Is Instagram Dead?
Hey Friends
Hope you all are doing well this Sunday. I had a pretty rough week with some personal stuff, but I'm feeling better now. Nonetheless though excited to write today's issue for y'all!
R.I.P Instagram
I know the title is kind of exaggerating but for real, I think Instagram is fucking up big time. Not only was my account compromised by thousands of bots recently, but all my designer friends have been complaining about reach being down. It's a very stressful task to try to predict how a computer algorithm works to best suit your business, I know most people don't care about this stuff but as a creative or a freelancer you need these platforms for business. I'm not sure Instagram is truly dead yet but sharing static posts that aren't reels seem to get less attention than ever. I really hope the design community continues to adapt to these ever-growing changes and doesn't ever get too discouraged and stop posting at all. I am just going to continue to do my thing and if a post flops you can always "Hide Likes;)". For what it's worth you can check out a video HERE I put out earlier this year for tips on Instagram as a designer, most of it is still relevant! Lastly are there any other cool social media platforms y'all have seen coming up?
Own Your Audience
So this kind of goes hand in hand with the last section and not being able to predict or trust social media platforms. I know it's kind of meta to write about a newsletter in the newsletter itself but oh well. This newsletter has been very fulfilling for me and I hope you all enjoy it as well. It started because all the online greats I know constantly talk about having an email list or some kind of newsletter. Also, read the 1000 True Fans article. The methodology behind this is simple, "Owning Your Audience". With an email list, I can directly connect with y'all and don't have to worry about my account being compromised, shut down, or have to do TikTok dances just to get through to y'all. I highly encourage all my creative friends to start some kind of email list, newsletter, or external way of communicating with your audience. These past few weeks and the shenanigans with Instagram further solidified my confidence in the newsletter and I am excited to keep sending stuff to y'all. If you want to support the newsletter or any of my content in any way consider checking out Patreon. (beginning of the month is the best time to subscribe).
Design Sneek Peek
I want to share more stuff here before it goes out to the rest of the world. I appreciate all of you for reading this newsletter every week so it only makes sense. Above is a style I've been working on to mix both this construction paper xerox printer style with some old magazine collage. I really like the juxtaposition and think there is some potential here for more experimentation. The message is pretty heavy but believe it or not that image came from an article about bees and honey lol. It felt like someone carrying a casket to me tho, so I couldn't help but make it a little bit darker. As you can see with the spottiness in my black ink, my laser printer is finally running out of ink. It has been at 0% for a week now, I don't know how I keep on printing. I highly recommend getting a laser printer though, it's cheap(er) and fun to experiment with. I have this pantum one HERE.
Collaborations
I recently did both a podcast and this design above with my fellow designer and friend Oversettext. You can check out the podcast here or it is linked below. I had a blast talking with Ram and no one knows how to navigate social media as a designer better than him, so he's perfect for this week's issue. We always joke about how we went to school and all this stuff just to end up "creating content" I am grateful for all the opportunities I have had but this def was not in my 5-year plan back in college. I do love how the design came out though, I think my analog style and Ram's witty copywriting and Imagery skills worked out well! Check out the official post here.
Stuff I currently like and stuff I'm looking forward to!
Tweet of the week below by Eric Hu
Closing Thoughts
Keep it moving and go touch some grass!
Much Love, Glue.
Weekly Wrap Up
Redesigned my old business cards from college and collab'd/podcast with Oversettext.
Redesigning my outdated business cards
Podcast with Oversettext
Oversettext - Speaking your mind through design with a poster everyday Ep.59 - Jesse Nyberg Podcast — open.spotify.com
Audio Version on Spotify:)
"CONTENT CREATION" on Instagram
Patreon
I put out a lot of free content and I love doing it. However, ya boy has student loans and bills to pay. Sooooo If you want to get access to some more exclusive content, you can always check out my Patreon. It helps support your boy and you’ll get some goodies along the way like:
Project Files
10% Off At My Online Print Shop
High Res downloads of my work
Bonus Q&A Podcast Episodes
Patron shoutout at the end of my YouTube videos
Exclusive Discord Server Role
Patron-only Posts
Glue's Prints
In addition to freelancing and creating content around design, I also sell prints. Get yourself something nice to hang up in your studio:) Here are some details on my prints.
Limited Quantity, once all sold they won't be reproduced
16x20 inches printed on high-quality lustre paper
All prints are hand-signed, numbered, and shipped by me
Art Prints by Jesse Nyberg — jessenyberg.bigcartel.com
Art Prints by Jesse Nyberg