It's hard for bands starting out to get the attention of the world. Social media is a crowded marketplace, there are a million other bands out there, so why should somebody pay attention to you? It doesn't matter if your music is the best thing since Master of Puppets, without any marketing nobody will hear it.
So how do you get your music in front of people? We spoke to Dan Tsurif, who is the Vice President, Artist Management and Digital Strategy at Mercenary Management, representing big time acts such as Zakk Wylde & Black Label Socity, Black Veil Brides and Goatwhore. Of all the advice I've seen for bands on how to get their product out there, I think Dan's advice is the most practical:
If you don't have a fanbase then you don't have anyone to tease or promote to. Unfortunately the world is not your audience. My best tip would be to have a killer single, invest in a great music video that's more than just a standard performance video of jobber looking guys playing in a field/warehouse/garage/moms basement, and run a very targeted ad campaign focusing on people within a 50 mile radius of your hometown that listen to similar bands. I would probably even narrow it down to ages 13 – 21 since that's typically the age range of people that listen to local bands and go to local shows.
Once you have gained some momentum you can start trying to convert those people into sales through local shows and Bandcamp. Merch plays an important factor but a common mistake I see is a band with a dozen shitty designs instead of just one really awesome design.
Additionally, although an unpopular opinion, try not to play shows to empty rooms. If you have good songs that resonate with your audience and you're able to gain momentum you should hold off and only play shows that you know will be packed. You'll develop a value for your band and most importantly you'll be aligning yourself with already popular bands and fun shows. Don't fall into the trap of overplaying and underperforming locally.
Keep in mind, this has nothing to do with the quality or sound of the music you play. This is about the marketing and business side of things. This advice assumes you have a great, polished track ready to go – and then the next step is to market it. This is as great a tip as you'll get. Social networking sites like Instagram have gained a lot of popularity for online business and marketing. Getting potential engagement iis the key factor to grow online business. Try to develop an understanding on Instagram likes app to increase natural growth on Instagram.
Now go out there and put this into practice!
