Tumblr for Artists – Tips to Promote Art and Find Inspiration

I’ve been spending some time at Tumblr, posting some of my artworks and following many artists.

It didn’t take long for me to notice that Tumblr has a very active creative community. Many artists are using Tumblr for inspiration and art promotion.

Last time I shared a tutorial and tips for setting up a Tumblr art blog.

Find this post here:

How to Create a Tumblr Blog

This time, I will go over some of the features and settings of Tumblr for finding inspiration and promoting art.

1. Tagging at Tumblr

   
   Tagging at Tumblr works in much the same way as at other social networks and blogs. Tags are used extensively throughout Tumblr. Using a few relevant tags in each post will help to increase the reach of posts, and will allow them to be found by searchers.
   
   
   
   Find popular tags to use at this page: http://www.tumblr.com/explore You will notice that each tag has an individual tag editor who moderates the page and regularly features popular blogs. Some good tags for artists are art, illustration, Artists on Tumblr, design, DIY, etc. Using these popular tags, you increase your chances of being featured and followed throughout Tumblr. Use the “Artists on Tumblr” tag whenever you post new work.
   
   Another useful tagging tip is to use a personal tag, such as your name or username. This way, all your posts will be easily searchable.
   
   

2. Post often

   
   Post often, mix up your types of posts, and use different tags each time. The more you post, the more people will become interested in following your Tumblr blog.
   
   
   Posting consistency also increases your chance of being featured. Use the “Add to Queue” option (found under the Publish options when creating a post).
   
   
   This will enable you to create several posts at once, and send them out at set intervals.
   
   
   

3. Tumblr Spotlight

   
   This is where Tumblr highlights the top blogs at Tumblr, according to category. This is a good place to find some good, active blogs to follow. Click the “Find blogs” button in the sidebar of your dashboard.
   
   At the right, you will see several categories. Each category leads to a separate spotlight page. Categories of interest to artists would be art, artists, design, illustrators, photography, curators, etc. Easily follow blogs by hovering your cursor over a profile image. Then, click the “Follow” link which appears.
   
   

4. Reblog Tumblr Posts

   
   Reblogging is a great way to allow others to repost your work, essentially helping promote it. The reblog function reminds me of pinning at Pinterest. Many Tumblr blogs consist of just reblogs – collections of posts amalgamated in one location.
   
   To reblog the posts of other Tumblr users, click the reblog button – which is an icon with a double arrow. The post editor opens up. Add a comment if you want, then publish as you would a regular post.
   
   

5. Tumblr Blog Settings

   
   Allowing Comments
   Tumblr blogs are not set to allow comments by default. You first have to go to your blog. At the top, hit the cog wheel icon (settings). Click the name of your blog on the next page. In the Replies section, check the boxes to allow commenting on your posts.
   
   Ask people questions
   This will allow people to ask you a question, and the button will appear on your blog.
   
   Submissions
   Selecting the Submissions option will allow people to submit their art. Fill in a title, guidelines and optional tags.
   
   Queue
   Queue is one of the publish options when publishing a post, and will allow spacing of your posts at set time intervals. Essentially, you can queue a collection of posts in one sitting, and not have to worry about your blog for awhile.

 

Do you have a Tumblr blog? You are welcome to share it with us in the comments and tell us what you like most about Tumblr.


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