I'm wondering how well versed our community is with online promotion including social media, web presence (SEO/SEM/etc), publishing avenues and the like..? It would be interesting to hear both about valid strategies that go beyond a single page or platform used, and how much someone is relying on their own efforts versus 3rd parties.
I am also curious what people think about the walled garden in social media circles (facebook/instagram/twitter/linkedin/etc) and the moves Google (Alphabet) is taking in that direction post 2016 as well. In other words, it's becoming increasingly more common for these big players to lock their audiences in to their own platforms.
How do you promote your artist persona/brand?
Re: How do you promote your artist persona/brand?
After 17 years of silence, I'm about to get my ass back on stages (did so for the first time in 17y last friday, in my living room, for just a few close friends), and I have been wondering about this as well.
It's disheartening however, looking at the music scene today. My main musical interest is techno, and the new techno scene is just fucked up. Quality is not the norm anymore. It's all about instagram, facebook, and whatnot, how many tattoos you have, funky hairdo, the right clothes and gear. And as you would expect with such media and attitudes, it has become a playground for hipsters and influencers.
Attractive women/men without talent taking the world's biggest stages (but who needs talent with these Pioneer CDJ thingies? or ghost producers), but don't dare to say anything about that, you'll get fucked over on the 'me'dia, cause that's just where their strength is: PR.
Wasn't it you, Valis, that posted that Detroit techno video a while a go?
And it's not just techno...
Luckily, the underground types of music I produce don't really care for looks, and are more about the music, and is being played in squats and small clubs/bars.
Music in general has become a backdrop for 'an experience', especially on festivals.
The music biz has always been dirty, it has not changed...
we can all be very sour about how it's going, but yeah.
I'm just gonna work on a bandcamp page, and go from there. I still have some contacts from my performing days, back then. One of them was at my living room concert, and it was instant 'call that guy, you can play there, listen to this band and see how they got themselves a scene...' and bam, a concert in November, in Germany, came from that little concert...
I would just use facebook and the likes as an announcement board for concerts and releases. If you use these channels for anything else, you're doing it for the wrong reasons in my opinion. 'interacting with the fans'
It's disheartening however, looking at the music scene today. My main musical interest is techno, and the new techno scene is just fucked up. Quality is not the norm anymore. It's all about instagram, facebook, and whatnot, how many tattoos you have, funky hairdo, the right clothes and gear. And as you would expect with such media and attitudes, it has become a playground for hipsters and influencers.
Attractive women/men without talent taking the world's biggest stages (but who needs talent with these Pioneer CDJ thingies? or ghost producers), but don't dare to say anything about that, you'll get fucked over on the 'me'dia, cause that's just where their strength is: PR.
Wasn't it you, Valis, that posted that Detroit techno video a while a go?
And it's not just techno...
Luckily, the underground types of music I produce don't really care for looks, and are more about the music, and is being played in squats and small clubs/bars.
Music in general has become a backdrop for 'an experience', especially on festivals.
The music biz has always been dirty, it has not changed...
we can all be very sour about how it's going, but yeah.
I'm just gonna work on a bandcamp page, and go from there. I still have some contacts from my performing days, back then. One of them was at my living room concert, and it was instant 'call that guy, you can play there, listen to this band and see how they got themselves a scene...' and bam, a concert in November, in Germany, came from that little concert...
I would just use facebook and the likes as an announcement board for concerts and releases. If you use these channels for anything else, you're doing it for the wrong reasons in my opinion. 'interacting with the fans'
andy
the lunatics are in the hall
the lunatics are in the hall
Re: How do you promote your artist persona/brand?
Yes, I posted the Detroit techno video link a few weeks back. Thought it was an interesting retrospective and a counterpoint to the disposable culture that we currently see. What has happened, in my opinion, is that our beloved electronic music genres have become mainstream, and are swept along with all the usual cultural forces that come with that. Search for 'Diffusion of Innovation' to see a pretty curve graph summary of what that means.
