When you’re just starting out in the music industry, finding fans can feel like an impossible task. Without knowing how to upload music to Spotify or let people know when you are scheduled to perform, no one will ever hear your music. In truth, a fan base isn’t found, it’s created with just as much hard work as you put into your music. Here are a few ways you can generate your own devotees in the entertainment industry!
Getting Heard
The only way to make fans is to expose them to your work. While personality plays a big role in the entertainment world, a musician makes their mark with their tradecraft. Handing out demos and playing your demo at the club will only get you so far. You’ll need to expose your work to a wider audience if you want to generate that much-needed interest.
Knowing how to upload music to Spotify and other platforms will help you access a near-immeasurable amount of listeners. These services can even feature your work in playlists and song suggestions, garnering you even more attention. Once your tracks gain some footing, you’ll be in a much better position to get noticed in other areas of the industry.
Fanbase Basics
No matter how successful you are, the people who follow your music fall into five basic categories. These levels make up the fanbase pyramid that you can use to help engage with your followers on a variety of levels. Even if you have only one admirer, they’ll be in one of the following levels:
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Dormant Fans: The lowest level consists of former followers that may have fallen away from your music and just need a nudge to renew their interest.
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Casual Fans: An enthusiast at this level listens to your work every now and again, maybe even sharing it with their friends.
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Engaged Fans: Someone who follows your social media posts and is an active listener to your music uploaded to Spotify.
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Superfans: They come to your gigs, buy your merch, and support you the best they can.
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Ultimate Fans: Die-hard followers that hang on your every word, or investors with a stake in your fame.
When your fans are engaged with your music, they can do a lot to boost your presence in a variety of ways. Buying shirts and stickers with your logo support you financially as well as getting your name in the public eye. They may also repost and share your music on social media, providing a lot of hype based on your brand.
Social Media Madness
Being able to upload music to Spotify will get your tunes heard, but that only tackles part of the fan-building equation. You need to let your personality shine through, hooking potential fans with your words as well as your music. Stage presence aside, you can show the kind of artist you are by interacting with fans on social media platforms.
Building your fanbase in this way means focusing on your brand and how it is portrayed. You’ll need to stay on top of the latest trends and hashtags to help new users find you while also giving your work a wider reach. Planning ahead is essential since people will lose interest if there is too long a lapse in posting. Controlling these outlets will give you a lot more leverage when generating a new fanbase around personal branding.
Showing Your Stuff
Combining the power of internet-released music and social media can have huge benefits for artists. Live performances are the bread and butter for building a strong fan base as it allows you to showcase both your art and personality. Often, the most difficult part of performing live is making new listeners aware of those events.
After uploading your music to Spotify, you’ll need a way to get the news out to all those future fans. Luckily, there are several ways that music enthusiasts can look for new bands and find advanced listings for their favorite performers! These platforms include:
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Bandisintown
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Spotify
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SongKick
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Facebook
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JamBase
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Eventful
Listing your shows on such websites focuses your exposure toward those looking for live performances specifically. This also helps if your band plays at various locations throughout a specific region as it allows fans to follow your art as it moves from venue to venue. You’ll also have a lot more freedom than laying at the same spot each weekend just so enthusiasts know where to find you!
For the Fans
Generating a dedicated fanbase takes a lot of work, especially if you’re starting from the ground up. Leveraging social media, understanding how to upload music to Spotify, and featuring your live shows are all great ways to let people know the nature of your art. Once you’ve created a following, build your brand by engaging with your audience and it will help to secure your future in the industry, all with a little help from your fans!
