Hi! Here's a summary of how things are progressing.
This year, I decided to open my own studio in the niche of anime and comics.
I created a website and am now preparing products—books, comics, and a course about my experience in drawing.
However, that’s not all. This website isn’t suitable for working with businesses. Serious men and women often see anime as something silly. Business requires real design solutions for products and concepts. Therefore, I’m working on a website specifically for the business niche.
I’ve noticed that platforms like BuyMeACoffee promote pages within their environment. Unfortunately, Google does not promote websites created on its very convenient and simple builder, where you can create a site in just 20 minutes!
For instance, on BuyMeACoffee, I received 800 views without advertising, but my website only garnered 400 in a month.
Overall, personal websites aren’t very popular now, so I think this isn’t a bad result.
I remain hopeful that websites will become popular again because it’s easy to measure their effectiveness!
Social networks used to provide free traffic, making it profitable for businesses to maintain accounts there. But now? It’s impossible to get views and clients for free. So why pour your advertising budget into promoting your social media page? It’s like stepping into a murky swamp filled with crocodiles—competition is everywhere!
If you’re thinking of starting your project on Instagram, slow down and reconsider. People are tired of content and entertainment. Since 2020, subscriptions have been declining sharply, and the cost per subscriber has become quite high.
Newcomers in the content industry often resort to inflating their follower count by 3,000–10,000 bots just to avoid scaring off casual visitors with an empty profile.
Social media managers are trying to outsmart algorithms, creating content plans with scripts that could easily win Oscars. But the social media bubble is shrinking, folks, and it’s about to burst. It doesn’t work! It’s better to pause at the start than to get involved in a massive crash.
Owning and growing your own website is an excellent solution. You’re offering visitors a cozy little world where they can find something delightful and join your group of fans.
My first website doesn’t have its own domain yet, but it’s simple and clear.
I’m continuing to fill it with content, and the same will apply to the professional business site I’m working on.
A few words about my disappointment with email marketing. Email isn’t exactly alive... No matter how well I write emails, I mostly get ignored or receive rejections. Maybe my emails are going straight to spam.
Meanwhile, scammers with outdated schemes from a decade ago seem desperate to get my card number, PIN, and a couple thousand dollars.
“Sir, Ma’am, Miss, Madame...,” I wanted to reply, “we haven’t communicated like this for at least 40 years... but... what’s the point?”
Apparently, one part of the planet is at least 50 years behind the times.
This year, I spent countless hours trying to gain subscribers and land illustration orders. I wasted $20 a couple of times on ads in vain, brainstormed concepts for my style and project themes, and deleted 10 scam emails daily.
I calculated that I bought 101 books and 20 courses! Education is essential if you want to step into the market confidently rather than begging companies to notice you.
There are now so many artists—150 applications per job opening! Companies can’t process all of them. Since 2020, people have realized how great it is to work from home and not have to commute at 7 a.m. This has flooded the online job market, making it hard for even professionals to breathe.
AI has shaken the art industry, empowering cunning programmers who generate images and aggressively promote AI games without considering the role of artists. Yet artists are often the ones who create the atmosphere and are the reason people buy games.
Ideological divisions have split people into two camps—X and BlueSky.
My 5-Year Forecast: A Wave of Recession
People will realize that not everyone is needed in remote work. Only professionals and true enthusiasts—those with skills and sales abilities—will remain.
Some will return to factories, shops, or offices.
Social media will lose its importance due to boring or silly-bright content that offers no real value to people but only serves platforms that bombard users with ads. People will huddle in small interest groups, searching for something new.
Your website could become a safe haven for a future community!
And as for me, I create visual solutions for projects, designs, game graphics, and scripts for your business. Contact me via email or social media!