The 3 Places I Share My Art
How to become discoverable online
Click play above to hear me read this post. I record every Weekly Artists Newsletter just for you.
Each month members of the illoguild answer a question together, and this month it is: How do you become discoverable as an illustrator?
This is such an important question for artists, and I am going to focus on online discoverability. I truly believe it’s important to have an online presence as a creative. Everyday people use social media, search on Google, and share content with friends.
Below I will share The 3 Places I Share My Art, and if you’d like to talk about what works for you, the comments are open and help us learn from each other. What platforms do you use? Do you have a newsletter? How do you become discoverable?
And be sure to check out the illoguild page on Monday to read everyone’s responses!
When my first book launched in June, Instagram froze my account.
I could not like, comment, or follow for a week. For two years I had worked towards illustrating children’s book. And I finally did it: a book I illustrated was out in the world, but my social media stopped me from promoting it. It was frustrating, so I was very grateful that I had both my website and my newsletter to promote the book.
If I only had Instagram, I wouldn’t have been able to connect with people and share about this huge milestone.
Moral of the story: Be discoverable in multiple places. Here are the three corners of the internet that I focus on:
1. Email list/Newsletter
Today’s newsletter marks one year on Substack! Thank you so much for being here! There are over 300 of you popping in every week for the Artists Newsletters. I truly appreciate the chance to build some community in this space with other artists.
So do you have a newsletter? What should yours be about? Email lists can have various purposes. For community, sharing, selling, outreach, updates, and so much more. I started with a monthly newsletter to share updates. It was also a way to share new cards and products in my shop. Since then, it has evolved to include a weekly newsletter that chronicles and shares what I’ve learned over the past couple of years.
Your newsletter can be anything you want it to be. Just start collecting those emails so you can reach people directly in their inboxes, not just on social media. (Remember how my Instagram froze my account before the book launch?)
I like how this newsletter is going, so the next step for my email list is to plan posts for a more manageable workflow.
2. Website
Having a website in addition to social media adds credibility and more discoverability. It takes time for search engines to start populating your name and content in searches, but as you continue to build and update your site, you’ll see your art pop up more.
More importantly, a website offers complete customization for your content. Do you want to promote your art portfolio and a shop? Or maybe you have a newsletter that you’re really pushing. With a website, you have complete control over what people see.
I previously wrote about How to Choose a Website for Your Art, so check it out if you’re trying to decide on a site!
My next step for my website is to learn more about SEO, or Search Engine Optimization.
3. Social Media: Instagram
In order to grow and become discoverable, it’s important to be consistent on social media.
People have lots of feelings about social media, so it’s worth trying different platforms and seeing what works for you. For example, I tried Pinterest but didn’t get good results, so I stopped using it. There’s nothing wrong with trying a platform and then deciding against it.
I found one (Instagram) that I liked became be consistent with it. I created a posting schedule and posted almost daily for the first year. The second year I posted Monday-Friday. This helped me to view it as “part of the job.” My goal was to get 1,000 followers, because for some reason, that builds credibility in my mind. The posting schedule and engagement with other accounts allowed me to reach that goal.
I’m happy with the progress for now, so I’m going to turn my attention to becoming discoverable on another platform: Twitter.
Twitter is a secret weapon for authors and illustrators. Jobs are posted, portfolios are requested, and it’s a great place to follow conversations. Is there anyone else who wants to get more consistent on Twitter? Maybe we can hold each other accountable. Let me know in the comments or send me an email!
EDIT: Just kidding, I’m going to put effort into Threads instead! Anyone else?
This post focused on becoming discoverable online, and now that my first book has been published, I’m excited to explore how to become discoverable in person.
is doing this so well with her books. I’m super excited to see what she says about this topic in her newsletter, .
How do you get your art out in the world? What platforms do you use? What works well and what’s hard? Have you attended in person events to promote your work?
Thanks for joining the monthly
discussion, and I will see you all next week to discuss children’s books!Katie
Here and Instagram are about all I have energy for! Twitter terrifies me lately even though I’ve been active on there for more than a decade. 😆