(in our case 'market share' could simply be renamed 'familiarity' or 'mind share')
Every generation goes through this, whether it's our cultural art forms or the dominant technology (trains, computers, fire) etc. This is similar to the revolution of the 60's leading to the burnout of the 70's, the yuppies of the 80's and the Technocracy that we see today with the dominant culture in SF & Silicon Valley. From an acid test of self awakening to woke data gathering and a promise to skew elections in the favor of the largest monopoly groups in tech. What fun!
In any case, back to the question at hand. It would seem to me that with online promotion we face a few issues with where we are today. One of the primary ones is that, in accordance with the above thesis, we have passed the point where simply having an online presence is novel enough to gain attention. In fact, I might even suggest part of what borg is suggesting above might be that novelty alone isn't cutting the mustard anymore, McKenna's crowd had their day. The acceleration of culture and information alone hasn't saved us, and thin veneers of personality to cover up vapid personalities and mid-grade (or below) skill levels masquerading as novelty is showing through the wrapping now.
Still, I'm looking for a bit of meat in this discussion in regards to what strategies we can deploy.
The first step on that is clearly gaining skills in regards to the craft itself. There's an infinite regression series of discussions revolving around what repeating established tropes and norms does versus exploring inspiration and musical spaces intuited but not yet established enough to be a 'norm' or a 'style' that can be labeled as such. But let's presume that we have the skills, and we are confident that what we are creating is at least worth getting out there to see how it's received, and what kind of feedback loops we can set up with our audience that go beyond the limitations of personality and re-iterating all that was already said above.
(in our case 'market share' could simply be renamed 'familiarity' or 'mind share')
Every generation goes through this, whether it's our cultural art forms or the dominant technology (trains, computers, fire) etc. This is similar to the revolution of the 60's leading to the burnout of the 70's, the yuppies of the 80's and the Technocracy that we see today with the dominant culture in SF & Silicon Valley. From an acid test of self awakening to woke data gathering and a promise to skew elections in the favor of the largest monopoly groups in tech. What fun!
In any case, back to the question at hand. It would seem to me that with online promotion we face a few issues with where we are today. One of the primary ones is that, in accordance with the above thesis, we have passed the point where simply having an online presence is novel enough to gain attention. In fact, I might even suggest part of what borg is suggesting above might be that novelty alone isn't cutting the mustard anymore, McKenna's crowd had their day. The acceleration of culture and information alone hasn't saved us, and thin veneers of personality to cover up vapid personalities and mid-grade (or below) skill levels masquerading as novelty is showing through the wrapping now.
Still, I'm looking for a bit of meat in this discussion in regards to what strategies we can deploy.
The first step on that is clearly gaining skills in regards to the craft itself. There's an infinite regression series of discussions revolving around what repeating established tropes and norms does versus exploring inspiration and musical spaces intuited but not yet established enough to be a 'norm' or a 'style' that can be labeled as such. But let's presume that we have the skills, and we are confident that what we are creating is at least worth getting out there to see how it's received, and what kind of feedback loops we can set up with our audience that go beyond the limitations of personality and re-iterating all that was already said above.
Re: How do you promote your artist persona/brand?
Here's what I see in regards to our current digital platforms:
Facebook - began to replicate the AOL/Prodigy/etc "walled garden" approach very early on in their emergence into the mainstream. All links in were basically trapped, and any outward facing links come with tracking added to the URL (at the very least) and often the Facebook pixel, social media sharing tools and more. So you never really 'leave' Facebook. Fast forward to the present and the focus is on creating groups, pages, mobile versions of Facebook opening all external content in its own embedded browser and so on. And we were sold this bill of goods as a 'free' way to promote yourself or a product.
