Self-Promotion in the dopamine culture

When it comes to selling my ceramics, I currently use Etsy as my platform of choice. It offers buyers a sense of security with its guarantees, which makes people feel safer shopping there than on some lesser-known e-commerce sites. Etsy also claims to help bring in customers, but I’ve found that self-promotion has been the most effective strategy. As an artist, promoting myself has become just as important as creating the work itself.

Thankfully, I have a background in graphic design and marketing, which gives me a slight edge in crafting eye-catching content. But even with those skills, there’s one major challenge—our collective attention span is shrinking. In fact, the average watch time spent on a content clip on my Instagram account is just 3.4 seconds before they scroll on to the next. I can’t even get 5 seconds! That’s the reality of the world we live in, where dopamine culture reigns supreme.

Remember the days before smart phones, when life moved at a slower pace? Back then, people took their time to enjoy things—reading a paperback book, eating a meal without checking their phone, speaking verses texting, or even having uninterrupted conversations. But as technology has evolved, so has our relationship with time. Everything is a quick hit—tweets, texts, emojis, and bite-sized videos. We’re constantly bombarded with fast content, and now our brains crave that instant rush of novelty. Squirrel!!

This is the world we’re trying to market in now. People love to see the process behind my ceramics, but how do you capture a project that takes 8-16 hours to complete in a video that holds their attention for less than five seconds? It’s a real puzzle. I spend more time than I’d like editing, trimming, and speeding up footage to create bite-sized versions of my work. The goal? To grab people’s attention before they move on to the next thing in their never-ending scroll.

It's frustrating, for sure. But mastering the art of quick-hit videos this fast culture has become part of the job. Self-promotion, in our world of dopamine hits and quick scrolls, is almost as intricate as the sculptures themselves.

Did you make it to the end? If you did, I thank you!