C.R.A.P.H.T.E.D. Week 3 Part A

     I chose the theme of this blog because I thought it would work well with photographed art. It is similar to the website theme I already have, so I think I can take some of the blog work I do here and transfer it, especially if it ends up being applicable to my current business. I like that the blog seems to be ideal for showing off multiple pieces of work at a time with the ability to click on them and read more about them. 

    I need to be able to document my work and and share my ideas on the regular, and I also need to be able to find my work quickly, so this blog layout is also perfect for both accessibility and organizational purposes. Since graduating with my degree in Fine Arts, I have been able to sell some of my work, but I am hoping that through learning how to use this blog in more of a marketing stance, I will to be able to increase my sales, so I looked to pick a layout that reminded me of other artists who sell a lot of their work via social media.

    The Dynamic Magazine theme is a good visualization for trying to get my work into home decor magazines, where I think it would do well. I think one of the biggest things that intrigued me about graphic design and art in the first place were magazines. so including the design aspects of a magazine into this blog seems appealing to me. I think it has a nice field of flow and the visual aspects this blog layout can offer is important because

    When you think of social media for marketing purposes, you should look at every platform as a chance to sell your product, some might be better or worse depending on the product you are trying to sell, but many of the platforms are versatile for marketing content. The biggest successes I've had for local shops have been Nextdoor and Instagram.

    Facebook seems like it is turning into a place that is more for news and family, so I have stopped using it as much as I used to when it comes to marketing my product, but because it seems to be a more mature-aged platform, It might be a good platform to reach back into. Older clientele generally are more established, and have more money. 

    A few months ago, I probably would have told you that the social media platform, TikTok, would be really good for personal use unless you are trying to bring in younger customers, but since then, while that statement might still be true, I've found that a lot more Millennials are on the platform than I once thought, and I have seen other businesses bringing in customers if they offer something that has a nice aesthetic. Art accounts are doing really well on there and u can link in your Instagram, your Etsy, or your personal website's storefront. Actually being on there and exploring the platform made me realize that you can vitalize this platform for quick advertisements on your small business.

    Another platform I use for my work is YouTube. I use it to put out art teaching classes, such as How to Draw and Gardening Lessons hosted by my cat, Skitty. I originally started these for my students at St. Paul's, but I continued to make them and put them up after. I need to figure out how to market myself through this platform though, because my stuff often gets buried. But if I am able to learn and vitalize the platform, I think YouTube will be great for marketing my work in real life and it could also generate a passive income as well if I were to get enough views on my videos.

    Some platforms that do not appeal to me are Twitter and Reddit, but that's only because I haven't really placed any time into learning how to use them. Twitter also seems to be almost scary for me because of how angry people can get on there. I am active in following politics, but I like having some control. I do have a Reddit, but I also don't know how I would go about marketing my business, unless I spend a lot of time diving more into the groups. It does feel like you could get easily lost on Reddit though.

    I know that I might not have ventured too deeply into the part that says define the personal use social media, but I just really think there is an opportunity on every single platform. I think, as of now, it depends on how well you know the platform, and if you feel you are comfortable with it or have a larger following on one platform versus the other, that's where you should start. I get advertised things on every single platform, including Pinterest. So, in conclusion, the best platform you can use is the one you are most comfortable with. People like genuine content and the marketing field is changing. It's better if you can be more natural with your content, therefore place your energy into those platforms.