It makes a tear of joy come to my eye when I find a band that really gets it, and knows that they have to promote and market themselves to have any success in their career. The music industry is tough. Urban Spirit, a great indie rock band from the UK offered to share some of their ideas on independently marketing your music.
Read and learn below:
Indie Marketing Tips from Urban Spirit:
A terrible thing can happen if you don’t promote yourself as a band… NOTHING. It is becoming increasingly harder with every passing music decade to get heard by labels and to reach new music fans. Due the recent rise of social media and the internet you can’t rely on doing gigs and hoping that you will get a lucky break with a record label. Here is a news flash for all bands, labels rarely attend gigs anymore, not when they can see all they want to see on youtube and hear all they want to here on soundcloud. Which is why I have combined a 5 point must do check list for all bands to follow.
Point 1: Make real music
It really is crucial, there is no point marketing and advertising your band superbly if your music doesn’t appeal to anyone. And this should remain the focus of all bands in the modern era. If the prime focus of your band is not in the making of listenable music then you are definitely in the wrong field.
Point 2: Build Relationships with your fans
With the rise in new indie bands it is a must to interact with your audience and make them feel appreciated. It is now harder than ever to get your fans to leave their computer and to come and watch you in the flesh. So ensure that for the fans that do turn up at your gigs, that you make an effort so they feel appreciated and ensure they have a good time, because if you don’t, they more than likely won’t come again next time.
You can also use tools such as a website, social media and press released to interact with your fans.
Point 3: Create a feel good factor around the band
If you don’t believe there is something unique and incredible about your band no one else will either. Don’t surround your band with negativity, firstly when you are on stage and secondly through your marketing. If a potential fan is attending one of your gigs and your blurt out ‘we are playing shit tonight, bear with us’, the fan is more than likely going to go, yeah I agree this band is shit and walk out.
You have to use the tools online to keep your fans hooked and rise above the majority. This can be done by performing secret gigs and only inviting selected people, or offering fans free downloads through your website. You are making your fans feel appreciated and special and in turn this will create a great feeling around your band.
Point 4: Do not neglect typical marketing strategies
Even in the new music era, one of the key marketing strategies to pull in potential listeners and fans is to not overlook the older tactics which are proven to work. Still produce posters and get them put at your local rehearsal rooms and music venues. Produce cards, fliers and leaflets and give them out at gigs to ensure that if someone likes your music they can easily find out how to find your website or social media page. More importantly than any of the above, give out your CDs to as many people as possible!
Point 5: Online Marketing
Ensure that you tapping into the new online crazes whether that be by setting up a social media page or creating a website, you need to make certain that you aren’t missing a trick and a chance to gain more listeners.
It is crucial that your band creates a website and not a terrible one at that, as this really is one of the most important marketing tools available to you. Your website needs to reflect your band in the design as there is no point having a website unless it looks good. The average bounce ratio on website is currently 3 seconds, which means you have that amount of time to impress your fans and get them to stay on your website to listen to your songs and watch your music videos.
There are many good web templates available for Content Management Systems (CSS) like WordPress and Joomla, which are really easy to install and look great. It can even be worth paying for your website to be designed and developed professionally because if done correctly, this can be the tool which makes your band.
Do not overlook Search Engine Optimization either; this is the process of getting your website to rank for certain keywords on search engines such as Google. If you are a band from Manchester, England ensure that if someone searches ‘bands in Manchester’ on Google that your band comes up above your competition. You can learn all about SEO online through some simple searching.
And finally having a website is a great way to present your band; it shows to labels and promoters that you take your band seriously and that you are professionals! With a well-designed website you can convince labels that you are a lot more established than you actually are.
If you follow the above 5 basic marketing strategies your band is definitely on the path to success. However always ensure that the main focus of your band is in the creating of the music, if your heart is in the right place and you believe that the music you produce is good, usually other like-minded people, when reached, will think so to.