In the olden days (and still taught by some art schools stuck in the mid 20th Century) we as new freelancers spent a TON of money on postcards, business cards, promotional materials, archival prints for our portfolios and then set about the hefty task of compiling a mailing and visit list of potential clients and then experienced the pleasure of mailing out all of that information and schlepping ourselves and those shiny new portfolios to art directors we were desperate to work for.
Some of that advice is still valid, but most of it is not.
BECAUSE THE WEB IS THE THING NOW.
If you're still in the pre-art school phase choosing a school BEWARE any professor who does not know how to use email, or who makes light of it. You'll need to be able to not only compose a professional sounding email but you'll need to know how to attach viewable sized files as well as fully comprehend and be able to upload completed files into a cloud portal for clients. Be wary of any professor who advises you chase after newspaper illustration because that is all but dead now. Advertising agencies yes, working directly with newpapers no.
BECAUSE THE WEB IS THE THING NOW.
The BEST thing to come out of this world-wide web is that now the playing field is even. Now your client base is no longer local it's global. Your previously potential six clients in your metro area now become something closer to sixty million.
That means you have to know how to use it. During my tenure at Massachusetts College of Art and Design in Boston where I worked exclusively with senior class students I was SHOCKED, SHOCKED I tell you at how many of them were NOT computer savvy. This is the 21st Century-- you kids are supposed to own technology. Many of the newer generation do not.
Change that.
First and foremost, forget how genius you are. Forget that the reason you're struggling is that your amazing talent has not yet been discovered, and approach it with this prism: you are offering a service in a business, the client needs to make money from you. Whether it be from more sales because your art graces the cover of their magazine, or through commission sales in their gallery, the bottom line is you will get work if someone thinks they can make money off you.
Cold and simple yes?
So approach it from a professional business angle.
EMAIL CORRESPONDENCE:
This iz NOT the time for U to use :(
Nope.
You need to handle business correspondence like you would a letter. Here's an example, let's pretend our editors name is John Q. Poobidickery-- your email should look like this:
Mr. Poobidickery;
My name is (fill in your name) and I am a recent graduate of (fill in your school), my portfolio is online at (fill in where it is) and I think my style suits your needs. I hope you can find the time to check out my work and see if you agree.
I have been a longtime (reader, visitor of their gallery, fan of theirs) and working with you would be an accomplishment of one of my major goals. (Cite SPECIFICS about the company so that they don't think this is a form letter).
Thank you and I hope to hear from you soon.
YOUR NAME
LINK TO YOUR ONLINE PORTFOLIO AGAIN. Make sure your contact info is also listed.
One thing that I think goes without saying, but I'll say it anyway-- your email should be professional, and it should be recognizable to this editor that they can spot it and know it's you. I.e. if your email is KITTYFN063@yahoo.com and your name is not KITTY FANUEL then you need to come up with a "real" email.
YOURNAME@YOURWEBSITE is best. Why? Because it says to the client that you not only are serious, but you believe enough in your talents to expend the energy and expense of having your own personal website.
My email is andy@andytfish.com << the killer there is that stupid T. I had to use the T because someone else registered andyfish.com so I had to add my middle initial. I could fill a stadium with the number of people who forget the T. It's not perfect but it's better than not having any.
It also helps that if you google me I come up first.
Gmail is your other option-- it's not ideal because gmail gets hacked a lot. Ever get a hacked email? It usually has a subject line of FROM THE NAME OF THE HACKEE-- you click on it and it tells you that Oprah is recommending this new weight loss solution and you should check it out or that the sender is stuck in Tel Aviv and needs bail money— send it right away! Note: I have a good friend who does travel in the Middle East and once got an email saying they had been detained by Egyptian Authorities and needed me to wire them money— I spent a good three hours getting hold of them to discover they were actually on a beach in Maine.
Hacked email is an annoyance. The very last thing you want to be to someone hiring you is annoying.
ONLINE PORTFOLIOS
There are a lot of sites that offer free space to artists
Portfolio Box
Behance Network
CarbonMade
Cargo
All of these are pretty good, and they offer various levels of memberships. The most important thing about them is that art directors often visit, which is a plus.
You'll notice I didn't list Deviantart -- that was an intentional omission. If you want to hang out with a bunch of anime fans that's a great site, but I know at least a DOZEN art directors who have said over the years that if someone lists their work on Deviantart they won't even click the link. That's enough of a reason for me to say stay away from it.
