Music Promotion – Factors of success
How do you make it easy for music promotion recipients to listen to your song and to support an artist or song in his or her program?
Music Promotion needs a homepage with a press section
Promotion needs the right accounts, pages and content. It all starts with your own homepage with a press section. Obviously, you could put you stuff also on Facebook, Bandcamp, Soundcloud. But your own webpage with a press section adds your abilitity to create your own look and feel. With your prioritization. Which means, what key visual, picture, size, colour, text and where. This supports your message and your image. Plus, you can list and link all the ready to go material for radio, print like broadcast ready audio files, print ready pictures.
Radio and Print need ready to use material
Radio and print need high resolution ad prepared material for them to use it right away. This you list and link in your press section. In your email message you can then link directly to these files for download.
- Radio needs audio files in a resolution of at least 320kbps (mp3) with an integrated IRSC-Code. This code you can get form the GVL (in Germany) or from your record label. It will be integrated into the file at mastering.
- Radio also need a label code and a label copy. The label code you also get from the GVL (in Germany) or from your record label. Th elabel copy is a standardized sheet that contains all relevant copyright information including who participated in the recording. Most radio stations still need it in printable form.
- Print and event promoters need pictures that can be printed. They need both portrait and landscape versions in different sizes and cuttings. Singer only, head of singer only or even just the band logo for tickets. Or the whole band in front of a wall, woods, on stage. Even with instruments for the very big formats. And a biogaphy in english and the language of the country of the recipient. Also links to former reviews and successes.
- Promoters often also need a printable template of your tour poster and an easily to enlarge band logo.
- Club-DJs and live promoters still enjoy a physical version of the last album. This only after they stated their interest.
Music Promotion needs the avilability of your products
Promotion also need the commercial availability of your music. On all big streaming platforms (Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music) as well as CD version on Amazon. Plus on your homepage and at concerts. Many media and promoters do some research on discogs.com, Amazon and Spotify to se how many releases are commercially available from you.
Promotion needs your presence in the top music communities
Promotion needs your active participation in the most popular music-community tools. Most importantly your Youtube-channel, your Facebook-profile, yout Facebook fanpage. PLus a Spotify-artist-account, a Last FM account, an Instagram and a Twitter account. And finally Bandsintown and Songkick for live part of your carreer.
Summary – what do need for what?
- Homepage – press section: As the central section where you offer high resolution material for professionals at media, live, industry.
- Facebook-profile: As operator of the official Facebook fanpagem as poster on all music pages and as member in public and closed Facebook music groups. Often also as login for Spotify, Instagram and others.
- Facebook-Page: As reference in your Facebook posts and to promote your songs and shows. There you can also integrate your Bandsintown events. That way all Bandsintown followers wil be kept up to date.
- Spotify-artist-account in combination with a songkick account. You can list your show in Songkick. That way your Songkick followers will be kept up to date plus listeners to your music on Spotify will be shown your shows that happen in their area.
- Youtube-account and channel: To upload your videos which you link to as well.
- Last FM account, to see all your listeners and followers and to promote your shows there also.
- Instagram: very polular. But need a visual and an aresthetic component. Pictures, videos, pictures, ideally good looking.
- Twitter: will be need for many international music journalists and promoters. Some only use Twitter, other only Facebook-Messages. But most people still use
- EMAIL!!! -> Email unfortunatley has become a synonym for spam. But it is still unbeaten if it comes to convey a clear and strong message with good text, few images and meaningful links. Plus, you can attach a contract or an urgently needed biography.
- With the Music Promotion Tool email has the additional advantage that you can see with the Email Real Time Monitoring in real time who received, opened and clicked your mail and songs.