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MySpace - How You Work For It & How It Works For Your Band
MySpace has developed into a very important tool in any A&R's arsenal. More and more bands are being discovered through their MySpace page and it takes commitment, but it's vital to make your page stand out amongst the million plus bands and the 127,000,000+ (according to Tom's friend count tonight) overall users that currently are listed on MySpace. Your page tells each and every visitor who you are, what you're like, and that you care about your music and fans.
First and foremost, it's important to stay active. Activity includes, changing your songs out, joining groups & participating in their conversations, develop a thank you calling card, posting bulletins & invites for your gigs, create a MySpace exclusive for your friends, add content, and write!
All of these things keep your fans/friends coming back to your site. It's important to change your songs out every 3-4 weeks. Not only will this offer your friends/visitors/fans more of your great music, but it will show the labels that you are active, committed, and that you treat your fans well and value them. I would not recommend enabling the download option, but I do suggest freebies every now and again, but you worked hard on that track so shouldn't you get something back for it? Create a blog entry and tell people to email your MySpace account with a valid email address. Voila. You'll have yourself an instant email listing to access your fans directly. As powerful a tool MySpace is, most people will check their email accounts before they log onto MySpace. Be sure to include a opt-out option of every email you send...it's a legal thing.
Groups can be a way to become involved in your target market. If you list Green Day in your "Sounds Like" section, join the Green Day groups and become an active member of that group! Talk to the others who are posting there, they are more than likely your next fans.
A thank you "calling card" is an tool that will get you noticed by the MySpace surfers. When you're added as somebody's friend, leave them a comment thanking them for the support. Include a picture, or better yet an embedded video of you or your band thanking your new friend. Wow...I couldn't even begin to tell you how happy I would be if I added Damien Rice, A Tribe Called Quest or Radiohead and found a thank you video in my comments section the next day!! This will also make you stand out to the folks who cruise through their friend's page when their bored at work!
Post a bulletin or create an event invitation for your friends whenever you have a gig. Give them a secret code word or discount code when they come to the door or order their tickets online. Better yet, tell them to come early to hear sound check or to hang out if your playing at a small venue and are open to that sort of thing. It makes your friends and fans feel special and gives them a reason to come out to your show...not to mention it builds that little thing called loyalty!
Record a track exclusively for your friends and follow the above email list suggestion. It doesn't matter if your friends break the exclusivity and share it with their friends or online, the point being is that you're promoting yourself or your band. Essentially what your doing is giving your fans/friends a promotional item with no shelf life. They can spread it around all they want...in fact at the end of the day that would be the best case scenario.
Content is king! We are a jaded group of internet users and as corporations and labels start utilizing the internet 2.0 to it's fullest capabilities, you're going to want to offer something that will keep the playing field even...or at least close. Record some videos of rehearsal, pre-gig stuff, etc... and post. (Also, post it on YouTube...) This will give a behind the music look at your band and allow fans and maybe label folks to see what you're like off stage.
Your MySpace page has a blog feature. Use it! Use it at least 4 times a week, basically the more the better. Keep your fans, friends, and visitors up to date on anything and everything everything you can. Your gig last night, a rehearsal you had, the writers block that hit you last week, a band you saw or one that has inspired you, or even what you had for lunch today. It doesn't matter, at the end of the day it gives allows insider access and builds a loyal fan base.
Another small thing you can do is include your MySpace, and blog/site url in all of your emails/posts as a footer. It's a passive way to encourage clicks. Remember, self-promotion isn't a bad thing. That's why you're in band, right? To share your music with as many people as you can?
It's a lot of work keeping this up...potentially a full-time job, but a very important job to say the least!
Good luck with your MySpacing!
A Special from [http://www.ragpickermusic.com/]
Welcome to The Ragpicker - home to a vision which will have an impact on the music industry. Our goal is to support and develop everything an Independent Artist is, while educationg and nurturing in all areas an Independent artist needs. We hope The Ragpicker will be a community of musicians and fans with similar goals, dreams and tastes - all helping each other grow and develop, encourage and support. The Ragpicker will revolutionize the way artists and their fans interact.
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