SELF PROMOTION RESEARCH:

Self Promotion Strategies (online)
The first website I looked at to observe the best self promotion is by an artist named Phillip Bannister who is predominantly a watercolour painter with a reasonably large client list. His personal website is autobiographical rather than being created or even written by himself which can either be viewed as a more professional, or a less personal approach to a portfolio website. His site is very easy to navigate as all titles are clear and separated, and features most of the necessary self promotion sections but as I brows the sections I cant help but feel like the information given is somewhat limited. For example, it would be good to have more background information on Phillip himself, and on particular projects and commissions. Also, the website does not excite me graphically, it is not overly aesthetically pleasing to me, but I can understand that the target market of clients that Phillip's work is aimed at would be more appreciative of this style of website. A more toned down, sophisticated aesthetic does in fact work well in respect of the clients listed on the site.
By listing his very well known list of clients, he immediately gains respect as a designer and this acts almost like a good reference when applying for a new job. Looking at the amount of work he has posted on his site also improves his reputation as a productive designer, and there is a wide range of styles of images children's illustration, to more classic styles, giving the prospective client good insight into the range of works that Phillip produces. The overall style of his website is more of a classic aesthetic and this does work for his target clients. However, to reach a wider audience and build a more extensive client list, I feel he would need to update and modernise his site more. More use of eye catching and interactive graphics, links to other networking sites, and a feeling of his personality coming through information about him would result in more attention and widen his possibilities to commission.

The second artist portfolio website I looked at is by an artist named Kelly Smith who is an Australia Based artist who mainly works on fashion illustrations in pencils and similar mediums. Her website is very different to the last I researched as it has a lot more modern networking links and features. The home website actually consists of just one page, with links to folio, blog, biography, shop, and contact. At first glance this seems very organised an easy to navigate, however, each link opens a separate section with a different programme, making it in fact harder to navigate. For example, to access portfolio, the link opens up to a flickr thread, the biography to a adobe file, the shop to a separate website, and the blog also consists of all these separate links. I personally think that her collection of links offers enough information but makes it much harder to navigate. The main website page however, is very attractive and does feature a client specific 'commercial enquiries’ link which is a feature not seen in the previous website that indicates that the artist does have a specific aim to secure more clients.

Kelly's Client list is a good one, and her work is showcased very well throughout the various websites, but her website could definitely be more easily navigated by creating more internal links rather than leading the potential clients away from the site. It has a good aesthetic and more could be made of it if a theme was carried through a more extensive website.

The third website I researched is definitely the best in terms of the artist advertising herself to clients and allowing them to explore her, her artwork, and style. This website is by an artist named Joanna Henly, who goes under the designer name 'Miss Led'. To begin, her website is fantastic to navigate, with an impressive list of clients, press, blog, contact, shop and biography on the left hand side of the site, which all link to a scrolling pan of images corresponding with each client and section in chronological order, making it incredibly easy to find what you are looking for within the site. There are no external links like the previous website, and there is no waste of space. We get to see the artist's work, her at work, interviews, editorial pieces and are able to contact with ease. She also includes the logo and states that she is a member of AOI which gives her a lot more instant credibility as a designer. Her achievements as a designer are presented through her editorial pieces and interviews and boast her individuality as a designer. With her most recent blog post being updated on the website regularly, this gives the client insight that she is constantly designing and refreshing her work and inspiration, continuing her journey through design and gaining experience in the commercial world as well as in her personal time.
As a potential client, the website has everything needed to discover her as an artist, exploration of her style, past work, current work, expression of her personality through interview, various networking links to Facebook, Twitter and Flickr if more information or research is needed, but in my opinion there is enough matter on the one page website to showcase her skill.