A Reliable Way To Grow A Passionate Audience

What's up, friend? Lennon here. It is so good to be back for another live stream and podcast of Stop the Starving Artist, where the whole thing here is about helping you as a creative to better understand and know the worth that you have so you can actually get out there and start standing out and making money, doing meaningful work. Now, today we are talking about a reliable way to grow a passionate audience. I didn't say a huge audience. I said a passionate one. Because if you know me at all, you know that I'm a thousand true fans rule kind of guy. So I'm all about this idea of you don't need the biggest audience, you just need the right one. And if you're not familiar with the thought process of 1,000 true fans, then the way that works is it's 1,000 people that will pay you $100 a year or even $50 a year. Right? Is $100,000 for that year or $50,000, depending on how you look at it. For most of us, like, 50 grand as a creative sounds like a great flipping living. I'm not making 100k per year. I wish I was right, and I have aspirations to do that. But right now, and I know that I will, but right now, what I know is that I, too, am building that audience. I'm looking for those thousand true fans. I want to talk, you know, the way that I did that in the past with music and what I started to do as far as, like, drifting into this world of then helping artists and musicians, but, you know, growing a whoa, we're live here, guys. Anything can happen. I got my iPad, and it may just fall out, and you just never know. Growing an audience is really. Is really difficult. And the thing is, we have to be ready for the long game. We have to be ready for the long game. And we have to remember that each thing that we're doing is like a little win, right? Don't forget that. Anybody on the other side of that screen. Like, right now, we got plus music here. Hey, thanks so much for being here. The fact that there is somebody here watching this, there is somebody on the other side of this screen. I think so often we forget that. We forget that there is somebody here to appreciate what we're doing. I had a consultation with a guy today, and I had to remind him that.

It'S the potential that we see that actually becomes dangerous when we see that people are getting hundreds of thousands of views on YouTube or hundreds of thousands of followers on Instagram or millions of views on TikTok. That potential is dangerous because what we immediately start to do is compare ourselves, but we compare ourselves actually to the wrong thing. We compare ourselves to a vanity metric, a metric that doesn't initially, like, pay our bills. We have to remind ourselves that vanity metric is not going to pay your bills. People are going to pay your bills. Right? Like, that's the ones you need to be looking for. So I say let's focus on the small one. Let's focus on the small number first. Get really good at giving them what they need, and then that's gonna blow up from there. We got Karen here as well. Awesome. I'm so glad you guys are here. So the other thing I wanna say is, like, learning how to grow an audience can set you up for all kinds of other work. What I love about being in the creative space is that when you learn how to talk to people and how to get people to really engage with the things you're doing, that carries over into tons of work environments. So let's say that you're a photographer or a filmmaker or you're a visual artist. When you learn how to. And I'm going to use the word market, I know you guys have an aversion to that, but I want to say, like, marketing is not a bad word. When you understand how to market yourself, then that carries over to working for clients. A lot of clients that you may have may never understand how to market themselves. So when you can say, not only do I know how to take bomb pictures for you and make great graphics, but I also understand what it means to capture an audience's attention, to tell a story, to do all these things like that is skill set that you need to be privy to because it is going to help you in so many different ways. I believe that there's no better time to be an artist and creator than right now. Because growing an audience is just about connection. Right? And as I said, some people call this marketing because that's what it is. And I'm having a discussion actually in my YouTube comments where I just believe. And you can disagree or agree. I'm going to get into it more because it's like a hot button for me that I didn't realize. I believe that all great art is a byproduct of great marketing. And I believe that great marketing is just telling a great story. I think it's that simple. We have this, like, thing that we want to make it dirty, but it ain't dirty. I think it's actually doing a lot of people favors by Getting them to connect in new ways. But I'm going to get into that somewhere else. Neither here nor there yet. But, yeah, it's all about getting somebody to connect with you. And if you can sell somebody something, that's not a bad thing. Making money as a creative is not bad. Why do we feel like that's bad? Why do we feel like money is this thing that, like, is dirty? Like, Mother Teresa said it, it takes a checkbook to change the world. And why do we fear asking for money? Like, people get upset because people aren't paying creatives enough, and yet the creative is the one that undercharges themselves. It's no wonder that the people outside of our space undervalue us because we undervalue ourselves so much. And it just drives me crazy. But anyway, that's neither here nor there either. So take a quick sip of my La Croix, or Lacroix, as my friend called it, which I think is an awful.

Awful term. Anyway, so I just want you guys to know, at my birthday.

This last week, turned 39 years old. I'm getting ancient.

