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Articles on finishing self-generated work and building expertise-based creative businesses, with the Creative Engine, Ground Truth, and Capacity frameworks.
marketing
How to find clients and build your audience without relying on social media, with Meg Casebolt
Listen to the episode: “With relationships, it’s not about numbers. It’s about depth.” Meg Casebolt What happens to your business when you take an extended break from social media? Will it fall apart? Wither on the vine? What if the answer is…not much? Meg Casebolt is an SEO expert and the founder of Love at First Search, an agency that helps online businesses get found in search results, and to turn new readers into leads, subscribers and sales. Meg’s business used to be super active on social media, until a few years ago when she took a 100-day social media break. Kind of by accident. That’s when Meg discovered that even though social media had been taking up a ton…
How to grow your audience | Promoting your creative work doesn’t have to feel sleazy
Promote your creative work without feeling sleazy | STOP skipping steps in the audience journey and grow your audience Ok, so you’ve got a new project out—or maybe the release date is bearing down on you like a freight train. You need to put a spotlight on it. You need people to know, to get interested, to buy. You need to grow your audience. So, what do you do? → Post a few times on your social channels: “Hey it’s out! Order now!” ?→ Send an email to your list—or does that feel weird because you haven’t emailed in forever? …And what would you say? You can’t just throw up your hands and give up. But it also feels impossible…
Want attention for your work? You need a hook. (Video lesson!)
Ou may also like the Story Building series, based on Out on the Wire. Part 1: Story ideas Part 2: The Focus Sentence Part 3: The XY Story Formula Part 4: Chronology and suspense Part 5: Framing and the Story Matrix I admit it; like just about everyone, part of me still clings to the fantasy that if I just make awesome stuff, and keep on making more of it, somehow I’ll get discovered (how? by whom?), and my work will sell gangbusters (where? how?) without me having to lift a finger. The audience’s attention will naturally gravitate towards the work. I’ll make so much money that I can just sit back and plan my next amazing work…on my own…
Know where you are so you can plan where you’re going.
Identify your true creative goals with the Creation-Communication Matrix, so that you can build the practice that will feed the next version of yourself.
Making money as an artist: Magic? Or could we take control?
Shakespeare had to sell theater tickets. DaVinci had to sell paintings. Dickens had to sell magazines. Being in the business of selling my work does not suddenly make me a “business person.” It makes me an artist.