Plain and simple, social networks like Facebook and MySpace are made for advertising - free advertising. Whether it’s a product, brand, small business, charity event or yourself, social networking sites have made it easy for anyone to log on and create awareness toward whatever cause or object they want people to know about.
So how can a musician such as myself take advantage of this free advertising and use Facebook to expand my listeners and bring more people to my concerts? Read on.
I am new to Facebook. I have only been a member for a few hours so what I offer here are merely assumptions of what can be accomplished using Facebook as a music marketing tool. The first thing I noticed upon completing the signup and login process was how clean and navigateable Facebook is compared to Myspace. The second thing I noticed was how many options Facebook has for promoting my music.
First of all, a band can create a “Facebook Pages” to connect with listeners and keep them engaged in their music by sending updates about upcoming concerts and cd’s or new t-shirt designs. New applications are being produced and released for use on Facebook everyday. These applications can be added to a page to further engage listeners with content such as videos or music tracks. This customization gives users a more rich experience than a standard profile page.
Facebook groups or “Bumper Stickers” are another great way to spread the word about a bands music. “Bumper Stickers” include message boards, photos, videos, etc. By forming a group your music could possibly spread overnight. If you can get members to join your group, soon their friends will be joining and their friends and so on. Fans, fans, fans. By making a “Joshua Gagne Rocks Group” I will be getting a free plug on all my friends, and hopefully their friends, profile pages.
“Facebook Events” is an excellent tool for promoting events (duh). Whats cool about this is that a new page is created for each event. Each event page includes its own wall, photos, discussion boards, etc . This is really awesome because I could post an event for an upcoming concert in which I’ll be performing. After the event, people can post photos and comment on how I rocked their faces off.
As you can see, there are plenty of opportunities for marketing music on Facebook. Not only is it a great way to keep your audience informed but it is also a great tool for expanding your audience.
If you can think of some rad ideas, post them!
Thanks for the guide.
Promoting music is easier than ever now with the leverage of social network applications such as Facebook and MySpace.