You Need to Start Networking!
Don't underestimate the power of word of mouth! It might feel weird, but go out there and get chatting. Here's my top tips for making it work!
In February, March and April I signed myself up for a few different networking events run by local artist support groups. Chatting with strangers isn’t exactly on the top of my list of favourite activities, but I forced myself to give it a go. I’m so glad I did because now, a few months down the line, I have had some great opportunities come out of those events…including landing my big first paid commission! Don’t underestimate the power of word of mouth, someone you meet at a networking event might get chatting to someone else in a few months who happens to be looking for exactly what you’re offering.
It’s hard to put yourself out there as a creative, I think we all suffer from a touch of imposter syndrome sometimes. We assume everyone else has their shit together and they must be more of a “real” artist than we are. It often feels like you’ve infiltrated the club and at any minute someone is going to call you out for playing dress up.
But, I found that networking was a great antidote to the crippling self-doubt. From my experience, other creatives love to hear about the cool stuff you’re up to. They get excitable and ask lots of questions. It’s a real confidence boost! If you haven’t gone networking before, but you’re thinking about it, then here are some of my top tips to make the most of it.
1) Business Cards
This one is a big one, make yourself an awesome business card! Your business card is a tiny pocket-sized introduction to you and your personal brand. Spending an evening talking to lots of different people, it’s unlikely they will remember everyone’s names straight away, so give them sometime to remember you by. Think carefully about how you want it to look and what is the most important information you want to share. I got a lot of compliments on my business card because I decided to go for square mini cards with rounded corners.
As a visual artist I decided to treat my business card like a mini art print. I picked an illustration that I felt represented my style the best and would remind people of me. I went for this portrait of two women, one of which has ginger hair (like me!) and I made sure to match the branding to the colours in the image. Portraiture, particularly of women, is my thing so it made sense to go with this. I opted to keep the contact details simple. I like people to contact me via email and I want people to find me on social media to see more of my portfolio. The QR code links to my Linktree with all my socials and portfolio links. The great thing about Linktree is that you can update the links without needing to change the QR code so if I change my socials or portfolio I won’t need to reprint my cards. It’s super easy to make a QR code too, you can make one here.
There are plenty of places to get business cards printed affordably, I opted to get mine from Banana Print as I left everything to the last minute and needed something quick. The quality was great and I made a funny reel on Instagram about them, tagged Banana Print and they re-shared it!
2) The Elevator Pitch
My next tip is to come up with an ‘elevator pitch’ before you go. Make sure you can succinctly summarise yourself, your creative practice and what some of your exciting goals are in a few sentences. I find it helps if I start with a long description or bullet points of key info. Then I cut it down and cut it down again until it is short and sweet. Other people will ask you what you do, so make sure you’re confident enough to explain it. There’s no harm in practicing!
Hi, I’m Sarah! I'm a freelance illustrator but I also run a bakery with my family on the Isle of Wight. I love portraiture, mixed media and I’ve recently started getting into 35mm film. I’m currently working on an illustrated book telling the hidden stories of women in Isle of Wight History.
There’s a few different questions for me that people might have after hearing that; a bakery?! do you eat cakes all the time? What kind of hidden stories will be in your book? Can I see your portraits?
Make sure to ask other people lots of questions about their practice too, you might find you have a shared interest. People will also always remember someone who got excited about their work. Ask if they have any photos of their work or if you can follow them on Instagram.
3) Pick the Right Events
Make sure you research the events before you’re go, it needs to be beneficial to you. There is no point going to an event targeted at ceramicists if you don’t have the first clue about pottery. It’s good to start local, it might take a bit of research online to find networking groups and artist support organisations though. Head to the social media profiles for galleries, theatres, arts and culture organisations and arts festivals in your local area. Don’t be afraid to ask around, pop into venues and look at their community boards or ask the staff if they know of anything. Someone will know someone who knows something!
If you can afford to, don’t be afraid to travel further afield for more specific events. For example, the association of illustrators sometimes organises networking and sketching events in London. You could use these events to build your following online and reach a wider audience outside of your local area. Artists love to follow other artists online. We all appreciate art after all!
4) What are You Gonna Wear?
Make sure to also think about your personal presentation. You’re making a first impression and what you wear can be very important for this! Use your wardrobe to your advantage. On my first event I wore a bright pink dress, this made me stand out in the crowd and complimented the branding on my business cards. In photos of the event afterwards I stood out, so when other people looked back to find people they met would easily recognise me. For example, one person that stood out in my mind from my first event was Hannah who wore an awesome Fila hoodie that she had upcycled. She sells re-worked second hand clothing so she was practically a walking advertisement for her business.
5) Turn the Experience into Content
Think about how you can utilise the event to boost your social media too. Find out what social media handles the event organisers have and if they have a hashtag for the event. When you’re there take lots of photos and tag the event holder or use their hashtags, that way other people who attended will find you and probably follow after the event. You can also tag the venue, they might re-share your content particularly if its a nice photo or video of their venue. Tag the other people that you met, shout them out in your post! They might follow you back and tag you in their post too.
6) Have Fun!
My last tip is to have fun! Go to these events with the expectation of having a couple fun chats, don’t put pressure on yourself to talk to the right person or get a good gig out of it. It will only stress you out and you’ll find it harder to chat. See it as a casual drink, relax and keep an open mind about who you might meet.
Soon I’ll be publishing a mega resource list with links to directory websites so you can find artist events near you. So…if you haven’t already then why not make my day and subscribe? ʕ•͡ᴥ•ʔ