The Platform I Rely On Even More Than Instagram

Don't worry, it's not TikTok

In last week’s post, I wrote about how I’m making Instagram work for me, instead of toiling away for the algorithm. Quite a few of you have signed up for my Substack off the back of that one post - so if you’re new here, welcome! 

Every time I write about Instagram, it seems to strike a chord with people. So many of us have become reliant on this platform over the last decade, even though it seems to get more complicated every year. It sucks you in with the dopamine hit of likes and follows, and the promise that building a following will make or break your small business. So we persevere with it, even though it’s taking up far, far too much of our time. Because if you’re a creative, or running a small business, you can’t not use Instagram… right? 

Over the next 4 weeks, I’ll be writing a series for paid subscribers that I’m calling “Resilient Marketing”. This is a series about how to build your audience and share your work without relying too much on Instagram. It’s where I’m sharing what I’ve learnt in the process of running two very different businesses - my tapestry weaving work under Christabel Balfour and my teaching & weaving supplies at Balfour & Co. 

And while this Substack is a much-needed space for me to reflect on my own practice, I also want it to be a useful resource for other artists, craftspeople and makers. A lot of the information I read online about sales, marketing or running a business is from people whose full time job is telling other people how to run a business, not talking about the business they run themselves.

There absolutely is a place for business coaching and I’ve benefited so much from this myself over the years. But I’ve always wanted to hear from someone who is also juggling the competing demands of sales, customer service, marketing, social media, packing orders and yes- making art. I haven’t been able to find that yet - so I thought I’d write it myself. 

Even though the economic outlook is stormy (to say the least) there are still opportunities for small businesses to thrive. There are so many incredible makers out there who could do just a tiny bit more promotion in the right place, at the right time, and reach a whole audience that loves what they do. I hope this series can be something that helps people take a step in the right direction, or at the very least, helps them think differently about how they’re sharing their work with the world. 

What Do I Mean When I Say “Resilient Marketing”?

Before we really get stuck in, I want to articulate a little more clearly what I mean by the phrase “resilient marketing.” To my mind, resilient marketing is where you are able to use multiple different channels to reach your audience - without being overly reliant on any single one. If a social media app launches an update that makes users leave in droves (or gets bought out by Elon Musk) you are able to pivot and do something different, without having to rebuild a whole infrastructure again from scratch. For myself, my goal is that even if both of my Instagram accounts got wiped out tomorrow, I’d still be able to connect with my audience and grow my following in other ways. 

So that’s the resilient side of it. What about the marketing side? After all, everyone knows (or thinks they know) that the goal of marketing is to make money. That’s why businesses spend millions on advertising, and how Mark Zuckerberg has made a fortune on the promise of accurately targeting your ideal customers. 

However, in my experience, when the focus of my marketing is just “sales”, I often end up falling short. I actually find that marketing works best when I’m using it to build familiarity and trust. Familiarity, in that people know what my product is and what it’s for. Trust, in that if they decide my product is for them, they feel confident buying from me and getting what they paid for. 

Exactly how your marketing can build both familiarity and trust is something I’ll cover in more detail in the next part of this series (tentative working title: Taking My Own Advice And Updating My Website) In today’s post, the focus is squarely on resilience.