Do you struggle with time management? Are you finding yourself putting the same jobs on the back-burner every day? If you answer yes to these questions, you are not alone but if you are an artist and you would like to sell your art online you will have to learn how to get those dreadful jobs done. In this post, you will discover how to find time to blog so you can start separating yourself from all of the other artists online and start attracting your target audience to your site. Whether you are a part-time artist or a full-time artist, you will find value in this post.
Before we get started I would like to go over a few blogging statistics Julia McCoy wrote in a post she published for Express Writers:
Featuring a blog as a key part of your website will give you a 434% better chance of being ranked highly on search engines. (Source: Tech Client)
Buyers consume content before making a purchasing decision – in fact, 47% consumed 3-5 pieces of content before taking the first step towards making a purchase. (Source: Hubspot)
Using images in your blog posts gets them 94% more views. (Source: Jeff Bullas)
94% of people share blog content because they think it might be useful to other people. (Source: nymarketing.com)
Companies that published 16 or more blog posts per month got 4.5X the leads than companies that published 4 or less monthly posts. (Source: Hubspot)
You can read more by visiting 52 Incredible Blogging Statistics to Inspire You to Blog
Finding time to blog is essential to your art business’s success. I know that most of you would rather be doing something different than sitting in front of a computer writing a blog post. I get it, I would rather be at the beach, in the studio or even sometimes I think I would have more fun at the dentist office.
But the truth of the matter is if we would like to sell our art online we will have to drive traffic to our artist website.
Building an online presence takes a lot of work. You have to find ways to find your target audience (people who are interested in what style of artwork you create) and find a way to have them notice you.
The amount of work it takes to sell art online becomes a challenge for many artists.
Whether you are an artist who would like to make a career from your skills or an artist just trying to make some extra money on the side, you will have to learn how to manage your time so you can get everything done.
How to Find Time to Blog
You can improve your time management skills and there are ways you can be more productive with the time. I am going to share with you some tips that I have learned over the year’s operating my art business.
I do want to disclose that not every strategy will produce the same results for everyone. There are many fine art blogs out there and you will have to work hard to build brand awareness become noticed online.
Take the strategies I have outlined below and revise them until they are working perfectly for you.
Be Prepared
One of the best ways to get more done in less time is by being prepared.
When you sit down to write, you want to know exactly what you are going to be writing about.
This will save you a tremendous amount of time staring at a blank screen.
There is nothing more frustrating than sitting at the computer realizing you got nothing done except scroll through Instagram. I have been there and it becomes very discouraging when I have realized I wasted thirty minutes of my day.
How to Prepare for Your Art Blog
Use ten or fifteen minutes a week to brainstorm topic ideas. In just a few weeks you will be surprised how many ideas you can come up with.
Write all of your ideas down and store the list in a place that will be easy for you to access when it is time for you to write your art blog posts.
Decide if it would be best to organize your blog list on your computer, an app such as Evernote, or even paper and pen. Whatever is the best for you, use.
I prefer using Excel. Excel allows me to keep easy track of my post ideas and when I am done writing the post I add the date it was posted and add any other relevant information next to the post title.
You can write a full blog post in about an hour, as long as you have everything ready to go.
First, you need to know what you are going to be writing about, second, you will need to have all of the resources you will be using to back up your views.
At the beginning of each week, decide on what topics you will be writing about and take the time to research for articles that will help to support your post. Save the links to the articles with your master list of post ideas.
When it is time to sit down you will already know what you will be writing about and you will also have all of your resources available.
Besides being proactive, you will find that there will be times that you will be motivated to write specific topics on other subjects. Your list will give you plenty of options to pick from. This will also make your writing easier and more productive.
You can see now that the solution for a successful art blog is not how to find time to blog, it is how to be organized and be prepared for the task.
The most successful painting blogs online are created by artists who know how to manage their time.
They have learned what works best for them and stuck to it. Now they have thousands of people viewing their artwork every month.
You can produce the same results as long as you are willing to learn how to enhance your time management skills.
Post Layout
Many artists use the same layout or formula for their art blog posts.
What I mean is that they have an outline of ideas or bullet points for the article.
You should have a layout for your posts as well. A layout or templet will make it easier for you to stay focused and keep on track with the information that you are trying to write.
Here are some key points that you will want to include in your posts and what I use for my basic layout.
- Intro – A short paragraph that describes what the article is about. This allows the reader to know if the content is going to be valuable for them.
- The next part answers why the post is important and how it will benefit them.
- The middle section goes over in detail about the post topic. It answers how to accomplish the particular topic.
- The last part is the conclusion. A summary of the article.
A post-layout will produce the structure to the post when it is written.
Having the layout of the post will make your time more productive.
Find your best time
Everyone is different and will have times that they will perform better at different tasks. You need to find what will work best for you. When you figure out your best times, you will then need to schedule the writing into your day.
I do my best first thing in the morning. With all of the jobs that I have, I need a set schedule.
My daily schedule:
4:30 – 9:30
- I start my day scheduling my social media posts.
- Revise one old post
- Write new post
9:30 – 1:30
Creating Art
1:30 – 7
Teach guitar
6:30 – 8:00
Engage with social media and any other odds and ends.
That is a basic day for me. I found what times that I do best for each project. For me, this helps me keep track of everything that I need to get done in the day. If I didn’t stick to the plan, I know I would miss something important.
Set a time
Set a specific time to accomplish what needs to be done. As you can see from my list above, I have specific times for each project.
I even go deeper with the times I allow for each specific project. I have a set time for blogging, social media marketing, answering emails, revising posts, etc.
Knowing that I have a set time for each project helps me stay focused, motivated, and pushes me to accomplish what needs to be achieved during a specific time frame. If I know that I only have an hour to create a blog post, I will make sure that I get it done in that hour.
After you have found the best time for your writing, schedule writing times in your week. It will take about three weeks for this to become a habit for you. After three weeks it will be part of your daily routine.
Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase by clicking on an affiliate link, Nevue Fine Art Marketing may earn an affiliate commission at no additional cost to you. Affiliate relationships include, but are not limited to, Bluehost, Tailwind, Skimlinks, SareASale and StudioPress. To learn more visit Affiliate Link Disclosure Policy
Conclusion:
Yes, there is a lot of work involved with selling art online, but wouldn’t you rather be doing that than having a part-time job you hated.
You can learn how to get everything done in a timely manner. You just have to become aware of what is preventing you from achieving what needs to get done.
For more help on learning how to be more productive download Get More Done in Less Time The Part-time Artist eBook today.
How to Find Time to Blog – Part-Time Artist Overview:
- Be prepared
- Have a post layout
- Find your best time
- Schedule your writing time
You might also be interested in:
- How to Build a Successful Art Blog by Believing in Yourself
- 7 Mistakes That Hurt Your Art Blog
- How to Optimize Art Blog Posts with Great Content
- How to Create Headlines That Attract Art Buyers
- Become a Productive Artist With a Three-Item To-Do List
Did you enjoy this article? Don’t forget to sign up for my free weekly newsletter.
You can also join me on:
Learn how to start, grow and monetize your online art business.
Art Business eBooks
Art Business Workbooks
Art Business Planners
28 Day Blogging Challenge for Visual Artists
