Generation DIY: Gettin’ Dirty with Digital Stores
posted in: Features
In the cutthroat business world you have to be on top of the game in order to bring a fresh new product to your customers. For artists the same holds true for music. Ever since the inception of music formats (records, vinyls, 8 tracks, cassettes, CDs) consumers would go to a physical store and browse the shelves until they found something that caught their eye whether it be ingenious album art, a catchy title or some sort of sticker on the front screaming “BUY ME.” In this day and age, the idea of a physical music store is slowly being transitioned out of our lives. With the emergence of iTunes, eMusic, Rhapsody, amazonMP3, napster etc., online music sales have skyrocketed across the globe. I mean think about it this way, would you rather buy music in the comfort of your own home where you can sample it or take a chance in a store? I think I know your answer. This week’s Generation DIY is going to talk about the emergence of online stores and how you can get your music at the top of their lists!
There are many different ways to get your name onto music lover’s iTunes playlists. One of my earlier posts mentioned cover songs as a great tool of winning over listeners who have never heard you before, and believe it or not covers have given some artists their lucky break. A successful way of marketing (and selling) your band through digital stores is by recording a cover of a popular song. Whether it be holiday themed or not (although these can bring in a lot of hits), you don’t have to win the listener over because they already like the song. So, if you do it right, it’s a win/win situation.
The addition of keywords to your music, album title or part of your band name definitely helps search inquiries within stores. The search function is one of the most used features in these digital stores, and many times is discovery comes from keyword accidental finds. Tagging your music with genres, or words that may describe what your music sounds like is another perfect way to help heighten your search-ability. Now, Let’s look at other ways you can help bring listeners to your page and into your musical world.
One of the greatest tools brought into the music world was the creation of Apple’s iTunes. This application holds hundreds of thousand songs that can be searched for directly from your desktop. Today any artist can market their music straight to the consumer’s computer just by uploading it to iTunes. Within the store there is a feature that lets you create a playlist called an iMix. I found a tip online that suggested creating an iMix with a few of your own songs along with other known artists that fall within the same genre of music. Publishing this gives other listeners a chance to check out the other bands and stumble upon your music. Also, rating the iMix (and having your friends do so) will move your playlist to the top lists thus making it easier to find. If this tactic isn’t coined as genius, then I don’t know what is.
Another way to help boost your sales and spread your products across the board is video uploads. You have your music online, why not a video? A simple and cost effective way to help promote a single off of your album is to film an independent music video. The video doesn’t have to be over the top with special effects and what not, but it should be creative. Look at OK GO as an example. They put out the treadmill video, which became a viral sensation on YouTube. You can upload your video to iTunes for sale through TuneCore, giving you another place on the charts. Populating both music and video sites will boost your search-ability and help put a face to your name for your listeners. Of course, there are many ideas still out there waiting to be captured by the right band so get your thinking hats on become that next video star.
Hopefully this post helped spark some new ideas as well as got you motivated to push your music into the digital store world. As always, if you have any other ideas feel free to leave them in the comments. I would love to hear what you have to say.
Until next time Generation DIY, keep your game face on. This is YOUR year!