Why follow for follow on instagram doesn't work.

We're all looking for that magic way to gain followers quick and easy. I get it, trust me I do. I would love nothing more than to make a post and wake up to thousands of new followers, likes, and comments. But, unfortunately, there's no magic way to gain followers quickly. Sure, you can buy them. But those aren't real accounts that'll follow you and it looks phishy. The algorithm knows it. And who has money to buy followers?

So we end up with follow for follow. Great. That'll be perfect. You follow me, I follow you and instant new followers. People are so quick to jump on this bandwagon for that reason alone. They don't think about any of the consequences and reasons it doesn't help them in the end. 

So why doesn't follow for follow work? 

First you need to know how the Instagram algorithm works to understand that. And the truth is, when you make a post, Instagram shows it to a small percentage of your followers to start. Engagement tells them if they should show it to others. So more followers alone, doesn't mean more reach on your content. 

Let's take a look at how it may hurt you rather than help you. For this I'm talking Instagram, but the same rules apply to most other platforms too. 

Let's say you've done follow for follow, you have 5,000 followers from it. That numbers looks great, you should be making sales if that's your goal, growing your account, getting shares and saves. But you're not. Why? 

None of those followers have interest in your content or product. That's not why they followed you. They followed you so you would follow them, so they could add to their follower count. So when you make a post and Instagram shows it to 10 of those followers and only one truly cares enough to like the post, maybe leave a comment if your lucky? Instagram deems it boring and uninteresting and doesn't show it to anyone else. 

Engagement matters more than follower count. And now you've got 5,000 ghost followers. They add to your follower count, but they don't interact. They may not even be active accounts. So, you're relying on hashtags for your content and account to grow as if you're a brand new account still. Hashtags should bring in new followers, but your current followers should be interacting too, sharing, saving, commenting. All the things that help you grow organically. 

Let's look at an opposite situation. Say you only have 100 followers but you gained them organically through networking, and hashtags with consistent posting. You make a new post, and Instagram shows it to five of those followers. But those five people swipe through the photos, spend time to read captions, like it. A couple may even comment, share, and save. So Instagram says "oh! This post must be good, those first views kept them on it for a minute." And it shows it to more of your followers, who then also interact. Because of this, majority of your followers see and interact with your post. People that see it from hashtags see and interact, resulting in more engagement and a few new followers. If you choose your hashtags strategically, maybe you'll even make it to top posts on one if those hashtags. 

Are we seeing yet how genuine followers that truly like your content are better than ghost followers that are only in it to get another number for their own account? I hope so. Let's look at another reason it could hurt you.

How to mix basic skin tones part 1

Ah, skin tones. It seems they're the enemy of so many artists, new artists especially. Why do so many have such a hard time with this? What's so different about mixing skin tones than any other color? Well, chances are you're just over thinking them, skipping over the basics of color mixing, or both. Color mixing, it's a simple thing that so many over complicate. Instead of mixing colors, many would rather buy every color in existence and use it straight from the tube. Even grays they can't or don't want to mix. This makes something as complex as a skin tone is the hardest thing they can think of mixing. Now, I'm not saying there's anything wrong with tube or bottle colors as is, if that works for you and your style of painting, use it. Do whatever makes you happy with your art. But chances are, if you want more realistic or specific colors, you'll need to learn to mix them. So let's take a look at some basic color theory and what you might be doing wrong to start off with.

Pennywise the dancing clown! A large painting

initial sketch

Process of a large painting? I've never done anything larger than a 12x16 before this 18x24 pennywise, and even at that, in don't use anything larger than an 8x10 very often. Shown above is the initial sketch outline, I always start with a grid and a sketch done in watercolor pencil so that it blends in with the paint with out effecting it or causing anything weird to happen down the line. Click after the jump to see the rest of the process!