The importance of marketing in music

The definition of music marketing is different to each person but an article by music marketing website musicindustryhowto.com gave one of the best explanations, which is simply “ Music Marketing = Getting people to listen to your music.”

The ability to properly market music is an essential skill that every musician should learn.  When discussing the topic of marketing, the common opinion on the matter is “ I just want to make music and not worry about the marketing.”  While making good music is still the most important aspect of a music career, it is no longer enough.

Can’t I just get someone to do the marketing for me? 

While there are many platforms that can do this for you, it is often very pricey and you will not receive honest feedback from the platforms. This can lead to several problems such as finding out that the market doesn’t like your music after spending all that time and money. Money that could be better spent on production and mixing

Embrace the Internet and it will bring you success

One of the most important aspects of music marketing is effectively reaching your target audience. The internet has introduced musicians to so many outlets that can expose their music to the world such as social media, music forums, YouTube Channels etc.

It is important that musicians keep up with the technology involved in marketing, so they can fully utilise it.  

Many musicians claim that technology has diminished the music scene, which is a very counter-productive way of thinking when they should be adapting to it instead.

In an article about the rapid rise of EDM, Danny Whittle (brand director of world-famous dance club Pacha) summed it up perfectly when he said “Our musical genre embraced the Internet, all other genres fought it.

Music production dilemma: DIY or professional help?

Technology is an ever-growing beast.

  

From new online music platforms to innovative music recording softwares, producing and releasing your own music has never been easier for DIY musicians.

Many years ago, the only way a musician could make an album was to rent a recording studio and hire a recording engineer to record his or her work.  Nowadays any musician with a laptop can turn his bedroom into a small home studio and utilise the masses of “affordable” plugins and softwares available to them on the internet.

Quality Control 

One advantage of DIY is that musicians now have complete control over the production process and can mix his/her song according to the vision they have for that particular track.
  

Another good thing about DIY is that musicians no longer have to pay for a recording studio and save that money for other factors such as promotion and distribution.

Professional or DIY?

Mixing and Mastering is what determines whether a song sounds amateur or professional.
  

A skilled sound engineer can greatly enhance a track and push it to a completely new level because they possess certain qualities that differentiates them from a home producer.  One massive downside of DIY is that, an inexperienced home producer can absolutely destroy a track with bad mixing.

Whether you decide to go DIY or hire a professional, always keep in mind that sound is just as important as the music itself and may decide whether you get a record deal or not.