Google - quickly emerged as the dominant web search engine & got rid of the 'web portal' phenomenon. That was a wonderful move forward, as was the clean aesthetic and 'do no evil' mantra. Fast forward to now, and between 2016 & present their moves towards being a 'walled garden' are well documented ( see The Hard Truth - Clicks Will Only Get More Expensive and Harder to Get, Less Than Half of Google Searches Now Result in a Click, and The Law of Shitty Clickthroughs for example). Building a website is still necessary once there's a certain amount of material to promote, and perhaps merchandise to use to prop up income streams, but it's not as simple as it once was to drive traffic directly to it.
Instagram - Well you already mentioned a good deal of what is relevant here, and that overlaps with other social platforms: image and style over substance, the appearance of 'progress' and a high interaction rate are the buy-in to branding here. It's not necessarily a bad way to support promotional efforts, but entire careers are made out of nothing more than selling image here at the same time.
Soundcloud - Once a blessing to the underground world, after it was purchased it has slid into trying to be another online music publisher. Still helps to carry content here, but they police the heck out of remixes and DJ culture alike, and have largely stagnated around a feature set that already existed prior to that purchase (rather than using the infusion of cash and stability to achieve anything further). At least it wasn't bought by a rapper looking for a fast cash grab like myspace was...
Bandcamp.com - One of the blessings of the modern musical landscape. Back when Soundcloud was still evolving quickly and Apple still 'sold' you musical files you could download and 'own', bandcamp was host to a bunch of largely unknown artists who benefitted from not having to know how to host their own website and could provide a minor sales stream. It was also a great avenue for certain artists (Love & Light Music for instance) to put out their content for free solely to drive gigs. Fast forward to today and many vinyl labels have found a second life on Bandcamp, and it's a legitimate means to distributing your music for profit AND can serve as a web frontend if you don't have the resources to invest in a web hosting solution that exceeds what they offer (the age of the popup flash website with some goofy interactive content and a few online shop links is long gone). Plus, publishing here has no restrictions on where else you put your content online (unlike some distribution contracts which limit you to their partners only).
Tunecore/ReverbNation/DistroKid/ADED.US Music Distribution/RouteNote/ONErpm/Octiive/LANDR/Ditto Music/etc - Since we're on the subject of publishers, this is the modern digital equivalent. Most of these are usable both as an independent artist and by labels, so the route you take now has more to do with what value a label or promotional team adds to your brand in return for their control over your intellectual property. On the flipside, all of these require a lot of effort and the return you get from most of the streaming services and portals they place you on will be meager without aligning yourself with a label or representation. This also goes for Spotify..but they have emerged a bit of an odd beast now as well.
Spotify - now allows independant artists to publish directly to their platform. Bandcamp still appeals more to the classic crate digging style of music discovery, where you drive the effort of finding new music, collecting it, and playing it back on your own playback devices (media players). Spotify picked up where last.fm left off in terms of playlist sharing, and evolved to be not just a competitor to Pandora/XM/Sirius and other 'streaming' services, but to have their own system of 'aggregate rating' schemes and 'AI' to 'learn your musical tastes'. So mainstream radio meets independent publisher, with the caveat that unknown artists will still remain relatively unknown without other means to improving their visiblity.
------
Of course there's more, which is why I was curious what people think is an emerging play to visibility these days. If you dig into the links that are under my blurb about Google, most of them offer the suggested solution to get around the walled garden of "find new online advertising portals before others do". That might also be rephrased into "what is the next emerging online advertising strategy". Of course there's a zillion middle marketing managers out there that would love to discover this answer, but in our case what we would want to focus on is what's the next emergent strategy for our efforts?
Open to more thoughts...
Facebook - began to replicate the AOL/Prodigy/etc "walled garden" approach very early on in their emergence into the mainstream. All links in were basically trapped, and any outward facing links come with tracking added to the URL (at the very least) and often the Facebook pixel, social media sharing tools and more. So you never really 'leave' Facebook. Fast forward to the present and the focus is on creating groups, pages, mobile versions of Facebook opening all external content in its own embedded browser and so on. And we were sold this bill of goods as a 'free' way to promote yourself or a product.
