If you are an aspiring musician looking to make it in 2019, things are a lot tougher for you than they might have been back in 1999. With the emergence of high-speed Internet and file sharing, the entire recording industry as we knew it took a nosedive in the early 2000s.
Back then, signed artists could make a living just from record sales alone. Nowadays, only the top 1% of artists earn 77% of the total music income in the industry. But, even then, that sort of money, after all the managers and the label have been paid, is often not enough for most musicians.
According to research, the average musician earns only 6% of their income from their sound recordings. The most important way for them to make a living is touring, teaching music to others, or selling merchandise.
If you are just starting out, things seem even less hopeful. But, you shouldn’t despair, because there are plenty of marketing strategies you can try in order to have your voice heard, and some of them won’t cost you a dime. Let’s check them out.
1. Create Your Website
While there are many different platforms out there, such as streaming services and social media, which allow you to promote your music, having your own website is still one of the most crucial elements of your marketing strategy as a musician. Your website allows you to present your body of work in a way you deem the most fit, as well as your tour dates, videos, images, and stories from the road.
You may even be able to create a website yourself. According to Jim Meier, who is the head of marketing for essay writing service Essay Mama, there are plenty of pre-designed templates, as well as platforms, that will allow you to build your own music website at almost zero cost.
2. Use Social Media to Your Advantage
Seeing as pretty much everyone is on social media nowadays, it’s a pretty safe bet to say that your audience is on there as well. All you have to do is get to know them and figure out which social media platforms they hang out on.
Posting on social media will not only enable you to reach out to your fans and interact with them, but also to create events, so that they don’t miss out on any of your gigs, and post videos which have the potential to go viral.
3. Connect with Music Influencers
Influencer marketing is all the rage these days, and music is no exception. Influencers are followed by a large audience and they have the power to thrust you into the spotlight, regardless of whether they are using Facebook, WordPress, or YouTube.
It’s as simple as reaching out to them and asking them to strike up a collaboration with you, you don’t need to be an essay shark to do that. Plus, they can choose to feature your music in a variety of ways.
The easiest one would be to mention and share your work, but they can also use your songs for one of the videos, as well, and help you reach a new audience that way.
4. Collaborate with Other Musicians
Music history is full of fantastic examples of collaborations featuring artists from opposite ends of the spectrum, which have often resulted in spectacular songs. For instance, we had “Walk This Way”, done by Aerosmith and Run-DMC, which brought Aerosmith back to life, even though fusing rap and rock seemed sacreligious at that time. What they actually did was invent a new genre of music that would rule the charts much later.
Working on a track or an album with other artists you admire is one of the best experiences you can have as a musician, and it’s also one that can help you stretch your creative muscles and introduce you to a new audience.
5. Use Paid Advertising
Getting organic traffic can take while, so if you have some money to spend, paid advertising via Facebook Business Manager or YouTube Ads might not be such a bad idea, at least when it comes to short-term results. Sometimes, no matter how much you try, some of your audience will still remain unreachable through organic methods.
Let’s just take YouTube as an example. When was the last time YouTube suggested something new and interesting that similar to the stuff you were listening to? Exactly, almost never. Paid ads might help circumvent that issue.
6. Give Away Free Stuff
Everyone likes free stuff, and your fans are no exception. While it may seem crazy to give away your new single as a free download, that single might just be the thing that will help you land plenty of new gigs that will more than make up for that free download.
Conclusion
The most important thing you need to do as an aspiring musician is to not quit. And if you start relying on these tips today, with a little bit of luck, you will be playing in front of people that share your passion for your music, in no time. Good luck!
Watch this space for updates in the Music category on Running Wolf’s Rant.
