As artists we’re always looking to spread the word of our creative gospel.
It’s also no easy feat to get your friends, fans and followers to evangelise your work.
Now generally speaking I’d like to think that we’re fairly passionate about not starving as creatives.
Hell, even the day to day folk who do good work, deserve to have their good work spread.
Cause you never know. A good word here or there can open up the doors to amazing and new opportunities.
Going back to us artists. Believe it or not. We need to eat. Shocking, I know. Despite what the “exposure will feed you” crowd thinks, we can’t photosynthesise validation into our next breakfast, lunch and supper. That would be cool but unfortunately we live in a capitalist environment…
Anywho.
Your existing fans? They’re not just readers/viewers/consumers.
They’re potential members of your promotional sleeper cell. They already drink your particular brand of Kool-Aid (or in my case, industrial-strength coffee). Now it’s time to weaponise their enthusiasm.
Now this is what I’m slowly doing from a writing and consulting point of view and can easily be adapted to anything really.
THE STRATEGIC ART OF REFERRAL SORCERY:
(What people don’t realise if you get someone referred to you, they’re more likely to stick around too)
- THE BAIT
Give them something so goddamn amazing they can’t help but share it:
- Exclusive story collections or lost chapters that haven’t made it into the book but can be seen as an inside scoop to the next in the series…
- Behind-the-scenes dumps. A lot of readers also would love to see what you get up behind the pages of your next novel/story or whatever.
Take ’em out on a day with you by sending them snippets, photos and rough outlines on a drink spilled napkin.
- Writing tips that would make English teachers cry.
(I love this cause as much as I love my English Prof, he would be giving me the look of death for the type of advice I give people who ask me about the craft)
- Recommendations on other authors/artists works. Your favourite notebooks, pens, drinks of choice. Anything you find interesting, especially if you share it with excitement and passion, your audience will share that passion. It’s infectious. So remember that.
- THE HOOK
Make sharing as easy as drinking your eighth cup of coffee:
- “Refer a friend, get access to my training I did for XYZ”
- “Bring multiple friends in a certain timeframe, receive forbidden knowledge via a fully recorded 1 on 1 zoom call”
- “Share our newsletter, get my secret guide to fighting writer’s block with interpretive dance”
- THE PAYLOAD
Reward both the referrer AND the referee:
- Original referrer gets exclusive content
- New recruit gets welcome package
- Everyone gets stronger coffee
- Nobody questions the squirrels
- THE MULTIPLICATION EFFECT
Create tiers of rewards:
- Refer 1 person: Get my “Basic Chaos” package
- Refer 5 people: Unlock “Advanced Mayhem” content
- Refer 10 people: Gain access to my “Midnight Manifesto” collection
- Refer 20 people: I’ll name a character after you (probably one who dies horribly)
WHY THIS WORKS:
- People trust their friends more than they trust random authors
- Everyone loves exclusive content
- FOMO is more powerful than your favourite hot drink on a cold winter night(almost)
- Humans are basically collector monkeys with credit cards
THE IMPLEMENTATION:
- Make it easy to share
- Make it worth sharing
- Make it fun to share
- Make it slightly unhinged (brand consistency matters)
It’s about giving them the tools, the motivation, and the slightly concerning mission to spread your brand of creativity.
Stephen Walker
https://stphnwlkr.com/theleague
P.S. Yes, I wrote this manifesto without pants while planning world domination through word-of-mouth marketing.
P.P.S. The squirrels watching through my window are taking notes on my referral strategy. Their network is growing concerning.
(Terms and conditions apply. Side effects may include increased audience engagement and decreased ability to explain to normal people what you do for a living.)