{"id":2341,"date":"2021-03-22T20:27:01","date_gmt":"2021-03-22T20:27:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2021\/03\/22\/influencer-marketing-for-indie-musicians\/"},"modified":"2021-03-22T20:27:01","modified_gmt":"2021-03-22T20:27:01","slug":"influencer-marketing-for-indie-musicians","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2021\/03\/22\/influencer-marketing-for-indie-musicians\/","title":{"rendered":"Influencer Marketing for Indie Musicians"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span>If you\u2019ve been researching ways to market your music recently, you\u2019ve probably read suggestions to use social media influencers. That\u2019s great advice! Working with an influencer can be an effective way to market your music online. But are you scratching your head at just what all that means? You\u2019re not alone.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Of all the new terms to enter the lexicon of the social media age, \u201cinfluencer\u201d is one of the more nebulous. What is an influencer? And what do they do?<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_79 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2021\/03\/22\/influencer-marketing-for-indie-musicians\/#What_is_an_influencer\" >What is an influencer?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2021\/03\/22\/influencer-marketing-for-indie-musicians\/#How_can_artists_market_their_music_with_influencers\" >How can artists market their music with influencers?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2021\/03\/22\/influencer-marketing-for-indie-musicians\/#What_social_media_platforms_are_the_most_effective_for_music_marketing\" >What social media platforms are the most effective for music marketing?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2021\/03\/22\/influencer-marketing-for-indie-musicians\/#How_do_I_know_if_Im_ready_to_start_looking_for_influencers_to_market_with\" >How do I know if I\u2019m ready to start looking for influencers to market with?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2021\/03\/22\/influencer-marketing-for-indie-musicians\/#How_do_I_find_an_influencer_to_work_with\" >How do I find an influencer to work with?<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2021\/03\/22\/influencer-marketing-for-indie-musicians\/#How_do_I_vet_an_influencer_once_I_find_one\" >How do I vet an influencer once I find one?<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2021\/03\/22\/influencer-marketing-for-indie-musicians\/#How_do_I_create_a_marketing_campaign_with_an_influencer\" >How do I create a marketing campaign with an influencer?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-8\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2021\/03\/22\/influencer-marketing-for-indie-musicians\/#What_can_I_expect_after_the_campaign_launches\" >What can I expect after the campaign launches?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-9\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2021\/03\/22\/influencer-marketing-for-indie-musicians\/#What_are_the_markers_of_a_successful_influencer_marketing_campaign\" >What are the markers of a successful influencer marketing campaign?<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-10\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2021\/03\/22\/influencer-marketing-for-indie-musicians\/#How_do_I_get_users_to_convert_to_listeners\" >How do I get users to convert to listeners?<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_is_an_influencer\"><\/span><span>What is an influencer?<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span>According to our <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/diymusician.cdbaby.com\/music-career\/the-modern-music-glossary\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span>Modern Music Glossary<\/span><\/a><span>, an influencer is: \u201cSomeone who has significant knowledge and a large following in a specific cultural landscape and can use that to influence purchasing decisions or trends among others who are part of that same community. Influencers often use social media to voice their opinions on the goings-on in their community.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>In the music industry, an influencer could be a critic who influences those who read their reviews, a label that defines listeners\u2019 tastes, or a video creator on YouTube who uses music to connect with their followers.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_can_artists_market_their_music_with_influencers\"><\/span><span>How can artists market their music with influencers?<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span>Increasingly, musicians have started working with influencers on social media platforms to grow their audience and convert those fans into concrete figures like streams or merch sales.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Gabe Herring is the strategic partner manager at CD Baby and also works as a label manager for indie artists on his own. He works with artists who are in the early stages of their career and helps grow them as an artist and brand.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>A growing part of Herring\u2019s strategy is enlisting the expertise of influencers on social media platforms to create campaigns for artists he\u2019s working with.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>One example was with an artist Herring worked with called the Astronomers, whose song \u201cSkywalking\u201d was filled with <em>Star Wars<\/em> references. \u201cWe really hit the <em>Stars Wars<\/em> community on Reddit hard,\u201d says Herring. \u201cWe started out there by reaching out to some lightsaber enthusiasts that do some pretty cool lightsaber videos. They choose really visually appealing videos to match their lightsabers to the background, so for us that was easy to use for the song to get attention.