Social media strategies for bands -- Do it yourself music: part 5

August 15, 1:26 PMSalt Lake City Entertainment Industry ExaminerChristopher Harding

Having a social media strategy for your band is an essential part of an overall marketing and promotional plan.  As we discussed in the last two articles in this series, there are six fundamental elements that an artist might employ. Here’s a quick step-by-step review of what we’ve covered thus:

1. Your own band or artist website: Your virtual main office and detailed information center.

2.  Your MySpace site:  Think of it as your own virtual fan lounge.

3.  Your Facebook site: Serving as your online band magazine.

4.  Twitter site:  Ideal as a daily buzz generator and conversation tool.

By keeping each of these sites updated, fresh, and uniquely programmed (each one can provide information and elements the others don’t).  The goal is to keep your followers and fans coming back each day to discover the latest about you and to interact with you and other fans.

For the detailed information on how to best utilize each of the these elements, check out Secrets of Social Networking for Bands (DIY Music: Part 3) and Social Media Basics for Bands (DIY Music: Part 4).

In this installment of the series, we’re going to look at ways to maximize the use of YouTube and retail applications like Amazon Music/CD Baby/iTunes/Reverbnation.

So, with our context set, let’s get started:

5.  YouTube:  It’s not hard to figure out the metaphor for this application.  YouTube serves as your online television channel.  Here’s the run down on this tool:

• Not only can you and your fans post videos for your performances, interviews, etc., but you can customize your channel and program it to provide an official landing place for your audience on YouTube.
• If you’re not familiar with how to create your own channel, know that if you’ve created a YouTube account, you have a channel.  The question is, are you using it?  Have you customized its look and feel?  Are you programming it by choosing the videos you want people to see?
• To customize and program your channel, log in to YouTube, scroll over your login name and click on Account.
• When you get to the account page, then click on Edit Channel.
• Once on that page, click the link that says Channel Design. When you’ve arrived at that page, notice there are tabs for Settings, Themes and Colors, and Modules. 
• Each of these tabs allows you choices regarding what you want your page to be named, what elements your channel page will have, and which colors and themes you’ll have. 
• When under the Themes and Colors tab, you also have the option to go to Advanced Options, which allows you to upload a background and choose even more specifically how you want your page to appear.
• Remember to Save Your Changes as you go and if you’re unhappy with what you’ve done, just click I Want My Old Channel back to revert back to what you started with.
• To program your YouTube channel, scroll over your login name and click on MyVideos. From My Videos page you can add to the videos for your channel, delete videos you no longer want.
• You also have access to the Promote tool, which enables you to use keywords that will help your video and its channel to rank higher in searches (also accessible from your Accont page).
• From the My Videos page and the Account page, you can also access the Insight tool, which enables you to see the overall viewing pattern of your audience (do they stop watching at certain points); the demographics and geography of your viewers.  This is amazing information to have about your programming.

By creating your own YouTube channel and directing traffic to that location, you’re able to provide a much more intentional programming approach for your viewing audience.  As with the other applications we’ve discussed, remember to provide links to your website and other online locations (you can edit this information in your profile section).

An additional feature of YouTube, also allows you to create a customer player that you can program and then embed on your various websites.  By choosing specific videos players for each of your sites, you’re able to provide unique viewing opportunities at each landing point.  For more on creating custom players check out the YouTube tutorial at Butterscotch.com.

6. Retail Applications: Amazon Music, CD Baby, iTunes, and Reverbnation.  The metaphor here is very simple.  Utilize these applications as virtual music stores.

• By having your music available at a variety of online outlets, and by providing linked logos to each of those sites, you allow your fans the freedom of choice to decide where they want to shop.  While each of these sites can serve as a retail outlet, there are some distinctions about each location that may be helpful.
• Amazon.com’s music site enables your fans to be able to purchase both CDs and to download music in mp3 format (which is playable on all standard digital music systems including iTunes).  Setting up your own Amazon store, so that you pick up an additional percentage on your CD sales is relatively easy through their Amazon aStore program (for additional detail see dovinia’s article on e-How, How to Get Your Own Amazon Store).
• Getting your music onto Amazon’s system as well as the myriad of other online CD and Digital Download sites is relatively easy when you utilize online distributor CD Baby’s program (see CD Baby’s artist signup details for more information). Reverbnation is also offering their own online distribution for digital downloads, as well (check out Reverbnation’s artist program).
• Naturally, it's advisable to have your music available via iTunes, since 85% of digital download purchases occur through that system.  Either CD Baby or Reverbnation can facilitate that process for you.
• While CD Baby provides much more of a direct retail environment for consumers to look for an album and buy it (in both physical CD and digital formats), Reverbnation, while currently set up for digital downloads only, allows artists to create complete artist's site that are fully loaded with band information.  Because of its tab system, Reverbnation provides a very well-organized vehicle for artists (and a more viable alternative for bands who haven’t yet put up their own website).
• Another avenue to consider is Amazon’s new self-publishing site, CreateSpace.com. The advantage of this resource is that it allows you to create your album art, upload your digital tracks and then have CDs replicated on demand (one-at-a-time to thousands at a time).  Since it is also tied to Amazon.com, they’ll list your CD in the CreateSpace e-store and on Amazon.  Prices are higher than if you’re order CDs by the thousands from many replicators, but the ability to avoid loading up on CD inventory is a real plus. (You can read more about their program at the CreateSpace Musicians’ page.)

Oh, and before finishing up, there are two other more recent applications to consider:

FriendFeed.com, a social media aggregator (for more on this application check out John Haydon’s article on FriendFeed).

Ping.fm, a social media broadcast system that enables you to send broadcast information to all or some of your social media sites from one location (to access a tutorial on ping.fm, visit Borderline Theory’s Updated Ping Tutorial).  For me, ping is most convenient because I can access all of my social media applications from one location.

An important point to remember, however, is that just because ping allows you to broadcast your message to all of your social media outlets, doesn’t mean you should.  Remember to be selective so that you’re still creating differentiation and using each application for what it does best.  (Try using the Group feature which allows you to create groups of similar applications to make posting more specific.)

As we wrap this particular series up, it’s worth noting that this is a remarkable time for independent artists and bands.  Because of the ongoing development of online social media and marketing applications, artists have more tools at their disposal than ever.  In summary, some of the keys to successfully maximizing these opportunities are to have a well-thought-out strategy, clear tactics for employing that strategy and the discipline to utilize each application in a way that highlights their unique attributes.  Also, by regularly updating your content and creating unique pieces for each application, you will keep people coming back for more.