Struggling to Build an Audience through Social Media? Here's your Roadmap! [Part 2]
This is how to engage with your followers and grow your mailing list consistently
Welcome back! Last week, in Part 1 of Struggling to Build an Audience through Social Media?, we explored the opportunities social media platforms offer along with high-level strategies to expand your reach and amplify your voice as an artist.
Now in Part 2, let’s dive deeper into captivating your audience with high-quality content and strategic engagement tactics. Consistently sharing quality posts and fostering community will take your social media presence to the next level.
Crafting Compelling Social Media Content
Great content grabs attention and sparks conversation. But for many artists, determining what to post can be challenging. Here are 9 suggestions to inspire your social media content creation:
Showcase Current Projects: Give followers a window into your latest artwork, exhibitions, or creative endeavors through photos, videos, and descriptive captions.
Spotlight Previous Works of Art or Creations: Re-sharing your timeless artwork breathes new life into previous creations and attracts new fans who may have missed them.
Behind-the-Scenes: Give viewers insider access to your process through in-progress shots, workspace glimpses, and photos/videos of you working.
Tell Stories: Share your inspirations, meaningful memories, or amusing anecdotes related to projects. Storytelling engages followers emotionally.
Share Inspiration: Post about art, artists, experiences, or anything that fuels your creativity. This provides personal context into your artistic world.
Go Live: Livestreams let followers connect with you in real-time and get impromptu behind-the-scenes access. They feel spontaneous and exciting.
Utilize Features: Experiment with different formats like Instagram Reels, Stories, Guides to showcase your art in engaging new ways.
Collaborate: Joint posts with other creators widen your collective reach and expose audiences to each artist’s work.
Repurpose Content: Getting the most mileage from your content efforts is key. Re-share posts, repurpose stories into Reels, etc.
The opportunities for captivating content are endless. Try different approaches and see what your audience responds to best. Staying consistent with posting is key, even if it means starting small with once a week, then twice a week, then a few times a week, and building from there. Ramp up frequency as you build momentum.
Also remember, batching content and using a social media scheduling platform makes this whole process a lot easier. You can sit in one afternoon and schedule 1-5 posts for the week ahead, and also create spontaneous posts accordingly.
Cultivating Your Community
Quality content grabs attention, but community cultivation turns followers into true fans. Here are 8 ways to spark meaningful connections:
Respond to all comments, questions, and messages. This shows followers you value them.
Ask questions to spur dialogue like “What do you notice in this piece?” or “What techniques do you find most interesting?” or “Which version do you like?”
Share follower spotlights, repost their art, or feature their creations to show appreciation.
Go live frequently and interact with viewers in real-time to humanize yourself.
Send thank you messages and words of encouragement to supporters and collaborators.
Remember details and callbacks to previous interactions — this level of personalization makes followers feel seen and it shows you care.
Address feedback and concerns openly, even if it means acknowledging areas for your own improvement.
Survey followers from time to time to identify what resonates most, guiding your approach.
Social media communities require nurturing, but the bonds formed make it all worthwhile. Consistent engagement builds trust, loyalty, and connection over time.
Optimizing Your Approach with Data
It’s easy to get swept up posting your content day-to-day. But pausing periodically to review performance data will help refine your strategy.
Each major platform offers analytics on post reach, engagement, top-performing content, follower demographics, and more. Here are 7 key metrics to analyze:
Interactions: Likes, comments, shares — which creations spark audience responses?
Reach/Impressions: How far is your content traveling? Is it plateauing or growing?
Follower Growth: Assess follow trends week-over-week. How does engagement affect growth?
Traffic: Are posts driving website, shop, or newsletter sign-up traffic as desired?
Engagement by Content Type: Determine what post formats (video, images, Reels) perform best.
Top Posts: Identify your most popular creations by interactions. What about them worked?
Engagement by Follower Demographic: Review who your content reaches and engages most.
There are many additional insights to uncover about your audience and content effectiveness. The key is to focus your analytics review on elements directly tied to your goals and what you want to optimize.
Let data guide you, not dictate. Stay nimble, refine based on learnings, but remain authentic to your creative vision. Used strategically, analytics will elevate your social media impact and reach.
Now you have the blueprint — it’s time for action! The opportunities of social media are at your fingertips. Commit, stay consistent, engage thoughtfully, and let your voice shine through.
And now, my gift to you…
To energize your social media presence, I’m providing you a 30-Day Social Media Content Calendar—similar to the 12-Month Newsletter Content Calendar from a previous issue.
This social media content calendar offers adaptable post prompts like artwork spotlights, behind-the-scenes looks, event promotions, and call-to-action messages tailored for Instagram, Facebook or other channels.
