How To Be A Successful Artist Using Social Media (or Not)

Published on March 13, 2009 in New Media & Software and Social Commentary. Comments Tags: , , , .

image So, you’ve done a few shows, produced a few tracks and all of your friends are telling you to should share your talent with the world. You created a few user accounts on MySpace, Facebook, Twitter & ReverbNation, just to name a few. After setting up them and uploading your tracks, you hope that someone will take notice. After 4 weeks, you realize no one notices you or your music. You decide to take bigger steps, but how?

Well, I’ve got a few ideas to help you get your music/message to as many people as possible. Just follow these tips to get the numbers you are looking for:

Use hot chicks (or a hot guy) in your profile!

In any business, sex sells! The more sex appeal you display, the better! What if you are not exactly “swimsuit material”? Just grab a picture of a hot chick and place it as your profile (you can say “ayo, pause” if guys start hittin’ you up). Also, change your name to reflect the hot tracks on your page. Branding your name? OVERRATED! All the attention you will attract will add to your numbers and play count. So, ante up!

Add as many people as you can!

Just search for people who you think may like your style of music and add them without reading their page. Why? It’s a numbers game my friend. Some will be annoyed, but others will appreciate it, especially if you send them a note to asking them for their opinion. Add about 20-30 people a day. Make sure to put very appealing people as your top watchers/friends/whatever! Remember, big numbers = impressive.

Always say what you are doing at every moment!

Now that you’ve got people looking at you, just use any method to broadcast what you are doing! Remember, the more you broadcast, the better the chances are your message will be taken seriously. It works for advertisers! Eventually, people will check you out! Reply to videos with a “check my song out”. Go to profiles and say “thanks, check me out!” Make sure to save text files – cut and paste your message over and over. Chances of people removing you will be high, but we never said marketing is easy.

In the end, that’s what you are doing; you are marketing yourself! Sure, you can waste your time and having a higher success rate by being honest, engaging in meaning conversations so that people can see you are not just here to sell. Maybe you should care to read their profiles and let them know what you like as well. Maybe help them get a message across and they may help you in return. But that takes about the same amount of time as people doing what you just read. Remember, it’s just another place to advertise! Who cares about these people’s so-called lives, huh?

P.S. – There is a reason why it’s called “social media”. Grasp the meaning, and the world can be yours!

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Related Thoughts

  • Hey. I agree with you 100%. :)
  • You can't apply the exact same rules to general business as social networking because people don't join online communities to find out about other people's businesses.

    Regardless of how you use social networking, using the approach written about in this post or the approach I mentioned, it needs to be directed. It's pointless to send rock music to people who don't listen to rock. Send it to people who like the kind of music your music sounds like. Get off the high horse with that "I sound like me" nonsense. If you make music, you've listened to music and you've been influenced by something(s)/ people. Be honest with yourself. You can still have a relatively unique sound that's influenced by and remniscent of something else. Acknowledge that and build on it.
  • I actually take issue with this approach. Social networking isn't about promoting your brand or art. It's about people connecting with other people. The most annoying thing, from a user's end, is someone connecting with you for no other purpose than promoting themselves and from the jump making that relationship about their agenda and nothing else. This is the exact approach that will make me ignore a friend request and delete any comments posted regarding "check me out." No...check ME out. Connect with me. If you're successful at that, naturally, I'll go to your page and listen to your music.
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