Google - quickly emerged as the dominant web search engine & got rid of the 'web portal' phenomenon. That was a wonderful move forward, as was the clean aesthetic and 'do no evil' mantra. Fast forward to now, and between 2016 & present their moves towards being a 'walled garden' are well documented ( see The Hard Truth - Clicks Will Only Get More Expensive and Harder to Get, Less Than Half of Google Searches Now Result in a Click, and The Law of Shitty Clickthroughs for example). Building a website is still necessary once there's a certain amount of material to promote, and perhaps merchandise to use to prop up income streams, but it's not as simple as it once was to drive traffic directly to it.
Instagram - Well you already mentioned a good deal of what is relevant here, and that overlaps with other social platforms: image and style over substance, the appearance of 'progress' and a high interaction rate are the buy-in to branding here. It's not necessarily a bad way to support promotional efforts, but entire careers are made out of nothing more than selling image here at the same time.
Soundcloud - Once a blessing to the underground world, after it was purchased it has slid into trying to be another online music publisher. Still helps to carry content here, but they police the heck out of remixes and DJ culture alike, and have largely stagnated around a feature set that already existed prior to that purchase (rather than using the infusion of cash and stability to achieve anything further). At least it wasn't bought by a rapper looking for a fast cash grab like myspace was...
Bandcamp.com - One of the blessings of the modern musical landscape. Back when Soundcloud was still evolving quickly and Apple still 'sold' you musical files you could download and 'own', bandcamp was host to a bunch of largely unknown artists who benefitted from not having to know how to host their own website and could provide a minor sales stream. It was also a great avenue for certain artists (Love & Light Music for instance) to put out their content for free solely to drive gigs. Fast forward to today and many vinyl labels have found a second life on Bandcamp, and it's a legitimate means to distributing your music for profit AND can serve as a web frontend if you don't have the resources to invest in a web hosting solution that exceeds what they offer (the age of the popup flash website with some goofy interactive content and a few online shop links is long gone). Plus, publishing here has no restrictions on where else you put your content online (unlike some distribution contracts which limit you to their partners only).
Tunecore/ReverbNation/DistroKid/ADED.US Music Distribution/RouteNote/ONErpm/Octiive/LANDR/Ditto Music/etc - Since we're on the subject of publishers, this is the modern digital equivalent. Most of these are usable both as an independent artist and by labels, so the route you take now has more to do with what value a label or promotional team adds to your brand in return for their control over your intellectual property. On the flipside, all of these require a lot of effort and the return you get from most of the streaming services and portals they place you on will be meager without aligning yourself with a label or representation. This also goes for Spotify..but they have emerged a bit of an odd beast now as well.
Spotify - now allows independant artists to publish directly to their platform. Bandcamp still appeals more to the classic crate digging style of music discovery, where you drive the effort of finding new music, collecting it, and playing it back on your own playback devices (media players). Spotify picked up where last.fm left off in terms of playlist sharing, and evolved to be not just a competitor to Pandora/XM/Sirius and other 'streaming' services, but to have their own system of 'aggregate rating' schemes and 'AI' to 'learn your musical tastes'. So mainstream radio meets independent publisher, with the caveat that unknown artists will still remain relatively unknown without other means to improving their visiblity.
------
Of course there's more, which is why I was curious what people think is an emerging play to visibility these days. If you dig into the links that are under my blurb about Google, most of them offer the suggested solution to get around the walled garden of "find new online advertising portals before others do". That might also be rephrased into "what is the next emerging online advertising strategy". Of course there's a zillion middle marketing managers out there that would love to discover this answer, but in our case what we would want to focus on is what's the next emergent strategy for our efforts?
Open to more thoughts...
