Expert Music Career Advice For DIY Musicians
4 Times You Shouldn't Take the Gig
The Number One Mistake Bands Make Right After Booking a Gig
The Ultimate EQ Cheat Sheet for Every Common Instrument
15 Reality Checks Young Artists Need to Hear

Music Business 101, Marketing & Promotion

Jul 17, 2018 06:00 AM

Jhoni Jackson

5 Ways to Make Fans Happy with Your Social Media Content


Do fans really need to see your coffee on social media every morning? Image via Pixabay.

Social media can make us miserable – you've likely read about studies that prove this, or you've figured it out for yourself through that sinking, self-loathing feeling that sometimes creeps in after too much scrolling past people's accomplishments and perfectly angled photos.

But there are also reports on how social media can make us feel closer to friends, which makes us happier – so how can bands and artists channel that positivity, rather than contribute to the potential sadness of their fans?

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crowdfunding, Music Business 101, Marketing & Promotion

Jul 9, 2018 06:00 AM

Suzanne Paulinski

3 Ways to Improve and Revamp Your Next Music Crowdfunding Campaign

Photo by Michal Durinik via Shutterstock

With the rise of Patreon and the long-time staples Indiegogo, PledgeMusic, and Kickstarter, crowdsourcing is becoming one of the ways many artists count on money coming in to create new music, tour, even pay for band photos and equipment. Now, more than ever, musicians are forced to think like entrepreneurs.

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Music Business 101, Booking Gigs & Touring

Jun 28, 2018 06:00 AM

Dan Reifsnyder

7 Reasons You Aren't Getting the Gig

Image via Shutterstock

Gigs are the lifeblood of any artist – they get fans, help sell merch, and (hopefully) help make some real money. But here you are treading water, and your phone is dead silent. Your band's email account is gathering spam and cobwebs. What gives?

Here are seven reasons you might be struggling to book those gigs.

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Music Business 101, Marketing & Promotion

Jun 20, 2018 06:00 AM

Hugh McIntyre

The 6 Must-Dos When Taking Band Photos

Image via Shutterstock

As a musician, photoshoots are a necessary part of your continuous to-do list. You need photos of yourself and your band for a number of reasons, including album covers, social media profiles and content, press, and so on, so you'll need to be in front of a camera at some point, even if it makes you nervous.

The form your photoshoot takes — everything from several expensive hours in a professional studio to your friend and their iPhone — can differ greatly, but the things you need to think about before, during, and after the event are the same, no matter what.

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Music Business 101, Marketing & Promotion

Jun 11, 2018 06:00 AM

Janelle Rogers

Are You Assaulting Your Fans on Social Media? (Part Three)

Image via Shutterstock

Do you wish you had more help promoting your music? Do you feel overwhelmed by the amount of work it takes to market your music to new fans? In the third and final part of the series of turning strangers into fans, I’m going to focus on how you can turn music fans into band advocates and music promoters.

In part one I went over on how to strangers into fans. Part two discussed how to turn those fans into purchasers of your music and merchandise. Now, let’s look at how we can turn those fans into your promotional team.

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