SEO For Artists

As much as we artists would love to stay in the studio,the tough reality it is that you must devote time to marketing on the Internet to succeed.

Unfortunately, just putting up a website or blog is not enough.  Nor is it enough to post auctions on other websites.

The Internet has been a godsend for me.  I’d never be able to say that my art is in 53 states, Canada, new Zealand, and England otherwise.  Marketing made that possible.  Marketing can be hard work. There are ways for you to make yourself more productive.  Each person’s situation is different.  To succeed, you need a plan.

1.  Research your best venues.

Perhaps you use Twitter a lot.  Or maybe Facebook is your place.  CafePress could be your best venue.  The important thing is to study the return on your time and effort for your marketing venues to concentrate on the best ones.  I keep a spreadsheet, denoting what my ROI is, but also how much time and effort goes into each venue.  Knowing the long term value of a venue, I can make good choices.

2.  Test several venues to find your niche.

There are many ways to optimize your online presence.  In todays Web 2.0 world, you must have a blog.  To drive readers to your blog, you can explore social media sites.  Don’t like Twitter?  Then become active on the forums.  The forums at Etsy and WetCanvas are quite active.  And yes, artists do buy from other artists.

3.  Let someone else do your legwork.

The scope of Internet marketing is dynamic and everchanging.  To keep up, you must invest time.  However, that can be a daunting task for an artists who is also a mother, has a part time job, and has other commitments.  Time is money.  Time away from the studio can be expensive.  Services can do your search engine marketing for you.

The decision is up to you.  You know your resources.  If you’ve done your research, you have a good grasp of how you can best allocate your time.  Whatever you do, devote time and thought into your plan for marketing on the Internet.