AKA, Gathering an audience when money doesn’t matter
I love street art and think that graffiti writers tell us an awful lot about the inner workings of any artist’s mind.
Creating a large piece of graffiti is not cheap. A writer could easily drop 30 to 50 quid on art supplies for a night’s work, painting public property, for free. So what drives them? Could it be just the desire to be seen?
We’ve all seen that meme about pub musicians. This one:
Why do so many musicians do this? Could it be that for most artists getting rich just isn’t that important.
Getting seen or heard in this world is hard. The internet is full of articles about getting paid to do what you love but… what if money doesn’t really matter that much?
And if money doesn’t matter, what does matter?
[As a side note, I realise there are people that make their living from their art. For them money may be the most important thing. That’s amazing and I’m not knocking it. I just think that for many, many artists, money isn’t that important.]
For years now I’ve been giving my music away for free. And any artist with their music on Spotify or Apple Music might as well not bother with the pittance of royalties they pay. We do it for fun. We do it because we need to get what is inside us, out there. It’s not egomania, it’s a normal human phenomenon.
We just want an audience, but we find that giving stuff away is just as hard as making money with art.
Most artists can find a small number of people that will buy CDs, tee shirts or prints. Perhaps, like me, you’ll find that skills you’ve gained in your art creation can be sold and you’ll make some money freelancing creating videos, taking photos, or mixing and mastering other people’s work.
I feel like if I really worked hard at finding more paid opportunities, I could probably grow the revenue I get from my art with a decent plan and some motivation.
Growing my audience, though? That’s a harder nut to crack.
Over the past couple of years I’ve given away a few things online, not just music and videos, but a video game, a print and play card game and sample packs for other artists to use. I’m now gearing myself up to give away the second version of that print and play card game, so I’ve been thinking about how and why to do it, and what might work.
So here are 3 thoughts that have been running through my head.
The corporate world wants to monetise your art, even if you’re not getting paid for it.
Spotify and YouTube are only free to use because they stuff your free content full of paid-for adverts. They get paid. You get an audience and the promise of maybe one day getting some cash. That’s why they care about your art.
As an artist, there’s nothing wrong with acknowledging this, and using it to your advantage. I’ve seen people advocating using video streaming services other than YouTube because they profit from your hard work. But at the moment if you want people to watch your videos, YouTube will likely get you the biggest audience.
It’s okay to understand this, disagree with the practice, and use their services anyway. Remember, the money isn’t important, whoever is getting it. The audience is important.
There’s another thing I’ve seen advocated online that I’m not so sure about. I’ve not got anything against it but I’m just not sure it works. And that is selling something in order for it to be valued.
I’ve seen people kneecap their audience numbers by attempting to set an entry price so that people REALLY value their art.
Hell, I’ve done it myself.
One Day Everything Is Going To Be Better For You by Kinetic Monkey
The Kinetic Monkey album “One Day Everything Is Going To Be Better For You” was originally not available on streaming services, and only available to download for a set price. Very few people bought it, and I don’t think any of them valued it any more than if Bex and I had given it to them for free via Spotify or via a Bandcamp “Name Your Price” model.
I think the reason that this whole “set a price to determine value” thing doesn’t work, is that your initial reach doesn’t change. No one new is hearing your work if you sell it at a premium; only your fans. And they already love your art.
2. There are places that love free stuff.
I’ve already mentioned Bandcamp. If you want to give away music without a corporation making money on the back of your hard work, Bandcamp works well. They offer you an ad-free site for your music, and actually promote free music on their weekly shows, blogs and podcasts.
As companies go, they are turbodope.
But they’re only available to the music community, and most people don’t use their services. Everyone has a Spotify or Apple Music Account. Not everyone has a Bandcamp account.
In the gaming world, I’ve had an amazing response from content on Itch.io.
In the few months since I uploaded my first ever videogame, There’s Nothing To Do In This Town, 4,000 people have played it online, and over 350 have downloaded it to play offline. It’s a very similar model to Bandcamp with an ad-free page for your project and Name Your Price structure. Sure, the video game market isn’t as crowded as the music market. Especially not the market for games for a 30-year-old console. If I had those numbers for my music, I’d be over the moon.
Itch.io is based on community, collaboration and innovation. It’s a great place.
The last places I want to talk about are online communities. Sites like Reddit, Discord or small interest-specific forums likes Lines or Board Game Geek are great places to share free stuff, because their model depends on conversation and interaction around content, not on the content itself.
This leads me to my last thought.
3. How we talk about free projects, is as important about where we talk about them.
“Free” is no longer a differentiator. Most things online are either free, or have a sales model that allows them to be freely accessed, with monetisation happening through ads, subscriptions or in-app purchases.
There are still far too many self-promoting posts online that highlight how free something is.
“MY NEW ALBUM – DOWNLOAD IT FOR FREE!” says nothing about the album itself. I don’t want to click on free stuff. I want to click on good stuff.
Talk about the themes your art is exploring. Talk about your frame of mind when you were creating. Talk about the artists who inspire you.
One way I try to attract an audience is asking for feedback. My print-and-play game has had 741 downloads in the 18 months it’s been live. I track where those clicks have come from and it’s not from self-promotion posts, but rather from posts asking for feedback on Board Game Geek. Not only does that feedback allow me to make better stuff the next time round, but it engages with new people.
I get my art seen and heard because my audience feels seen and heard through the feedback I ask them for.
