If you’ve read our previous article on Social Media and Authenticity, you’ll remember that using tactics to artificially increase your social media numbers won’t work. Please keep that in mind as you read this article.
One common complaint we hear from bands is that “social media is difficult.” Another complaint we frequently hear is, “Reach on social media is poor nowadays, so there really isn’t much point in using it.”
While it is true that most platforms have made it increasingly difficult to reach fans, many bands fail to realize that there are still effective ways to boost your reach and engage with both current and potential fans. In this article, we’ll cover some tips for various platforms:
Facebook has made it more difficult to reach fans over the past few years, primarily because it has evolved into a platform that prioritizes paid advertising. Many bands have seen their reach severely limited as a result.
However, there are still best practices you can follow to continue reaching fans on Facebook:
- Post on both your band’s page and personal accounts. This might not be ideal for bands that prefer to keep music and personal lives separate, but for those who don’t mind blurring the lines, it can be an effective way to maximize your reach.
- Encourage friends and other bands to share your posts. If you’re going to ask someone to do this for you, be sure to reciprocate. You don’t want to take advantage of others by constantly asking for help without offering anything in return.
- Engage with other bands and fans on their posts. Take time every few days to scroll through your Facebook feed and interact with others. This should be done authentically, not as a tactic. If you’re not genuinely interested in something, don’t feel pressured to comment or like the post.
- For any feed posts, make sure to also share them to your stories. You can add a sticker like “new post” to encourage people to click through. You can share the story again over the next few days to drive more traffic to the post.
- Collaborative posts. This is a crucial feature that many people forget to use. For any posts involving your band, make it a collaborative post with multiple members. If the post is about a show with another band, include them in the collaboration as well. This increases your reach and exposes your post to a broader audience.
- Use the 10/10/10 method. I came across this idea recently, and it’s a great approach if you can dedicate 30 minutes a day to Instagram. The method involves spending 10 minutes engaging with feed posts, another 10 minutes on stories, and the final 10 minutes engaging with hashtags you follow. Authenticity is key here—don’t just spam fire emojis. Engage with posts you genuinely care about and want to interact with.
Despite some claims that “Twitter is dead,” this is far from true. There are tons of fans and potential fans who use Twitter to interact and discover new music.
The easiest way to boost your engagement on Twitter is by searching for your band’s name and responding to what you find. If your band has been around for 20 years, use common sense—don’t start liking or commenting on posts from 2010. When you find someone who enjoyed your music, reply with a “thanks!” or something appropriate. Follow these people back and engage with them.
If your band doesn’t have any Twitter mentions yet, you can search for your genre and join conversations there. For example, if you’re in a death metal band, search for “death metal.” Or, if you loved the most recent 200 Stab Wounds album, search for that and talk to others who enjoyed it too.
There you have it! A short guide to increasing your social media engagement. If you use these strategies authentically, they can help you grow and maintain a dedicated fan base.