Guest Blog Post: How Twitter Changed My Life

Wendy Edsall-Kerwin is a jewelry artist and metalsmith living and working out of her home in Elizabethtown, PA.Currently her work can be found at Radius Gallery in Harrisburg, PA; Veleska Jewelers in Lancaster, PA; and at Luke & Eloy Gallery in Pittsburgh, PA. When she isn’t in the studio pounding away at metal, you can usually find her online at her blog, her website, or on Twitter.

We’ve all heard about why people choose not to use Twitter. It’s a time waster, it’s a fad, who cares what other people are eating for breakfast?, etc. But Twitter has made my art career better.

When I began blogging almost two years ago, my view stats were dismal. Suddenly in the Fall, they went up exponentially. Why? Two things. I joined the online challenge, Art Every Day Month, and I began tweeting in earnest.

It’s understandable that participating in a challenge where you link to your blog repeatedly throughout the month would up your stats. But how did Twitter help? Twitter allowed me to develop relationships in my communities. First, I connected with other jewelers and artists whose work I admired and whose blogs I read. Next, I connected with people in my local area. Then, I began talking with all of them.

Unexpectedly, Twitter has helped most in connecting with my local community. I belong to a face-to-face networking group (the Creative House of Lancaster), and I began following other members. This helped me to reach out to other people in the Lancaster area. And, eventually, it also led to making my first “Twitter only” sale… to someone who lives in the same town as I do. I probably never would have connected with this person any other way, but through Twitter, we found each other.

I’ve also developed relationships with other artists and jewelers all over the country and even internationally. We share inspiration, marketing info, calls for entry, and new work with each other. It helps to keep us from being isolated. As an artist, it can be hard to find people that you can talk shop with, but Twitter makes it easier. I’ve also strengthened relationships with my craft guild, a gem supplier, and galleries who sell my work.

I guess for me, Twitter is just a giant neighborhood. I have friends, neighbors, colleagues, and businesses I get to connect with everyday. Sure, most of the time there aren’t direct sales. But it helps me send traffic to my blog, and most importantly, allows me to build trust and help other people out. And that’s never a waste of time.

Tagged as: Marketing, Social Media, Twitter