SEO Not the Most Important Thing
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Fine Art Views by Clint Watson
ISSUE #121 - Daily Edition - (Sponsored by FineArtStudioOnline) |
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Fine Art Views by Clint Watson
ISSUE #121 - Daily Edition - (Sponsored by FineArtStudioOnline) |
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11/5/2007 12:28:30 PM Kristen Hoard wrote:Visit Kristen Hoard 's websiteClint, I have been redoing my website and am so obsessed with SEO that the site is not getting done! Meanwhile my new artwork is not being seen by all my existing customers and new ones. Your post helped jar me out of my obsession and refocus where it really counts! Get the site done already, then use it as an opportunity to contact my customer base with some new exciting news. Thanks Kristen Return to top 11/5/2007 2:03:04 PM Adan Lerma wrote:Visit Adan Lerma 's websiteI'd like to add a few things to those Clint has mentioned re generating web traffic to one's website; some I'm realizing recently, some I've know for awhile but only made active "very" slowly through some kind of invisible internal resistance. First, many, maybe most of us, are already doing so many things we could just “tweak” and suddenly add on to our non-search-engine-optimizing behavior. Like…actually carry our business cards, and, believe it or not, have our website address on them! You wouldn’t believe how many times in so many places my wife had to roll her eyes and pull out one of my business cards from her purse because I “forgot” to have some on me. Art openings, grocery store meetings with seldom seen friends, family you forgot you had, you name it, all kinds of people we meet in all kinds of ways. This is word of mouth from the horse’s mouth, me. :-) Another is donating. Donate an original, a limited edition, or an inexpensive print (sign it!) and stack a pile of your attractive website imprinted cards next to your donation gift. Tell your local paper you donated, tell your newsletter list, tell yourself your gift gives both ways, outwardly and inwardly, and smile. Give other people credit for things involved in your art, your printer, your art club, your web master, your muse :-) and let them know you’ve given them credit; if in an email, have your web url as part of your sig; if in a note, have your web url on a neat looking return address label (I have a graphic designer, Edye Giordano, at LMNOPeople.net put mine on huge colorful dots!) If you respond or post to anything online, maybe especially non-art sites (housing blogs, tv show chat spots, pet peeve sites, etc), post your website url there too, no other commentary needed. People look or not. If you’re involved in something socially, and can inobtrusively post your website address, you’re talking word of mouth. Pick one or two times for the year, in your local newspaper, in a section that appeals to you and see if they have a special rate for “artists.” Print your ad, post your website, and spread the word you have an ad in the newspaper. Austin’s a mecca in the spring and fall for outdoor festivals, and I do a lot of Austin area landscapes, so I like the travel/show-full-color 2 or 4 page insert in the Austin American Statesman (my ad of course is a small part of the insert :-) You almost always can get tear sheets (or full sheets) you can hand out to favorite or promising people, plus keep some as a record of where and how you’ve spread the word. Best of all, most of us are doing most of this already. I don’t need to skip my favorite food, or lift heavy weights, or run a mile before breakfast (unless I feel like it :-) to get my website attention in better shape. Now granted, if you are reading this and are a fairly, or hugely, successful artist already, all this may bring a smile of remembrance, or a sad shake of your head; but if you’re like me, then it’s still a sharing game, a process game. A game of self invention. Like I like to say, best of luck to all of us! adan lerma www.adanlerma.com Return to top 11/5/2007 4:49:05 PM Rick Rotante wrote:Visit Rick Rotante 's websiteRegarding "Painting what galleries want". Artists and the art world in America are completely upside down. Too many artists from beginners to accomplished artists are going about getting their art out, selling it and getting recongnition for it for all the wrong reasons and with misguided approaches. All the advice to "market" your art on this and many other website are all valid, good pieces of advice when taking with restraint. When I was young starting out in life, a good friend of mine told me something worth repeating here that still holds true for me today. "Advice is for those who give it" All commercial web sites are based on one thing. Having clients...like us. So they come up with article on marketing, seminars on market and a thousands ways to market your art. Now I'm not saying all this isn't inherently bad, but esentially they all do it to keep us on the hook. While they are serving a purpose they are making only the webmasters rich. They dole out advice everyday on how to do this and how to that all the while artist are getting more and more involved and confused with each passing day. We artists are so starved for information on how to get noticed we are overlooking the one thing that will cause notice instantly. Good Work. That's it, good work. Artists have to stop trying to market and sell and advertise and concentarte on just creating good art. Excellant art. In the long run