It is absolutely common in many companies that specialized employees take care of the optimization of the website for search engines ( SEO ) every day. Search engine optimization is an important sub-area of Google Marketing and ensures that a website appears as far ahead as possible in Google search and also found by potential prospects.
However, there are areas - as in art - in which SEO is apparently not important. A missed opportunity.
It is known that most artists are financially far behind the private sector and their employees, and this can also be expressed in numbers. According to the artist social fund, the average annual income of visual artists only 19,988 euros (as of January 2023).
But despite the financial pressure, many artists shy away from the commercialization of their art and have a deep dislike of capitalism. You want to sell your works, but do not actively advertise or market yourself.
The ideal state would be for you to exhibit your art somewhere and to be discovered and bought by art enthusiasts. For established artists with good gallery owners, this dream may still come true, but this dream remains unfulfilled for the vast majority of visual artists.
Marketing should be understood as an integral part of artistic existence. Here Google plays an overriding role in our modern media landscape, since a great leverage can be achieved here, especially with small budgets.
Together we look at how art and marketing go hand in hand and how Google can help you to successfully establish yourself as an artist.
With diverse tools and platforms in the field of Google Marketing , such as AdWords, Analytics, Video, Cloud and Data, not only companies, but also artists can effectively get to know their potential customers, win new followers and become visible online.
Google also offers managers and data analysis tools to support large companies like small artists in optimizing their marketing strategies and addressing their target group in a targeted manner. Regardless of whether it is about search engine advertising, display ads or video marketing, Google offers a wide range of opportunities to successfully market your art.
Reason enough to take a closer look at the various tools and their specific benefits for you as artists. By the way: Most Google Marketing Tools are completely free of charge (apart from the click prices for Google AdWords advertisements) and are usually easy to learn.
Fertile connection of art and marketing
In today's digitized world, marketing plays a decisive role for companies to successfully establish itself. Google offers an interesting way to combine art and marketing. As one of the leading internet giants, Google offers a variety of marketing tools to support artists in strengthening their presence and winning new buyers, supporters and fans.
Creating process as the core of artistic activity
The creative creative process is at the center of all artistic activity, but self -marketing should also be taken into account sufficient photo by Alice Dietrich @alicegrace, via unsplash
As an artist or as an art gallery, it is probably not the first thing that comes to mind. After all, there are many other aspects that seem more important. The creative process is the core of artistic existence. But this is exactly where there is a risk that many freelance artists underestimate. In addition to the artistic core activity, there should still be enough air for its marketing.
The struggle for attention is becoming increasingly tougher, because more and more art prospects use the Internet to find out or present themselves. But is it enough to simply own your own website? Definitely not.
About the need for self -marketing among artists
In a world that is characterized by fast media and constant accessibility, it is becoming increasingly important to stay in conversation. Just standing on stage or being present at exhibitions is no longer enough. Continuous media presence has become a crucial success factor and direct communication with the target group almost indispensable .
The public is no longer only interested in pure works of art or music . Rather, the fans also fascinate the stories and backgrounds behind the works. The person who has created art or music, as well as the creative process of creation, are becoming increasingly important.
Due to the step from anonymity into the spotlight, new possibilities and perspectives can arise. The listener or spectator becomes part of the event and is involved in the works of art or pieces of music.
But how can you commercial success without losing artistic freedom?
Communication as a key to success
In addition to fulfilling creative dreams, it is also important to keep an eye on the economic side. This guide supports you in marketing your artistic works using the Internet and thus reaching a larger audience.
The focus is on online measures in order to meet the requirements of progressive digitization.
Essential building blocks for marketing success
The four most important means of successful self -marketing for artists are on the Internet:
A separate website
Social media channels (e.g. Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Instagram, ...)
The artist website is your visual and content figure in the Internet photo by John Schnobrich @johnschno, via Unsplash
The main goal of an artist website is to address customers both through the visual design and the content. It should contain a comprehensive collection of artists, a description of the exhibited art and current exhibition data.
An aesthetically appealing website is your business card and an important first impression for potential customers. Since art is a visual medium, it is of particular importance that your website is always up to date and is aesthetically appealing.
With a website alone, however, it is no longer done! It should be supplemented by social media profiles and Google Marketing .