And I'm working on a video. I'd love if you guys are here watching. I'm working on a video. I'd love to hear your thoughts on this. But I was kind of seeking out this idea of chasing creativity on that day because I've been feeling very kind of stuck in my creative process because a lot of what I make right now is just this kind of stuff educating, which I love. But I haven't been able to, like, just make something, to make something. And, man, I ended up, like, sitting down and just listening to music for a couple hours by myself, just, like, having a beer. And I ended up, like, in the car just, like, crying, like, tears in my eyes, crying because I haven't listened to music this way in so long. And it was a really vulnerable moment, and I was able to capture some of that. But I'm having these, like, second thoughts of even sharing it.

But I also know that there's something to that that's, like, I think, important for us to remind ourselves, like, you know, how we connect to things is really what this is all about. And when we talk about human connection, I think this is part of it, like, being vulnerable and not being afraid to share some of those things. And I even say in the video, like, I know tomorrow I'm going to be afraid to put this out there. So honestly, this is kind of my sort of tester or a way to kind of put my foot in the Water without having to jump head first, if you know what I'm saying. And so anyway, these kind of connections are really where things start to happen. And what ends up.

Happening is when let's say you're a musician. And this was my background, still a musician. I don't think you ever fully leave that. I still gig almost every weekend when there's not a pandemic going on. But when I was in a band, we were growing for years before we had people show up. And I want to tell you, like the way that things started to click is that we would go play a show and there'd be a handful of people there and we just immediately like go and try to be friends with them and hang out with them, chat with them, talk to everybody. Like we just, I mean, we would play so many shows to like three or four people. So like hundreds of shows to three or four people. And we would end up being like, hey, we got nowhere to crash, we got no money. Is there a place we can stay? You know, I'm in my 20s at this point, early 20s. We would crash on people's couches, we would crash on venue owners couches. And what ended up happening is over that time people started to like say, oh my gosh, these guys are super nice guys. They always leave the house like a little better than what it was. And granted, like, these are some pretty crappy places sometimes because that college time, but regardless, it was so fun because we got to connect with these people. And then they would always bring more friends because they're like, you gotta hang out with these guys. Not only are they a great band, but they're just really fun. And those little things started to become parties every time we rolled through town. And then over time they gradually shifted and a few more people would come and a few more people. And next thing you know, five years later, six years later, all of a sudden we went from drawing like 20 people, 30 people to like a couple hundred in a venue. And you know, here people are complaining about getting a couple hundred. I mean, I do it like getting a couple hundred views on YouTube. But I always remind myself like, you put a couple hundred people in a room, that's a lot of people. Like, we don't always get that luxury, right? So to have 200 people that are watching something of yours or being a part of it, these kind of connections are the things that are going to make the difference. So let's talk about this. Well, I do have to kind of follow that up because I did have A follow up story in my notes here, so I must follow the notes. What ended up happening there is that we saw some of that then trickle over into even like, the next generation, which this is so cool. So we would play south by Southwest almost every year, and specifically our label, our label's party. And we had one family that would come and they had discovered us and that was the only thing they could bring their kids to. And so these kids, every year I would see them get a little bit bigger. And I remember there was one that I gave him a set of drumsticks, or actually, I think it was his sister. Can't remember. But they were so sweet and, you know, like, probably as old as my oldest now, like six. And then I saw them, like, get older and older and they would come back and come back, and it was like the best feeling ever. And this is what happens when we create a passionate audience is they don't just listen or watch our stuff on Instagram or stream our stuff on Spotify. They bring people that they care about to experience this stuff with you. And I think that's really what this is all about.

