Marketing Tip: Remixes + Collaborations

Just like everyone else vying for attention on the web, musicians struggle to control the conversation for long after their big release or tour. It’s especially tough when a band just released a single and will be too busy working in the studio and your hands are tied. One great way to keep that single alive and well is blasting it out to a network of DJs to remix it. Remixing a single can extend the lifespan of your single and it’s a great marketing tool to keep the song in the minds of current and new fans. Granted, there needs to be due diligence in picking the right DJs who will treat your song with the respect it deserves. 

Another caveat on remixes: one remix can launch a viral effect into a dozen more. DJs not only like to sample popular music, they watch what other DJs do to their samples and want to repeat and compete. This only helps the song and pushes your band’s brand. The best part is you don’t have to do anything and the band looks with it because you’re open to creative collaboration.

On top of remixes, bands should be open to donating time to work with big name acts that go against the grain to present yourself to a different fan base. 

Why Social Media Needs the Music Industry

The music industry has become increasingly reliant on the social media. Twitter, Facebook and other services such as YouTube with a strong social element have frequently overtaken the press, television and radio as the primary means of promotion

What is perhaps less often reported is how dependent social networks are on music fans for growth. It is not politicians, sports, television or movie stars who dominate the social media leader boards, but representatives of the recording industry. Music and social media just seem to go together.

For instance, 50% of Twitter users follow at least one musician. The top five most followed accounts on Twitter are all musicians. In fact there are only two people in the current top ten most-followed Twitter accounts who are not musicians, one is President Barack Obama, and this is election year, the other is the reality star Kim Kardashian. And the top five trends of last year were all music-related, according to Tatiana Simonian, head of music industry relations for Twitter.

Ms. Simonian was brought from Disney Music Group to the micro-blogging social network last October at about the same time as it launched Twitter music. “It now has more followers than almost any other channel on Twitter,” she said “The media team I’m on is there just to get more dynamic content on Twitter.”

She was talking at the International Music Summit in Ibiza, Spain, last week, an industry event where social media now dominate the business sessions. Their representatives are every bit as keen to address the recording industry as the music business is to listen,

In the fragmented world of music, the summit is the primary industry event for electronic dance music. Recently that has become shortened to “EDM” perhaps, Ms. Simonian suggested, as a result of Twitter users’ need to abbreviate. “The hashtag EDM is now used up to 3,000 times a day,” she said. “It is the fastest growing genre on Twitter.”

It is a segment, however, which has been focused almost entirely on Europe until the last couple of years. Now it is enjoying a surge of popularity in the U.S. The industry’s poster boy for this success is producer and DJ David Guetta.

His main fan page on Facebook is approaching 33m Likes. This puts him just outside the top 10 of this chart, which is almost as dominated by musicians as Twitter’s. But it is not simply the figure for the number of fans who have clicked on a button which impresses his industry, it is what he has done with it. He has developed a series of brand partnerships notably with Coca-Cola’s Burn energy drink and car manufacturer Renault from his native France.

By monetizing his personal brand, quantifiable thanks to social networks, he is showing how a new business model works successfully for the music industry, although there are plenty who dislike his overt commercialism. The point is he is making money after the probably permanent destruction of the industry’s traditional business model.

For decades that model was quite straightforward. Sell records. Everything else was subservient to that goal. Touring, merchandising, radio airplay and everything else could make a loss provided they led to sufficient sales of vinyl and later CDs.

The rise of digital media and file sharing has drastically reduced the importance of recorded music sales to the industry. As a result, what were ancillary activities before are now potentially the most important revenue streams.

Merchandising has moved way beyond the sale of tour t-shirts and now encompasses complete clothing ranges, designer headphones and, in fact, anything that can have a logo put on it. And recorded music frequently exists to promote live performances rather than, as used to be, the other way round.

This explains why another less obvious social network was making an appearance at the International Music Summit. Location-based Foursquare made clear how important music audience was to it about six months ago when it signed a deal with London-based live music listing service Songkick.

Omid Ashtari, Foursquare’s director for business development, explained that, before it got access to Songkick’s database, it was only possible to check into a venue. Given that a different promoter might take over the place each night, that is not an attractive proposition for either artists or fans.

“Now through Foursquare you can not only check into the location, but also into the event,” he said.

