post #6 - OMG, WTAF is ROI?...

so, picture this: i’m knee-deep in paint, glue & glitter, creating my latest kweenie, & someone casually asks me about NFTs. i raise an eyebrow, trying to look wise (very tricky manoeuvre for me, both the brow & the wise thing), but all i can think is, "WTF is an NFT?" 

hard relate?

well, welcome to the world of acronyms, where every letter seems to stand for something crucial, & missing out can make you feel like you’re in an exclusive club without the password 

acronym overload, anyone? yeah, FOMO is real! (that’s "Fear Of Missing Out" for those kweens keeping score)

"OG influencer AA Milne"

bet you don’t know who started all of this? so, rewind nearly 100 years to 1928 & you can thank the OG influencer AA Milne for making acronyms part of everyday chat! yep you read right! Tigger dropped TTFN (ta-ta for now) in the sequel "The House at Pooh Corner"

roll onto 2024 & it’s gone mental being used in business & IRL ("In Real Life") all i can say is TF ("Thank F*ck") for Google!

i mean, WTAF is ROI & why does an artist need to know about it? 

when I started out as a full-time artist & fempreneur, it felt like i was drowning in a sea of letters 

i totally understood all the everyday acronyms especially the sweary ones cause well that’s my jam: 

FFS (For F*ck Sake):

my reaction every time i had to google another business acronym 

IRL (In Real Life):

a place where i learned that art can actually pay the bills. who knew? or when you’re sh*tting yourself to go into the gallery on your opening night 

WTAF (What The Actual F*ck):

perfect for those times when something completely mental happens, like a last-minute painting commission request for a life-sized kween riding a unicorn. WTAF, but also, cha-ching! 

FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out):

that nagging wee gremlin in your belly feeling every time you see other artists' success stories on Instagram. trust me, it's real! 

these acronyms i could handle as i picked them up over time but the business ones? well that was like diving headfirst into shark infested alphabet soup! i had to learn & learn pronto, to stand a chance at this fempreneur sh*t! 

right so now this is where i will try & break it down for you, but in a kweenie kinda way, aka no tricky business lingo (except for the acronyms obvs) 

the biggies: 

ROI (Return On Investment): 

sounds fancy, right? ROI is basically asking, "am I getting my money's worth?" like, if i spend £100 on paint & sell the artwork for £500, my ROI is looking pretty damn good. it's like the business version of not crying over spilled paint 

SEO (Search Engine Optimization): 

when i started out i knew i wanted to be besties with mother earth with the artwork i created but i didn't realise i was going to have to do the same with Google too! 

SEO is like trying to become besties with Google. it’s all about making sure when people search for “feminist pop art” (or whatever floats your boat), your website pops up at the top. think of it as art gallery placement but on the internet 

kweenie feminist pop art - "mini pop IV" pop art fine art print

NFT (Non-Fungible Token):

sounds like a foot infection but this is actually a digital art trend which was thought to be the artworlds new gold rush. but it’s a little bit dodge here & there, so still wrapping my head around this one! 

social media: 

CTA (Call To Action):

nope not some military term. in the social media world, it’s the “Hey, do this thing!” at the end of your post. like, “buy my art!” or “subscribe to my email list” basically, it’s how you get your followers to, well, follow you. btw you can follow me here & sign-up & become a kween here 

(did you see what i did there? probably the most alien & icky thing to me as an artist - marketing yourself ughh but hey if i want to survive it has to be done, right?)

DM (Direct Message):

to get DM’d is not actually a kicking in Doc Martens (as noted in my previous post #2 - no shit, Les Mills might have changed my life...) but to slide into someone’s DMs”, although sounding pretty sleazy, means sending a private message & it’s not just for flirting; it's for business too. want to collab with another artist? DM them! want to ask me about my art DM me here 

financial:

P&L (Profit & Loss):

sounds like a maths class or a ferry company, but it's super important. your P&L statement tells you if you’re making money or just throwing paint & hopes into the void. keeping track of this helps avoid nasty surprises & that sicky feeling at the end of the month when your shopify fees need paid 

COGS (Cost Of Goods Sold):

nope, not an underwater creature. it’s the total cost of making your art. so, all those canvases, paints, & glitter – add them up. that’s your COGS. keeping it low means more profit, yay! 

marketing: 

B2B (Business 2 Business) & B2C (Business 2 Consumer): 

these wee beauties are fancy terms for who you're selling to. B2B means you’re selling your art to other businesses, like galleries. B2C is when you're selling directly to your kweens who want to hang your masterpiece above their “throne” 

kweenie masterpiece that's perfect for above your throne -  "genius" pop art fine art print

USP (Unique Selling Proposition):

what makes your art stand out? your USP is like the secret sauce that makes your work uniquely you. mine is unapologetic pop art based on rebellious, vintage kweens with something to say. what’s yours? 

kweenie rebellious unapologetic pop art original featuring Rita Hayworth -  "you think?" 

productivity & project management: 

SOP (Standard Operating Procedure):

SOPs are like recipes for your business processes. they help with artists brain fog so you don’t forget the steps & keep things consistent.

it’s like knowing the exact mix of paint to get that perfect colour every time or all the steps involved in taking a painting from OG to Limited Edition Prints 

KPI (Key Performance Indicator):

fancy way of saying “goals.” KPIs help you track how well you’re doing. is your Instagram growing? are you selling more art this month? these are your KPIs.

keeping a wee eye on them helps you know if you're on track to become an international superstar artist – which is approximately 12 months from now, give or take a day or two, for me! 

well, there you have it, kweens! a kweenie crash course in business acronyms for artists. trust me, i was just as clueless as you might be when i started. but now, i chuck about ROI & SEO like i'm some sort of business guru (pmsl btw) 

at the end of the day it’s all part of building the old fempire!

TLDR (Too Long Didnae Read):

if you have made it to here then my post hasn’t made it into the TLDR (Too Long Didnae Read) category – result! 

got any acronyms that confuse the f*ck out of you? drop them in the comments 

or hit me up with your favourite everyday acronym  

love you, bye! 

kx 

PS things i've learned as part of the fempreneurial hustle: 

1. Google is my friend when it comes to fending off shark bites in the infested alphabet soup of acronyms
2. i could probably make up my own acronym & no one would bat an eye tbf! 
3. don’t get too bogged down with all these acronyms. at the end of the day, creating amazing art is the real deal, the rest? it's just fancy talk for grown-ups 
4. ooooo & i love a glossary: 
   ROI - Return on Investment 
   SEO - Search Engine Optimization 
   NFT - Non-Fungible Token 
   CTA - Call to Action 
   DM - Direct Message 
   P&L - Profit and Loss 
   COGS - Cost of Goods Sold 
   B2B - Business to Business 
   B2C - Business to Consumer 
   USP - Unique Selling Proposition 
   SOP - Standard Operating Procedure 
   KPI - Key Performance Indicator 

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