The DIY Musician: Marketing Your Music Via Snapchat
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The DIY Musician: Marketing Your Music Via Snapchat

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Launching in 2011, Snapchat has evolved into quite an effective tool for industry professionals. Allowing an individual or group to engage instantly with their audience, the app is fast-becoming an invaluable part of a promotion strategy.

 

For those who have yet to enter the land of Snapchat, the application allows users to take photos and record videos for up to ten seconds (with or without a filter) and share them amongst their friends and followers. Users can then add text, drawings or stickers to the image or video, making it fun and interactive. Therefore, the social application gives artists and bands the opportunity to bring their audience in closer than ever – without it becoming a blatant promotion scheme. So how should you go about utilising Snapchat?

 

First, you need to engage an audience. Share your Snapchat username via your social media sites and check out our five to-do tips below for your ultimate guide to snapping yourself silly.

 

Show Your Audience Who You Are

One of the greatest features of Snapchat is its instantaneous sharing ability. It enables you to share your life with your audience. From telling them about what music you’re listening to at the that present moment to showing them how you spend your day, it can provide great insight into who you are offstage. There’s nothing better than getting to know your favourite artists on a personal level, so allowing your audience into your day-to-day is a great way to form a strong connection with them.

 

Announce Your Upcoming Shows

Use the text, make a sign or just scream it from the rooftops! Tell your Snapchat fam what’s up next via images or video. Give them the inside scoop as to where you’re heading and there’s a good chance they’ll be more engaged in becoming a part of your schedule.

 

Share Exclusive Previews To New Releases

There is nothing more exciting than being the first to know something – especially when it’s about an artist that you enjoy listening to. You can use Snapchat to send short snippets of upcoming releases to your fans, without giving away too much. Show them how you are putting it together, the different elements involved, and why you chose certain lyrics or melody. Allow your audience to be a part of the process and remember to let them know where they can pre-purchase the previewed works.

 

Encourage Your Audience To Share Your Music

By asking your audience to share your music in a unique way, your sound could potentially be sent throughout the Snapchat stratosphere. The app allows you to record while playing a song from your smartphone, so it could be as simple as asking your audience to lip-sync or sing to your song and share it with their friends. In return, they could receive a free download to the track itself.

 

Give Your Audience Backstage Access

By taking your audience behind the scenes of your writing process, recording time or even your live shows, you can allow them to become a part of your journey. Take photos or videos of your time on the road or even when you’re all just hanging out at home together. Knowing that each captured moment is fleeting and will be gone in 24 hours means that you can get a little silly, share exclusive footage and not have to worry about it lingering for too long.

 

 

If you’ve had some success using Snapchat as a promotion tool, we’d love to hear from you. Snapchat is available for download via the App Store or Google Play Store.