I feel slightly embarrassed admitting this, but Rogue Moon Studios now has an instagram account.

That’s right, folks. I’ve become one of those people. The ones from the video above.

So, I guess the obvious question is – why?

Am I giving up game development to take sepia-tinged photos of my food and yoga poses? Am I trying to become a “wellness influencer” selling online hippies on the latest health food supplement/milkshakes scam?

*I’ll pause for a moment while we all cringe at the thought*

Hellz no. I’m doing it out of pure, cold-hearted self-interest!

I’m out there, on the streets, hustling…

grinding…

making bank…

…uh…(checks Urban Dictionary)…chasing…uh….fat stacks?

…and other things that mean “the ruthless pursuit of money at all odds”.

Heh, just kidding. If there was a platonic ideal of the opposite of a street hustler, I would be that.

But seriously, I read a post last week while browing /r/gamedev about how Instagram can actually be a decent platform for marketing games/building an audience.

And, since my philosophy toward marketing is that, like Jon Snow, I know nothing, I decided I’d give it a try and see what happens.

System Crash sold as well as it did (ie, quite modestly), mainly because of Steam’s algorithmic gremlins, not because of my brilliant marketing efforts. I’d rate myself somewhere between “incompetent” and “floundering” in that area.

I also suffer from something like the stereotypical British awkwardness toward self-promotion (I get it from my mother’s side). I have to force myself to do it through an instinctual cringe.

But I’ve decided to make “knowing nothing” a strength, rather than a weakness. I’m embracing it. Since I know nothing, I’ll just try anything and everything.

I’m discarding my preconceptions – if some redditor says Instagram can work, I’ll try Instagram. And since I also don’t know what kind of content to post on Instagram, I’ll just post whatever I feel like.

Whatever amuses me, whatever I enjoy.

In fact, I’ve decided to make “I don’t know anything, so try everything” and “entertaining myself, but in public so it’s discoverable” my core marketing strategy.

I’m turning “laughing at my own dumb jokes” and “talking about the geeky shit I enjoy, including the geeky shit I’m making” into a marketing strategy.

So far, it’s working well, at least in terms of getting past the awkwardness.

At the very least, it’s making “marketing” more fun. And I’m more likely to do it more often if it’s fun, right? So that can’t help but be a win, in a way.

I’ll report back on how it actually goes as a marketing strategy, though, when I have data.

And, if you’re on Instagram, do drop me a follow. I won’t post photos of my breakfast, promise. 😉

-Gareth out