Being a solo artist or performing in a band often brings a number of learning curves as you navigate your career and grow your brand. It’s easy and understandable to make mistakes while you’re finding your feet, and that’s okay, but some mistakes can potentially be more harmful to your band and are best avoided where possible. Below are a few tips and tricks to help avoid some fairly common mistakes that could pose a risk to your reputation.
Networking – Authenticity Is Key
Networking becomes a huge part of the day-to-day operations as a band. You might be networking and not even necessarily realise that you’re doing it. Whether it’s getting to meet and chat with fans, other bands or industry professionals at live shows, or engaging with others through social media, these interactions are key to growing your fan base organically. The issues that can arise tend to occur when bands seek to speed up the process or focus purely on themselves instead of supporting others to help lift everyone up.
Ingenuine networking that lacks authenticity risks being not only off-putting but also detrimental as who would want to work with or support a band who doesn’t care about their scene and others in it? The reality is that building up genuine relationships takes time. You’re not going to become best friends with everybody overnight. Show interest and support other musicians, show appreciation for journalists who cover you, and actively engage with fans where possible to build and strengthen meaningful relationships. People who feel supported and appreciated by you, will continue to appreciate and support you.
Tips:
- Don’t spam out ingenuine comments on social media. Instead engage thoughtfully. Consider sharing other band’s posts to your stories, for example- most will be reciprocal.
- Do share reviews and press coverage, tagging both the media site and journalist(s) (where applicable).
- Do engage in your local scene by attending shows and getting involved.
Unrealistic Expectations – What Does Success Look Like To *You*?
There are two sides to this I’d like to focus on here, the first being the importance of establishing what your goals are specifically for your band/ you as an artist. Not every band has the same goals and depending on what these are will ultimately impact which strategies will be most important for working towards success.
Overnight success is the exception not the norm. It’s easy to gain the impression from social media that going viral overnight is an opportunity that can strike anyone at any moment. The reality is this is not the case, it is a very rare few who this happens to. Do not compare your success and achievements to those who, on social media especially, appear to have it all. Growing a fan base organically takes time and consistent effort. Keep going, evaluate your strategies as you go and change what doesn’t work, and focus on your own path.
Tips:
- Do consider your goals as an artist/ band and plan strategically how to reach them.
- Do take inspiration from other artists’ promotional strategies but do not directly compare your journey to theirs.
- Do be consistent in your efforts.
Always Be Professional
Maintaining a high level of professionalism across all aspects of your band operations is essential as a lack of professionalism can negatively impact your connections and band image. On social media, this means presenting your band well and not sharing inappropriate content or being disrespectful to others. It sounds obvious and yet there are instances of social media profiles that do not portray the band or artist in a professional light.
With so many artists being DIY, more and more are reaching out the industry professionals directly themselves. When approaching others, whether they are promoters or journalists etc., ensure you are being polite and respectful. Contact them via their work emails/ profiles etc., if they have them – this is a case by case basis as some individuals do work through their personal profiles. Properly introduce yourself and politely explain what you are looking for. Do not repeatedly spam message individuals if you do not receive an immediate response, and do not spam out music links with no context. Most industry professionals receive large amounts of messages from bands and may take time to get back to you.
Tips:
- Social media is your ‘shop window’; ensure your band is presented in a way that fits your brand while also appearing professional.
- Always be polite when contacting industry professionals otherwise they may be put off from working with you.
- Do not spam links or messages to industry professionals or fans.
For more detailed discussions on this topic, check out the Heavy Business Podcast: