Alanna SmithDec 19, 2022

Y'all are chasing working artists away from this place by harping on how "sad" and "pathetic" it is for them to hope for a large follower count here.

It's not about attention. It's about their bottom line. More followers means more commissions, more customers in their online shops, more direct exposure to people with hiring power. It's honestly really cruel to keep acting like they want adulation when really they just want to pay rent.

They have ample reason to mourn what they built.

Show threadAlanna SmithDec 19, 2022
You have to understand that, at least right now, losing their audience probably feels like going from having a well-established, high-traffic store in a luxury mall to having a stall at the flea market. They can climb back up from there, of course, but it's going to take time and work. It's silly and mean to shame them for not wanting to start over when they already worked so hard to get where they are.
Show threadAlanna SmithDec 19, 2022
And I'm not blowing hot air when I say you're chasing away working artists. I follow a ton of artists elsewhere, and that's what I see them saying. They feel demeaned and dismissed by this attitude that wanting a lot of followers is vapid, or selfish, or something they need to unlearn. They know what's best for them and their business. Cut it out.
Show threadAlanna SmithDec 19, 2022
And one last thing--I'm saying all this as someone who actually really likes Mastodon and would love to see more creators from my industry show up here! I've done my fair share of evangelizing, but I can't blame them for staying away when so much of this rhetoric is flying around.
Show threadBrian J. CrowleyDec 19, 2022
@alannawrites Same, however a lot of them seem to be addicted to the follower counts.
Show threadAlanna SmithDec 19, 2022

@hamsterrage As someone who knows many, many high profile artists personally, I strongly disagree.

It's not an addiction to not want to lose your customers.

Show threadBrian J. CrowleyDec 19, 2022
@alannawrites I also know many high profile artists and writers personally and I can tell you that they often tell me that cons are when they find the real fans, twitter is where the trolls mostly live.
Show threadSaskia DanielDec 19, 2022
@hamsterrage @alannawrites Absolutely not true. I sell most of my pots via Twitter. But I do have a complete persona there. I don’t aim just to sell.
Show threadCiara | Ciaraíoch 🎨
@hasenschneck @hamsterrage @alannawrites Seconding this, and something like 80-90% of my site visits are from Twitter. I really don't like the attitude that people are "addicted" to a high follower count. It is useful to get work seen by more people, because it means more potential work. However, people on here seem to be very good at sharing stuff and boosting, so if they can stick it out (and ignore the more snide, ignorant comments) there is potential here.
Dec 20, 2022 at 12:06amWeb
Show threadBrian J. CrowleyDec 20, 2022
@hasenschneck @Ciaraioch @alannawrites my buddies who have run Kickstarters got loads of traffic from Facebook but said very little from Twitter. But I stand corrected if y’all have data to the contrary.
Show threadCiara | Ciaraíoch 🎨Dec 20, 2022
@hamsterrage @hasenschneck @alannawrites Down slightly on last month but around the 80%. Every artist has different bases, I know people with tens of thousands of followers on Instagram and hundreds on Twitter, or vice versa. And Facebook isn't exactly the pinnacle of morally sound social media either, anyway.
Show threadBrian J. CrowleyDec 20, 2022
@alannawrites @hasenschneck @Ciaraioch appreciate the transparency and the sharing of the data!
Show threadBrian J. CrowleyDec 20, 2022
@Ciaraioch @hasenschneck @alannawrites agreed Facebook/Meta is a nightmare company.
Show threadHDHarrisDec 20, 2022
@Ciaraioch @hamsterrage @hasenschneck @alannawrites yeah like my clients, major opportunities, and generally all meaningful traffic came from twitter
Show threadSaskia DanielDec 20, 2022
@hamsterrage @Ciaraioch @alannawrites I think it depends very much on your following. My account is also the whole me: politics, swearing, silliness, stories about my pets, etc., not just flogging my wares. I think that matters, otherwise why should people care?
Show threadCasey 'CannibalHoliday' WagnerDec 20, 2022
@Ciaraioch @hasenschneck @hamsterrage @alannawrites
I think that some people have forgotten that social media isn't just about memes and retweets, but that people earn a living on it. That it drives traffic to their market spaces or portfolios.
Twitter and Artstation are how we find potential artists for upcoming projects.