Should Artists be on LinkedIn?

I would never have asked myself that question few years ago, but well you know, times change...

Hi everyone,

Few weeks ago I did write a post saying that I was trying to start checking my phone not before 10am.

It seems the results went further than just this thing. First, not checking my phone before 10am gave me A LOT of time. Procrastinating on your phone, it seems that time flies, but I can tell you that when you don’t do it, time is a different experience. The thing I really discovered is that I take the time to daydream. From the time I wake up to 10am, I feel like the world around me is way slower. I am not in a hurry to DO SOMETHING. Sometimes, I just stare at my coffee or breakfast, and it seems like a break or another space in time. It really refuels me.

I also take that time also to go out and walk my dog. 45 minutes in general and when I come back it is around 9.30.

I feel so relaxed most of these days that I don’t want to get to 10am. I want to stay in that state, in that kind of idleness. When I start checking my phone, it feels like 5 cups of coffee were just injected in my blood. My brain starts to speed up and anxiety raises. To a point where I ask myself: do I really need to check my phone at some point? Do I really need to belong to that online and crazy world?

I don’t want to check my emails. I don’t want to go on Instagram and feel the pressure “Oh man, I did not post anything in the last two weeks, I should really post something soon…”. No. I just want to be in my own zone.

10am is probably the time in the day where I have the most energy. Why should I spoil it going on social medias or checking my emails? This is the time I should be spending creating.

In the last 2/3 weeks, I realized I go way less on Instagram than before. I would even say I try to avoid going there. I did unfollow MANY people to just concentrate on accounts that fuels me. But still then, I really don’t want to spend time there.

So I asked myself the following question: “Ok Francis, you are nice overwhelmed and sensitive guy, but you also need to make money…”. Thanks the advice, little voice.

I try hard to diversify the ways I can get money and work. But focusing on my “online presence”, I did read different posts here on Substack and one question came back regularly:

“Who do you want to reach? Who do you want to get business from?”

My work lately focuses mainly on 2 activities: Art Licensing and painting. What are the best ways to reach brands who could buy my designs and people who could buy my paintings?

Regarding the Art Licensing, the best way is to contact Art Directors in the brands you want to work with. Ok. How do I contact these people? Spending time on Instagram posting stuff is a good thing to showcase your work. I have now nearly 60k followers there, which is also something positive. But to me this is like putting a message in a bottle and throwing it away in the sea. Or to go fishing hoping someone will see it. But when you know only 5% of your followers see your posts, what is the chance that an Art Director in the 50 brands you would like to work with, actually see your post? Nearly no chance.

So what are the alternatives? After talking with different people in the Art Licensing business, it seems that the best way today is to be on LinkedIn. You share your work there, you setup perfectly your profile for that purpose and you connect, contact people you would like to work with. From what I heard, this is the most direct way to come into contact with the people you want to work with. And terribly more efficient than Instagram.

If you choose that path, as I said above, having a nice organised profile is important because this is what the people you contact will check first.

But they also might go on your website. So it is great to post work on social medias, but have an up to date website too.

And of course, don’t forget to send your newsletter often to send updates on your work directly to people. I am not sure about this, but there is probably more chance to get seen through these medias than on your Instagram account.

Ok, so it seems that if I want to reach brands to sell Art Licensing stuff to, I should be on LinkedIn.

But about painting?

This is a more tricky scenario to me and still experimental. But let me share my thoughts:

I have done an exhibition in November and sold 4 paintings. The people who bought my paintings are people who came with the idea to buy something. They had the budget for it. Some other people probably came with the same idea but could not decide. They did not buy. Maybe the paintings were too big, too expensive… I don’t know. But maybe they could be still interested in my work. I introduced them to it, and maybe in the future they could buy something.

But how I stay in touch with them? How do you show them my new work? Send them an email? Yes, why not but I don’t want to be too pushy to send them a personal update every 2 weeks. Ask them to subscribe to this newsletter? Another idea, but is my newsletter only about new work? Would they be interested in me telling my life every week? Not totally sure.

Of course, I try to catch up and go have a coffee now and then. But I don’t think this is enough.

There is one common point in these people: they are all on LinkedIn. And I think many collectors out there are on LinkedIn. They might not be “active” collectors spending their time looking for Art, or galleries doing the same thing. But they are people you connected with, in a way or another, and they could be interested in your work at some point.

Last point but important one is that I feel like people seeing my work on Instagram are more peers, designers or artists or just people liking my work. But for having sold prints for more than 2 years now, I tell you: people scroll but they don’t buy your work. So if people don’t buy your print, why should they buy your paintings?

Again, Instagram is still good for galleries. Just like in the music industry, having a larger number of followers is good a good thing for them. You can promote to a larger audience. But today, I don’t see really other opportunities. I really think that for my Art Licensing and painting, spending more time contacting and networking is more efficient. And LinkedIn is probably the best social media out there to do it.

And I don’t forget all the other ways to connect: meetups, newsletter, vernissages, etc.

Back to the use of my phone now: I don’t have to spend so much time out there. I just can still post my work on Instagram and LinkedIn, check it once a day, and that’s it. And on the side, being more efficient in setting up a good LinkedIn profile, setting up a pitch deck, just like in good old times and prospecting there.

Like I said above, Time flies differently when you are or are not procrastinating on social medias. And you can do way more efficient things away from them, even if it is still related to them in the case of LinkedIn.

So now in the mornings, I check quickly if I have messages on both platforms and then I put my phone away and start creating. In the afternoon, I check again once, I spend time on LinkedIn to find contacts, I work on my pitch deck, I work on my upcoming course and workshop. And around 5 I finish my day more happy because I feel like I did a lot. I am not frustrated because time flew, because I was there staring at my screen, being anxious for not posting, for not being active enough, or for living in a world where a orange douchebag decided to shit on everyone.

No, during my day, I do my best to spend more time with myself and take more care of myself. This is my conclusion here. It seems that staying away from my phone as much as I can, I take care of myself. And when I am online, I try to be efficient and productive. But I limit that time. It does not mean my days are iddilic haha :D But they seem to be better overall.

I will finish today’s post with that picture of the painting I work on these days. Don’t pay attention to the frame. I did just put my WIP painting in it to see how it looked :)

This is still a work in progress of course, but this thing gives me balance during the day. I try to spend a small hour each day on it. Just me and that canvas. This is what happened recently. I reduced my time online and it gave me more time to create.

This is my life buoy like would say one of my friends.

I apologise if that post is a bit like not so well organised, mixing offline time and more time on LinkedIn. But the idea is there: if you have to spend time online, think about why you do it and do it more efficiently.

Things to think about no? :)

Enjoy you weekend, take some time off and go check your local museums. They probably have a great exhibition you could go to. On my side, I may try to go to the Paul Klee museum :)

Take care,

Francis