by Francesca | Nov 23, 2023 | Music Industry, Music Marketing
After all the blood, sweat and tears it took to finally get your new music out into the world, it’s finally time to get as many people to listen to it as possible! From the technical stuff like registering with PROs to the fun stuff like social media promo, here are some of the most important things every musician should be doing after their release goes live. Let’s dive in…
What To Do After Making Your Music Available Online
Register with a PRO
To make sure you receive the royalties you’re rightfully owed, your songs need to be properly registered with either ASCAP, SESAC or BMI. Sadly, we can’t do this for you. Only you as the writer can affiliate with a PRO.
If your music is being distributed, performed worldwide, and you don’t have a publishing deal, your royalties are sitting in collection societies around the world waiting to be claimed by you. If you don’t register in time to collect your royalties, the collection societies will retain the royalties and you will miss out on that additional revenue. That’s why we created our publishing administration service to help you get through this process as easily as possible.
Register with SoundExchange
SoundExchange has paid out more than $7 BILLION in royalties to date. They are the sole organization designated by the U.S. Congress to collect and distribute digital performance royalties for sound recordings. They’re the ones who collect these digital performance rights from non-interactive music streaming on internet sources like SiriusXM and Pandora.
Sign Up for Lyric Distribution
Some distributors have partnerships for lyrics distribution and submission for example: Apple Music, Musixmatch, and LyricFind. With these partnerships, you’re able to streamline and expedite the submission process for faster turnarounds and less hassle.
Update your ‘Artist Pick’ on Spotify
Artist Pick is a great way to highlight what’s important to you right now, whether it be your latest release, playlist, show announcement, or even a Fan Support link. Check out the video below to learn how to do it…
Promote It On Socials
Social media offers an easy and effective method for promoting your latest track. To do so, start by creating a strategy tailored to your goals and target audience. Next, you can engage with your followers by posting your song in Reels, Stories, TikTok’s, and wherever else your fans frequent. You can also collaborate with fellow artists to expand your reach even further. Remember to utilize relevant hashtags, create visually appealing content, and consider running targeted ads for wider exposure. Lastly, always encourage user-generated content from your fans! Ask them to tag you in their own posts featuring your song, and get permission to re-post it on your own profile.
Pitch for Sync
When we talk about sync licensing in the music business, we’re referring to the act of synchronizing a piece of music with any form of visual media. That means getting your music featured in movies, TV episodes, commercials, video games, etc.
Get Some Press
After releasing new music, it’s always a good idea to send your music to music journalists, bloggers, and magazines for potential reviews and features. You can even share it in Facebook Groups, Reddit threads, or anywhere else where people can see your new song and share it with their communities.
In Conclusion…
You worked hard on your new track. Don’t let it get lost in the shuffle of thousands of songs trying to break through this crazy industry. Practicing things like consistently hyping yourself up on socials, optimizing your Spotify, SoundCloud, Apple Music, etc. profiles, and everything else we covered above, can make or break the performance of your work.
In the meantime, be proud of all your hard work! Keep going, be consistent, and believe in your talents as an artist.
Good luck!
by Francesca | Nov 23, 2023 | Music Marketing, Social Media
TikTok’s Music Tab is a great way to highlight your most popular tracks right on your profile for everyone to see. If you haven’t set yours up yet, here’s how to do it…
How To Set Up Your Music Tab on TikTok
About TikTok’s Music Tab
What was previously only available for artists with over 10k followers is now open for everyone! Adding a Music Tab to your TikTok profile allows you to display your most popular tracks or pin latest releases, giving you the ability to drive engagement to your music catalog and convert followers into fans, all from your TikTok profile.
How does it work?
Once you enable the feature, it will automatically populate your delivered music under the music tab, as well as unlock other music integrations like By Artist, Behind the Song, New Release Feature and a TikTok to DSP’s Add to Playlist feature. You’ll also see the “Artist” tag displayed on your TikTok profile.
To enable this feature, artists must do so via a mobile device by following this link.
Good luck!
by Francesca | Nov 16, 2023 | Music Industry, Music Marketing, Social Media
So your fans are streaming your music and jamming away… Great! But what if you want more? Super fans will support you through thick and thin. Fostering deeper connections with your audience is a smart way to create a stronger fan base you can lean on throughout your career. Whether it be with a paid newsletter, exclusive merch, or a VIP subscription service, here’s how to convert casual fans into paying subscribers.
