LOCAL PROMOTION IS THE LONG GAME

This from photographer Tom Bland, sharing a story of local promotion:

We have been leaving small homemade zines in our town’s info booth for the last year.

This week we had some visitors to our art stand who are based in Canada but frequently visit the Berkshires to meet up with family here. They had picked up one of our zines from the info booth last year but not opened it until they got home to Canada. Inside, they found information about our art stand and made a mental note to check it out next time they were in town.

Sure enough, almost a year later they came to the art stand and bought a copy of our First Frost / Final Bloom zine.

I happened to be home so we got to have a great chat. It really solidified for me how seemingly small local marketing ideas like this can stand out as being unique and make a connection with someone who is looking for something different/analog/human.

Social media is alluring because five minutes after you post something, they’ll probably be two likes, and someone left a heart emoji comment. Leaving some small handmade zines in your town’s info booth is a much slower affair, as you lose the near-immediate feedback.

Walking away from that instaneosus feedback loop is a challenge, for sure. But recognizing the mechanics of social media, and how they’re designed to suck you in, is one of the best ways to break up with these platforms.

It doesn’t have to be overnight. None of this is black and white. But putting your life’s work into the hands of companies who only seek to profit from your unpaid labor might not be the best long game to play.