Social media marketing
Digital platforms that enable interactions between online users are summarized under the term social media. No other advertising material is as effective and directly in the distribution of information as the social networks.
In the digital age, numerous online platforms are available that enable every artist to present their works in the world.
A separate website forms the foundation for every independent activity. But this alone is by no means enough: social media channels are of great importance to achieve successful self-marketing.
No matter which platform you present yourself, it is essential that you are found on the Internet. Ideally, you are present on several channels - such as Instagram, Facebook, Twitter,Tikok, Tumblr, Soundcloud and Co. - to achieve synergy effects.
A Facebook page and an Instagram profile for artists offer excellent opportunities to continuously increase the number of fans.
FaceBook and Co. are excellent social channels for direct communication with their customers/fans Photo by firmbee.com @Firmbee, via unsplash
Also with a narrow budget and little effort, marketing can be successful for artists by making targeted investments in selected online tools.
By integrating the artistic work into the marketing strategy, the fans show the fans in an impressive way what creative skills they have. This is the best way to self -marketing.
The range of social media channels is enormous and includes numerous platforms. At this point the most important representatives should be mentioned:
Which channels are promising must be checked in individual cases. A quick check from direct competitors or similar artists quickly brings clarity.
Content marketing
Content marketing includes writing and providing texts and visual media for marketing purposes Photo by Leeloo Thefirst, via Pexels
As the name suggests, content marketing is about content . Every social media channel and your own website require content - be it texts , graphics , pictures , videos or downloads .
The objective of the content is clearly defined: it should offer the target group an added value and thereby attract attention.
The target group is to be bound by constantly new, current information For this reason, content marketing forms the linchpin of online marketing.
Where do you get the content from?
Above all, there are two ways to create appealing content. Either write, photograph and film independently or use external resources independently.
But is it really essential that you do everything yourself as a creative head? Not necessarily.
If time and resources are scarce, outsourcing be a wonderful option to get informative texts or appealing images. Experienced copywriter or ghostwriter agencies such as text brokers , great content or PageContent offer tailor-made text content that are tailored to the needs of the customer. The billing is based on one word price and is perceived as affordable.
Royalty -free images can also be acquired at various image platforms, also known as stick agencies, such as iStock , Shutterstock , Fotolia / Adobe Stock or Getty Images . The price for an image depends on the desired resolution, type of file and the selected package. Individual images are already available from a price of a few euros.
Shutterstock now also offers license-free music and video materials that can be used as needed. With qualitative compromises and a smaller selection, there are free royalty -free photos at Unsplash and Pexels . A corresponding attribution of the photographer is desirable, but not a mandatory prerequisite for using the images.
There are many options to create unique content
Blogs are a perfect way to always stay up to date and look outside the box. YouTube channels offer a platform for video diaries and customer loyalty.
Webinars are also a great way to offer customers added value. Blogs in particular offer an excellent opportunity to communicate with fans and interested parties. The chronologically sorted, short articles always offer news and added value.
In contrast to conventional website entries, blog posts can be commented on, which enables an interaction with the target group. It is of great importance to know the target group closely. However, regular updating blogs requires a high amount of time.
Another option to provide the public with content is given by press material . This includes your image -providing texts, work, press photos and press releases.
The purpose of the press material is to make it accessible to the mass. This can be done either by a direct request or via a download link on your website. Press material facilitates and accelerates how to deal with the public and ensures uniform communication.
Basically, if you are in public and want to market your creative works, you always need current press material.
When creating and integrating content on your website, you should also pay attention to search engine optimization . Further information can be found in the following section.
Online marketing with Google & Co.
Online marketing means all marketing activities that take place on the Internet Photo by Dominika Roseclay, via Pexels
The selection of suitable channels for online marketing is only a fraction of what makes it. It is an advantage to deal with the complexity of online advertising in order to maximize the effectiveness of marketing measures.
If you take the time to find out in detail about the most important instruments and your implementation, you have an excellent chance of marketing yourself professionally.
Online marketing offers an excellent opportunity for self -promotion on the Internet.
Search engine marketing
There are two sub -areas in the area of search engine marketing , namely search engine optimization (SEO) and search engine advertising .
