Simple, beautiful mood concept boards can be a killer asset for both your blog and social media presence. Artists! Now is the time to take charge of your craft. Today’s world is the perfect environment for creative people to prosper. The days of the huge corporations managing and distributing creative content are slowly dying out. Due to the advent of technology and the creation of the Internet, independent Artists have a pathway to show, distribute, promote, and sell their work to a global audience. Why should corporations e.g. record labels, film production companies, publishers, etc. etc. control the market anyway? Why should they get to decide what content is released? Creative people, the time is now! Here are five free things you need to be aware of, even if you are the weekend rock n’ roller, or the Sunday afternoon painter.
I. Building an online network – FREE
As an artist, I understand the personal battles artists go through within themselves. “I’m not an Artist. I’ve never been trained. I don’t have any talent. And how will anyone ever see anything I create?” I’ve said and heard them all, but that’s not up to us artists to decide. Before the computer revolution it was easy for artists to dismiss their own endeavors by saying, “I can’t compete with other artists with such little visibility e.g. films, records, books, etc, etc.” It was easier to accept that we have no talent, nor any platform to exhibit our work without incurring huge costs. That, however, was the past. Now with a personal computer and an Internet connection, anyone can build an online presence for free. Using free tools like Google profiles, one can create an online profile with email (sign up for gmail account). With the iGoogle setup one also has access to an entire set of office tools: word processors, spread sheets, calendars, managing contacts, and communication tools all for free. One can also link other sites to their Google profile. This establishes the framework for a network e.g. facebook, MySpace, YouTube, or any other free or paid sites. The important thing to know is by linking all of ones sites into a network, the higher their overall ratings will be in the search engines. Produce your art. That is your job. Let others judge the quality, while you bask in the pleasure of creation.
II. Show your Art – FREE
With the internet, artists can showcase their work to the entire global community. There are many free websites available for people to make personal websites. They may not give you as much user freedom as a paid site, but one can use that as a foundation to grow from. The total cost of a paid site is around $50 (domain fee $10, and the cost of the server provider $40/yr). Any artist can upload their work and get feedback from people all over the world. The best advice I can give is to exhibit your art through your personal network (as mentioned above). Then from the network one can branch out and place their art in new network communities e.g. online forums, music sites, etc. etc. The key is to have a root connection to your personal network (personal website). This insures the development of the artist’s independence and control of their content. The artist must make sure that he/she is benefiting from their work too.
III. Promote you Art – FREE
With the advent of social software like Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, etc. an artist can inform the community about new works that they have just completed. As a matter of fact, full marketing campaigns can be developed using social software to channel thousands of people to the artist’s content. The same thing is being done by marketers in corporations today, using the same software available to you. The only difference, and this is a HUGE difference, is that the artist doesn’t have to share any of the rewards with anyone else.
IV. Manage your network – FREE
The most difficult issue for any artist to tackle is to find people who can appreciate their work. So, how to tackle this immense task, especially on the scale of the ever-expanding Internet? Fortunately the answer has been solved by Google. There is fantastic a tool called Google Analytics, which can be added from your iGoogle account. This service is typically used in conjunction with a paid website e.g. your personal domain. Most free social sites have a built in number of views somewhere on their page. YouTube has a place under the insight tab that tells you who was watching your content, and where. Further, it will provide to you certain demographics like age and popularity. What valuable information! For knowing that people in Eastern France love your latest work allows you to tailor your promotion strategies effectively, saving time, energy and money.
V. Earn money – FREE
Finally artists can earn money to continue producing. In a nutshell, the artist places ads on their network (Google AdSense). When people click on the advertisement, the artist gets paid a commission. The important thing to understand, however, is that advertisements cannot be placed on just any site. Free sites usually have some restrictions, but if you have your own domain, which I highly suggest you get, Google AdSense is perfect. There are other similar services that may offer better deals. Another way to generate money, after your network experiences a decent flow of traffic, is by placing links or Ads for similar websites. The cost is all negotiable between you and the other party. For example, the artist who painted a picture of flowers might contact a local florist about placing a link to their site. Lastly there are sites where audiences can purchase your work for a price, usually it’s a profit sharing deal (iTunes, Amazon, etc).
Remember this! Traffic equates to money. The more traffic a site gets, the greater value the site is worth. Remember that art applies to the business world as well. Once a good understanding of online marketing is known, any artist can create business relationships that haven’t been developed yet; the internet is a virgin ground of opportunity. Now go produce your art.
Power to the Artists!
Jak Ahabdune is a supporter of the new age of technology and it’s impact to the common man. He is a frequent writer for companies that aspire to give business opportunities to anyone. One such company is 180 Films, an independent multi-media film company that specializes in promoting artists of all kinds.
The time is now to build your network [http://www.180films.com] and allow yourself the pleasure of being the one who produces your art [http://www.180films.com].
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