Here's some things that I think are going to help us with that. PlusMusic says, yeah, that's my aim. Making a living with the things we love most. I love that. And I want to say, like, I think as artists and creatives, like, we need to be diversifying our skills. We have a lot more skills than we give credit for. And a lot of people are like, well, I'm just trying to sell my art. You have a lot of skills from making that art you might be able to monetize. So just be thinking about that. We'll be talking about that more. Ingrid says, hey, everybody. So true. We often forget about just how many people that is. Yeah, so 2, 200 people is like, that's a lot of people. Right? I wouldn't put that in my house to save my life, especially now. Okay, so the first thing I want you to do is think about what it is that you want to be known for and be ready for the long haul. Think about what it is that you want to be known for and be ready for the long haul. Now, when I say think about what it is that you want to be known for. This is not about your art. This is what your art is about. I'll say that again. I think that's important to hear. This is not about your art. This is what your art is about. What you want to be known for is what your art is. About. I see people just making stuff and they don't know how to talk about it because they don't understand what it really even is to them yet. And that's totally fine. Right? But if you saw a video that I put out Yesterday here on YouTube, it was like talking about this idea of why some art sells and some doesn't. Well, the reason is this feeling that we start to make. And that feeling is created not just from the art, but the way that we talk about that art and the stories that connect to it on all those kinds of things. So if we can't tell people what it is that we're trying to say, or if we can't convey that in some way, it's going to be really hard for somebody to connect to it in a deeper way. So that's. Number one, is think about what you want to be known for and be ready for the long haul, because this is going to take time. And remember that what you want to be known for is actually the thing that you're making your art about. Number two, make a list of non artists. Because what I'll often see is people are connecting with an audience on their social platforms, but it's usually other artists and. And they're like, I don't understand why that is. I'll tell you why that is. It's because you're making stuff that only other artists understand. When you talk about your guitar strings and you talk about the kind of brushes that you use and the techniques that go into this thing and your f stop and all this stuff like, that's only like other gearheads or other people in your industry that are going to get that. So you have to be cautious of that. You want to talk about the things that regular people get, and that is the life experiences. So make a list of the non artists that you know that also like the kind of stuff that you do as a regular person or they like the kind of art that you're into. Right. Get to know those people and find out what kind of content and things that they're into. So, you know, if you're. If you're researching somebody, let's. I'll call my friend Steve. So I have this friend Steve, let's say he also loves the same kind of music I do, but he is not a musician in the least. Right.

So what I love about Steve is that I can go to him and say, well, what other accounts are you following? Nine times out of ten, he's going to be following very few of the same Things I am, I may be following bigger people in the music space that are doing more industry style stuff and so I'm being influenced by them and then making stuff like them and then who am I attracting? But more people in the industry really we want to be connecting deeper I think with just regular types of fans. So understand this person that is your non artist type, but also like similar styles of art and figure out what they're all about and make stuff for them. Make stuff for them. And when I say stuff, I don't mean just art, I mean like content. Think about other experiences that you might be able to do for them. Like what would they think would be cool in a live event? How could you do like a virtual event that like these are your bread and butter because you can go to these people and say, hey, I'm thinking about this thing. Would you think that was cool if your favorite artist.

Did this kind of thing? Right. So I think that's like a, I think that's a really cool way to kind of think about it is when you have this person and you can go to them and say would you like this thing? And they say yes or no. Got to find an honest friend. Then it's going to be really, really helpful for you. So that's number two. Make a list of non artists that you know that also like the kind of stuff that you do and get to know them, make stuff for them. Okay. Number three. Put work out.

Put work out. Finished work, unfinished work. Thoughts, ideas, fears, motivation stories. Be vulnerable. Be vulnerable. This is something I struggle with. This is why I'm talking about this idea of me like having a friggin breakdown, like listening to music, right. Being vulnerable is so important because it reminds people that we are just people. There's this fascination of fans and artists or non creatives and creatives because it's like the creative people have this little light that like flickers somewhere and people are just like, man, I wish I had that. And so when you break down that barrier and you say this is how and why I have that thing, there's something that happens, it's like blowing on that flame and people are like, holy cow, I really want to know more about this person. There's something there that's really interesting to me. So when you put out work that's finished or unfinished or it's just ideas. When you get vulnerable in not being afraid to have unfinished things or just expressions of yourself, be out in the open for people to see, it makes a difference. Now to that argument when you think of, like, okay, I'm trying to be a really pro brand and do this stuff, I think that there may be a finer line that you have to walk if you're a pro videographer. Like, yeah, I think you want to make sure there's some high quality stuff there that gets people's attention. But you should have a place hands down where it's like, here's the behind the scenes, here's my thought process. Here's this client that I just love to work with, and here's why. Here's their story, here's how we met. Here's like, man, I cannot tell you. Like, those are the things where somebody goes, I want to work with that person because I get them and I like what they're all about. Okay, so put work out. Number four, go deeper with the people that are already in your existing audience. I don't care if it's two or three people. These are so valuable for you because what you have then and you want to make sure, again, like, if you're reaching mostly musicians or mostly other artists, be cautious about this. This point. Okay? But if not, if you got a few that, like, feel fit, that really, like, I like this person. I want to make stuff for them, go deeper with them. Like, you know, this is where that idea of us, like sleeping on people's floors and doing all this other stuff really started to make a difference because that's when we connected more with those people and they started to connect more with their friends about us. So, you know, this idea of we were now connected to this cool work and we created these experiences and then they had this music to also take back with them. There was like all these little nuances that brought everything together, and that was really magical, really powerful stuff. So number four, go deep with your existing audience. If you think more about keeping the people that you have than you do about getting new people, you'll probably get a lot more new people.

