Getting Online As An Indie Artist
For the first time the playing field is level for big corporate
bands and the independent musician. The fact that any musician
can reach a global audience, get noticed by the industry,
and sell music proves that a web site is fundamental to success.
Before the Web, major record labels dominated music promotion
and distribution leaving the independent musician behind in
the dust.
A web site gives the independent musician the opportunity
to play and sell music to an audience that has never heard
of you twenty-four hours a day, everyday, all over the world.
With a carefully constructed image and some marketing, fans,
journalists, and industry heavies will gain easy access to
your music and press kit.
Over the course of this series of articles, I will discuss
the key elements in promoting your music online and offline.
Getting people to know about your site offline - in the real
world - is just as important as spreading the word online.
This is the first mistake many musicians make when they spend
their hard-earned money to get online. It takes more than
just erecting a web site - you have to get the word out online
and offline. Surfers will not flock to your web site unless
you herd them there.
In addition, the layout and content of a web site is key
to success. You want return visits from fans and to rally
new ones. But before you get online, you need to know who
will buy your music. This leads us to Marketing 101.
Create an Image
The rules of marketability apply to web sites just as they
do to music. Identifying your audience will be extremely helpful
in the design and layout of your site. After identifying your
audience create an image. The look and feel of your web site
should match the mood of your latest release or musical style.
Gather All Your Information
Before designing or discussing your new page with a web master
gather all of your personal information. Write a biography
or press release, gather press clippings and reviews, and
compile your discography. You may be able to pass off some
of this work with first drafts to a web master that specializes
in band site package deals - highly recommended. Once you
have a place to house your web site, it is important to keep
it neat and organized.
Layout & Presentation
All major aspects of a successful Web site center on creating
a community feeling. By making visitors feel at home, they
will get hungry for more and return again and again. The key
elements to an online community have to do with content and
layout. Content is important, but layout is icing on the cake.
A site should be easy to use. An effective layout communicates
an entire site's content at first glance. Visitors will know
- instantly - where to hear and buy music, read bios, contact
you, and sign-in.
Keep your site as simple as possible. Choose colors carefully.
Follow the simple rule, "Never mix busy with busy."
While you want your site to have an artistic flare and its
content to sizzle you also don't want to hurt visitors' eyes
with extreme colors, lots of animation, and backgrounds that
make it difficult to read the text. Any violation of this
rule says loudly that you are an amateur.
Multimedia Content
If you want to sell more music, put it online. Use only one
audio format. Some sites try to cater to different visitors
by providing several web friendly formats such as MPEG, QuickTime3,
and Shockwave. This can be an administrative nightmare. Pick
a format and stick with it. RealAudio is the standard that
most musicians use online. You can't beat the price - free.
Most surfers are familiar with RealAudio and already have
it installed in their web software.
Killer Content - Press Kit
Once visitors have listened to your music they may want to
learn more about you. Having a press kit online accomplishes
this. It also grants immediate access to A&R reps, the
media, and any other industry heavies interested in your work.
Creating a press kit is a large undertaking but is vital to
keeping your act in public view. An effective one contains:
News / Press Release
Biography
Press Clippings / Reviews
Professional Photos
Discography / Time Line
Booking Information
Up-To-Date Events Calendar and News
Don't let a press kit sit on the shelf. Always hone and keep
it current. Each part serves a different function:
News / Press Release
A well-drafted news release can get you some free advertising.
Word your release in a way that will make the editor feel
like he/she is benefiting readers by publishing it.
Quotes-Press Clippings
Quotes and clippings show that you are legitimate. Gather
your best and use only a few. If you don't have any quotes
or press clippings, you will have to generate them by sending
out news releases.
Bio
Bios add a personal touch to your press kit and familiarize
potential fans and industry reps with your history, musical
style, and aspirations. Keep it brief and include your contact
information.
Gig Calendar
A calendar will make it easy for fans and A&R reps to
find you. Keep it updated and delete dates more than a few
days old. Nothing will kill return visits to a Web site more
than outdated and useless information.
Photos
After putting hard work into achieving a professional looking
Web site, don't fall into the trap of using amateurish photos.
Use only professionally taken photographs. In addition, the
most common problem with band pages is abuse of huge graphic
files. Many amateur Web designers don't take into account
that most surfers on the Internet do not have a fast enough
connection to download large files.
Discography
Include all of your releases, even singles or projects with
other bands. Fans will want to know what they need to have
a complete collection and visitors new to your work will be
impressed by your sizable discography.
Regular Updates
Web surfers have come to demand current information. They
simply won't return to your site if it has stale event dates,
quotes, and press clippings. You don't have to change your
entire site, just keep dates current and any news on your
front page. State the date your site was last updated and
when the next update will occur. Be consistent. This will
give fans more reasons to return.
Guest Book
Anything you can do to increase communication between you
and your fans increases community feeling. A sign-in page
or guest book is a perfect match. While providing fans with
current information and the latest release, they can give
you valuable input on your music and Web site. Plus, you can
build a large contact list by collecting names and email addresses.
An email list enables back door selling for newsletters, gigs,
announcements, and new music.
Conclusion
The content of your web site is just the tip of the iceberg.
Stay tuned. I am going to talk about protecting your music
online, optimizing web pages for search engine submission,
converting your music to a web-friendly format, the emerging
genre of Internet Radio, and oodles more on getting the word
out online!
About the Author: John Dawes is an
independent Internet consultant and founder of MusicPromotion.net,
a company specializing in affordable web hosting and design for artists. He is
most known for his informative articles on Internet music promotion and is co-author
of international bestseller The
Complete Guide to Internet Promotion for Musicians, Artists & Songwriters,
with music industry guru Tim Sweeney.
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