Forget the Algorithm: Why Artist's Need Creative Community
Too often, being an artist on the internet can feel like screaming into a void. Throwing paint on to a canvas and seeing what sticks. If you're a creative online, you probably know the feeling of post-posting hopelessness that's all too familiar. But if you work smarter and not harder, getting an audience engaged with your art and growing a following can be easier than you think, and it all begins with creating one thing: community.
If you share your artwork on social media, you likely already know the picture I'm about to paint. You spend all this time working on this piece, you get the perfect image of it, write out a great caption, and hope that the hashtags you post with it draw in enough eyes to your work. You're sure that people will love your work and that all you need is for the right people to see it.
After refreshing your feed every 60 seconds for the next ten or fifteen minutes, you might have 30 or so likes. But eventually, that feeling sinks in, that no matter what you do, it's for nothing. The feeling that no matter how many Instagram growth tips you use, how many finished pieces you pop out, or likes you get, it's never enough. The dreaded Instagram algorithm just can't let you catch a break.
Or maybe you're someone who gets likes and followers just fine, but when it comes to actual comments, engagement, and interaction with real followers interested in buying your work, it's radio silence. It seems impossible to get your numbers to translate into customers and clients. You look at all these other large artists sharing their work online and making a living from their art, and you don't even know where you'd begin.
Whether you're painting digitally, traditionally, in two dimensions or three, the secret to getting people interested in your artwork isn't an expensive masterclass, a Procreate brush pack, or a new drawing hack. Hell, it isn't even about how good of an artist you are.
ONE BASKET: IT'S A TRAP
It all starts with where you're sharing. Start thinking mindfully about what platforms you're sharing your work. Instead of trying to post everything everywhere at once or waiting for the day one of your posts goes viral, think intentionally about the websites and apps you're investing your time and attention to and how well they're serving you.
If you're like most creatives, it's probably just one or two platforms. But it's 2021, and the prime time for growth on a platform like Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram is long gone. Without some pro-level hashtag secrets, you're likely not going to find your posts ending up on the Explore page or getting thousands of views. That's why in the age of content creation, this expression is more important than ever:
"Don't put all your eggs in one basket"
Think about what sharing your work online would look like if you didn't have the social media tools you have at your disposal. How would you get your art out there? How can followers stay updated on what you're doing if their feeds don't show them? Cause let's keep it real - unless you're paying to promote your posts, your art probably isn't appearing on the news feeds of all of your followers anyways. Instead of trying to work within the confines of the app's algorithm, why not work around them?