There are more opportunities for artists and musicians in 2016 then there were 10 or 20 years ago. Previously, artists would have to be chosen by a record label through an audition process, or artists would be discovered by agents who then present the talent to the record labels who re-brand the artists to fit their vision for the artist. At the time, the record label’s main priority was selling records, but in 2016 music lovers can easily listen to music for free, meaning artists need to generate money from as many angles as possible. Whether your goal is to sign for a major label or go independent, it’s imperative that you build your brand with loyal followers that support your work.
Social Media has changed the way artists are signed to record labels because now they want artists to be ready-made before they select them. They want to see that you have an identity and that you are already attracting some attention to your brand. If you’re fortunate to have a strong following online, a record label is more likely to work with you as they know you have a core unit of fans who’ll turn up to your shows and help you promote your music to a wider audience. For independent artists, the most important thing is ownership of rights to your brand so you can primarily generate income through live shows and sales of merchandise.
As an artist or muscician, you need to grow a social media following to compete with the millions of other artists who are vying for attention but where do you start?
Firstly get your music online through platforms like youtube, iTunes, SoundCloud etc.
The next thing you need to do is grow your tribe of loyal fans through social media and share links to your music through those vital avenues.
The best platforms to use for this are Twitter and Instagram because they are the least restrictive in how many people see your content without the use of paid advertising. People often turn to Facebook as thier first platform because it’s the platform they use most often, but facebook only shares your posts with some of the people who like your page and if they don’t engage with much of your content, Facebook punishes you for this by restricting the number of people who see your future posts.
The best platform to use is Twitter. Why? because, on Twitter, the priority for users is to Re-tweet (share) posts as opposed to ‘like’ or ‘comment’ on them. You can also grow a very large following within a short period of time by following thousands of people each year from your target audience. If the people you follow like you, they’ll follow back, and if you prioritise highly active users, they’ll be more likely to engage with your content in future.
Don’t Buy Followers!
Don’t buy followers from merchants that offer followers in bulk and merchants that don’t offer any information as to where the followers are coming from, these are often fake accounts and Twitter will not hesitate to remove them from you without notice. It’s very obvious to spot accounts with fake followers because of the quality of content vs engagement on the profile. But more importantly, isn’t it better to have real fans?
Grow a High Quality Following With Some Help
You can hire a Social Media marketing expert like Twitter Ninja to follow thousands of people from your target audience on Twitter for 30 days. All the people selected are super-users of Twitter and already engage with similar content/artists. Twitter Ninja blocks people from their search who are least likely to follow back or engage with your content. Most importantly, TwitterNinja eliminates fake accounts from its search and consult you for free on how to increase engagement. The service lasts for 30 days and has helped to connect thousands of good people to good content over the past year. To find out more and to start growing your fanbase today, go to Twitter Ninja and watch a short video on how it works.
By: Anthony Cameron
Director/Social Media Consultancy
Huckleberry Digital
T: 020(8)749 9046
M: 07846846967
