So what does it take to get the word out about your artwork?
Alive and booming in the 21st century, thousands of tattoo artists across the world are making their mark in their clients’ skin, and technology has pulled through to the aid of their work.
With the help of Myspace.com, Rankmytattoos.com, inkednation.com, inkedmag.com, and bmezine.com, artists are getting the word out on their work in more ways than one. Many artists even have their own personal websites set up to sell flash and other works of art as well.
But throughout this technological wave, most artists still believe that good, old-fashioned word-of-mouth is the best way to promote themselves.
Julie Becker, an artist out of Los Angeles, Calif. says when she relocated to New York for a period of time MySpace was a key factor in her clientele.
“I’ve been using MySpace for about two years now,” she says. “When I moved to New York I basically got all my clients through MySpace,” she says.
Although she has done a lot of networking through the web, some print work and a cover of a tattoo magazine as well, word of mouth comes out as her best form of advertising.
“I don’t want to separate myself completely but I’m a bit underground,” she says. “I have a good rapport to clients and they have a good loyalty to me. They’ll promote for me.”
Michael Norris, an artist out of San Marcos, Texas, believes the best way to promote tattoo art is to “just be good at it.”
“If it’s good, it’ll be recognized,” he says.
Although he has been working on a website to promote his artwork for awhile, his clients promote him more than anyone else, and also bring their friends to him as well.
Norris eventually would like to see his work displayed in publications all throughout the world, and works at it by sending examples of his art out to various magazines.
“It’s all changing and still changing,” he says. “We’re going to be a heavily tattooed culture and there’s no turning back. Hopefully the public will educate themselves and only choose quality stuff. I’d like to see higher standards with more emphasis on the spiritual aspect and less of the hip/cool aspect.
Casper Geist in Tampa, Florida doesn’t believe in the traditional methods of promotion such as magazines and newspapers, but prefers to use the Internet as his primary source of networking. Going to conventions and passing out business cards, guest spots, networking through his website and just basically talking to people is what he feels works best.
“Sending your pictures into magazines is not a good idea,” he says. “If you’re good or halfway decent it’s like putting a gem into a pile of shit. They just want to fill pages so what happens is your work shows up in the magazine two years later when it’s not even comparable to the work you’re doing now.”
As far as his own work is concerned he feels it depends on who is being asked.
“The people I tattoo think it’s the best,” he says. “If you ask an artist they’ll say there’s a lot to be improved. I agree with the artist because I’m constantly changing every day.”
Christy Booker has been working as a tattoo artist out of Seattle, WA for over seven years, and has worked extensively to promote her work through various websites, conventions and advertisements.
“I have my own website, I’m on MySpace, Ink Nation, tattooartist.org,” she says. “I go to conventions, and try to make it to Inkslingers Ball every year. I always bring cards when I go to concerts.”
But overall she believes word of mouth is her best bet, especially since you will usually find her with someone she has already tattooed.
“Most of the time people talk about the expression that I get on images of people that I do,” she says. “Things like the life in the eyes, the direction to photo realism, that usually impresses people, and that’s promotion in itself,” she says.
