WHO: Who is in this community?
The two largest groups I see coming to this blog are people who are interested in graffiti and want to learn more (community members, young people who like art) and also 20-somethings who like graffiti very much and are looking to learn more and/or be somewhat involved in the community. These people live in cities primarily, and live an urban lifestyle.
According to Google Analytics, 50 percent of my visitors came from Google searches. All but a few of the search words had to do with graffiti directly. This leads me to believe there are a lot of people out there who want information about graffiti, but do not have good sources of information.
The largest geographic audiences came from Illinois, Massachusetts, California and New York (in that order), which are also the states where graffiti is most prevalent. This shows a correlation between states where graffiti is common and people’s interest level in graffiti. People in these states have likely developed an interest in graffiti they see in and around their communities and want to learn more about what they see. Also, the reason Massachusetts is so high is because of several posts I wrote about the arrest of a prominent area graffiti artist. My traffic spiked each time I wrote about the graffiti artists which shows people are interested in artists in their communities and don’t have many sources of information. Many of the mainstream media in the Boston area wrote about the arrest of the graffiti artist but did not write any follow up stories. More than half of the referring Google search terms to my site has the words “Spek” or “Adam Brandt” (the artist’s tag name and real name), which shows there are a lot of people out there looking to follow this type of information.
WHAT: What are their content interests? Where do they get information on these topics?
My audience is typically drawn to alternative publications. They read mainstream media, but also turn to alternative sources to gain information about their community. For example in the Chicago-area my audience members would likely read Timeout Chicago, The Reader, Gaper’s Block and Chicagoist, in addition to more mainstream publications like the Chicago Tribune. They are interested in national news, but also like to hear about weird features and quirky events. They might turn to The Onion in addition to The New York Times. They are interested in art news and information, and always aware of what’s coming next. They frequent indie shows, art galleries and off-beat events.
HOW: How and under what circumstances do they communicate with one another, online and off?
My audience is a very tech-savvy group. The internet is their primary way of getting news and information. They use the internet from everything from finding local news to helping them decide what to do on a Friday night. They frequent guides from local publications, like Timeout’s event listings. They connect with each other via email, online chatting and social networking sites like Facebook.
Many people interested in graffiti art use Facebook group’s to discuss their opinions and connect with other people who have an interest in graffiti. Some of the more conversationally vibrant Facebook groups on graffiti are: Graffiti is Art (5,140 members/67 discussion topics) and Art Crimes – The Writing on the Wall (1,645 members/30 discussion topics).
Some of the discussion topics focus on the same issues that my blog discusses. To help build an audience and connect with my community, I will monitor these group discussions, contribute when I have something to add to the discourse and leave the link to my blog in the post. One example is a discussion on the Graffiti is Art group focused on “good graffiti vs. bad graffiti.” Most contributors voiced the opinion that any graffiti tag can have artistic merits. But Luke Workoff from the SUNY Buffalo network wrote about the crux of graffiti and its transformation through time, “Ultimately, graffiti isn’t what it used to be, and nothing really touches NYC and LA. Graffiti is the art of getting over on society, putting your mark wherever appropriate, and being creative while doing so. Anyone who thinks graffiti is bad on public property is foolish, that doesn’t make the art any worse.”
Click here to go to PART ONE: project overview
Click here to go to PART THREE: blog development plan
