Music Marketing Doesn’t Have to be Difficult!
Why is music marketing important?
Promotion isn’t as funny as playing music, yes. It needs time you could use to write songs & play music. But what is the point in being great if nobody is listening?
Normally record labels plan the marketing. But they won’t sign you until you have a big fan base to show.
You could hire another person to help you with marketing. But this is costly and not really authentic.
So, let’s learn how to do it. Because it doesn’t have to be difficult.
#1 Know where your audience is
No need to reach people one by one. You can reach them at the same time. Which sites and places do they visit? It depends on your type of music of course.
- YouTube channels about music type
- Facebook / Twitter groups and pages that that fit
- Music Forums
- Online radio shows that play your type of music
- Other big websites
- Concerts & Events: go there to connect and network with people
#2 Connect with influencers
Influencers are people with many of followers on social networking sites. Build a relationship with them. Why? They reach all those people you need. Imagine an important influencer introducing you as THE most awesome musician to be checked out. Wow.
Take care not to write just any person without thinking it through. They are professionals and earn money by being what they are. Find middle-sized people and try to build a relationship with them. Think of what you can give them in return.
#3 Video is music marketing star 2016
People love videos, so social media sites do as well. Create some smartphone videos of you. Introduce the new album or recording, tour dates and music videos. Short videos up to 20 seconds work best. Include subtitles for watching on Facebook without sound.
The star feature 2016 is live streaming. Check out the Live Video feature by Facebook. Snapchat allows almost live videos, too.
Did you know users have very short attention spans online? And that most people go online through smartphones & tablets? Consider that.
#4 Don’t forget offline music marketing
- Goes without saying: putting your stickers everywhere is a must!
- Perform in locations your audience visits
- Get your video on a (music) TV channel
- Get your song on a local radio
- Put Flyers & Records in local shops
- Do some street performances & flash mobs
- Organize concerts & invite people
#5 Share your music everywhere
- There are tons of streaming platforms out there. Share your music on Pandora, Deezer, Apple, Google, Spotify (with their new Concert Tab), Tidal. Consider a profile on Bandcamp, Bandsintown and sofasession.
- Upcoming/new services: YouTube Red and Soundcloud streaming. Even though experts criticize those two.
#6 Social Media Music Marketing
- Instagram: update your fans on a regular basis. Post short videos of you playing or singing. Use the right hashtags.
- Facebook: Post photos, videos, and gifs. Join group discussions. Promote most relevant posts with Facebook Ads (from 5$ a day great results). Do raffles and contests for your fans.
- Create a homepage or blog. Send newsletters to your subscribers to keep them up to date.
Excepts from https://blog.sofasession.com
About the Author Music Needs You
Music Needs are a bunch of passionate & highly experienced musicians and media professionals with a vision to disrupt the industry and bring the power back to the "artist". Our various initiatives support the independent musician and bands to get more opportunities to grow their career.
