Artist Promotion & Branding: How To Go From Zero To Hero
What makes an artist's personal brand successful? That is a question many people would like to have the answer to, but it is hard to pinpoint it to the core. However, there are some fundamentals that are worth sharing which can make a real difference, so let's get into it!
In this article I will give a bird's eye view of the concepts that I have described in my E-Book "From Zero To Hero", which you can download for free here
I will briefly go through the 7 tips, one by one! Let's start off with tip 1:
1: How does your music help other people?
The idea here is that you get a general idea of why people listen & enjoy your music. You only need to ask around 5-10 people to get a decent indication. But ofcourse, the more the better!
There will probably be some sort of emotion or vibe that people get from your catalog, so make use of that information and integrate it into your branding & social media presence!
2: Match your social media presence with the outcomes of tip 1
So how do you merge this information into your branding on social media? The first and foremost is that you have to post content that is fully in line with who you are. Do not try to imitate other people, stay close to who you are!
Then think about the following 2 things:
- The "vibe" you want to create. What colors and filters do I use for my pictures? What type of energy and message do I want to get across? Etc.
- The type of content you want to create. This can be certain types of pictures, what your audience finds interesting about you, etc. What format do I wanna use? Do I want to post motivational or educational content? How do I want to give value?
3: Win people over by being your authentic self
The most important thing here is to really be yourself, don't try to imitate other artists or rappers. Just really stay close to yourself and tell your story.
Having a fanbase or a following is like being the leader of a group. You have to guide them, help them, motivate them. In other words, you have to give them value! Share your ideas, your values, where you stand for and people that share these values will come to you.
4: Give before you receive
Don't spam people in their DM with your SoundCloud or YouTube links! They won't listen!
You have to build a relationship with your audience first. Everyone is so busy with their own lives, that the random link in their DM won't be worth their time.
However, if you first engage with them in your comment section, ask them how they are doing, and tell them that you appreciate them, then the chances of them opening your SoundCloud or YouTube link have skyrocketed. This little time of investment can pay real dividends if you genuinely care for your audience!
5: Build an email or text message list
This is something that is really important, especially in the long run.
Let's say you have a following on Instagram of over 5000 people. And tomorrow, Instagram is shut down after it has been declining in popularity and everyone hopped on the next social media. What do you do?
If you have a list of emails or phone numbers, then you can at least let your audience know that you move from platform X to Y, or that you are active on Z. What you will see is that a lot more people will convert with you to the new platform, because you let them personally know in their inbox that you have moved.
Over the last couple of years we're seeing more and more text message marketing, because of its high open rates. It is never to late to start with an email list or text messaging campaign, so take action now!
6: Schedule releases weeks ahead
I have another E-Book that goes into more detail on this concept, but let's discuss the most important points here:
For each single that you release on streaming services, you should upload it atleast 4 weeks ahead of time. This way you have a bigger chance at getting into certain playlists, because curators got more time to listen to your song (the spotify playlists curators get so much songs, that you need to send it in weeks before the release to even get it heard!)
2 weeks before the release you could share the cover art, then a week later you share a snippet of the song and then you can do a countdown on IG Story on the day before release. This is a very simple but effective strategy to get people hyped up for your release!
7: Build your dream team for long term success
Building your dream team does not have to be a "crew that is full-time around you", but having certain go-to producers and engineers that you can rely on and build with is key to consistent growth. You can give each other feedback and learn from each other! If you look at the full scale dream team then it would look something like this:
- Personal manager (you can also be your own manager ofcourse)
- Attorney (key for negotiations, record label deals, publishing deals etc) - Business manager (someone that handles finances, but it is best to control your own finances) - Agents (Arranges live appearances, commercials & sponsorships) - Producers & Engineers (Find producers & engineers that you like and think you can trust, they are essential to developing your sound!)
Most independent artists would do perfectly fine with just having a number of go-to producers & engineers. They are the foundation of your sound and your success. The next key team member is your attorney, getting advice on legal matters is important since you don't want to take bad deals!
Consider buying the book All You Need To Know About The Music Business by Donald Passman. It has a lot of valuable information on how the music industry operates!
I hope these tips will help you further in your career! That is all I can hope for!
If you enjoyed this blog post, make sure to bookmark my website for future blog posts and follow me on social media to see what I am up to! You can find my social media on the bottom right of your screen. Thank you for reading!
