Bricks & mortar VS cyber vibes.

MARKETING. Bricks & mortar VS cyber vibes.

Oh my – what a couple of years we’ve all had. Terrible sad and grievous loss of life, crippling business and employment challenges, confusion and dangerous fake news and misinformation. Keeping our selves and families safe while negotiating what we are willing to risk & compromise.
How to choose a path.

It was already a challenge for working artists back in 2019 – watching the Bricks & Mortar galleries folding under the pressure of online sales and rising real estate costs. Trying to decide on what “success” looked like in this new social media environment of likes and followers.
Then Covid. Just when I was trying to find my footing again after personal loss and grief. Raising my head to peek at new inspiration, only to see all the travel tours and best laid plans sail out the window with a pandemic.

I am fortunate though. To have a large personal space to call my own. A studio and small gallery already set up in my home, and the product, knowledge and skills to make and shape a new online presence.

The old website was a showcase of many skills, years of projects, creative products and personal stuff. I had stopped loading new works and it needed a serious functional update. A new website is a major undertaking – but I had to keep it simple and try to narrow it down to a new vision.
My painting. Chasing my joy. Letting the old stuff fall away – like history.
It made me who I am – but did not reflect all that I still want to achieve.

pause – to question…do I have the energy for this?
What's the point? Do I need help? What if I fail?
Well – for a pandemic it was actually perfect timing.
What the hell. Why not.

I pulled in my gallery “feelers”, stopped sending out submissions, choosing to promote my painting and marketing activities close to home. Paint on location all summer…and large works in the studio through the winter months. Take some control over what I COULD reach and realistically maintain.
Here was my TO DO list:

• Upgrade, market and locally advertise my home gallery & services.
  That works for Gibsons/local/visitors.
• Upgrade the website to an e-commerce platform.
  Find a Shopify expert. That takes care of the online stuff.
• Use and sync social media to reflect my current work/activities.
  Tell my story. That takes care of followers.
• Join the local Artist run gallery in Sechelt to broaden my local audience/sales. (until covid forced me out)
• Join and pursue signature status with the FCA – and have a foot Van for exhibiting & teaching. Success.
• Investigate and create online learning platform – for free content, short/long videos and mentoring. Coming soon...
• Newsletter and Blog to provide updates and in-depth personal content. Coming soon ;-P

I can proudly say that I have accomplished all these things. While sadly missing family, friends and travel…but knowing just how fortunate and privileged to be living the life that I have, chasing the joy in sunny moments in the mountains or by the sea. It is a journey.

And we choose a path each morning.
Each blessed freaking morning. Here we go again.

Thanks for joining me on the journey. Jan