Promoting your music career online: Social Media & Digital Marketing 101
We all know that social media and digital marketing play a central role in self-promotion for artists.
So, here’s a short guide on using social media and digital marketing to promote and advance your music career! We hope you find it useful.
Create a strategy: Think about what it is you want to achieve and how you can use your social media / digital marketing to help achieve this. This is a helpful tool to come back to when considering your next moves online. Here is an article which can help you think about the nitty gritty of your online digital promotions.
Create a presence on multiple platforms: Having a presence on multiple social media platforms (eg. Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok) will give you a wider reach and help you connect with more fans. Here is an article outlining the different demographics on each platform, which can help you identify which platforms could be useful for you to use.
Be mindful. Just like when we’re offline, things we do and say online can hurt or cause offense, even if that’s not your intention. Equally, too much time spent on social media can be damaging to self esteem and wellbeing. Be mindful around your use of social media - remember, it should help, not hinder!
Build your brand: Use your social media profiles to showcase your music, build your brand, and connect with your fans. Make sure your profile pictures, artist name and bios are consistent across all your platforms. You can also think about the aesthetics and style of the content you upload, and how much it speaks to your brand and project.
Share your music: Share your music on your social media profiles and encourage your fans to share it as well. This will help you get more exposure and reach new fans. Before sharing things, however, be sure to strategise about the release of your music, putting together a release schedule.
Engage with your fans: Q&As, question boxes and live streams are just some examples of interactive activities that can help you build a stronger connection with your fans and keep them engaged.
Consider paid promotion (but use this carefully, sparingly & wisely!): Consider using paid promotion on social media platforms to reach a larger audience. This could help you get more exposure, reach new fans and help you build your fanbase. We recommend, however, that artists be careful with paid promotion - we don’t want you losing money, so make sure that if you do invest in paid promotion, you’re sure it will help you achieve your goals and build your fanbase. You can use your analytics (see point below) to help inform your decisions whether and when to use paid promotion options.
Be consistent and patient: Post with some regularity and engage with your fans. Building a following takes time, so be patient and don't get discouraged if you don't see immediate results.
Use analytics: You can use analytics tools to track your social media metrics, such as followers, likes, shares, and views. This will help you understand how your content is performing and make informed decisions about what to post in the future and when. Many social media platforms have built-in analytics software that you can use.
Use scheduling tools: Scheduling your social media activity can optimise the engagement with things you post, while also take some pressure off of you and help you to manage your time online. Facebook and Instagram have built-in scheduling software you can use.
Take inspiration from others! Take a look at the social media of artists whose careers you admire and see if you can get some inspiration for new and innovative ways to use social media to advance your career too.