by Scott Kirsner
June 16, 2009
The way the music industry worked for most of the 20th century involved artists striving and gigging and hoping to get discovered, and then letting someone else worry about everything else. Today, most of the responsibility for marketing, promotion, and building an engaged fan base falls upon you – even if you are lucky enough to get signed to a label. Take a band like OK Go, signed to Capitol Records. The band members say that the way they’ve achieved a global reach is by coming up with their own clever tactics to connect with fans, like making cheap, homemade music videos and posting them on YouTube. (OK Go’s video for “Here It Goes Again” has been seen more than 45 million times on YouTube.) Read more…
by Daylle Deanna Schwartz
June 16, 2009
Seven tips to get your street team organized and mobilized
Street teams are a great way to spread the word about your music to potential fans. They can effectively generate a buzz for your CD before you even release it. If you have the budget, you can hire street marketing companies to put them together in any market across the country — that’s what large labels do. If you can’t afford it, create one from fans, which can be the single most valuable tool you can cultivate to market your music. Street teams made up of fans that love your music become a very productive marketing campaign. Think about it. Which might pique your interest more, an advertisement for an act you don’t know, or fans enthusiastically telling you why they love an artist? Enthusiasm is contagious. Hiring street teams often doesn’t get the same bang. Fans are happy to help when asked to, and they’ll go to many lengths if you show appreciation for their efforts. Read more…
I recently took a fantastic journey to Australia where I spoke at a music conference called Big Sound in Brisbane. There I had the honor and privilege of meeting Dave Carter, a Dr. at Griffith University who was presenting a fascinating study called The Online Marketing Research Paper. 
