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Justin Reese | Episode 309
Justin Reese is a studio potter working out of his hometown of Youngstown, OH. Justin lives with his wife Bailey, daughter Mika, his dog Kuma, and the family’s three cats. Justin has a BFA from the Columbus College of Art and Design, and this is where Justin’s journey with pottery began. After three years focusing on traditional oil paint techniques, Justin developed a love for clay during his final year. Justin works primarily with porcelain, and his favorite form is the lidded jar. Justin is devoted to help create a culture full of creativity in Youngstown, and he also wish to reach out and educate others through social media.
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You said when you got into social media things started to turn around for you. How did you discover social media as being a great marketing tool?
Realizing that sales, in terms of being able to provide for my family, the economy here is nearly impossible. I have known about Instagram and made an account back in 2003-2004 and put four pictures up. I finally found my password again and logged in again in 2016 and I really wanted to see what was out there first and foremost. I wanted to see how Adam Field makes his cups and how he carves these patterns as well as other people’s work. I was able to see how they were able to market their work. For example pop up sales, you set up a flyer for this pre-determined date that you are going to have pieces ready for the online public to have first dibs. Then I got on Etsy and Periscope. I feel like I almost personally know these people and I know if I went to NCECA and I met these people we just have a great time. Establishing relationships and bringing something unique to the public eye is terms of techniques that’s what I focus on on social media.
What is your approach to Instagram?
My Instagram is made up of three things. My Dog Kuma steals the show sometimes. He is a Chinese Shar Pei. He is really wrinkly and lovable. He is way too cute not to put on my Instagram. Also, how to videos. Not in depth how to videos because it is only a minute long. I wish they were 2 minutes long so you could really get in depth on the steps.
Which type of post garners the most reaction, video or still?
I would definitely say video.
How do you approach Periscope?
I want it not to be like a workshop but like an open forum, really paying attention to what people are asking or saying and being able to answer their questions right on the spot.
What makes a good Periscope?
I think being entertaining. Being as personable as possible. It really helps if you have a tablet or laptop where you can really keep track of the conversation. Using Broadcaster Pro takes a log of the interactions.
What is Broadcaster Pro?
Broadcaster Pro is a Google-Chrome extension where you can see a video of yourself broadcasting and you can see at which rate you are gaining hearts and this and that. But most importantly the text is big enough that you can read from far away and it doesn’t disappear.
One of the things I noticed is the key is building community, so how do you build community while you are on social media platforms?
I think something I really enjoy is, and something that you do as well, is shout outs. You find someone whose piece you really appreciate, it could be someone you don’t even know and you say why you enjoy this piece or why you enjoy this artist and you kind of put their work on a spotlight. It is not just about my work but work that I enjoy as well. That helps build that sense of community.
If social media was laid before you and you could use only one platform, which would you choose and why?
I would use Instagram because it now has a live broadcast feature which I think they will build onto. I would say Instagram because you can archive your work in a way.
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