Advertising Your Show with LSAG

Your league's art show?

What we need to know to get the word out:

 

-your LEAGUE

-DATE

-TIME

of the SHOW

and 

of the DEADLINE for ENTRY

-PLACE & ADDRESS

 

-COST

for MEMBERS of YOUR LEAGUE, other LSAG members,

AND for NON-Members

 

-Minimums, maximums, & other BASIC requirements

NO FULL PROSPECTUSES PLEASE

but please tell us

IF you accept walk-ins

& your art take in date(s) / time(s).

 

-A person to CONTACT with contact information

(phone # & email)

AND

-WEBSITE LINK for forms & more detailed info

(like that lengthy prospectus) 

 

-JUDGE

Please leave your judge's bio in the prospectus & share the link.

 

 

*****

What YOU need to know about advertising in the LSAG newsletter:
 

 

*We canNOT publish

-your full prospectus

OR

-your forms

OR

-your directions for using the database

(We'll cover that one.)

 

 

*We canNOT re-post your announcements for you.

Please have someone in your league designated to

re-post show & other announcements for your league.

DEADLINE for POSTING is each SUNDAY, MIDNIGHT.

NO exceptions.

 

 

*Kindly, put a SIMPLE, SHORT SUBJECT

in the subject line of your email

& send to

lsagannouncements@gmail.com

ie---  ABC Art League's Fall Show:  Register by Dec. 3rd   

 

 

*LSAG shows are JUDGED

(NOT juried).

*More tips to make your posts like a pro & other guidelines are on the LSAG website & the blog main page.

Reminder: Advertise to Success

If you have a show in November,

October is the time to get the word out.

Advertizing your show is up to YOU. 

 

 

One of the benefits of a league's LSAG membership is to reach the larger guild membership with news about your shows

...as well as your other league activities & offerings

with FREE advertising in the weekly e-newsletter.

 

FREE advertising?  Is that a real thing?

In most of the advertising world, it is not.

But with LSAG league membership, it IS a real thing.

 

***Advertise for success***

***For FREE***

***Frequently*** 

 

 

When people read your announcement...

 

The First Time:  "Hmmm, so ABC League is having a show.  Interesting."

The Second Time:  "ABC League is having a show.  I wonder when it is."

The Third Time:  "That's right!  ABC League is having a show.  Let me register."  

-Send your announcements to lsagannouncements@gmail.com.

-Include anything you would include on a party invitation:  date, time, place, contact info, etc.  Also include any pre-registration deadline & your website where more info can be found.  We do NOT publish your entire prospectus or registration forms.

-The deadline each & every week is Sunday midnight, so email your announcement Monday through Sunday for publication in the following Tuesday's e-newsletter.  Your email has to be published; it is NOT posted the moment you send it. 

-We do NOT re-post your information.  That is for your show chair, activity coordinator, publicity chair, secretary, or whomever may be responsible for that in your league.  It would be impossible & unrealistic for us to serve in this position for 17 different leagues.  You are welcome to send a post for each activity you want advertised each week you want it to be included in the e-newsletter.

And it is as simple as an email!

  

Judged or Juried? That is the Question

In communicating to members & the public about an art show,
be sure you are communicating what you intend.

Judged or juried?  Open or closed?

Here's a primer on the basic art jargon:

-Most LSAG shows are JUDGED shows, meaning that artists can submit their works which will ALL hang in the show & then be evaluated by a judge for awards.  Other organizations also have similar judged shows. 


-A JURIED show, on the other hand, is a process where the judge or juror determines who can be in the show IN ADVANCE of the show.  Artists are invited to submit their works for consideration often in jpeg images or even brought in person.  Fees are paid to be considered---not to be in the show.  But NOT all pieces are hung, & NOT all pieces are accepted into the show.  The judge/juror selects which will be in & which will not.  This is done in advance of a show's opening.  Artists are notified of acceptance within weeks or a month.  Accepted artists are asked to bring in their pieces on a different day so the show can be hung, & an opening is announced much like that of a gallery opening.  Juried shows may continue for a couple of weeks, a couple of months, or something in between.  Juried shows may additionally be judged for awards, but they are not always judged.  Being selected to be in a juried show is in itself an award & an achievement that artists may include on a resume.


Additionally, shows can be OPEN or have a DEFINED ARTIST GROUP or THEME
-An OPEN show is open to anyone whether they are a member of the group or not.  Open shows are a great way to increase participation in a show, showcase your organization to the public, & increase membership. 


-Other shows may indicate it is for their membership only or some other select media type of artist.  For example, there may be a watercolor show or a show where the subject is on a certain theme such as flowers or landscapes. 