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Another of Herring\u2019s clients was from California and had written a song about being on the beach with friends after a surf session. \u201cWe targeted a ton of southern California surfer accounts and connected with the audience,\u201d says Herring. \u201cThe video we used was the band on the beach with a ukulele to set the scene. That was the fastest we saw videos being created with that. It was just from the video and people used the sound in the background of their videos.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_social_media_platforms_are_the_most_effective_for_music_marketing\"><\/span><span>What social media platforms are the most effective for music marketing?<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/diymusician.cdbaby.com\/music-promotion\/tiktok-music-promotion-guide\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span>TikTok<\/span><\/a><span>: \u201cIt\u2019s the platform that gets the most focus,\u201d says Herring. \u201cIt\u2019s the easiest to work with because it\u2019s still a fairly new platform.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Since the artists Herring works with are usually in the range of 20,000 to 150,000 monthly Spotify listeners, he looks for creators on TikTok that maybe have 5,000 to 10,000 followers. \u201cThey\u2019re more likely to work with artists because they\u2019re also trying to grow more followers,\u201d he says.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>These influencers with smaller numbers of followers are called \u201cmicro-influencers.\u201d They tend to be fairly new to the platform and are looking to build their audience, so a mutually beneficial collaboration between them and an emerging indie artist is enticing to both parties.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/diymusician.cdbaby.com\/releasing-music\/instagram-reels-music\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span>Instagram Reels<\/span><\/a><span>: \u201cThe same thing about micro-influencers also applies to Reels since it\u2019s so new as well,\u201d says Herring. \u201cBut since Instagram is older those influencers might be more popular and might have an agency to go through and there might be more money involved.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/byte.co\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span>Byte<\/span><\/a><span>: \u201cIt\u2019s from one of the cofounders of Vine,\u201d says Herring. \u201cIt\u2019s six second loops where any kind of video content you want to create, so you need to be more creative with it. It\u2019s easier to find creators on Bite who are willing to collaborate since they\u2019re at the stage where they\u2019re willing to collaborate for less money.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/diymusician.cdbaby.com\/music-promotion\/snapchat-for-musicians\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span>Snapchat<\/span><\/a><span>: Yes, people still use Snapchat! \u201cDuring the 2020 election, Snapchat was a hub for political activity,\u201d says Herring. \u201cIt was responsible for many young people getting into politics for the first time. That\u2019s from influencers on the platform.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.reddit.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span>Reddit<\/span><\/a><span>: \u201cI\u2019ve seen Reddit become the platform where the trends start and then expand to other platforms,\u201d says Herring. \u201cA lot of things start there first, so it\u2019s starting to become something people lean on for music promotion. We\u2019ve used Reddit to start campaigns over TikTok or other platforms to gauge engagement.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_do_I_know_if_Im_ready_to_start_looking_for_influencers_to_market_with\"><\/span><span>How do I know if I\u2019m ready to start looking for influencers to market with?<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span>This can be a bit subjective, but Herring advises that you take an honest listen to your music. \u201cIt comes down to the quality of the content,\u201d he says. \u201cYou can get that from the initial response on social media. What\u2019s the response from people who have never heard your music?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>And, it might seem obvious but just to put it out there: \u201cYou want to make sure you\u2019re using your best work. What are people going to relate to?\u201d So maybe don\u2019t use that demo you recorded with one mic in your living room.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_do_I_find_an_influencer_to_work_with\"><\/span><span>How do I find an influencer to work with?<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span>Go online! Do your research! Look around on the social platforms and find a few creators whose work you admire.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_do_I_vet_an_influencer_once_I_find_one\"><\/span><span>How do I vet an influencer once I find one?<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span>Herring outlines a few things to look for when you contact an influencer:<\/span><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><span><strong>Look at the content on the profile.<\/strong> Make sure you want to associate your brand with their brand.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span><strong>Look at engagement on the profile.<\/strong> They could have a ton of followers but it doesn\u2019t mean people interact with them. Check the comments section and make sure the followers are participating. If they are, that means they\u2019ll likely participate with any campaign you run with that influencer.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span><strong>Make sure their brand and aesthetic aligns with yours.<\/strong> Your audience needs to relate to what the influencer is doing, and vice versa.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span><strong>How well do they communicate?<\/strong> Are they difficult to deal with? If communication is slow or non-committal, it could take much longer to create a campaign, if it even gets done at all.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span><strong>Have a contract in place if you can.