The Birdbath: Digital Tips & Trends, Spring 2023
Greetings from The Birdbath! This newsletter from Bower Blue takes a look at digital tips & trends impacting the visual arts & design communities.
Well, here we are, apparently. You made it! Happy spring, everyone! In addition to the usual roundup of highlights, in this edition of The Birdbath we are also looking at some ways to increase your visibility that might get easily overlooked.
Thanks for being here. Let us know what’s on your mind.
#1. KNOWLEDGE IS POWER, CLAIM IT
What’s the first thing you do when you are thinking about an organization, an artist, your old classmates, anything, really? You Google it, of course. And while “google” is now also a verb, we’re using the proper name here, because we’re actually talking about Google, the search engine. That box on the right of the screen with all the info on your Google-ee? That’s the Google Knowledge Panel. Did you know you can claim it? You should.
We are always surprised by the organizations who do not claim their Google Knowledge Panel and keep it up-to-date. Here’s an example: US. When we moved our office a year or so ago, we made sure to update our Google Knowledge Panel, and look what happened: Over 4,000 people have seen this update! Here’s Google Support on how to claim your Knowledge Panel.
#2. THE MORE (LINKS) THE MERRIER
Sure, there are plenty of ways to add multiple links to your bio on Instagram — some paid, some free, some hacks. But in their ongoing campaign to adopt in-house many of the most popular third-party services (see our fall 2022 post mention of Instagram’s new native scheduler), Instagram is now offering the option to include up to five links in the header of your Instagram page. To add multiple links to your profile, head to ‘Edit profile’ > ‘Links’ > ‘Add external link’. From there, you can drag and drop to order your links as you’d like them to appear in the app. It’s not as robust — or even as aesthetically pleasing — as some of the third party options, but it is pretty simple.
#3. DON’T YOU… FORGET ABOUT LINKEDIN
Particularly in the art world, LinkedIn usually gets overlooked in favor of its flashier cousin, Instagram. But whether you’re in the goods part of the business, or the services part of the business, LinkedIn can be a powerful tool for building connections, researching opportunity, and growing your audience. If you’re just getting started, check out this guide from Hootsuite. And LinkedIn has some tips here if you are looking to boost your presence. Not sure what your strategy should be? We can help!
CLIENT UPDATES!
No, no — we are not moving to Southern California. But we have been busy there, thanks to our talented crew on the ground, and great clients. Last fall, our client Sean Kelly opened a branch in Los Angeles — its first branch outside of New York City. So we went and took a look around and spoke with Sean and Thomas Kelly about the venture.
We also just released the second in a series of videos for UCI Langson Institute and Museum of California Art, exploring how it functions both as a pedagogical tool serving the University of California Irvine community, as well as an institute of inquiry serving and leading a larger conversation around California Art. This video series is part of a large, ongoing project that we have been hard at work on, crafting and implementing a comprehensive digital strategy for this exciting, nascent institution.
Bower Blue produces digital strategy and content for galleries, museums, cultural nonprofits, and design studios. (Take a look at some of our clients.)
Follow us on Instagram and LinkedIn for updates, and see more of our productions and other work on Vimeo. And of course we’re always up for saying “Hello.”
