Marketing Your Creativity

Does this sound familiar?  “When I get a little extra money, I’m going to . . .”  The irony of this, especially with marketing your art, is that to get the little extra money, you have to do whatever you are putting off.

We all do this, including me.  I have quite a few marketing campaigns that I use this excuse on.  The second runner up is time.  “When I get a little extra time, I’m going to . . .”

So, are you ready to put these excuses aside and start marketing to earn more money from your art?  The secret is (more…)

Whether we admit to it or not, we as humans love things like gossip, soap operas, eavesdropping, sharing secrets, peeping, and Entertainment Tonight (basically, everything on the E! cable network). And let’s not forget People Magazine—yes, I read it religiously every week. Why are we obsessed with this as a culture? It’s the human interest. It’s finding out about OTHER people’s lives, the intricacies, the quirky little details, the strange ways of being. Sometimes we’re looking to see how DIFFERENT others’ lives are. Perhaps we’re aspiring to be like them, or maybe we’re ridiculing them. Sometimes, we’re just looking to see how SIMILAR their lives are. (“Hey, celebrities go grocery shopping too?”)

For whatever reason, we stay glued to the minutest details of peoples’ lives. It’s something you should think about implementing to attract clients. Don’t laugh, I’m serious. You can use this deep ‘human interest’ need we all have to your advantage.

How? By letting people into the little details of your OWN life. (more…)

Working in theatre, you learn quickly that the show must go on.  Really . . . no matter what.  You plan for the worst case scenario and hope for the best.  However, no matter how much you plan or prepare – something will go wrong and you learn to adapt; making lemonade out of lemons.  Often the audience doesn’t realize that there is a problem.  The actors know the set hasn’t flown in as it was rehearsed over and over again, but the audience is none the wiser

As I mentioned last week in my eZine newsletter, this past weekend was the Cal Scots Scottie Collectible Convention – which I planned, organized and hosted.  And, no matter how prepared I could have been, things did go wrong. (more…)

I do feel like I’ve gone to the dark side, performed some sort of mortal sin and put Borders out of business (three stores are closing in the Los Angeles area).  Why all these feelings?  Well, two weeks ago, I got a Kindle.

Although I am often times on the cutting edge of new technology, I was not an early adopter of the eReader technology.  In fact, I was pretty dead set against the idea of a device replacing the experience of holding and reading a book.  The feel of the paper, the quiet sound of the pages turning as you travel with the author into his imagined world.

However, what I’ve to come realize is that Amazon is not “replacing” the book, but rather enhancing the experience of reading.  The weight of the current version of the Kindle is about that of a paperback book.  It is slightly larger than a paperback, but thinner and it fits neatly in my purse – like a thin day-runner (when those where so popular).   (more…)

I just got finished loading my car with my ceramics (and all the other stuff that goes with it) for a show I am doing later this afternoon.  I have a VERY long/narrow driveway, so there is no way for me to back my mini-van to the garage without damaging the side of the house or the sides of the car (not to mention the fence in the way which keeps the dogs contained).  So, I have to haul the stuff out to the van on the street.  To do so, I take great advantage of my friend Dolly.  Dolly is my hand-truck which allows me to move everything more efficiently.  Not only things I might not be able to lift and carry that distance, but she also cuts down the amount of trips.

Today, I was thinking about Dolly and how she really helps me leverage my work-load.  And then I was thinking about other tools I use and the power of leverage.   (more…)

2010 was an amazingly fast year and it looks like 2011 might be faster.  I miss the days of wondering when summer break would arrive and then Christmas.  Now I am just in awe of how fleeting these moments are.

Just before the new year, I asked you to vote on your favorite blog posts from 2010 and the results are in.

Drum roll please . . .the top 10 blog posts of 2010 are . . . (more…)

I can procrastinate with the best of the best procrastinators.  I have projects that I have procrastinated doing or finishing for YEARS!  However, you probably believe that I do more than the average bear.  I do, because I eat my frogs.

Many years ago I read a business book by Brian Tracy called “Eat that Frog!”  It was 21 ways to avoid procrastination and get more done.  It was an easy read, so it didn’t end up in the pile of business books I still have yet to read.  His theory is (more…)

As an artist, it is really important that you offer a guarantee of your work because it helps reassure your customer that if they are not completely satisfied with their purchase (or something happens), that they can return it.  When customers go to make a purchase, they have to factor in a lot of elements into the decision.  Do they have the space for the purchase?  Ever wonder why your little products sell faster than the big products? Is the product the right color for their décor?  If it is for a friend, will the friend like it?  The list of questions your customers ask themselves goes on and on; of course, silently in their heads as you wonder if you are actually going to make a sale.   (more…)

I really enjoy this time of year because I get to reconnect with friends and family (near and far).  With FaceBook, this task has become a bit easier; however, there is nothing like someone taking the time to send a holiday card using the good old fashioned snail mail system.  It shows the recipient that you are thinking of them and I believe it also becomes a transfer of positive energy.

Here is how it works.   (more…)

For too many years I have been defined by what I do instead of who I am.  Even when asked, I would list my current job title . . . as if this could somehow explain who I am really.  Recently, I’ve started making an effort to not answer the question with my job title and to not be embarrassed by who I really am.

I know, I know, who am I?  Similar to Hamlet, I have spent many years pondering this and have had a lot of employment opportunities to test my own perception of who I am against those of others.  What I have discovered in all of my jobs from selling popcorn to being a nanny, I have always used my creativity.

At the movie theatre, I would create the weekly movie listing flyer with all the passion of an aspiring advertising executive.  As a nanny, I went to my charge’s 4^th grade class and directed them in the last scene of “Hamlet” to teach them about Shakespeare.  The kids loved “dying” (more…)