The World Wide Web and MP3 music has brought about many changes in the fortunes of small bands. The distribution system and marketing options changed. New media formats and many personal websites sprang up and the reach of music became world wide. Gone were small town boundaries or traveling on the road to spread awareness. The click of a mouse increased popularity.
However it is not all about success after the initial boom, several music sites and bands went bust. What every band with a dream of golden discs must do is:
• Weigh their options carefully and make the time to do a complete study of their options.
• Create a fool proof marketing plan.
• If in doubt consult marketing professionals with expertise in the music industry.
To promote your creativity online you must:
• Not expect any financial returns to start with. You need to popularize your music by giving it away. Put MP3s and videos on your website. When a person downloads a song and listens he may like it and play it time and again. Such a person is the one likely to listen to your next song.
• Ensure that your music is traceable—if a person has your song on their IPod then they will only be able to trace you if the artist/band name as well as web address are available.
• You must categorize the music correctly. Decide whether it should be placed under rock, pop, folk, or electronica.
• Locate popular music distribution sites and use these to promote your music. Most people who are looking for new music and have a good listening ear visit these sites.
• To eternalize your band you must set up your own website, purchase a domain name, park it with a reliable host, and optimize it so that it ranks high in search engines. Read about how to construct a successful web site and how to promote it successfully.
• Build an interactive web site with stories, reviews, and other music related news. Make the site interesting so that visitors are tempted to browse and listen to your music.
• Arrange to have reviews of your music and where it is available posted on community sites and blogs. Host a music forum and submit press releases to well established press release sites.
• Once you have established a small presence think about ways to generate funds. You could sell the music or offer subscriptions. Alternately, the downloads of music could be free but generate money from other channels like advertisements, pay per click and so on. Or host a music related commerce site selling iPODs, Xboxes, accessories and so on. The business aspect will have to be worked out carefully.
Make sure people know that your band accepts gigs. In case you like writing lyrics or jingles for small business promotions you must advertise this aspect of your creativity. The world can be yours if you are adventurous.
