I will get straight to the point.
The biggest social networking mistake artists make is . . . not social networking! (Or not doing it enough.)
I often hear artists say that social networking is too time consuming. And I will admit, I used to be that person.
But you know what would really be time consuming? Flying around the world, or calling every day to personally check in with each client, friend and colleague. Through social networking, I can now accomplish (and enjoy) these tasks in an hour or two from the comfort of my own studio!
Artists are not the only social networking hold-outs. At a small business workshop I attended recently, social media marketing was not mentioned once. I could barely contain myself. I wanted to jump up, wave my arms, and shout, “What about the Social Media Revolution???!!! Listen up everybody! There are people out there, and lots of them, and they want to be our friends!”
There was a huge elephant in the room and no one was saying anything.
I am convinced that social networking platforms (Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter) can be very powerful tools when building an art business. But, as I am finding out myself, it takes time and persistance.
And if you are just starting out—you may need to be a little bit brave.
One artist told me: “Reading and belonging to a social networking group is very different from being “active” in social networking. I read what is going on, but I rarely post anything. This is partially because I am shy, and partially because I haven’t taken the time to understand it from a technical standpoint, so that I am comfortable posting something and knowing what I am doing.”
If you are shy or not quite sure how to proceed, start small, take it slow, and make a commitment to build your social network. Gain knowledge and skill a little each day. Social networking is not a chore or a waste of time. It can enhance your life as well as your business. If you get stuck, post a question for your network. There are millions of nice human-beings out there who are more than willing to help.
Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter have “Help” pages with good “getting started” information. For daily news and updates about all that is current with social media I subscribe to Mashable, the Social Media Guide.
But whatever you do, don’t ignore that elephant.
For more articles from Betsy Lewis, please visit betsylewis.blogspot.com.