How to Convert Fans Into Paying Subscribers
Offer Something Worth Paying for
You have to think about what other artists in your genre are offering. For example, lots of artists offer early access to a new song, but if the song is going live to the public a couple weeks later, it’s not necessarily worth paying for in advance. Offer something uniquely exclusive, because everyone likes to feel special.
For example, you could start by simply mentioning your new subscription in an Instagram story. Mention an exclusive community that gets special treatment, for example: “… And we did a private concert for five of our fans, it was amazing… We even played them one of our unreleased songs.” Or offer other things like:
- Online concerts
- VIP virtual hangs
- Features on social media (Instagram Live, Twitter shoutouts, etc.)
- Access to unreleased music
- Behind the scenes content
- Autographed merch
Exclusive shit sells. Get creative with it! Think about things you’d want from your favorite artist and go from there.
Run Targeted Ads
Great advertising is a magical thing. Running targeted ads towards your current fanbase is a great way to reel in those who are already the most interested in your work.
Loyalty goes a long way. Give back.
Being a part of a community is a feeling like no other. Feeling connected and heard by your favorite artist is worth a subscription any day. When you get a new subscriber, do something special for them to show you care. Give back by promoting your subscribers on socials. Anything to create a personalized and thoughtful experience will do.
- You could try something on social media like, #followbackfridays, where you follow back everyone who subscribes to your service that day. (That doesn’t mean tagging everyone in one post, by the way. There’s nothing personal about that.)
- Record personalized thank you videos for subscribers via Twitter or Instagram.
- Invite a couple fans to join an Instagram Live with you.
It’s important to show your subscribers how thankful you are for their patronage and actually put in the work. Because without them, where would you be?
Have a Social Media Strategy
Promoting your new service on socials is the best way to stay on top of everyone’s minds. Just don’t overdo it. Don’t harass your followers with a million posts a day begging for their interest. Keep it casual but consistent. Be engaging.
Having a great CTA works wonders, but you don’t want to overwhelm your audience. When in doubt, a simple “here’s what I’m doing, here’s why it’s awesome, and here’s why you’ll dig it” should do the trick..
Just be consistent, offer something they can’t wait to get their hands on, and always be yourself. Your fans will see your spark and naturally want a part of it. You got this.
by Francesca | Nov 16, 2023 | Music Marketing
Not only does the holiday season bring in the holiday cheer, they also bring more sales than any other time of the year. From merch sales to music streams and social engagement, it’s time optimize your marketing strategy for the holidays. Want in on some tips and tricks to amp up your holiday marketing game? No problem. Here are some holiday marketing tips for musicians…
Holiday Marketing Tips for Musicians
Send Out Holiday Cards To Your Fans
There’s nothing quite like getting a holiday card from someone. Knowing someone was thinking of you and put in the effort to show they care is a one of a kind feeling. If your weird cousin in Alaska can manage to send you a holiday card every year, you can send your own holiday cards to some well deserving fans.
Take note of the top 50 fans who engage with your social media the most, or go live and take the first people to join into consideration. It’s up to you how you’d like to choose who gets one. — (Note: Consider how much money you’re capable of spending on holiday cards and stamps. That, and how much free time you have, will help you decide how many people you can add to your list.)
Here are some great websites to help you create custom cards for the low:
Share Personal Holiday Memories
The holidays have most of us feeling sentimental. Pull on the heart strings on your fans by sharing your own personal holiday memories from your childhood on socials. Go on Instagram Live and share your funniest holiday memories or post some throwback pics from your childhood on Facebook. Just get personal.
By opening up and sharing some personal tidbits, you’ll steal the hearts of existing fans and gain some new ones in the process.
Holiday Themed Livestreams
Since the beginning of the pandemic, artists have been live-streaming like crazy. With the holidays coming in hot, switch up the vibe and try some holiday themed streaming instead! Get festive, decorate your space, and go live to play some holiday classics.
Want to switch it up? Engage your audience with a holiday themed tutorial.
- Go live and wrap presents with your fans
- Cook a holiday meal
- Go on a decorating spree in your house
Whatever you do, sneak in some of your music in the background and don’t forget to promote yourself every now and then.
Host A Giveaway
What better way to engage your audience on any platform than with a holiday giveaway! All you’ll need to do is create posts on socials encouraging your fans to enter and put together the prize.
Consider giving away things like:
- Limited edition holiday merch
- Early download access to your new EP
- Signed vinyl
- A holiday care package (merch, vinyl, CD’s, a holiday card, candy, etc., all in one)
The holidays are about giving back and showing you care. Let your marketing reflect that!