Always read over the prospectus or show information prior to entering a show for details, requirements, deadlines, etc.  When you are on the organizing end of a show, be sure you communicate correctly about the type of show it is.  
Doing so incorrectly may mean that your own goals & that of your organization are not met. 


Provided as a service message for LSAG leagues by LSAG Communications

Posting to the Blog: How To Use It To Your Advantage

Posting to the Blog / E-Newsletter is how we communicate across the many miles that make up our great guild.  

Be informed & know how to post to take advantage of this far reaching opportunity.  Read over the basics below or get more info from the detailed version (also below).

_______________________________________

*Be sure your show chairs & other league event coordinators know the ropes of posting.

*Remind your members that the best way to know about art related opportunities outside of their own league is to receive the e-newsletter from us each week or check the blog regularly.  Convenient links to the blog or to sign up for the newsletter are on the LSAG website.  The e-newsletter is sent out once per week.

___________________________________________

The Basics for Everyone:

-Post events no later than a week prior to event or deadline you are advertising.

-Publishing closes on Sunday of each week.  Post events no later than a Sunday for inclusion in that week's e-newsletter.   
Your email does not instantly get posted in an automatic way when you send it.  
It must be published; thus the Sunday deadline. 

-Pictures must be in JPEG format.  No others will post.

-Keep posts short & to the point... but be complete.
Link members to your website or a contact person & contact info.

-Focus your headline (subject line of the email) on the most immediate or most significant element.

-We do not re-post.  You must re-send the post or send an updated one to have it in another newsletter.

___________________________________

The Details:

How To Post

WHO can post an event? 
ANYone who has an ART related event they wish to share.  

*We do not post events or businesses outside of art related ones.

WHY post?

Posting=Advertising!  And it is free!  Make your event more successful with advertising.  

WHEN should you post?

NO LESS than a WEEK PRIOR to the EVENT or DEADLINE.  And post NO LATER than SUNDAY midnight for posts going out in that week's e-newsletter. 

*We do NOT post events that will have already passed at the time of the e-news mass email.
*Announcements sent on Mondays & Tuesdays will not be posted until the following week's e-newsletter provided the event did not already occur.  Your email does not instantly get posted in an automatic way when you send it.  It must be published; thus the Sunday deadline. 

HOW does someone create a post?

Send an E-MAIL to lsagannouncements@gmail.com; it is that simple.

Usually, your subject line will be the headline of your post.  

*Keep your headline short & to the point. 

*Focus your headline on the most immediate or significant element of the post---an upcoming deadline for example or your star artist who is doing the workshop & the dates.

WHAT is needed for a post?

BASICS for any invitation:  

WHAT IT IS, DATE, TIME, PLACE, ADDRESS, CONTACT, RSVP DEADLINE.

*If you put it on a party invitation, you put it on a post. 

*You may also include other relevant information:  fees? supplies? short artist bio?

*Most read posts are short & to the point...but still complete.

HOW OFTEN should you post for a given event?

Once a week or every other week PRIOR to the event (& DURING the event if it is an exhibit for example)  

*The more you advertise your event, the better attended it will be.

Do you automatically RE-RUN posts?

NO, we do NOT re-run posts.  

*Re-posting  is up to you, your public relations/publicity person, or other person in charge of such duties to both post & re-post information as often as they wish it to be sent to the membership.

*Occasionally, LSAG Communications will write a post to re-cap events, shows, or other art opportunities.  This is related EXCLUSIVELY to the posts we have received.  

HOW OFTEN do you post the same message?

ONCE in a week; multiple posts are discarded.

CAN I INCLUDE a picture?

YES, in JPEG format attached to the email; we cannot copy other formats or documents.

*If your picture doesn't show up on the post, it was probably not sent in the correct format.

WHAT should I NOT include in a post?

*Please do not send forms or applications as we will not be able to post them.  Instead send the LINK or website to access those forms if members are interested.

*Our members are comprised of people of all ages---including our youngest members at the elementary school level & up.  Because of that, we will not post things that suggest violence, strong nudity, or other things that may be deemed inappropriate for those viewers.  

WHAT ELSE CAN I DO to make my post look as professional as possible?

*Click on your SPELL CHECK before sending & EDIT just as you would a letter to a friend. 

*DOUBLE CHECK dates & details.  

*Be sure you've included the most IMMEDIATE points such as a deadline that occurs prior to the event itself.  

*The body of your email becomes the body of your post.  

*READ over your post before sending as if you are NOT familiar with the event to see if it is clearly communicated to other readers who are also not going to be familiar.
*AVOID the ampersand (&).  They quickly make posts messy.  We often edit posts to avoid this, but if time does not allow, they will make their messy mark.  &&&&&  

MORE QUESTIONS about posts?

Send an email to lsagannouncements@gmail.com; subject line: Posting Question