as a data store and catalog of you art. You can also link to Flickr through you blog,  Imagekind and other web services.  When you have a free Flickr account, you can upload 2 videos and 100MB worth of photos each calendar month.  The value of a Flickr Pro Account (24.95) is you are limited by to a 20 MB file size for photos and a 500 mb file size for video. There no limit on the number of the files. You can combine Flickr with your Imagekind Account and have an easy way to get you Large High Quality images over to you Imagekind Gallery.

Back to the original question, is Flickr a social media site.  You can use Flickr for social networking, but you can not use it for commercial purposes.  It is probably the best investment you could make for an online inventory system.  Just remember you can not sell your art work directly on Flickr, but you can sell it through you Imagekind Account.

Imagekind will be reviewed in great detail in an future Blog Post  Print On Demand Part 2

Over the last several years, a new breed of communication has emerged: social networking. These media sites offer the ability to network in ways that the more traditional message boards never could manage. If you are not familiar with social networking at media sites, here are some of the tactics people are using today to make money through these important resources.  Read through the list and see how you might apply these tactics to sell and market your art.  Please  add comments and examples of how you use social media to the comment section below:

1. Start with Twitter. If you have never done social networking, this is easily the most basic of all the current popular sites. Registration takes no more than a few minutes.
2. Fill out your Twitter profile. It will give you the appearance of being a permanent participant, and help you build credibility more quickly.
3. Post some links. They can be to the articles you have posted around the Internet that track back to your web site, as well as to pages on your site.
4. Do some searches. Use keywords to find other Twitter users that may be potential clients. Use the follow feature to create a connection.
5. Follow everyone who follows you. It can bring you in contact with others who follow them and possibly increase your follower base.
6. Post something daily. Even a short comment with a link will do nicely. The more you post, the better chance you have of expanding your Twitter network.
7. Vary the posts. Don’t simply copy something you posted before. Mix it up, or your posts will look more like spam.
8. Ask questions as well as make comments in your tweets. It will possibly stimulate some cross posts that lead to promoting your web site.
9. Respond to any private messages. They could lead to a sale.
10. Have fun with the site. Once your get the hang of Twitter, you may be surprised at how many contacts you can make, and how they increase your site traffic.
11. Set up a LinkedIn profile.  Be as precise in what you do and what you sell as possible.
12. Add a picture to your profile. LinkedIn users range from small business owners to freelancers to corporate executives. All of them like to see who they are doing business with.
13. Include background information that will generate hits. This includes schools attended, past employers, and anything else that you have done in your life. You never know what will lead to a connection.
14. Search LinkedIn. Find other people that you have some sort of connection with, such as a high school, college, or past employer.
15. As part of a another search, use keywords that have to do with the type of products you offer. You may come across people who work with companies or in fields that could use what you have to sell.
16. Always respond to queries or messages your receive from other LinkedIn members, even if they are general queries. They may pass your web site address on to other people if the two of you get along.
17. Check out other profiles for ideas on how to present yourself. You may come across something that would work very well and increase your visibility.
18. Update your data from time to time. If your LinkedIn profile appears active, it will draw more attention.
19. Post a link to your LinkedIn profile on Twitter. It will help increase your LinkedIn network as well as your Twitter followers.
20. Devote a few minutes each day on LinkedIn, actively looking for new contacts. People sign up every day, so there is always potential there.
21. Set up a Facebook account. Spend some time getting to know the various features on the site.
22. Fill out your Facebook profile. Include the same data as on your LinkedIn profile, including links back to your web site.
23. Search for other Facebook members to connect with. Look by location, school, workplace, or any other criteria you can imagine.
24. Make friends. Send friends requests as well as approve any that come your way.
25. Check out the groups. Search by subject to find groups devoted to subjects that have some relevance to your product offerings.
26. Participate in the groups. Post a message at least once or twice a week. It will increase your visibility.
27. Post links on your wall. These can be to promotional articles you have written, or to pages on your web site.
28. Upload pictures. They draw interest and will make people look at your postings more often.
29. Make comments on your wall. Others can see them and offer comments.
30. Comment on remarks your friends make. The interaction makes it more likely for them to look at your links, or to recommend them to someone else.
31. Sign up for a Myspace account. Make sure your screen name is relevant to the products you sell.
32. Use keywords in your profile that will help you show up in searches.
33. Use the blog feature. Write something a couple times each week.
34. Include links to your promotional articles, web site, and anywhere else you have an online presence.
35. Build your Myspace network. Look for other users who might benefit from your products and try to become connected to them.
36. Comment on other Myspace blogs. It will increase your visibility.
37. Upload pictures and create albums. Use shots of you with your products, etc.
38. Change your Myspace skins now and then. It will keep your page interesting.
39. Cross promote your MySpace page and your Twitter page to increase hits on both.
40. Look for Myspace clubs to join. It will help more people find you and increase your network.
41. Establish a You-Tube account.
42. Launch your first video. Keep it short and sweet, but use it to promote some aspect of your product line.
43. If you sell multiple products, make a short introductory video on each one.
44. Follow up with situational videos that show someone solving a problem with the use of your products.
45. Promote your videos at Facebook, Myspace, and Twitter.
46. At the same time, find other videos that are relevant to your business and make comments on them. Others will do the same for you, helping to drive up the page rank on your video promotions.
47. Add new videos regularly. Something new will keep people coming back for more.
48. Vary the formats for your You-Tube videos. Some can be serious, some comedic, some a mixture of both.
49. Retire videos that seem to do nothing or elicit negative responses. Develop new ones using the comments you receive, good and bad.
50. Compare your videos to others promoting similar products. You might pick up a few ideas of how to make your presentations more popular.

Please  add comments and examples of how you use social media to the comment section below: