In a recent Facebook Live video I shared five powerful music marketing principles from the Guerrilla Music Marketing Handbook.
Musicians of all kinds can use these simple strategies to create awareness, attract fans, and prosper as an artist.
Here’s the video:
And here’s the text from the book:
Here are five essential principles that run throughout these pages. If you understand them now you’ll get a lot more out of this book:
1) Question everything you’ve ever been told about the music business
If you get involved in the music biz for long, you’ll encounter plenty of people — some with impressive résumés — who will offer you their best music business advice.
That’s fine. The more information you take in, the better educated you’ll be. But remain flexible and open-minded. The rules are changing quickly, so beware of anyone with an outdated, black-and-white view of the music world.
These days, you get to pick and choose which existing “rules” truly apply to you — and you can create more empowering rules that suit you along the way.
2) Give yourself permission to succeed
The biggest mistake you can make is waiting for someone or something else to deem you worthy of pursuing a music career. You don’t need an official sanction or a green light from anyone other than yourself (and the segment of the fan population you serve).
So go ahead and give yourself approval right now!
3) Whenever you take action to promote your music, you must know exactly why you’re taking the action to begin with
Action by itself is not enough. You must know the purpose behind your actions. What is the real outcome you desire?
The best way to make sure you’re going about things effectively is to come up with a plan that makes sense, have very focused goals, and realize that you need to provide a benefit (or solution) to everyone you connect with in the music business.
4) Think outside of your mental box
Human beings are creatures of habit. We become victims of our own routines. Therefore, it’s no surprise that we slip into a narrow way of doing things. Habits are quite useful when they involve brushing your teeth, getting dressed, and driving a car.
But when it comes to promoting your music, this routine way of thinking — and acting — is stunting your progress.
When you market yourself the same way you’ve always done it, or the same way a thousand other artists have done it, you become part of the great music swamp in which everyone looks and sounds the same. Don’t get lulled into monotony. Break those patterns!
5) Have fun — marketing shouldn’t be so damn serious!
There’s a misguided belief that defeats most musicians before they even start promoting themselves. It’s the notion that to market yourself effectively you have to shift into serious “business mode.” That you have to be an expert in all facets of marketing strategy and not make any mistakes.
No wonder so many artists are repulsed by marketing. I’m getting a headache just thinking about it now in those terms.
To my way of thinking, marketing is simply a natural extension of the creative process. It’s something you play with and experiment with to find the right combinations that work — similar to how you create music.
Promotion should not be a burden. It should be energizing and enjoyable. You should bring a sense of playfulness and creativity to your marketing.
Yes, when done right, you can actually have fun with it!
What do you think?
Does my advice make sense to you?
Please leave a comment, clap, share, and interact in whatever way floats your boat!
To learn more about the highly acclaimed Guerrilla Music Marketing Handbook: 201 Self-Promotion Ideas for Songwriters, Musicians & Bands on a Budget, go here …
