FOR ARTISTS: Email EVERYONE YOU KNOW
by Clint Watson
If you followed last week's advice, you made a list of everyone you know. Today, you take the first step in focusing the marketing lens upon your artwork. Today’s action is simple: email everyone you know.
Draft an email announcement. Take a bit of time to make it interesting. Make it enticing. PLEASE, whatever you do don’t send a “hey check out my site” email. Talk a bit about your work. Or perhaps something new that you have done. It is a bit of a balance as you don’t want the email to be too long or too short. It also needs to sound personal, not too commercial.
While this article is not exploring the finer points of email marketing, here are a few pointers to consider
1. Send the email in plain text. For this email, we want to maximize delivery to your network. Plain text minimizes the chance that your email will be caught in a spam filter.
2. The Subject Line is the most important line. Take some time to consider what you want to say and be SURE to include your name in the subject since this email is going to your friends and family.
3. Include a post script. All direct mail marketers know that the “PS” is usually the most read part of a message. Include the most important point you wish to make in your “PS.” (You can duplicate this point in the email body as well if you wish)
4. Include a link to your web site. Above the link, include a description of what the link is for. See my sample below for clarification. This two line method is necessary because the email will be sent in plain text and this provides the most reliable way to ensure that the link works (and that your web site URL can be read).
5. To make this email personal, send this email from your personal email account, NOT from an automated system. To accomplish this, put YOUR email address in the “TO” field and paste all your friends’ address into the BLIND CARBON COPY field. If you have more than 200 names, break the list up into chunks that are smaller than 200. If you have access to an email blast system that appears personal, feel free to use it, but what you DON’T want to do is automatically add everyone to your regular email newsletter list. They should choose to subscribe to that themselves. You can see how I encourage that in my sample.
To get your juices flowing, I have drafted a sample email below. Feel free to use any of the wording in your own effort:
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
SUBJECT LINE: A Special Announcement to Friends of JOHN Q ARTIST
Dear Friends and Family,
Thank you sincerely for your past and continued support of my artistic endeavors! I’m excited to announce that I’ve taken my art career to the proverbial “next level” with the launch of my new web site.
After months of experimenting in my studio and refining my style of painting, I am achieving intriguing new levels in my artwork.
I’m inviting you, my friends, family and patrons to enjoy my new direction. Please take just a moment to continue your generous support by stopping by my web site to provide feedback, sign up for my email list, leave a comment on my blog, or simply browse my artwork portfolio.
See John Q Artist’s Intriguing New Style of Art Work:
http://www.JohnQArtist.com
I thank you for your support and for your friendship.
Sincerely,
John Q. Artist
PS: I sent this email because I wanted my family and friends to be the first to see my new artistic direction. If you wish to receive continued announcements regarding my art work, please sign up for my email list on my web site.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
After you have drafted your email, proof it for spelling, grammar and send it out!
If you’re worried that this method is not personal enough for family and friends, don’t worry. We still have several steps in our Focus the Lens series to go and PERSONAL emails are coming soon enough….
This step is intended to be a “jump start” to get people looking at your work and your site. And a way to get you back in your supporters’ minds, which will be helpful in the next steps.
Sincerely,
Clint Watson
Software Craftsman and Art Fanatic
PS: I told you that people read the post script.
For our complete recommended email marketing method, visit my blog at:
FOR COLLECTORS:
(Repeated from our Daily Edition)
What NOT to Get Your Wife for Her Birthday
by Clint Watson
Today we look at a man who made, in our opinion, the "mistake" of buying a birthday present for his wife that was "art" announcing her age. Since this newsletter discusses "art" and "fine living" we feel this article is appropriate. After all, the work in question poses as art and keeping your wife happy on her birthday would definitely contribute to fine living (or at least NOT keeping her happy would hinder fine living) . . .
One Thousand Paintings:
http://www.onethousandpaintings.com/
Quite a few of our readers replied. Several wondered if we had lost our marbles...our at least our eye for art, obviously thinking that we admired Sala's art. Let us assure you, we do not. Whether we've lost our eye for art or not, we cannot say, but, it seems our point was missed. Our agenda that day was one of giggling and poking fun...As we said, Sala's "art" is ridiculous. Sala’s marketing is not too shabby.
Since writing about Sala, we’ve had the opportunity to read more about him in Wired magazine. Columnist Daniel H. Pink apparently could think of nothing clever to buy his wife for her 41st birthday. We would have suggested some real fine art or at least diamonds. But Mr. Pink instead contacted Sala and bought his wife number “41” for her birthday.
Paint by Numbers by Daniel H. Pink:
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/14.12/posts.html?pg=3
In our humble opinion, he broke two cardinal rules of marriage and manhood. First, a wife’s birthday demands a more thoughtful gift than a number. And second, we all know that you never, never EVER reveal your wife’s true age . . . perhaps he should have acquired number 29.
The most telling line of Mr. Pink’s article is the last, regarding Sala’s customs declaration, “For a work whose worth was $959 and that cost $575, Sala estimated the value of 41 at $40.”
Sincerely,
Clint Watson
Software Craftsman and Art Fanatic
PS: Since posting this piece on our blog, we've garned a lot of traffic from people searching for "What to get your wife for her birthday"....apparently that stumps quite a few poor souls.
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