Use these prompts and calendar as a helpful tool, but don’t feel pressured to post daily. Adapt it based on what works for you and your goals. But be consistent, focus on quality over quantity, and let the calendar guide you to social media success!
While social media offers many benefits, remember that owning your audience relationship remains vital. As we discussed in Social to Subscriber, building your mailing list is the most important thing you can do for your career as an artist.
This social media guide and calendar aim to amplify those email list-building efforts. Use social platforms to drive traffic to your site, offer lead magnets, and convert followers into subscribers.
With an integrated approach, social media becomes an engine that turbocharges the growth of your mailing list.
At its core, it’s about relationships. Use social media to start conversations and forge connections, then guide your audience into a deeper bond through your owned channels like email. When balanced thoughtfully, these tools work in harmony to help you build a community invested in you and your artistic vision.
Begin your next chapter today!
Putting the strategies discussed in this newsletter into action is the key to your success. To help you maximize the impact of your social media efforts, here are concrete action steps to implement:
Amplify your Email Marketing with Strategic Social Media
Follow these steps to effectively harness social media to accelerate your mailing list growth:
Create Relevant Social Accounts
If you haven’t already done so, create profiles on key platforms like Instagram, Facebook, X (Twitter), TikTok, LinkedIn, YouTube or Threads to expand your reach to new audiences. Choose the channel(s) frequented by your ideal followers. For artists, I recommend just focusing on one channel, Instagram.
Optimize Discoverability
Use relevant #hashtags and location tags strategically to help potential fans find your content and profile.
Engage Consistently
Post content like artwork spotlights, behind-the-scenes looks, and event promos consistently. Aim for daily or weekly sharing to spur ongoing connections. Ideally 2-3 times a week or more is better, daily is best.
Foster Community
Respond to all comments and ask thoughtful questions to cultivate meaningful dialogues around your art from your audience.
Share Multimedia
Post photos, videos, Stories, and Reels to give insider access to your creative process and artwork. Videos get higher engagement on social channels.
Collaborate Strategically
Seek collaborations with other compatible artists to unlock new opportunities and expanded reach.
Analyze Performance
Review built-in analytics on each of the social platforms to identify high-performing content and refine your approach for better engagement.
Promote Your Newsletter
Share teasers, previews, and snippets of your newsletter content to promote and drive sign-ups.
Offer Exclusive Perks
Provide special deals, content or lead magnets only for newsletter subscribers.
Convert Followers to Subscribers
Use links, clear call-to-actions (CTAs), and targeted ads to convert social followers into email subscribers.
Set Up Link in Bio
Create a Linktree or Lnk.bio (or a similar tool) account to showcase links to your website, online shop, newsletter sign-up, etc. in your social media bios.
Integrate Efforts
Cross-promote your social content in your newsletter and vice versa for seamless promotion.
Find the Optimal Balance
Blend social media and direct subscriber outreach in a way aligned with your goals and audience. But do it consistently. Every week for optimal success.
Once you’ve established your social accounts and begun implementing strategies, your next step is determining what to post consistently. The following 30-Day Social Media Content Calendar is designed to make engaging content creation easy.
Whether you’re an emerging or established artist, these prompts will fuel your imagination and provide helpful inspiration day-by-day. Let it inspire your creativity on social platforms and take your engagement to the next level!
Ready, set, create!
Here is the 30-Day Social Media Content Calendar
The following 30-Day Social Media Content Calendar provides a variety of content types such as artwork showcases, event promotions, behind-the-scenes glimpses, and call to actions. While this calendar focuses primarily on Instagram and Facebook, each prompt can easily be adapted for other social platforms like LinkedIn, Twitter, and Threads.
The content strategy is tailored to engage a targeted audience that includes art collectors, curators, and art critics. However, if you’re an artist or creator in a different discipline — whether a musician or writer, for example, you can adapt these prompts to your needs.
Note to Subscribers: I am providing 2 days of social media content prompts to all subscribers, however, paid subscribers will receive the full month’s+ worth of content (48 prompts). There are many benefits to being a paid subscriber, and access to content like this is just one of them. If you appreciate the content I deliver each week and aren’t yet a paid subscriber, please consider upgrading your subscription, to receive full-access and support this newsletter. Thank you!
Day 1:
Platform: Instagram
Content Type: Behind the scenes
Message: Excited to share a sneak peek of my upcoming exhibition at [Specify] Gallery! Stay tuned for more details.
Hashtags: #BehindTheScenes #NewExhibition
Day 2:
Platform: Facebook
Content Type: Myself as an artist
Message: Introducing myself as an artist. Here’s a little glimpse into my creative journey and what inspires my artwork.
Hashtags: #ArtistIntroduction #CreativeJourney
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