Going From Social Media To Social Media Driven Business

The modern creator’s dilemma: social media is a great way to find and connect with customers, patrons, and fans. But (and it’s a BIG but), all the platforms kind of suck for monetizing your work. Everything is supposed to be… free. That’s not exactly synonymous with profitable.

Plus, when we say ALL the platforms, we’re also acknowledging the fact that there’s more platforms than any one person can have time for. So, get ready for more work on more platforms to release for no profits. Isn’t the internet amazing? What are we supposed to do here?

Enter Josh Constine’s and Patreon CEO Jack Conte. Here’s some high-level advice to whet your appetite:

Art is not content. Content belongs in a feed. Content fills a hole. Content is a commodity. Art is something to be cherished – a luxury, a special thing.

Creators can still use the big social media platforms – but they’ll want to use them to locate where the greatest number of potential fans are and have a plan for what to do next.

Successful creators will steer their audience into venues that monetize their work. Think subscriptions, special performances, classes, and more.

Patreon’s big idea was that most platforms aren’t built for creators to make money. By building a system that fits over/connects to an existing platform, they can help enable creators to bill for their work (as opposed to just collecting a percentage of ad revenue, etc.). More control = more $$$s.

Understanding these tools and how we successfully transport strangers to fans to paying customers is the magic trick that every business wants to solve. Whether you’re selling paintings or life insurance policies, your conversion strategy is everything.

Do listen to Josh Constine’s interview with Patreon CEO Jack Conte, and also read Constine’s post, “How The Creator Crisis Forced Artists To Be Founders.” This is a really big deal and it helped me personally crystallize a number of my thoughts.

h/t Howard Lindzon for highlighting this post.