“Artists can offer rewards vouchers, perhaps providing discounts on merchandise, ticket upgrades or meet-and-greets. They can also offer ‘swarm specials’ which means you define a threshold and if more than that many people check in, you can do something like a double encore.”

And, of course, these activities provide a foundation for Foursquare’s growth. “I think there’s a an overlap between electronic music and social media savvy people,” he said. (via WSJ)

Marketing Tip: Don’t Spread Yourself Too Thin

It may be one the most volatile and exciting times to be in the music industry, but it also demands a lot from the vying DIY artist trying to build a web presence. Music tech is booming and hundreds of start-ups are pulling and tugging at every single artist that has a Facebook page trying to get them to use their service. While it’s an encouraging feeling to have some innovative tools at one’s disposable, it can be detrimental spending too much time on a new account for the latest Onesheet copy cat. As an artist, it’s tempting to test drive a zillion different free/paid services because you’re desperate to take advantage of any way to make some noise and gain new followers. Not to be too cliche, but it’s necessary here: it’s all about quality versus quantity.

Your fans don’t give a damn if you 10 different social network profiles and you only dedicate a minute or two to a few and ignore the rest. The only way to make an impact on the web is to first of all make the music come first. Make sure you’ve devoted blood, sweat and tears into your debut EP before you start thinking about launching your Tumblr account. When the music is ready, do research first and make accounts for the essential sites like Facebook and Twitter, and after that, keep it simple and choose the tools that fit the best and don’t commit to something that you’re only going to half-ass.

Artists complain to us everyday it’s impossible to keep up with everything and the music tech industry is as noisy as ever, so keep your message less fuzzy and more focused. 

Timing can be everything in the music industry, and musicians shouldn’t waste it on a Pinterest account if it doesn’t fit their demographic.

ONErpm is in the news. Check out an interview with our founder on IndieAmbassador!

Non-Traditional Ways to Market Your Music

It’s a Friday, so we figured we’d lighten up the mood a little bit. It doesn’t hurt to pitch some unconventional ways to get your music out there, right? Music Think Tank suggests a few, one of which requires suds.

Teaming Up with Local Food: Do you frequent a local restaurant or know someone in the restaurant business? Offer to come up with a new recipe. On the menu, write “created by ______” (or however you want it phrased). In return, you’ll help promote the restaurant by encouraging fans to order the dish: through social media, on the back of your business cards, maybe a flyer or coupon. What restaurant wouldn’t want a local band promoting their food for free all over town?  You could do the same thing with a bar as well (designing a signature drink).

Coast with the Local Watering Hole: Speaking of bars, many of them also need coasters (they’re often supplied for free by beer or spirits distributors). Why not design some coasters and drop them off at your favorite place? You could design a cool logo, offer a free download, and link with a QR code to your music right there. Coasters are only a few cents to custom imprint, why not? Maybe your fans would want some, too.

At the Car Wash: I drive by an intersection that has car washes nearly every weekend. I’ve seen sports teams, church groups, and rehab centers, but I’ve never seen a band out there raising money for an album or tour van. Why not? Car washes are actually a great way to make money fairly easily. You could get friends and fans to help out, have a performance or sell CD’s, etc. In fact, you could even offer a free CD with a $10 donation or more for the car wash. You’d probably make more money in one afternoon than your typical dive bar gig.

Consignment: Consider selling your music or merchandise via consignment at places outside the normal record store. For instance, my band (The Slants) has a strong connection with the anime/comic book world so I set up displays and sell music at comic book stores around the country. We often offer to come in and do a performance, help promote the store, and only ask for a percentage of each sale in exchange for having the store feature our music. Music can be bought/sold anywhere, just look at Starbucks creating their own record label. What kinds of stores do you have a connection to?

Charity Fundraisers: There are many fundraisers that are looking for live entertainment. You might have even played some yourself. But have you also participated as a fundraising team for a cause that is important to you? Most fundraisers use a website system called Convio where participants can set up a personalized fundraising page and the top fundraisers are featured.  If you also participate as an active fundraiser, you’ll have much greater support (and recognition) from the organization, its staff, and volunteers. You can also give away free music in exchange for donations (makes a great tax write off) as well.

Thoughts?

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How London Became the Global Center for Music Technology (via The Independent)

BOOM! ONErpm is lighting up the web this morning. :)