Building Your Fan Base with Marketing Platforms
by Maya Cullen
1. Figure out your brand as part of your creative journey.
Examples of artists who are also strong brands:
Chappell Roan
David Bowie
Billie Eilish
Bowie is all about reinvention and storytelling.
Chappell Roan is bold, outspoken and not afraid of speaking out about social issues.
Billie Eilish is raw, edgy and doesn’t adhere to societal norms.
How do you want to be portrayed as an artist?
Consider the following questions:
What is your unique sound and style?
Is there a message you want to get across?
You don’t have to be political or moral, but what is unique about you?
What do you want to portray through your music?
How do you want your fans to feel after listening to your music?
What colours fit with your style?
2. Consider who is listening to your music.
If you’re on Spotify, use the artists’ tools to review the demographics of your listeners. Most platforms such as Amazon Music, TikTok and Instagram also show audience insights.
Knowing where your fans are listening from should inform where you tour.
Think about what else your fans are interested in. Where do they spend their time online? This will help you to engage with them.
3. What other artists do your fans follow?
If you scroll to the bottom of the artist page on Spotify you can see other artists your fans are listening to. This will help you pursue support slots or decide who should support you. It can also open up collaboration ideas. Maybe there’s a producer in the same space whom you could ask to remix your songs.
4. Targeted ads on digital platforms can help.
If you’re performing in a particular city and your fans also like Chappel Roan, target her fans in that particular city.
5. Make sure search engine robots and algorithms are aware of your content.
Search Engine Optimisation is important. Take every opportunity to describe your content properly using keywords.
Fill out all the alt tags available so that imagery is described. As well as being important for SEO reasons it’s also incredibly important for enabling people with impaired vision to engage with your content. Their screen readers will describe your visuals to them.
Whatever platform you use, tagging people and using hashtags will enable you to show up in more online spaces, e.g. if someone clicks on a location/venue on Instagram Stories they’ll see your post if you’ve tagged that location/venue.
Hashtag genres, styles, themes, locations. This will all help to move your content higher up in search engine rankings.
6. Enable people to see you just being yourself.
Your content doesn’t have to be polished. Show your personality. Giving people insight into you as a person is important.
Publish behind the scenes content. For example, #OnTour is a massive trend. It’s an opportunity to give insight into what happens when you’re on tour, featuring run-of-the-mill, everyday stuff like the chats in your tour van.
7. You can build a TikTok community quickly, particularly around viral trends.
Robert Grace is a good example of a popular Irish artist on TikTok. He had a “viral moment” on the platform with his song Fake Fine which started a bidding war between major labels. He now has millions of TikTok Followers.
Keep an eye on trending sounds and challenges. Duets and stitches are a great way to build your audience here so that you’ll be seen in different circles on the platform. Collaborate with friends here.
When you Go Live on TikTok your content is shown to so many more users, not just to your Followers.
8. Encourage user-generated content.
Ask your fans to use your song in their social media videos. If a song takes off, you could have a “viral moment” on TikTok if people use your music on their own content.
Perhaps you could take a line from your song that’s aligned with Valentine’s Day, for example, and publish that around Valentine’s Day.
When you release new music, create different videos with excerpts of your song. This will make it easier for people to use different excerpts.
9. Direct artist to artist relationships are extremely valuable.
Bands often pick their support acts themselves. This trumps anyone a label or promoter will recommend. Irish bands are great at promoting each other. Digital platforms, Instagram in particular, enable you to engage with other artists.
10. If you don’t have a high end music video, make a lyric video.
On YouTube, you can premier a video and set up a live chat and listening link enabling you to just sit and chat with the community you’ve built around you, whether it’s 10 people or 10,000 people.
11. You can set up a Facebook messenger group for your community.
This is a private group where you can engage with fans. It’s a great space to keep them up to date with gigs or maybe send pre-save links.
12. Consider what platforms music professionals use.
A lot of promoters still use Facebook to promote events.
Journalists/broadcasters are still very active on Twitter/X.
A lot of A&R people discover new music on TikTok.
13. Patreon helps you earn a recurring income.
Orla Gartland is a good example of an Irish artist who does well here. She has built a community on Patreon where she shares exclusive content.
14. Engage with your fans on digital platforms.
Use as many interactive elements as you can on Instagram Stories such as polls and countdowns.
Reply to comments and Direct Messages. Message people back even just to say thanks. The more that you engage with Comments the more the algorithm will amplify your content.
15. Take two days a month out to shoot strong content.
Get three or four outfits together and shoot many different scenarios. Visit cool visual places like Poolbeg Towers, Dublin lanes, or somewhere aligned with your brand. Think of content ideas and spend a few hours at it. Work smarter not harder. It can be exhausting trying to be creative on social media every day.
16. Think of the time of day you’re posting
Where are your audience at certain times? If American audiences are important to you, don’t post in the morning Irish time because New York will be fast asleep.
17. Have a mailing list.
At gigs, get out the old paper and pen or use a QR code so people can sign up to your mailing list. This is sensible because social media platforms can be precarious. Just look at the threatened take down of TikTok in the US. Nobody knows what the future will bring so don’t put all your eggs in one basket.