The music industry keeps evolving and has undergone so many changes, this present-day music industry is not only about your passion for music, but also about converting your passion into a means of earning a living, i.e., the business side of music, it is called music entrepreneurship. For entrepreneurs generally, marketing and reaching out to potential and existing customers is one of the most important aspects of the business and must be targeted at with the right strategies to achieve optimum results.

Back in the days when the internet was not available, music promotion only happened physically and by word of mouth. You ‘sell’ yourself to a producer, an event organizer or bar owner, he listens to your music, invites you to perform, someone else hears and likes you in the midst of the crowd and reaches out to you too, and that’s it! Music promotion also happened through recommendations from one person to another and maybe through televisions and radios (for those who owned one). But now, with the ever-increasing speed of technology that has made the internet available right at our fingertips, it is much easier to promote your music as a music-business person. Promoting your music increases the number of persons that can have access to what you do and support you which will in turn boost your career. There are several ways to promote your music and make it reach a larger audience with little or no financial budget.

Make extraordinary music

First and foremost, before you promote your music or anything at all, you have to make it meaningful; it has to be worth people’s time and support. Write great songs, make great music, mix and master your tracks well and make sure your music is enjoyable, interesting and would capture the hearts of your listeners. No matter what genre of music you’re into, there are those who have gone before you, listen to their music and see how they di it.

Build an online presence

Since we are dealing with online music promotion, the presence you’re required to create has to be online. What do I mean? Make it easy for anyone to find you, organize your brand in a way that “searching for a needle in a haystack” will become synonymous to finding you. Don’t go by completely different names across different platforms. Stick with your solo name or band name and make sure it’s uniform, let people find you as “Mr. A” on Instagram and be sure that it would still remain “Mr. A” on Facebook. It gets frustrating when someone tries to contact you or check out your music and they end up meeting loose ends as a result of your inconsistency.

Build a website

If you want to promote your music, building a website is an unarguable requirement. A website serves as the hub of all your activities as a musician. You can integrate your Electronic Press Kit (EPK) into your website if you wish (a lot of artists do it anyways). However, it should contain all the info any one needs to know about you like your official bio, high resolution pictures, upcoming events and where you’ll be performing next, contact information and how to reach you, links to your songs, videos and all your social media platforms. You can start an interactive blog where you can share ideas about topics related to music in general or to your genre in particular. You can share BTS videos, music you’re currently working on and engage fans by asking for their own ideas and opinions on what you’re working on, ensure you post content on your website regularly; leaving it dormant would make you seem unserious and uninterested. Your website is also a good place to sell your merchandize (like tee shirts, hats, sweaters, mugs, etc.). If you have been featured anywhere either in a newspaper or magazine release or in a video interview, the links can be included here. Your website is basically the right place to get started in promoting your music.

Mailing lists

Here is another great way to promote your music and engage your fans. Create a mailing list with an opt-in form where fans provide their details like email addresses, names and/or region (incase you only need to reach out to fans within a particular region). Collecting email addresses from fans helps you reach out to them directly to pass across important information; it is more effective than social media because your posts on social media may roll away or be buried under other posts within the next few hours but with emails, you’re directly in their inboxes and your message must be seen provided they check their emails. Note that not everyone may be willing to part with their info, but with the right incentive, they can. Make them see reasons why they should give you their information, for instance instead of just asking them to subscribe, offer them a freebie like a free course, a free song or a free ticket for your upcoming event in exchange for those details but please DO NOT SPAM ANYONE‼ Send messages and newsletters only when it is important.

Social media platforms

Never downplay the importance of social media in marketing your music online. Once you have built your online presence and ensured the all-round consistency of your brand name across social media platforms (YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok etc.), you can start marketing your music online. Post pictures of yourself, video snippets of live shows if you have any, your music videos etc. you can engage fans too by doing giveaways or asking your fans to do a dance or a skit with your new song and rewarding their efforts with a free show ticket or a free merch. Collaborate with other artists of same or similar genre as you and get tagged on their own social media pages too; this is another way to get exposure as your viewership will not only be limited to your fans alone, but their fans too. Social media is such a large community of billions of users that if you take your time to learn the nitty-gritty and promote your music organically and through ads, it will go a long way in advancing your music career.

Playlists

Get yourself on platforms like Spotify, Soundcloud, Apple Music, Tidal etc., they have become popular lately and is a way for fans to come across new musicians of specific genres and add them to their playlists. Add your profile and other discography if you have and if fans like your music, they will search for more of it. Sign up to as many platforms as you can.

Blogs, magazines and podcasts

Reach out to other websites, blogs and online magazines that are willing to promote and feature upcoming artists and their songs. Contact podcasters and get a slot either by putting out your music or featuring as a guest in an interview where you can talk about your music and the future/upcoming plans for your music; this is another great way for fans and record labels who are interested in your music to find you.

The success of music promotion cannot be seen in one day. It takes lots of consistency, patience and hard work. Be patient with yourself while building; the end results are enjoyable.

Share your music today!

Related posts:
How To Grow Your Channel As A Musician
10 Awesome Ways To Promote Your Social Media As A Musician

I’m a guitarist. Are you new to playing the guitar or are you interested in learning? then check out my free beginner’s series on YouTube, click here https://youtu.be/Km8T1dMFd48

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