galleries don't care about your style, your continuety or subject. They want one thing, to have what sells. Your subject could be rotten grass, but if it's painted well and everyone wanted it, rotten grass would be the next marketing campaign. Lets face it, you are not getting noticed because your work isn't good enough. Now I'm sure this comment is going to ruffle some feathers. Where do I come off saying this? Lets look at the work of artists who, in todays market, are selling their work. I'm not going to give a litany of names here. You just have to open an art magazine or visit a museum to see which artists appear again and again. When you look at their work you know it's top notch. It's their best work to date. They worked and reached the pinnacle of their craft. Many put in years of sweat and pain to get there. Artists need to get off the marketing treadmill long enough to take a good hard long objective look at their own work and they will see in their hearts that their work does not belong in a gallery. Nor will it ever be unless they can be as good as those who are. Sure artists can find an out of the way gallery or two who will show their work and cheat them in the process one way of another. But think about this - If your work was SO good, don't you think magazines, galleries, collectors and the public would be clamboring for it? Do you think a gallery would dare cheat you and risk you going to someone else. Galleries are created to make a profit as all good businesses. If your work was what everyone wanted they would treat you with kid gloves. They would cater to your every whim. But to get there your work has to be the creme de la creme. So keep up you website, add to it often. seek gallery representation, advertise. Overall make work worthy of representation, of a webesite. Don't get caught up in the marketing. There are others who do it better. They have the time and energy. You are an artist. Create. If your work was top of the line and touched people, don't your think everyone would be looking to be attached to you. Every magazine would want to do an article, and every gallery would want you on their roster. Collectors would be lined up outside your door Many of us have not reached that level. Many more still will never reach that level. Does this mean you should hold up with your art in a studio until you think your good enough? No! It just means we have to put marketing in it's place. When I joined a prestigious art club, did I think they would make my fortune? When I went online with my website did I think the money would now start rolling in? This is the problem with artist today. We see the world making big bucks selling inferior things and we think our work is better than that, I can sell my work too. For every artist making money in art today there are hundreds maybe thousands of artists still unknown. I've said this before and it's worth repeating - you don't paint to get rich. You'd be better buying a lottery ticket and sitting home. This is tough love folks. I know we want recognition. I know we want our art on magazine cover. I know we want to make enough money to retire in the South of France. This is possible to those who concentrate on creating good art first. I believe in my heart that those who do the work get the results. Not all will get the notice they deserve. So stop worrying so much about marketing. Take it in with a grain of salt, use it but paint like there is no tomorrow. You will be noticed if your work excels. If your work moves people. if your work speaks to the heart. When your work is best you can it do it will find a market and won't have to raise more than a finger to get noticed. Return to top 11/5/2007 9:10:56 PM Marcus Lim wrote:Visit Marcus Lim 's websiteHi, i agree with the listings from Rand, that focusing on web traffic can only get you this far. In fact, i find that web optimisation can get you noticed but not KNOWN by people, because there are so many websites out there vying for attention. Everything seems to get lost in translation as a result. But when you do have public show opportunities, it brings you up close and personal with real people. They get to hear you, feel you and experience your art. This was what happened when i gave a live art demonstration outside a shopping in town, and i certainly got people's attention with my art alright! Lastly, i do see values in focusing on Web Drivers Nos. 1, 5 and 7. You have more control in your actions, and at the same time developing your respect in the arts community. Return to top 11/6/2007 6:16:43 PM Janice Robinson-Delaney wrote:Visit Janice Robinson-Delaney 's websiteI really value the advice you offer here,being the fledgling that I am. I did have one sale, and may have made a connection for future sales. The SEO article was a bit disarming, in that that was the direction I was thinking of moving in. I plan to send your group something to critique soon; any preference, still life, abstract, are we charged anything for posting? Return to top 11/10/2007 9:21:17 AM Janet Warrick wrote:Visit Janet Warrick 's websiteDear Clint, I just wanted to say thanks for all the great information on marketing and selling our work. As a former gallery insider with savvy computer knowledge, your insights are invaluable to those of us who are wading through unfamiliar waters, especially when all we really want to do is paint. Your 'Web Traffic Drivers' series is stellar. So, a big kiss to you, Clint, and thanks. Sincerely, Janet Warrick Return to top POST A COMMENT: |
