We all know that web sites and blogs live and die because of traffic. This puts Google, as the Internet's de facto start page, front and center in most artists minds as a traffic-driving strategy. However, Google should not be the only.....nor even the main focus of your online marketing efforts. We've written about this subject before in our articles "What if Google Went Away?" and "Google Alone is Not Marketing." This series will explore specific ideas to drive traffic to your web site....some will work synergistically with search engines like Google....while others will not be depended upon search engines at all. All of these strategies will work with or without search engines.
Today's strategy is is to Write Articles for Art Collectors.
What if you're not a writer?
No problem, take advantage of all the great services out there to help you with your writing. You can see some of the one we recommend at the following link:
Writing for Non-Writers
What should you write about?
Write about art collecting, write about specific things to be aware of regarding your medium (ie when to varnish an oil painting, how to care for a pastel), write about the importance of insuring art, write about other artists. Put yourself in the position of an art collector and write about things that would appeal to them. Remember - things that are obvious to you as an artist are not so obvious to us non-artists.
For a list of 52 suggested topics, visit Barney Davey's blog:
A Year of Blog Topics for Artists - No Reason to Hold Back Now
What do you do with the articles?
Good question. In short, you use them yourself and you syndicate them to others. Here's the important part - you freely give the article away to anyone who wants to use it UNDER THE CONDITION that they credit you for writing it and provide a link back to the original article wherever they use it. This is the heart of the strategy and why it drives traffic. Whenever someone else uses the article, they are providing links back to you, which means anyone who finds the article useful will likely visit your web site or blog and sign up for more of your stuff.
Here is a list of some things to do with the articles:
1. Post them on your blog
2. Post them on your web site
3. Send them to your in-house email list
4. Send printed version to your in-house snail mail list
5. Submit them to article directories
6. Send them to us at FineArtViews (we need collector focused articles)
7. Make sure everyone you submit it to understands the wording they must include to republish it.
Sincerely,
Clint Watson
Software Craftsman and Art Fanatic
PS - Did you notice we included ourselves in the list of places to submit? We want well-written, useful collector focused articles by guest authors.
Related Pages and Posts
Writing for Non-Writers
What if Google Went Away?
Google Alone is Not Marketing
What REALLY Drives Web Traffic
Review the Work of Another Artist
A Look at Links
A Year of Blog Topics for Artists - No Reason to Hold Back Now by Barney Davey
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