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Guest post by\u00a0James Shotwell<\/strong>\u00a0from\u00a0Soundfly’s Flypaper<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n Promoting your music online can sometimes feel like\u00a0shouting into a void.<\/strong>\u00a0The same, unfortunately, can often be said about\u00a0pitching your music to the press<\/a>. Between the ever increasing competition from new music being released every year and the limited amount of time most\u00a0music blogs<\/a>\u00a0have to cover new talent, it\u2019s very easy for an artist to spend hours, even days, sending emails to everyone they can find, only to receive little or no response at all.<\/p>\n Unfortunately, there is no\u00a0super secret industry insider wizardry that\u2019s going to make all the best blogs in the world start caring about your music. But that doesn\u2019t mean it\u2019s not going to happen for you!\u00a0It just takes hard work and persistence, creativity, a whole lot of kindness, and some old-fashioned strategic planning.\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n So with that in mind, here are five keys to success every great artist such as yourself will need to internalize as you build\u00a0your digital promotion strategy<\/a>.<\/p>\n The term\u00a0brand consistency<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0refers to any attempt to communicate messages in a way that doesn\u2019t detract from your core brand strategy, values, and foundation. In other words, brand consistency is all about\u00a0being yourself in everything that you do<\/a>\u00a0so that consumers know who you are, what you produce, and what your work is all about. Without brand consistency, consumers will lose sight of the message you are trying to convey, which in turn will cause them to lose interest. If they cannot understand what you are\u00a0trying to do<\/em>, they will find it hard to trust your future output, thus making it increasingly hard to convert listeners into supporters.<\/p>\n Branding doesn\u2019t have to be a bad word for artists. You just need to establish the general contours of your identity as\u00a0a guide for maintaining it in everything you do. Such\u00a0efforts should include basic instructions on\u00a0how to use all your branding tools (name, logo, typeface, photos, color palettes, etc.)<\/strong>. Being specific is key. Know exactly how you want to be presented and find clear ways to\u00a0communicate that to anyone who works with you<\/a>\u00a0moving forward. This includes publicists, booking agents, promoters, etc.<\/p>\n + Work with a Soundfly Mentor on your branding in a goal-oriented\u00a0Headliners Club session<\/a>\u00a0this month! Let us know\u00a0what you\u2019d like to work on here.<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n A decade ago, we were all sold the idea that\u00a0digital streaming<\/a>\u00a0could end the destruction to artists\u2019 bottom lines caused by digital piracy by creating new, legal means to access music on demand. While services like Spotify and Apple Music have\u00a0helped to monetize digital music<\/a>, they have not helped in reducing piracy. Digital piracy in 2017 was worse than any previous year on record, and by 2020, the rate of theft online is expected to double.<\/p>\n With that in mind,\u00a0artists have tons of tools available to them that allow them to promote without fear of theft.<\/strong>\u00a0Haulix<\/a>, for example, provides a secure platform to discreetly share new and unreleased music with industry professionals and influencers. They also offer anti-piracy tools, such as watermarking and two-factor authentication. Get your releases out there, but be safe about it, so you can\u00a0make sure your royalty dollars are still coming in.<\/a><\/p>\n Networking matters<\/a>\u00a0more than you might think. That unknown band who suddenly got a feature in\u00a0Rolling Stone<\/em>? That\u2019s networking in action. That local act that just signed with the label of your dreams? Networking made that happen. Is the DIY group all your friends keep talking about now\u00a0opening tour dates<\/a>\u00a0for an international headliner? Networking.<\/p>\n Your skill level and\/or knowledge as it relates to the music industry won\u2019t mean a thing if you are unable to meet people professionally and make a good impression. Relationships\u00a0mean more in music<\/a>\u00a0than virtually anything else. You\u2019re more likely to be asked who you know and what you\u2019ve done with or for them than where you went to college or what your GPA was.\u00a0To succeed in this industry, you need strong work relationships<\/strong>, and the only way to develop those is by networking with your peers, and never being shy to meet new people, online and in-person.<\/p>\n Playlists<\/a>\u00a0are maybe the most significant music discovery tool that exists today. People of all ages use music to express themselves and curate a personal soundtrack that others are encouraged to use. In the age of Spotify and Apple Music, the same goes for brands. There are hundreds of brands curating playlists crafted to represent a particular mood or aesthetic, and there are millions of people engaging with those selections every week.<\/p>\n Placement on the right streaming playlist<\/a>\u00a0can do more for an artist than any blog or news publication, because an appearance on a favorite playlist provides both\u00a0income<\/a>and\u00a0exposure<\/a>. Even if everyone who subscribes to a playlist only hears a song once, the artist behind that song could see a substantial boost in plays and streaming revenue.<\/p>\n There are two approaches to playlist contention. The first is to submit your song to Spotify\u2019s new\u00a0Playlist Submission feature<\/a>. The second and far more time-consuming method requires you think outside the box.\u00a0Partner with other artists to promote one another on curated lists; contact blogs with branded playlists; ask fans to make their playlists of the own, etc.<\/strong><\/p>\n Whatever you do,\u00a0be careful to not fall prey to one of the many playlist scams out there.<\/strong>\u00a0No one can guarantee placement on a playlist unless they control that playlist \u2014 no one.<\/p>\n Regardless of any technological revolution that may take place in the future, community will always be at the heart of any industry success story. The artists and groups who get ahead are most often able to do so because they\u2019ve harnessed the reach of their digital following by empowering fans to be brand ambassadors in their own right. These artists engage with their fans to such a degree that their fans recruit others to join them. And in 2018, Instagram is where much of\u00a0that community-building is taking place.<\/a><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/flypaper.soundfly.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/Poisson-Rouge-Marketing-GIF-by-Soundfly-downsized_large.gif\")
<\/p>\n1. Branding and brand consistency matters.<\/h2>\n
2. Piracy is still an issue. Address it.<\/h2>\n
3. Relationships are everything. Network. Network. Network.<\/h2>\n
4. Playlists are the new mixtapes.<\/h2>\n
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<\/p>\n5. What does your Insta-story look like?<\/h2>\n