5 top marketing strategies for musicians
These tactics will help you get started if you’re selling your music independently now or if you’re planning to release new tracks shortly.
1. Use your artist website and EPK
Your artist website is where you’ll want to push traffic from in order to pull people there and create a significant following. Social media networks serve as the starting point for grabbing a fan’s attention. By going deeper into your music, images, and other content on your own music website, you can establish connections.
An EPK can be used to promote your music on your website. Make a press kit and include information about you as a musician, press links, social media and streaming connections, music reviews, and more so that both industry professionals and music lovers can easily spread the news about your music.
An artist EPK is a must-have if you’re looking to go further with marketing your music, whether that is getting airplay or booking a tour.
2. Build a social media presence
Platforms and trends in social media are always changing. But generally speaking, musicians have a place to advertise their music to followers and get new ones through platforms they find enjoyable. Focusing on the social media platforms where you love participating and developing a plan to maximize your efforts there is the key to using social media as an effective way to independently advertise your music.
When promoting your music on social media, be realistic with yourself about the results you may expect. Do you have financial acumen and business savvy? You might benefit from Facebook advertisements. Alternatively, TikTok might be a better option for you if you prefer to keep things low-key and enjoy making spontaneous movies as a means to interact. You don’t have to test every platform right now; instead, experiment with a few to determine what levels of interaction you can sustain.
3. Send your music to blogs, playlist curators, and press outlets.
Putting your tunes online in advance will help you gain momentum and connect with as many people as possible if you’re marketing new music.
Pitch your music to the press, as well as editorial and outside playlist curators, as a part of your music marketing efforts to gain some exposure. You may save time and make sure that people hear your music by using a service like Groover to distribute your songs to blogs, radio stations, playlist makers, and record labels.
Remember that once your music has been featured in the media or added to a playlist, you can keep using that exposure to help your song get additional traction. Any mention of your music in the media can aid in your marketing efforts by expanding your audience and improving the SEO of your band website.
4. Network with other artists and influencers
To ensure that you’ve got a fanbase that will remain interested in your music, take your fan engagement further by networking with like-minded musicians. Chances are there are plenty of artists who’d be interested in doing cross-promotion to build their fanbase as well.
To get the most out of this marketing technique, define what your objectives are first: Developing 25 genuine new fans? In six months, will a tour in promotion of a new record begin? Decide who you might contact and where you might network after settling on that emphasis in order to accomplish these objectives.
You can promote your music at conferences or get in touch with influencers to pique their audience’s interest. Just keep in mind that here, establishing lasting partnerships is a worthy objective.
5. Invest in PR and airplay
If you’re an artist with money to spend on music promotion, think about working with a publicist or radio tracker to help you spread the word about your music. The size and scope of your targeted campaign will determine how much money you spend.
Remember that it can take thousands of dollars to see any real effects, and there’s no assurance that radio stations will review or play your song, so budget your money wisely.
PR (public relations) is another rewarding – but likely pricey – option to market your music. Consider hiring a publicist or agency if you can afford it and want to learn how it works. You can also invest your own time and efforts into doing this promotion yourself, especially if you’re just starting out as an artist. See How to get publicity to promote your music for some tips with that option.
