The Importance of Your Online Presence

As more of us begin to conduct the bulk of our everyday business online, ensuring potential fans have easy access to your music is a must. There are a number of ways in which bands can utilize the web to not only reach audiences, but build a dedicated, loyal and passionate fan base.

Twitter and Facebook

 A visible online presence is a must for every budding musician and band. Having a strong online presence allows people from all over the globe to not only listen to your music, but engage with you and other fans. It helps you directly market your music to your fan base as well as keep them up to date with future gigs, appearances and releases. Social media profiles are free to set up, and spending as little as twenty minutes a day and a few times a week posting and retweeting is all it takes to bolster your profile and the awareness of your music.

Streaming sites

 Another great way to push your music out there and heard by the masses is to sign up for music streaming site, such as Soundcloud, Grooveshark, Spotify and Last.fm. These sites all allow you to create a band/artist page and upload your music, which will, in turn, be available for people to stream and enjoy. Lately there has been much controversy surrounding some of the royalties paid from sites like Spotify. Spotify pays 0.06 to the artist each time the song is streamed, which some say is a pittance. On the other hand a lot of smaller artists would argue that the increased exposure has resulted in higher album sales and an increased number people attending their gigs. Websites such as Soundcloud do not pay any royalties, but are often used by artists to maximize exposure and market to new fans. Don’t forget to add a link back to your website so that those interested can go ahead and purchase your recordings. 

These are just two of the main ways a band or recording artist can use the internet to inexpensively promote not only their music but upcoming shows.