Social Media Marketing Tips For Artists

social media marketing tips for artists

Are you an artist trying to figure out how to market yourself on social media? I was too, just a few years ago! In this post I’m sharing some of my top social media tips for artists.

Please note: I’m not an expert on this matter, but I have managed to triple my stats on a few key social networks over the past year, and slowly but surely grown my online presence since creating the Julie Erin Designs brand.

As you may also do, I work a full time job and have many other life commitments outside of my art business, so I can only dedicate a few hours per week to creating and marketing my designs on social media.

This leads me into my first tip which is: 

Dedicate just 5-10 minutes a day to social media

  • Start by taking on just one task per day on one of your social accounts.
  • Some examples include: Tweet an image of your latest work (don’t forget to include relevant hashtags). Like and/or follow some new users on Instagram.
  • Don’t get overwhelmed.  You should be able to do this during your coffee or lunch break, on the way home from work on the bus, after dinner, or whenever you have an idle moment.

Focus on a few key social media platforms

Try out different platforms but then hone it down to just a few, and then focus on content and growing your followers there. My top 3 at the moment are Tiktok, Instagram and Facebook. I dabble on others but I get the most engagement for my time on those 3.

social media for artists

Set up a social media calendar

  • Don’t overwhelm yourself with an over-loaded calendar.  Start with just one task per day that can be completed within a few minutes.
  • Create a visual calendar using your computer, a planner, or you can find lots of downloadable worksheets online. I also have a Notion template with a social media calendar included.
  • Do what works for you and your schedule.
  • Learn the etiquette for your chosen social media app.  On Twitter you can share multiple times per day, but on Facebook you may only want to share something every few days.

Posting schedule example: Example: Monday: Tweet about your latest design, tweet 2 sold items. Tuesday: Share a new design on Instagram.  Wednesday: Blog post about new design, and post to Facebook page.  Friday: Tweet new blog post

Start a blog

  • Use it to showcase your art work, items for sale, share art tips, supplies you use, your sketchbook, whatever you can think of. You can even sell your art directly through your website.
  • Connect with other art bloggers. Follow/like/comment on their posts.
  • Pro tip: Don’t forget to link to your blog from your social media profiles.

Use apps to make your life easier

  • Scheduling apps: Buffer or Hootsuite.  Use one of these apps (or something similar) to schedule a few posts to your social media accounts for the day. This could even be your one task of the day, if that’s all you have time for.
  • Follower tracking apps: Crowdfire or similar apps which help you track followers and unfollowers.  You can also search for people who follow similar accounts and then like/follow them.
  • Photo editing apps such as Canva and Photogrid. There are several out there, so find one that you like. Use it to create and edit images of your designs and products right on your phone.  While you could also just make these images in Photoshop on your PC, being able to make promo images on the go makes it so much easier to get it done when you have a spare moment.
social media tips for artists
Instagram post example created with the Photogrid app.

Keep a list of content ideas

  • Keep a list on your phone or somewhere else, so you never run out of ideas for fresh content!
  • Examples: Sold items, new designs, WIP’s and sketchbook shots.
  • Check out my list of over 25 Instagram post ideas for artists.

Make use of hashtags and SEO (search engine optimization)

  • Use relevant hashtags so that people can find your work.
  • Don’t overdo it. Figure out what works on which platforms.
  • Monitor those hashtags and like/follow others who are posting to that hashtag.
  • Add key words in your description and add alt tags to your posts when possible.

Make use of tagging

  • Sometimes, when appropriate, you may want to actually tag another user (such as Zazzle or Redbubble for example) on Twitter or Instagram, if you are showcasing their product. You may get lucky and they might even re-tweet or feature your product!
  • Go through their tagged feeds to find similar users to like and follow.

Engage with similar users

Connect with other bloggers, and other artists on your chosen social media platforms.

I sell my art work on POD websites such as Zazzle, Redbubble and Society6, so I try to engage with others who sell on those sites as well.  I do this by either liking their work directly on those sites, on social media, through forums or Facebook groups.

To learn more about selling your art through print on demand websites, check out my Skillshare class!

Post to shopping websites

If this is appropriate to your style of art work, you may consider posting your products on shopping websites such as Pinterest and Wanelo.

Additional Resources

If you have the opportunity to do so, it can be really helpful to take a social media marketing course at your local college or university. Or even online. I took a short course which was very informative and turned me on to some new apps and strategies. Think of it as an investment in your business.

Also check out the Artist Resources section of my website and blog for even more social media tips for artists.

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I hope you have found some useful information here about social media for artists!


Feel free to share some of your own social media marketing tips below.

Cheers,

julie signing off

8 thoughts on “Social Media Marketing Tips For Artists

  1. Thank you so much for sharing tips on this! I’m just starting my blog and attempting to navigate social media ? Your post is very helpful. Thank you!

  2. Laurie Griffin says:

    Very informative post! Thank you.

    1. You’re welcome! I’m glad you found it helpful.

  3. THANK YOU for sharing this! Fantastic info! I just started rebuilding my online identity and this is seriously so helpful. I appreciate the help!

    1. Hi Ashlee! I’m so glad you found it helpful. Let me know if you have any questions :)

  4. One of the key aspects you don’t really cover that well is Pinterest Analytics and identifying best performing boards and pins and, based on that information, what action to take to improve overall performance.
    I’ve developed a free online tool that does just that (nothing to sell, you’re welcome!). The Nifty Pinterest Tailored Action Guide analyses your board and pin performance and then gives recommendations tailored by the results.
    Find it here: http://www.kdl.to/nifty-pinterest-action-guide.html?src=julieerin

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