In the past, artists used to depend on word of mouth, as well as their legacy, as a way to market themselves. However, thanks to the internet, as well as social media platforms, the way that this industry works has dramatically changed.
Due to the internet, the playing field for artists and their marketing campaigns has been leveled. Gone are the days when the audience could only engage with artwork through the domain of institutions and galleries. These days, the essential platforms where individual artists are able to engage with their audience are places such as personal stores, online marketplaces, as well as social media. Additionally, no matter the size of a creative business, implementing a strong marketing campaign is going to be extremely beneficial to the overall livelihood of an artist. With artists, when it comes to putting their work in front of the eyes of a new audience, it’s important to properly manage everything – the way a business should be managed.
However, aside from the managing aspect, it’s also important to know whether the art marketing campaign that’s been implemented is effective, as well as measurable.
Marketing Strategies and Public Relations for Artists
The way that an artist is able to stay in the mind of the audience is through press and media coverage. However, these two aspects can only take a campaign so far, so it’s important to understand the limitations in order to take full advantage of them. Aside from the traditional press coverage, artists should also include events, social media strategies, content creation, and ad placements, as well as creative partnerships in their marketing plans. That way, they will be able to see real numbers on whether or not any of the marketing tactics that they’re using really work, and adjust the campaign accordingly.
Set a Goal and Understand the Audience
Before creating any marketing campaign, it’s important for an artist to truly understand the demographic and the audience they plan on targeting. In this step, analyzing and tracking the interests and the behaviors of any inbound traffic, as well as the potential audience the artist wants to engage with is essential.Having a clear understanding of the target audience will allow for more focused content creation, better-targeted ad placements, and social media campaigns. It is also going to benefit the overall marketing campaign, as it’s the best way to build a strong narrative and a meaningful connection with an audience.
The next step is to establish specific goals for the marketing campaign. These could be increasing the sales to existing clients, increasing awareness of the brand (in this case, the artist and their art), expanding sales into a new demographic, or even creating new partnerships – the possibilities are practically endless.Finally, as with any other strategy, the strongest tool is consistency.
This means being consistent across all platforms when it comes to implementing the marketing strategy, being consistent with the narrative and the overall design, as well as being consistent at keeping up with the campaign.
