Social Media - Working for Me?

Happy Friday Everyone :-)

This is another topic sent in during a previous giveaway on this blog - thanks! So, "how well is social media working for me?" It depends on how you look at it.

FREE works fantastic for me! Yes it does take my time, but no printing, postage, paying for advertising space....over time I have added more social media to my plate than when I first jumped into Twitter.

It may help you to know and to take a big easy breath, that I only used Twitter when I first started to hangout and advertise through social media. I was looking to promote my CafePress store back then, profits went to my local food bank. You can start any where, I don't know that Twitter is the best place. Just start where you are interested. Take on one social media site at a time. When you are ready to, add another one. Consider what it is you want to get out of social media.

I got on Facebook a few years after Twitter. A friend kept pestering me back then. She would say "Twitter is like a cocktail party and Facebook is like a lemonade stand." She was saying I needed to be on both. Maybe a year later?, another friend said I HAD to join Pinterest so I did. I jumped into Google+ about a year and a half ago I think around the same time I started blogging. For the life of me I can't remember when I set up Linkedin... I think before all of the other's but I didn't do much with it. Now I am quite active in a few Linkedin groups.

So BY FAR the blogging gets the most activity. I promote the blog on all my social media sites. As I write this I am pushing 4,000 page visits a month. (Some visitors will visit more than one page, most don't). The blog provides a great landing place to interact with people. It is a handy place for listing useful links. I never expected the #PatternParade blog page would do as well as it does :-) BUT most discussion occurs in Linkedin groups and Facebook groups. The majority of blog traffic comes from Linkedin and facebook - I assume from the groups, especially since Facebook filters who sees your posts and who doesn't.

You should note that as I write this I only have 59 blog followers. That is quite a contrast to almost 4,000 page visits a month. Something to keep in mind if you start blogging. Low blog (or no) followers doesn't mean your blog isn't working.

Also of note, I have only gotten business from Twitter! I have picked up a few graphic design clients even though I only promote art licensing on Twitter. Pinterest (for me) has the best click through rate. I haven't seen any benefit from Google+ yet, I don't have many followers. I do like having another "plug" into the Google machine (one of the reasons I chose Blogger for my blog).

This year at Surtex, a lot more people recognized me - I assume that is from social media. I can't figure out how else they would know who I am. Also the reason I posted the current photo above a few weeks prior to Surtex. That way people could recognize me :-)

Summing up this longer than usual post! Social media works great for me! I am getting out of it what I am looking for - connecting with all of you :-D

THANK YOU for clicking on the affiliate links when you are interested in purchasing one of those products. It means so much to me when you help support the time I spend blogging.

Looking forward to your comments! Maybe if you are all interested, I could talk about blogging specifically.

You might also like "How I Pay the Rent" post.

Do You Take Pictures in Stores? (Art Licensing Research)

 

 

I LOVE visual reminders!

I wanted to bring up this topic that I ran into on social media somewhere. Ever since I joined the smart phone crowd last summer, I started snapping pics of things I see while out shopping. The above roosters are just to remind me I need to do some sort of rooster/chick collection. In the paintings above, I liked the complimentary colors used (blue and orange).

The other cool thing that happens is when I look at the photos months later - something completely different about the photo might inspire me!

I feel a bit "criminal" taking the photos! Not sure why. All they do is sit in my phone (until now!). I think it is because it isn't my store and I don't ask permission to take photos… That being said. I have been caught several times taking pictures and no one has minded in the least.

I am hoping to get a lawyers opinion as well as artists and agents. I know there are many others of you out there who do this too! So now that I have come out of the closet, do you like this sort of visual reminder for yourself?

Thanks for stopping by and commenting!