A great website is also useless if it is not found on the Internet by potential customers or fans. In order to draw the attention of the target group to your own online presence, it must first be known. Search engine optimization (SEO for short) is of great importance and can be very helpful.
With SEO measures you optimize your artist website according to the requirements of the search engines. In the future, they will appear above for search queries of potential customers. Photo by Pixabay
SEO includes methods that serve to help your own website on the organic search results of search engines such as Google, to help it to a higher ranking. There are no additional costs. With a little patience you can effectively advertise your site and even save money.
Short termination:
Organic search results are the results that are displayed in a search query via a search engine without payment. The ranking of these results can be influenced by SEO measures. In contrast, paid search results (AdWords) presented as separate ads in the search lists.
Keywords are particularly common in the target group searched keywords or key terms. Your content is based on these keywords.
Title tags : appear as the first line in the search results lists (max. 56 characters). Description: gives the search engines a summary (out of a total of 156 characters) about the content of a page.
Anchor text : The clickable words are called an external or internal link.
Alt-Text : Is the alternative text that appears if a called image cannot be displayed for any reason.
Effective SEO measures that you can implement directly
When creating the text:
Offer high quality, unique content.
Pay attention to topicality.
Install the most important search terms of your target group (keywords) in the text.
Dear your texts with over and over-headings; Use the most important keywords here too.
The text should be good and fluid for your readers; So don't install too many keywords. Added value is more important than search engine optimization.
On the respective website / underside:
Get the most meaningful internet address (domain) that is easy to remember.
Use meaningful and unique title tags for each individual page.
Write a unique description for each individual page, which briefly summarizes the content of the respective page.
Link your sides among themselves - if it is a topic.
Use appropriate anchor texts for internal and external links.
Live out text links visibly.
Use common file formats for images such as .jpg or .png.
Give the pictures meaningful file names.
Use the alternative text to briefly describe your pictures.
Practical for the entire website:
Keep the navigation of your website simple: see the homepage as a hallway from which all other rooms go off.
Use text links instead of images or symbols for navigation points.
More useful Google Tools for artists
The use of tools such as Google Ads, Analytics, Maps, YouTube and Co. enables artists, photographers and musicians to improve their marketing strategies and to address their target group effectively.
With Google Ads, companies can switch their advertisements online and reach potential customers on various platforms. Through targeted targeting, ads can be individually adapted to the interests and needs of users.
Google Analytics, on the other hand, offers you the opportunity to collect and analyze valuable data about your website visitors.
With the help of this data you can optimize your marketing strategies and further improve your online presence. By understanding the needs and preferences of your target group, you can better adapt your content and offers and thus build up long -term customer loyalty.
Google also offers tools such as Google Cloud Platform and DoubleClick for Publishers to support artists in the administration and publication of video and display ads. These tools offer companies the opportunity to effectively plan and control their marketing campaigns.
Google Maps and not least YouTube, which belongs to the Google Group, are also powerful tools for artists to increase their awareness.
Overall, it can be seen that Google offers a wide range of opportunities to link art and marketing in an innovative and effective way and to successfully establish itself as an artists in the digital age.
Owner and managing director of Kunstplaza . Publicist, editor and passionate blogger in the field of art, design and creativity since 2011. Successful conclusion in web design as part of a university degree (2008). Further development of creativity techniques through courses in free drawing, expression painting and theatre/acting. Profound knowledge of the art market through many years of journalistic research and numerous collaborations with actors/institutions from art and culture.
A basic need for every artistically creating person should be able to live from his art.
In order to secure your own existence, it is essential to make money with art . In fact, contrary to the majority perception, many artists can live well from their creative work these days. Nevertheless, a vast majority of all freelance artists are dependent on further sources of income (e.g. giving courses, order work, part -time jobs, etc.).
The recognition as an artist often does not yet bring any direct financial security. Therefore, artists are often life artists at the same time.
However, the possibilities of being able to live on your own art have grown greatly through the Internet and social media. As an artist, however, you have to be versatile and flexible to be successful. A certain degree of perseverance is also essential.
Customer care and self -marketing are also important pillars for success as an artist .
In this section we have numerous contributions, information, tips and advice, which should help you live from your art.
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