If you think more about keeping the people that you have, especially the ones that, you know you want to make stuff for, if you think more about making sure that you're taking care of them, that not only are they more likely to buy something when you have something to offer, but they're more likely to tell more people, and you're going to continue to make things for that kind of person, which is going to draw more of that kind of people in. And that is awesome. Right? Number five, and this is the last point here, so I want to say, if you guys have any questions, or anything that I can hit in the chat, I'd love to. So go ahead and ask them now and I'll get to them. So number five, be generous. This is the biggest point. Be generous not just to your audience, but to other artists. Be generous not just to your audience, but other artists. Generosity creates experiences and feelings for people, right? So. And people want to feel seen and heard, which is why you want to be an artist, because you also want to feel seen and heard. And so you're making stuff that hopefully will allow you to be seen and heard. It allows you to express yourself. But you have to remind yourself too, that it's still your job to listen. It's still your job to be generous and make space for the people in your community and allow them to speak and allow them to say what they need to say and to talk back to them and, like, be inquisitive and curious about why they say what they say and talk like, you know, this is really, really valuable stuff. So. And what I mean about, like, being generous not only to your audience, but to other artists, this is a lot about collaboration, but not from the sense of like, I need to go out and find other collaborators. It's more like the more you just share the things that already exist, whether it's on your social medias or in your email list or on stage or in your work or whatever, you know, there is no shame in talking about the people that influence you, big or small. And when you do that, it creates opportunity to open up those doors to them and showing just appreciation to this person and letting them know that you care about them and their work can open up some doors to friendships, which can lead to actual collaborations. And that's where you start to, like, share audiences as well. So especially those people that you share an audience with or potentially could already, I think that's. That's the people you can. You can focus on the most is like, how. How can I just serve this person today? What can I do to either spread a little extra word for them or just offer some sort of a little extra love to them, Right? And then I want you to just like, I want to give you something that you can kind of think about that is almost like little. Little trinkets that you can collect along the way? You know, one thing I do is, is when I get certain comments that feel really good and they remind me that people out there are actually responding to things that I'm making the way that I hope they would, even though I don't see that A lot of times, like, most times, you just don't see it. But when I do see it, I collect them. I like screenshot them, and I have a bunch in my phone and maybe I don't ever look at them again, but a lot of times I will. I have one that's an actual screensaver on my phone because it reminds me that this is the person I'm going for, right? When I look at that and it says, man, I needed to hear this today, that's the person I remember. Because I'm like, you know what? This guy needed to hear this that day. Who is that person today? Who is that person today that needs to hear this? Who is that person today that needs to hear your work or see the work that you make? And if it's just one person today, are you okay with that? Even if that's not the ultimate goal? If the ultimate goal is to be bigger, and I want to help you hit those thousand true fans, but if the ultimate goal is to be bigger, are you okay with one right now? Like, will you be disappointed if it's less than what you hope for? Right. I think it's really important that we just remind ourselves of these things. These are really the little details in the mindset kind of stuff that we have to just be cautious to not lose sight of as we go. Let's see what we have here. Ingrid says keeping the audience friend perspective makes sense. I'd never thought to find out who they follow or what they love. Yeah, that's cool. I love that. So I think that that's been a big deal for me just in the way that I think about that stuff. If you guys have any questions, I'll take them. If not, that's totally okay too, but I'm kind of wrapping up, so I'll keep my eye here. I just want to say how much I appreciate you guys. I want you to know, if you are trying to make content for people, like, that's a big deal. So content is a big part of what plays into making connections, right? That's why I do this. This is content, you know? And so I created something that I call the 30 day connection calendar. And I have the link for that in the description box below. So please go check that out. It's free. And this allows you to make a whole month's worth of content ideas in just about 30 minutes. And it breaks down everything for you. It comes also with a video that you can watch that helps you to make more engaging captions that will just attract more eyes right away. Because what we know is you have to get somebody's attention, right? And again, I don't think getting attention is bad. I think what we then do with that attention, what is our intention with that attention? That really is what makes it start to get gray. Okay, so go download this, please. I'd love for you to have it. I think it's really valuable. It's a similar process to what I've been using for a long time. I've recently changed it, and so I'll be upgrading and showcasing some of that process for you guys soon, but I think it's worth checking out. Listen.

See here, Ingrid says I remind myself often, if you share, if you don't share, you aren't open. You could be holding yourself back, not just from connections with others, but from that something special someone could use in that moment. Yeah, it's not about me, she says. Yeah, that's so true. It's so true. You know? So that being said, I'll probably end up sharing the video of me.

Just crying from listening to music looking like a sad pos. But it's fine, you guys. It's fine. All right? I appreciate you guys so, so much. Please go download the 30 day connection calendar. I'm here doing these live streams currently every Wednesday at 5pm Central Time. I'd love to see you back here. And I will see you guys in the next.