Friday, June 4, 2021
This week in a one-on-one with one of our members of Creative Fierce, the topic of creative/strategic balance came up.
Specifically, the nuances of publishing a website that helps us to book clients — without completely losing track of the spark that caused us to get into writing/design/coaching/art/etc. in the first place.
Creative folks often make the most effective and successful service providers. But clients don’t necessarily want to hear about all the creative stuff — they just want to make sure their projects get done.
That balance can get downright … awkward.
Strategy without creativity is what keeps folks bouncing from one “money-getting system” to another, filling in the paint by numbers and never actually seeing results.
Creativity without strategy is more fun … at least until the bills are due. Eventually, creative excellence without the accompanying rewards just gets too frustrating, and we’re likely to quit.
So how do we keep the spark … without going off the rails?
We talked about a few ideas that I thought you might find useful.
Content is like illustration
This is a core concept in my writing workshops: Content has the same relationship with writing that illustration does to art.
Illustration exists to do a job. It decorates packages, sells products, and invites readers to read articles.
Illustration can also absolutely be art. Hello, Toulouse-Lautrec, and many other superb illustrators.
Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec started out as a fine art painter. (In fact, he studied alongside Van Gogh in Paris.) He started to paint the seedy “café concert” that he liked to hang out in.
Those striking images led the owner of the Moulin Rouge to ask Henri for a poster to attract more wealthy gentlemen to drop their francs on absinthe and champagne.
Toulouse-Lautrec became the poster child (forgive me) for the intersection between commercial work and fine art. His posters combine the immediacy and pragmatism of effective ads with the subtlety and creativity of ground-breaking art.
The posters worked because they made the Moulin Rouge look like a cool place to hang out, and they listed some good nights to go there.
They also worked because they were visually amazing.
Christie’s had an interesting article about Toulouse-Lautrec’s posters if you wanted to know more about the work and how it came about.
Make a client corner
If you aren’t at the artistic level of a Toulouse-Lautrec (not yet, anyway), let’s take it down to earth.
Your artistry is part of what makes you a fabulous content creator. But your content also has practical work to do.
Whatever else might be going on with your blog or website, make sure you create an appealing corner to house the information your prospective clients need.
What kind of work do you do? What’s your speciality? What do you think are the missteps that others in your field make? How do you organize and run projects? How does a client take the first steps to move forward with an engagement? What do your other clients have to say about working with you?
Lots of clients love working with “creatives” who can actually create … but only if they can also hit their deadlines. Make sure you let them know you fit that category.
Don’t get creative about this page
There’s one place you need to avoid getting overly creative: your About page.
These user-friendly pages need to follow Steve Krug’s excellent web design advice: Don’t Make Me Think.
Answer the questions folks have, and make sure to highlight how you help clients (or other readers) get what they want. I wrote about it for Copyblogger here:
How to Write an About Page that Engages Readers and Grows Your Business
If you want a more current example of the intersection of art and pragmatism, Austin Kleon’s books and site are always worth checking out. I enjoyed his recent article on the tenth anniversary of his charming book, Steal Like an Artist. Check out his reflections here.
That’s The Fierce for this week! Next week we’ll talk about growing your audience by talking more openly and honestly about who you really are.
Until then, stay fierce.
Sonia