<\/strong> This can be tough with micro-influencers who might not want to sign a contract if they\u2019re just starting out. If it\u2019s for little money, you\u2019ll need to decide if it\u2019s worthwhile to continue working with them without a contract.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_do_I_create_a_marketing_campaign_with_an_influencer\"><\/span><span>How do I create a marketing campaign with an influencer?<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span>Once you find an influencer, contact them and iron out an agreement to create a campaign for your music, it\u2019s time to actually form that campaign.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>If you\u2019re a fairly new artist without much experience in marketing, Herring advises to let the influencer pitch content first. \u201cThey know their audience best,\u201d he says. \u201cSo they\u2019ll know what connects with them and what works.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Remember: even micro-influencers have experience using their brand and profile to speak to their audience. But of course, you know your music. \u201cAbsolutely feel free to push back if their idea is against your brand or identity,\u201d says Herring. \u201cIt\u2019s all about a conversation.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_can_I_expect_after_the_campaign_launches\"><\/span><span>What can I expect after the campaign launches?<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span>Herring is honest about the results: \u201cIt\u2019s a crapshoot. We have expected views we want to see and expected common shares. Sometimes they are very low and even the influencer is surprised.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>One trick he shares is removing the content and posting again. \u201cWe\u2019ve seen that with our original posts on TikTok,\u201d he says. \u201cThere\u2019s very little difference in the post and no response. Then we post the same time and there\u2019s better response.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"What_are_the_markers_of_a_successful_influencer_marketing_campaign\"><\/span><span>What are the markers of a successful influencer marketing campaign?<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span>The hardest but most important goal of a social media marketing campaign is conversion. That\u2019s the step a social media user takes from seeing your campaign on a social media platform to clicking the link to your song on a streaming platform, or searching for it themselves. Essentially, turning social media users into listeners and fans.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cJust because you\u2019re seeing followers does not mean listeners on the platforms,\u201d says Herring. \u201cYou want to pair influencer marketing with audience growth.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_do_I_get_users_to_convert_to_listeners\"><\/span><span>How do I get users to convert to listeners?<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span>\u201cOne thing we do to nudge people to convert is we run ads,\u201d says Herring. \u201cWe set it up so it drives that user to their preferred streaming platform.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Herring does this with a few different ad programs:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span>Facebook Ads<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span>Ads on YouTube with Google Ad Sense<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span>Spotify Ads through Show.co<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span>That last one is especially significant because you can run a <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/diymusician.cdbaby.com\/news\/turn-your-spotify-track-or-youtube-video-into-an-interactive-ad-that-reaches-real-music-fans-online\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span>Show.co Ad Builder<\/span><\/a><span> campaign through CD Baby! Those ads appear on Spotify and drive conversion right on the platform.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Ultimately, the hallmark of a successful campaign is to end up with more followers on your streaming profiles and more listens for your song than you had before. That growth in your fanbase means increased streaming revenue, more viewers for your livestreams and stronger merch sales. So get out there and find an influencer!<\/span><\/p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/diymusician.cdbaby.com\/music-promotion\/influencer-marketing-for-indie-musicians\/\" target=\"_blank\">Influencer Marketing for Indie Musicians<\/a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/diymusician.cdbaby.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">DIY Musician<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you\u2019ve been researching ways to market your music recently, you\u2019ve probably read suggestions to use social media influencers. That\u2019s great advice! Working with an influencer can be an effective way to market your music online. But are you scratching your head at just what all that means? You\u2019re not alone. Of all the new terms to enter the lexicon of the social media age, \u201cinfluencer\u201d is one of the more nebulous. What is an influencer? And what do they do? What is an influencer? According [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"h5ap_radio_sources":[],"cybocfi_hide_featured_image":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2341","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-best-seo-blogs"],"featured_image_src":null,"featured_image_src_square":null,"author_info":{"display_name":false,"author_link":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/author\/"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2341","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2341"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2341\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2341"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2341"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2341"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}