Master The Art Of Social Media Now!

The “Follow me, I will follow you back” policy is garbage - Wrong!

This is a rich article that will help you harness the social media game.

Some people have thousands of followers. It's crazy when you look at it. Truth is, they can't even engage properly with one.

If you care about the hype and appearances, you might think they have something interesting to say.

Then you start adding them to your network and the next thing you know is that your timeline is invaded by topics you don’t care about. That's the mistake I made in my early beginnings on LinkedIn: my articles catered to the corporate world, not mentioning any art form. I felt bored and lost. Then I stopped writing to finally speak about what I really love. I engaged with people who showed the same interest in culture and arts.

As I was scrolling through my Linkedin messages yesterday I realized how much opportunities I missed because I was too busy or everywhere on the map. Change is good. With Social CRM like Nimble you'll never forget a conversation.

I use Linkedin, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram a lot. Being proactive on social media is sharing a work that carries all my emotions and feelings. A few days ago, someone asked me in a tweet reply: How big is social media for artists, should he or she care? That's a very good question and today I will break it down for you, based on my own experience.

When a music label signs an artist they want to know if it's worth the ride because... artists are crazy. They want to know how many followers, subscribers, likes you have. Numbers make you bankable. It's not about quality anymore. It's really scary. Maybe that's why we have shitty music everywhere, but that's another story.

LINKEDIN:

One thing I hate about Linkedin is its lack of messaging power. You need to get to the point quickly. People are busy, it's hype to be busy. Sometimes the first message I get Is a person wishing me a great day and signing off even before the conversation has started. Duh!

Another thing I don't get is why people are throwing emojis out like rice when they just met a person who wants to know them. A “Thumbs up” makes you look lazy and rude. Please don't send emojis, have some conversation.

Ladies, I know your profile pic is the best ever and you know you look amazing, but don’t get an attitude for this. LinkedIn is not a dating site when someone like me shoots you a message it is on professional grounds only. I want to know more about what you do, not how you look.

Patience is everything. Post an article like this one, the first comments and likes will start popping later in a week or two. We artists are not well known to be patient creatures. It's a thing you learn as you practice the medium.

I get zero return from LinkedIn groups. I don't know why I keep posting my articles there. I am optimistic by nature I guess.

On the bright side, if someone likes your content it will make it visible to all his followers. When you comment on an article, it's showing in your activity, increasing your exposure. Comment on others’ content, it's paramount, you will then have a good reason to message them. You will have their undivided attention.

People want to know why they interest you so much. Don't think that, just because a person is on LinkedIn, he uses it often. Check his profile, if he has zero activity: likes, comments. You are going to have dry conversations. I promise you. Why sending an invitation when you know the outcomes?

TWITTER:

Twitter is the paradise of written content. I use it to get traction to my blog. My images only help me illustrate my point. Making the post more visual and increase the click rate.

I know visual artists who are not that big on Twitter but go check their Instagram...

SoundCloud integration on Twitter is perfect for musicians and producers.

I always ask my Linkedin contacts if they have a Twitter account so I can follow their real thoughts and reactions.

You should also use Twitter lists feature. For example, you can create a list of influencers in your industry and reply to their tweets, their followers will notice you.

Don't follow back for the sake of it. I see an account with 30k followers and the same numbers in following. How do you manage these numbers of the tweet in your timeline? Just follow when you know you'll engage. Forget about messages on Twitter, get their Linkedin or Facebook for that.

Don't follow people before checking their activities. Same rule on Linkedin.

Being “verified” don't mean anything. You can have 400 followers and have that status. What matters is: what do you have to say?

Consistency is also key on Twitter, you don't have to post every day but if you post things off topics you will lose followers. I use Buffer to do the work of posting my articles, for other tweets I’d rather be as authentic as possible. 

INSTAGRAM:

I love the “gram”, it's so visual! I get most of my clients from it. I post a painting and I get the likes. I turn them into conversations and invite my contacts to like my Facebook art page where they will find my store.

I always reply to comments about my work and I make sure to return the favor. The Same viral effect, when you comment a pic you gain traction to your Instagram and also get new followers.

I also like tons of pictures every day, using them later as an inspiration source for my next paintings.

Again, all the videos giving you tips on how to get followers fast are ridiculous. Following 100 people a day and using tools to get rid of those who don't follow back. How low can we go?

Send a message as to why you don't follow back or just start chatting. It's simple.

FACEBOOK:

I don't understand why my friends on Facebook don't get my art. I stopped posting on my personal account. Your friends or cousins, family want to see pics of you holding cats, not your craft. It's better to keep things separate, because as your reputation grows your inbox will be saturated by trolls or bots messages.

Don't invite your friends to like your page it doesn't make sense.

You can use Facebook ads to boost a great post and invite the people who like it to like your page without adding them as friends. That's awesome.

2 billion users on Facebook, if you are not into it, you better change your mind.

Create a professional page and post there.

Groups are very active, I always post my work into groups. In return I get likes and you already know the drill about likes.

Your page comes with all the information about your blog, site, and store. Growing your page’s likes should be your top priority.

Have your links ready to share.

SNAPCHAT:

I don't use it! I think it's for people who really like selfies and their facial features at every hour of the day. Plus it's so complicated to use. I tried so many times to jump in. I gave up.

SOCIAL MEDIA RULES:

Start a blog. Write often. Everybody can write. You will spend 20% of your time crafting stuff and 80% marketing it. So many artists don't write and it's a shame because it’s a wonderful way of expression and your audience wants to know the reason you are doing that sorcery.

Be proactive. Content needs action. Share a lot. Repetition is okay, by posting the same old content you make sure everyone sees it. Trust me they will see it! Don't stop because you think they don't. You’d be surprised. Someone asked me about a drawing I posted years ago to ask me if it was on sale.

“500 is a huge number” as Pharell Williams stated in an interview. Imagine yourself performing in front of 500 people! Why do you want 100k people, if you can't satisfy 500?

People ALWAYS have time for things they are interested in which is why I always give value first. Value is your content: articles, images, videos, links etc.

Don't get mad if they don't respond to your messages or emails, people have their lives. Sometimes they go into a lot and they will never tell you. Be patient and don't ignore them, they need you, they don't know it.

Be frank, messages can get twisted if a person is rude to you address the situation say how you feel. Stay polite, but don't get fooled around too long. It will happen soon enough when you will ask the sale.

Ask every day but don't ask for money, show the value! Ask for your work to be shared, ask if it has been seen, ask how it inspired people. Money is important but relationships matters. Make friends “god damn it!”

Don't sell yourself short. People will not buy from you because you are expensive. People buy expensive sh*t every day, sh*t you don't even craft. Don't compete on the price, compete on the value! You don't sell to someone who wants your art for $5 when you have spent nights crafting it and he tells you he's on the first class flight to his next conference. Why wasting your time convincing such a person? Your work is great, you are great! Some people just don't see the VALUE! Show them.

Be yourself! Thank your unfollowers because they remind you not wasting your time trying to please everyone. If I write nonsense and my English language is “good enough to put me in trouble” - as one copywriter once told me-, I will get this content off my chest anyway and introduce it to the person who cares. See how it flies, adjust and the next will be better.

Don't buy followers, you are not that low standards.

You only need ONE like. That's all you need. Cherish that like and start a conversation, you never know where new opportunities come from.

Drop me a comment in the section below. I'm Lionel Thomas, I make beautiful music for the eyes and I'm curious to know more about you. Tell me your story! Follow my blog, like my Facebook page. I'm also on Instagram and Twitter.