Following on from last week’s post, “Keeping It Reel”, this article looks at other ways video content can be used to promote your music and why you should make use of all visual features on streaming and social platforms. This blog also looks at the importance of keeping all social media and streaming platforms up-to-date with correct information and cohesive branding to assist with wider holistic promotional strategies.
Make Use of All Features
Social media platforms, predominantly TikTok and Instagram are the obvious places to share video content. There are also other options to consider. Spotify allows for, and encourages, the use of their feature Canvas – a short (3-8) second looping video that will display when your track is being played. Snippets from music videos are a common and easy type of video to make use of with this feature. Stock footage or live footage of your band could also work well as an alternative.
If you are making use of Spotify’s Canvas feature, check their specifications prior to uploading your videos. Canvas clips are uploaded to your songs via Spotify for Artists. You should be using this account, if you are not already, to add a band biography, social media handles and any band/artist photos to your profile.
YouTube #shorts is also a feature bands often forget about. Content created for Instagram or TikTok can be reused easily as a short video, and posting #shorts keeps your profile active in-between uploads on your main channel. Previews of upcoming videos on the main channel can work well as #shorts and enable you to get more posting opportunities out of your content.
Branding: Keeping It Cohesive
It is important to strike a balance between utilizing the same content across different platforms while also tailoring some materials specifically for each platform. One of the issues bands can encounter is a lack of branding cohesion across each online space. This includes social media platforms, a band’s own website, profiles on streaming platforms and others such as Bandcamp or Substack.
Each platform or website has its own requirements in terms of dimension specifications for static images or videos, limitations on the text length in biography sections and varying abilities to link social media handles. Scaling your visual content correctly and having different versions of your band biography (some more concise, others long-form), is necessary for maintaining a professional appearance that is on brand. Ultimately, each virtual space in which your music or visual content occupies should be instantly recognizable as belonging to you.
An effective way to maintain these online spaces is by linking them with your band’s release schedule or with tour announcements, for example. A new promotional cycle of an upcoming album usually leads to new album artwork, updated band photos and a revised band biography. Make sure to use these materials across all platforms to not only help get the word out about a forthcoming album, but also to create cohesion. Combining your workload together can be beneficial both in terms of efficiency as well as reducing the risk of any tasks being forgotten. Every time you have a new announcement to share, update your visual branding materials over all of your platforms in one go.
Tip: to assist with this, if you are working with a photographer or content creator, tell them that you require visual materials in an array of dimensions in order to be scaled correctly to each platform.
Marketing your music can overwhelming. By being prepared with materials in advance, grouping tasks together and making the most out of each online social media or streaming platform’s features, you can put forward a professional appearance that makes you clearly identifiable and recognizable.
If you haven’t read the previous articles in this series, or require a refresher, find the links below:
- “Taking Your Music To The Next Level“
- “Putting Your Best Foot Forward“
- “Making Connections: Part I“
- “Making Connections: Part II“
- “Music Promotion: Managing The Workload“
- “It’s A Marathon, Not A Sprint“
- “Keeping It Reel“
If you are interested in our hybrid marketing and PR services, find more information available HERE. For any C Squared inquiries please get in touch with Cori (corinne@csquared.info) or Curtis (curtis@csquared.info) to discuss how we can help.