So you’ve been making music for a little while now and it’s really starting to sound great. After completing a big project like an EP or album it can be tempting to settle down, relax and watch the play counts rise. After my first release I was so tired I couldn’t think of anything else but it really didn’t have the impact I was expecting. Although good music is the first and most important step, if you keep these 7 essential digital promotion techniques in mind you’ll find your music reaching countless more ears in no time.
Website and Mailing List
A professional looking website is the virtual front page of your brand, and this concept definitely extends to musicians. Think of it like a portfolio, a place where your audience can find everything they need to know about you, your art, what you’re up to, and how to contact you.
Furthermore, including a mailing list sign-up form is one of the most effective marketing strategies around. Emailing your fans directly to their inbox bypasses the limited reach of some social media platforms and allows you to interact directly with those who most want to engage. If you have no idea where to start, we created the website your currently on (plus many more), and can definitely help build your artist website for you.
Social Media
Even though an official website should be the focus of your presence online, the importance of social media cannot be overstated. The promotional power of trends on platforms like Twitter, Instagram and Facebook have been shown time and time again with viral marketing campaigns taking the online world by storm.
Social media is another great way to interact directly with fans and find new ones but these require constant updates. Things are changing all the time on social media so be sure to keep up to date with what your favourite artists are doing to stay on top of trends.
Finally, it should be noted that some social media (hint: Facebook) has changed it’s algorithms over the years and limited the amount of organic promotion your posts can get. Each platform has an option for paid ads and it’s worth looking into in order to get around this. Social media ads can be an extremely powerful and budget-friendly way to find new listeners online.
Check out this great resource for more information on paid advertising on social media.
Getting Playlisted
Streaming services are the bread and butter of the music industry these days. Spotify, Pandora, Apple Music, Tidal and many others have a near-monopoly on the way people listen to music today so it is essential to be hosted there if you are looking to get listeners.
Playlists are another amazing way to reach new audiences as they are usually genre-specific and are used often by people who are actively looking for new music. Of course, this only works if your music is placed on the playlist that is right for it but curators at the big sites or music blogs are always updating and making sure their playlists are appropriately themed.
Stay tuned for another blog which goes in-depth on where to send your music to get it on some of the biggest music playlists around.
Press and Blogs
Speaking of blogs, music publications big and small are another great way to find new audiences that also add another intangible level of legitimacy. Being featured on the right blog can be a jump start for your career and even makes it more likely to be featured by another!
Reaching out not only to the right blog (one that features similar artists and genres) but at the right time is essential to making this form of public relations work. Placements right before a big album release or a concert review are great ways to build hype. Just make sure you use that momentum, along with the other promotional tools mentioned, for added excitement.
Music Videos
Remember how valuable a viral campaign on social media can be? Given the visual nature of those platforms, for artists, that often means an original and exciting music video.
Making something that works really requires you to think outside the box, and be at the forefront of online trends. We can help you shoot and edit your entire music video, check out our packages here. Whether that be a unique theme, amazing visual effects or relevant underlying theme, videos like Bad and Boujee by Migos, or Gangnam Style by Psy skyrocketed their artists’ popularity and in some cases, became a meme!
Tik Tok is a new social media that capitalizes on combining music and visuals more than any other but poses some unique challenges (quirks?) to musicians who are more familiar with platforms.
First, it is more about participation and authenticity than perfection, a successful Tik Tok campaign requires many users to recreate a video in their own way rather than watching one professionally made one. To be successful on Tik Tok, it is worth experiencing how videos propagate naturally firsthand and to make clips from scratch just for that site.
A Dedicated Team
I know what you may be thinking, all of these techniques have the potential to make a big impact, but how will I have time to keep making music if I’m promoting what I have already all day?
To which I say, yeah, it’s hard. Taking the time to do each one of these strategies right can be an unending rabbit hole, especially considering the social nature of social media. There is always more content that could be created, or blogs to reach out to but remember, you don’t need to do it alone!
Having even just one team member dedicated to promotion online can drastically improve your presence and do wonders for getting your music known but it only increased exponentially from there. If you’re able to find a group of friends that are as passionate and dedicated as you to living this dream, for free, a small fee or a cut of future profits they could be just the thing to take it to the next level.
That being said, investing in a larger team, or even a contract from a marketing company may be one of the most expensive but most valuable decisions you can make as an up and coming artist. Professionals will have all the time, effort, know-how and connections to promote online in ways an inexperienced team just can’t compete. There’s nothing wrong with looking for a little specialized outside help when it can make this much of a difference.
Knowing Your Niche
Finally, knowing your niche is a concept that makes a big difference in any techniques you use promoting yourself online and offline.
For example, getting involved with the right music subculture, whether that be a group on Facebook, the right music blog, or a playlist on Spotify tailored directly to your audience will increase the chances of finding a new fan exponentially.
Playing live shows at the right venue is the best way to get feedback on if you are doing this right. If you’ve ever played a show for a crowd that just isn’t into it, you’ll know what I mean. In some venues, it doesn’t matter how tight the band plays, if the country bar you’re at doesn’t listen to metal, it will not go well. A successful metal band, for example, plays at metal venues, is featured in metal playlists, posts in metal groups and gets metal fans.
Conclusion
Starting to promote your music online can be a daunting and time-consuming task but if it is done right it will make a huge difference in the beginnings of your career.
It is important to know that getting started on any 1 of these 7 tips will start to make a difference, you don’t need to do all 7 right from the get-go. The most critical thing to remember is to learn and adapt over time. Most social media platforms will provide you with basic marketing analytics that you can use to track the effects of your efforts but knowing when to change up your pitch to blogs or adapt your website will make a huge difference on its own.
Each and everyone one of should always be learning and adapting our marketing strategies, what are some of your best online marketing insights?
If you’re really interested in getting started with music promotion online but still feel lost or don’t have the time to invest, it is always worth reaching out to an industry professional for promotion services.
Here at Jony studios we have experience with digital marketing and brand consultation for everyone from a 1 person side project to a professional artistic team, if you’re interested in learning more about our marketing / audio services, feel free to send us a quick note here.
Cheers from the team and good luck with your musical journey!
- By Erik Steiner
