Instagram may be the single most important tool in the art world.
And many artists have a love-hate relationship with it.
“Social media is way too time consuming. I just don’t have the bandwidth.”
“I resist Instagram because I feel overwhelmed by doing it ‘right’.”
“I feel like I need to post something fresh and different every time, so that holds me back.”
Our faculty member, Dina Brodsky, hears these things a lot.
Not only is she a contemporary realist painter, but also a social media influencer with around half a million Instagram followers… so she can relate to those struggles.
In fact, for years, she struggled to get traction with her art career.
At one point, Dina was juggling 5 or 6 different gigs to keep going…
…but not finding enough time to actually paint!
Then figuring out Instagram revolutionized her career.
She began to connect with other artists,
created some incredible working relationships with galleries,
and found an audience for her art — all without leaving the house.
Without Instagram, none of it would have happened.
Now celebrities and royals are among her private collectors.
The 2 Keys to Instagram Success
Every post you make on Instagram has two goals:
Make them stop, and make them stay.
To decide who sees your posts, Instagram uses a set of rules called algorithms.
And those algorithms are driven by these two factors:
#1 ) Do people stop scrolling when your post first appears in their feed?
#2) And then, do they spend time looking at it?
If not, your post will quickly be buried.
But when something stands out and catches people’s attention,
the algorithm will show it to more people.
And when people like, comment on, and reshare your post,
the algorithm likes that, too.
And that’s how you get your work seen by more people.
Simple, but not always easy.
Don’t Get Sucked In
Since launching 10 years ago,
Instagram has completely transformed the business of art.
If you do it right,
today you can use Instagram to gain serious attention as a professional artist.
Collectors all over the world can discover you.
You can meet other like-minded artists, and even art magazine editors.
Commissions, invitations to exhibitions, licensing offers for commercial use…
For you as a professional artist, Instagram offers all this and more.
So, how do you use this tool properly?
If you think you need to spend more time on Instagram…
…you probably don’t.
Like any tool, Instagram can be misused.
You wouldn’t (we hope) use your paint brushes to clean your teeth.
They’re tools for a specific purpose.
Likewise, to help you raise your profile as an artist,
your time on Instagram should be focused on sharing your art,
in a meaningful way, to attract the following you want.
So to maximize your creative time, you’ll want to limit your Insta intake.
The platform is designed to be addictive, to keep you scrolling.
Until you look up and realize hours have gone by…
hours that you’d planned to spend working in your studio.
If this is an issue for you, the trick is…
Switch from being a follower to being a producer.
You do NOT have to be on Instagram all day.
You do NOT have to post every day.
You do NOT have to follow everyone who likes your work.
But, you DO need a plan.
As you’re going through your week in your studio,
think about a few things you’d like to share:
- details of your latest work
- a behind-the scenes look at your process
- something that nobody else is doing or talking about
If you can create just a few posts each week that wow people,
you can grow your audience much more quickly than by posting so-so content daily.
Quality matters more than quantity.
In our program, Dina shares a treasure trove of examples of what good posts look like, so that you can take inspiration.
But also audits your Instagram feed and points out what needs to change.
- Would you like an artist with half a million Instagram followers to audit your account and show you exactly what to change?
- Would you like cheat sheets of Instagram influencer accounts to feature you and boost your visibility?
- Is getting 10,000 followers in the next 12 months even possible?
Yes it is.
But if you keep doing the same things…
…you can expect to get the same results.
So if you are tired of figuring it out on your own,
then maybe it’s time to get help from those who are already where you want to go.
When you apply for one of our clarity calls, here’s what happens:
- You’ll answer a few brief questions about the business side of your art
- If you get a seat, we’ll go over your situation and address any blind spots
- And if it sounds like we are a good fit, at the end we’ll share details of what it would look like for us to work together
- (we only invite artists who we are convinced we can help get results.)
Want to spend less time on Instagram but get 10x better results?
How much easier will all be when you add a zero or two to your audience size?
Sometimes we don’t know what we don’t know.
So if you struggle with social media and decide to work with us,
here is some of what you will discover:
>> the 3 types of posts that will stop people in their tracks
>> the right way to boost your posts — without throwing money away
>> how to respond to comments… and when you don’t have to
>> what signals Instagram to promote your posts
>> why a small number of followers is actually an advantage for fast growth
>> … and much more
If you’re interested in having us audit your specific case, apply now for your clarity call.
