From time to time, artists and craftspeople discuss ways to set themselves apart from other artists. Savvy consultants and business advisors tell us constantly how important it is to brand yourself.
Tag lines such as "Ancient Stories Retold in Modern Artifacts" or "Artifacts From a Lost Culture, an Imagined Prehistory" are necessary to our marketing strategy, claim some gurus. I once attended an all-day seminar on the business of craft. We spent the first third of the session developing our taglines. Most people in the seminar didn't even have a viable product line yet....
"Logos!" another consultant screams. "All the Big Companies have 'em, you should, too!"
Packaging companies claim it is essential to have a cohesive system of gift boxes and wrapping paper to set us apart. And on, and on and on.
All of these strategies can certainly give a little polish to our image as "successful artist". But personally, I think it's all a little too much glitz for what we are really selling.
Ourselves.
Ultimately, we are selling something we MAKE, something we care about fiercely enough to go to all the trouble to make it, market it, schlep it across the country to shows and sell it. We now compete with people on the other side of the world who can make it (or something similar to it) cheaper, faster and easier.
What makes our work special is the story we tell about it. And that story ultimately is always about OURSELVES.
Here's my simple advice to anyone who asks me about taglines, logos, packaging, advertising, etc.
All you really need for someone to find you these days is your NAME. If they can't remember your name, do you really think they will remember your tagline? Or your logo? Quick, what's the logo for Subaru? Trust me, that company has spent a helluva lot more time, energy and money on their logo than you ever will.... Heck, I OWN a Subaru and I had to stop to think.
Taglines? The most memorable one I've seen was one being test-run by a collage artist--”"Flowing From a Creative Lens"--and all I could think of was, "Conjunctivitis...??" There are some great taglines out there, but I doubt most people are finding artists by Googling their taglines.
Get them to remember your name. And in addition to your name, your customers will remember something distinctive about your work or location. An unusual technique or material, or hobby or former job. (Someone once remembered me because I make horses, use fiber and have a lot of U's in my name.)
Then make sure you are SOMEHOW connected to the internet, and Google will do the rest. If you can't afford to have a fancy website, then get yourself an inexpensive blog site. Promote your work whenever possible with press releases. Join things. Many of my Google hits come from a craft book I wrote for Lark Books a few years ago. Conduct yourself professionally when on-line, and attach your name to everything. The more ways you participate in the world, the easier it is for people to find you and your work.
The best way to set yourself apart is 1) through your work and 2) through you.
So put your main energy into your work. Make your work as distinctive as possible.
How do you make your work distinctive? Follow what's in your heart so purely that the work doesn't look quite like anyone else's work. This is yet another reason why I feel it's not good to totally follow "what's selling" or "what's hot." You end up with work that looks like everything else out there. Develop your body of work to your personal aesthetic, then learn to tweak THAT to grow a bigger audience if you must.
The way to make YOU as distinctive as possible? Share who you are with your audience. TALK to them. Tell them what's in your heart, and how your work reflects that. Let them know what your passion is, and they will remember your name! Or at least enough about you to find you with Google.
