Social Media for Music: 5 Tips You Should Follow

The music industry is one of the most competitive markets out there. It takes a lot of people and hard work to promote an individual artist, group or band. In greater areas like Chicago, L.A., or New York for example, the industry can be fierce, making it difficult for independent artists to thrive. Social media has provided musicians, entertainers, and artists alike the best opportunity to connect with their audience without needing all the help from advertising agencies, record label groups, or personal managers. Many musicians in the entertainment business have made exponential revenues by promoting their own products through word of mouth marketing and social media.

1. Market where your audience will be

Before ditching your agent or record label, first determine where your audience is at and where they’re most likely to interact with you. Where do people who listen to your genre of music hang out? What are their interests? How can you connect with them in a way they can relate back to you? Since you’re probably in the music industry, most of your audience will be on YouTube – the second largest search engine in the world next to Google. YouTube is also owned by Google in case you didn’t already know. If your music is targeted towards a younger audience, chances are they might be on platforms like Twitter and Instagram. This doesn’t mean you won’t need Facebook though, as they are still the largest social media network. Do some research and find the things they are talking about. This will also help you stay relevant with their interests, which gives you a chance to connect on deeper levels.

2. Separate your personal page from your artist page

We see this happen way too often. Musicians trying to make a name for themselves often mix their personal accounts with their music pages. This is not a good idea, because a personal account should be for your friends and family and an artist page should be for your fans. Having separate pages also gives you the liberty to share music and business related material on your artist page while being able to use your personal account to post about your feelings, opinions, and complaints. As an aspiring entertainer, it’s important to keep an image, which properly reflects your audience in a positive light. It’s okay to post some highlights about your personal life, but way too often we see people over sharing personal content on their page designated for music.

3. Use social media to find your community

You might know what platform your audience is on, but how do you find them? Great question. Be conversational. Twitter is a great place to start a conversation. Connect with people who can relate to you, but remember to keep it in a positive light. Don’t just make a statement promoting me me me, that’s not the way marketing works. Ask yourself how you would approach this in person, and use that to your advantage. Playing at a show next week? Instead of just posting about your gig, ask your audience what they would like to hear at the show. Get them involved in what you do. Write what you would say to someone in person and keep it real, people know when you’re being generic online. Stay humble to your roots and use those traits to find the people who support you for being ‘you’.

4. Find your social balance

One thing we encounter often on social media is people solely promoting themselves without giving anything in return. Only promoting yourself all the time and any chance you get simply makes you look like a used car salesman. Don’t be that person. A general rule of thumb I have learned is the 70/20/10 rule. 70% of your content should be about your audience. This can be in the form of articles, tips, how-to videos or photos taking them behind the scenes of the projects you’re working on. 20% of the content should be highlights and quality posts related to big events or projects coming up, but don’t ask for attendance just yet. The last 10% of the posts are where you experiment or promote yourself to your audience.

5. Don’t let social media consume you

It’s all one big dance. You don’t need to be everywhere, so find the platforms that work for you. As mentioned, Youtube is a great start, but there’ also Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, SoundCloud, and many more. It’s best to rock on a few platforms as opposed to being scattered all over the place. It will also give you time to actually make music. Have fun with it, and your audience will have fun too. If you have a CD coming out, make a free giveaway! If you have an event coming up, give out some free tickets. These methods will help you build an audience while giving you time to focus on the making of music.

What are you currently doing on social media that wasn’t listed? How is it working for you? Share your strategy or feel free to ask for advice by leaving us a comment or catching up with us on Twitter at @BoxlessMedia.