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Eiffel65Fan
- Posts: 39
- Joined: Sat Jul 09, 2022 3:19 am
Re: How do you promote your artist persona/brand?
Promotion is a mix of grit and creativity. I've found personal success through a multi-platform approach, maintaining consistent branding throughout. For me, Instagram has been a key place due to its visual nature. Incorporate hashtags, engage with followers regularly, and consider collaborations with other artists for wider reach. Btw, sorry for reviving this one, it just got me interested.
Re: How do you promote your artist persona/brand?
Please revive it, nobody engaged. Everyone is too 'mature' in their approach
Re: How do you promote your artist persona/brand?
In my experience, it's a combination of social media strategies, website optimization (good ol' SEO), and authentic interactions with fans and followers. It's crucial to have a consistent brand image, a distinct voice, and a compelling narrative across all platforms.
Moreover, regarding the Facebook/Instagram/Twitter walled garden topic, yes, there are some downsides - being at the mercy of algorithm changes is nerve-wracking. But at the same time, their audience segmentation and targeting capabilities are highly beneficial. Additionally, Google's moves, although not perfect, can't be ignored as well. I've found that using cross-platform ad analytics tools like this AdSpy software helps manage, analyze, and optimize ad campaigns across these platforms more easily.
Each strategy fits only some, but a mix of self-promotion efforts and targeted use of 3rd parties can do the trick. In essence, balance is key.
Moreover, regarding the Facebook/Instagram/Twitter walled garden topic, yes, there are some downsides - being at the mercy of algorithm changes is nerve-wracking. But at the same time, their audience segmentation and targeting capabilities are highly beneficial. Additionally, Google's moves, although not perfect, can't be ignored as well. I've found that using cross-platform ad analytics tools like this AdSpy software helps manage, analyze, and optimize ad campaigns across these platforms more easily.
Each strategy fits only some, but a mix of self-promotion efforts and targeted use of 3rd parties can do the trick. In essence, balance is key.
Last edited by ARCADIOS on Thu Oct 05, 2023 1:14 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Nestor
- Posts: 6676
- Joined: Tue Mar 27, 2001 4:00 pm
- Location: Fourth Dimension Paradise, Cloud Nine!
Re: How do you promote your artist persona/brand?
Exactly.borg wrote: ↑Fri Aug 23, 2019 3:18 am It's disheartening however, looking at the music scene today.
Quality is not the norm anymore.
It's all about instagram, facebook, and whatnot, how many tattoos you have, funky hairdo, the right clothes and gear.
And as you would expect with such media and attitudes, it has become a playground for hipsters and influencers.
Attractive women/men without talent taking the world's biggest stages
I can't teach a thing about this to anyone because I don't promote myself at all. I have long ago decided not to get into these trends, I feel uncomfortable and denaturalized on them. They do not represent what I feel and like about music, for me music is something else, far away from the enormous octopus of social media that can easily strangle the "meaning" of your own music.
Most music posted on these places, I don't like anyway, they are sooo cold, so empty!
I started, (many years ago), a few pages and got into some of the offered platforms of the time, but I ended up spending more time in the requested items, ways asked, marketing, etc., etc., than in music itself, so, no good for me. My music started to shift toward what was demanded by the owners of these places and their policies, I was becoming, even without realizing it, another product of the many out there "used" by the owners of these platforms. I was no longer composing out of inspiration, I was rather following rules and external ideas, not at all closed to my heart. A death end really, to creativity, spontaneity, the end of all ART , using a single word.
I make music because I like music, then, eventually, I make some money out of it, but I do not want to compromise the experience of music, which is in many ways the very core of my soul's life, to anything the trends impose on me through the market. Let me be poor but happy.
It doesn't mean I don't agree with people using it or are against it, but this is not for me in the least. For me, personally, it was sort of a prostitution of my own feelings, I can't go this way without feeling miserable.
*MUSIC* The most Powerful Language in the world! *INDEED*