Independent artists wear many hats, and one of which is the head of marketing.
Marketing spreads your music, grows your fanbase, and advances your career. It can also highlight singles, performances, local events, and is an impactful way to build your brand’s identity and create buzz.
In the past, music promotion was taken care of by music industry professionals, but in recent years musicians have had to take the reins to keep themselves indie and grow according to their own whims.
1) Focus on Your Online Presence Everyone has an online presence. Social media profiles, community forum accounts, and email addresses are all online representations of who we are. So as a musician, you must have a professional online presence. To get started here, create a social media page for you or your band if you haven’t already and use it to benefit your brand. Social media pages can be used as a stand-in for a website if you don’t have one and serve as a hub for existing and new fans to stay up to date on the latest news. Just keep in mind that new music drops, your latest blogs, day-to-day life, and upcoming shows are great things to share on your page and engage followers.
Also, be sure to note that creating a social media page isn’t a one and done kind of effort. It’s something that needs to be maintained and regularly updated to keep growing fan engagement. Social media analytics can also give you useful insight into your community. Many brands use it to learn what kind of content their audiences tend to engage most with and the best time to post it.
Don’t get discouraged if you don’t see fans rolling in immediately. Growing your community and fan base takes time. Even one follower gained is important and worth celebrating!
2) Create a MDIIO Account
We don’t expect you to become an influencer, but we suggest you create a MDIIO account and use it to market yourself. Companies are always on the hunt for fresh talent, and often they scour MDIIO for the next great artist and track. You also want to use your account to give organizers the chance to listen to your music before booking you. But most importantly, we suggest using MDIIO as a central place where fans can listen to all of your music. Hosting your tracks on YouTube or Spotify is a solid option, too.
3) Collaborate with Other Indie Artists
Our next tip for marketing yourself as an independent musician is to collaborate with other musicians. Collaborating is the music industry’s version of networking, except, it has cooler results. The goal is to get more fans, and by collaborating you increase your visibility and expose your music to audiences that typically wouldn’t come across your music. It’s also an excellent way to build a long-lasting relationship. How you collaborate is up to you. It can be as simple as shouting each other out on social media or actually writing and recording a track together.
For the best exposure, try collaborating with talented independent artists or musicians from different genres. Don’t just limit yourself to musicians who have a similar sound. Another advantage of collaborating with artists is that you can learn from them. You can learn better ways to promote your music, who’s who in the local music scene, and best of all, they can inspire you to be creative and experiment in ways you never considered.
4) Don’t Forget Your Existing Fans
While many independent artists are grateful for their current fanbase, their focus is always on gaining new fans. But did you know that continuing to engage with your existing fans will help you earn new ones? It’s vital that you understand who your fans are, what kind of content they enjoy, and use that information to guide your marketing content and connect with them in a meaningful way.
You can also recruit your current fans to bring new fans into your community. Think of your fans as your own personal marketing team. Word of mouth is arguably one of the most successful marketing strategies. People love suggestions from trusted friends and fellow music lovers and are likely to take their recommendations when looking for new music. An added way to show appreciation to your longtime fans is to give them shoutouts, photo ops at shows, and other trinkets to say thank you.
5) Play a Free Show
If you ask anyone what’s the quickest way to get them to try something new, their answer will undoubtedly be to make it free. An excellent way to market yourself that can yield great results is to play a free show. Because who can resist a free show? Playing a free show isn’t a way to undermine your worth, as we understand that playing for free from a cost perspective can be a pretty expensive risk. But if you can swing it, we recommend giving this marketing tip a try. By playing free shows in parking lots, festivals, and coffee houses, you increase the likelihood of introducing your music to new listeners who can become lifelong fans.
(Sourced from Miranda Media)
Aleks Aronov (Director, Integrated Marketing) aaronov@mdiio.com