Offer Holiday Sales On Merch
Want sell more merch? Join the Black Friday craziness and do your own deals. Offer discounts on select merch items and promote the sales on socials.
To hype it up and extend your reach even further, try a collaboration with other artists where you all post pics of yourselves doing holiday themed activities in the merch. Another thing you can do is throw in a free gift on top of your discounts.
- For example, every $75 order could get a signed guitar pick or limited edition print included.
Promote with Style
Whatever you do, do it with style. It doesn’t hurt to get a little festive this holiday season, especially with your marketing. Take advantage of the cozy aesthetic and get your audience in the holiday spirit with holiday themed posts on socials, limited edition holiday merch, or even holiday themed ad campaigns.
The more the merrier! 🎁
by Francesca | Nov 16, 2023 | Music Industry, Music Marketing
This year, holiday marketing has been starting earlier than ever. If you’re looking to sharpen your holiday marketing skills on Instagram, this post will give you everything you need to know to make the most of your efforts. No problem. From tips and tricks to help you expand your reach to making more sales this holiday season, here’s what we know…
7 Tips For Holiday Marketing On Instagram
Run a Seasonal Giveaway
Instagram accounts that do contests or giveaways grow 70% faster than those that don’t. Not only that, giveaways entice both current followers and potential new ones to engage. This increased engagement signals to Instagram’s algorithm that it should feature you more regularly in your audience’s feed.
What better way to engage your audience for the holidays than with a giveaway! Consider giving away things like:
- Limited edition merch
- Early download access to your new EP
- Signed vinyl
- A holiday care package (merch, vinyl, CD’s, a holiday card, candy, etc., all in one)
The holidays are about giving back and showing you care. Let your marketing reflect that, too.
Shoppable Instagram Posts
50% of US consumers do their holiday shopping at the last minute. Want to drive sales to your site? Make shopping for those last minute holiday gifts as easy as possible with Shoppable Instagram posts. This feature lets you to tag your products in your posts and link them to your website for your fans to purchase with ease.
(To be approved for Instagram Shopping, you’ll need to meet these requirements. Click here to learn how.)
Collaborate with Similar Artists
You’re not the only one looking to generate leads on Instagram during the holiday season. What better way to combine your efforts and get twice the reach by collaborating with another artist?
Just like brands partner with influencers to tap into their audiences, you can do the same.
Do you have connections with an artist who’s got a similar fanbase to yours? — Go on Instagram Live together or do your own respective posts within your feeds to promote each others merch, that limited edition vinyl that would make a perfect gift, a new single that just dropped, etc.. This extends both your views’ into both audiences.
Everybody wins! 🙏
Instagram Ads
Instagram ads are a secret weapon for gaining potential customers with ease. Instagram targets the exact audiences with the most potential for engagement, helping you gain exposure in all the right places.
Affiliate Marketing
The holidays are a great time for people to buy tickets to shows for their loved ones. A great way for you to use this to your advantage is to sign up for affiliate programs. With these, you can share their affiliate links in your Instagram posts or stories to promote tickets to you or your fellow musician friends’ shows. When your followers make a purchase through your link, you earn a commission.
For example, brands like StubHub, Vivid Seats and Ticketmaster all have pretty good affiliate programs. So whether your fans are buying tickets to your shows or other artists’, as long as they use your code, you get a cut. Doesn’t get much easier than that.
Run Exclusive Offers
I mean… who doesn’t like exclusive stuff? The holiday season means everyone is looking for the perfect, unique gift for that special music lover in their lives. What’s better than some limited edition merch from their favorite artist?
Consider offering limited time discounts on select products or drop a limited run of holiday themed merch. Get into the holiday spirit and offer something special to your audience that they just can’t pass up.
Engage with Holiday User Generated Content
You’re not the only one posting your holiday joy on Instagram. Tons of other artists (and fans) are doing their part and adding to the plethora of festive content coming out at this time of the year. Encourage your community to interact with one another by posting Instagram Stories asking about their favorite holiday songs, artists, snacks, activities, or whatever else comes to mind.
You can repost this content onto your own page and encourage a conversation. Don’t forget to get everyone to use a common hashtag so we can all get in on the action. This is community at it’s finest!
In Conclusion…
The holiday season brings in more sales than any other time of the year. With these tips and tricks, you’re on the right track to perfecting your marketing game on Instagram in no time.
Happy Holidays!
🎁✨