You can also opt to build your own website (which I think is smarter) and then promote visits to it.
SquareSpace (I use this one)
Wix (Veronica uses this one)
Both of these are popular with artists and both offer very simple templates and design tools. You can be a layman and have a site built in a day using either of these.
Probably even more important than the portfolio is THE BLOG. This particular blog (in it's old incarnation on blogger) got somewhere near 60,000 visits a month-- and I think that owes completely to the fact that I update it EACH AND EVERY DAY. Moving the blog to my website where it is now has dropped the numbers off, but I'll rebuild it and regardless I like that it's now in one unified space.
But let's talk about that NEW EVERY DAY-- that scares a lot of people when I suggest it for their own blog, but it's the number one bit of advice I can give to help you succeed.
WHY?
1. Fresh content drives readers to your blog. If they know each and everyday there will be SOMETHING, even if it's not something they find incredibly engaging, they will create a habit and make a visit to your blog a regular part of their routine. Think about brushing your teeth-- you NEVER forget because it's a habit ingrained in you since childhood. But compare that to when you get sick and the doctor prescribes a pill for you to take everyday-- you have to set a reminder, you end up missing a day, etc-- because it's not a habit.
2. Fresh content improves your Google results. Improved Google results means people (especially art directors) can find you. SEO means search engine optimization and that happens with fresh content.
3. Fresh content is healthy for your blog. A neglected plant is a pretty sad sight isn't it? So is a blog that has the same old post from New Years eve 1998. If you're going to jump into the online world work at it and keep it updated.
Everyday is intimidating-- I get it. Use the scheduling device and write a bunch of blogs at the same time, like a Sunday morning or a lazy afternoon. Break long posts into multiple parts. Post pictures, post artwork, post process, post whatever you think of.
It works.
But the key to take away from this week's advice is to have an online presence that reflects your current work.
THEN drive people to it. Link your TWITTER, your TUMBLR, your INSTAGRAM all back to your blog. When you write something new (or when it runs) make sure it gets mentioned on those platforms too.
IFTTT is a great free resource to connect all your social media. It's easy to use and it lets you hook everything up. So when you post on Instagram it also posts on Twitter, etc.
Once you have your online presence established THEN and ONLY THEN should you consider using some traditional marketing methods like postcards and mailers. OvernightPrints.com is my go to choice for business cards and promotional items. They are very inexpensive and relatively fast in turnaround time.
RESIST THE URGE TO ORDER THE 5000
When you're ordering business cards or postcards you're going to notice that ordering 5000 is not much more expensive than ordering 1000 so you may jump on it. Don't. The trouble is 5000 is a LOT of cards, and there's a really good chance you'll still be shucking these cards in five or six years, and the work shown on those cards will be long out of date.
Things change, art changes, phone numbers change, email changes, websites change-- all of that will work against the 5000.
Order in quantities of 250-500 and then create a mailer. A mailer could be a postcard showing your best work and your contact info with your web address so a visitor can come and see even more of your best work. It can be in the form of a postcard mailed to art directors and editors, or it could be in an envelope with a few items and a business card included.
MOST important is to make sure you include a bit of personal correspondence, if it reads like a form letter it's going to get less attention than if you actually write something that connects with the addressee.
WHO DO YOU SEND THE MAILERS TO?
Go to Barnes and Noble (if they're still in business), grab a pile of magazines you'd like to be featured in, or you'd like to work for, and look for the masthead to create a master mailing list of people who put this magazine out.
If there is no art director or editor listed, a quick Google search might help, if that fails call the magazine and ask the receptionist who the editor is.
QUICK thought on calling-- once I had an editor shoot me an email after I sent in a package, they wanted to work with me and asked that I call them on Monday. Trouble was, going by email alone they had a very difficult name to pronounce. Rather than embarrass myself in the follow up call, I called the receptionist first, and asked them how to pronounce the editors name. They were happy to help.
ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS be nice to the receptionist either in person or on the phone, they are your gate keeper and they deal with all kinds of person. Being nice will go a long way towards getting them on your side.
So go forth and attack the digital age my friends.
Next Up- DEALING WITH STRESS
Andy Fish is a freelance artist and writer who has been living the lifestyle longer than there has been an iPhone on this planet. The advice given has worked for him, it might work for you, he hopes it does. But like all advice, take it with your own situation in mind. If you want to contact him shoot him an email andy@andytfish.com