The complete guide to social media for musicians

Let's be honest: marketing as a musician is tough.

On any given day there are a million must-do's and hardly enough hours to get them done, right?

Promoting your latest songs. Networking for new gigs. Fighting for the attention of fresh fans.

Exhausting? You bet.

But ever-so-rewarding when it all comes together.

Since musicians are often so busy, you need to make the most of your time spent marketing.

And if you're laser-focused on building up your SoundCloud or Bandcamp presence, you might want to consider expanding your horizons to social platforms.

For the sake of building up a base or rabid followers and getting discovered by new ones, understanding the in's and out's of social media for musicians is a matter of 'when,' not 'if.'

Why social media marketing for musicians matters so much

Make no mistake: social media isn't some sort of silver bullet for musicians with stars in their eyes.

However, a smart social presence is undoubtedly the best way to grow your audience and fill space at your gigs.

How so?

For starters, consider that your audience is likely glued to social media regardless of your genre. In fact, Instagram recently passed a billion active users while Facebook boasts two billion daily active users themselves. These numbers blow the likes of SoundCloud and Bandcamp out of the water.

Oh, and did you know that YouTube is technically the most popular music streaming service right now, beating out Spotify and Apple Music? Making sure you're set with how to promote your music on YouTube can help ensure you've got visibility on the best channels.

Besides, an optimized social presence can signal your status as a professional. In an industry where competition is so cutthroat, having pristine profiles out there lets people know that you're anything but an amateur.

That said, social media for musicians can be a bit tricky.

With so many platforms to choose from and a need to stand out from the crowd, where should you focus your energy? What should you post?

Heck, where should you even start?

Relax.

In the guide below, we've outlined the best practices of social media for musicians including how to set up your profiles and come up with a content calendar that totally kills it.

Now, let's dive in!

Start by optimizing your profiles

When someone looks you up, they're more than likely going to find your social profiles via Google or through Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.

That's why having a clean, optimized profile on each platform is a top priority.

Before worrying too much about content or creative touches, you need to ensure that your profiles tick the following three boxes:

The beauty of social media for musicians is that you have tons of creative freedom beyond these three points.

Let's take a moment to look at what an optimized musician profile looks like in the wild.

Using a stylized band photo, Weezer's Twitter bio highlights their latest album, singles, fan store and tour dates. That's a lot of information to pack into such a small space, but you can make it happen by being economical with your copy and choosy with your links.

Meanwhile, blink-182's Instagram highlights their tour dates and Las Vegas residency, in addition to social-specific hashtags they want their fans to tag themselves with.

Don't neglect valuable real estate such as your cover photos, too. Here's a great example of Fall Out Boy's cover photo promo, which scores bonus points by being visually striking as well.

If you want that sort of professional vibe for your profile without hiring a designer, don't fret. There are tons of image creation tools out there like Canva that can help you create your own banner, tour announcement and everything in-between.

And although imagery certainly matters, it's perhaps most prudent to make sure that you never let your profiles gather cobwebs. For example, you should always have Facebook events on deck for your shows if the venue you're playing at isn't doing the legwork of promotion themselves.

Now that your profile is squared away, there's the still the issue of content.

That is, how do you keep your social feed filled with fresh stuff for your followers?

Good question!

Keep your followers in the loop

You shouldn't worry about doing too much self-promotion given that's what social media marketing for musicians is all about.

As such, there's no need to be shy about whatever is new in your world.

New song? Upcoming album? Hitting the road?

Let people know!

Considering how to promote your music on Instagram can be challenging thanks to things like fickle algorithms and how fast social media moves in the first place, but frequent hype posts are totally fair game.

Additionally, it's a smart move to put together frequent fliers and announcements which are perfect for pinned tweets or posts. That way, anyone visiting your profile can know exactly what you have going on.

Oh, and bear in mind that social selling is totally fair game for musicians. Through creative promotions and sales, you can hawk your merch via social with no shame.

https://www.facebook.com/CHVRCHES/videos/653330241734210/

Show off yourself in action

When you follow a band or artist on social media, it's because you want to see them in action, right?

Well, your followers feel the same way.

If you're regularly touring or playing shows and not sure how to promote your music on Facebook efficiently, shouting out attendees and posting pictures of your performances is a good start.

Also remember that your fans can be a fantastic source of content themselves.

Encouraging user-generated content in the form of tagged fan photos is a brilliant way to interact with fans and show them a bit of love, too.  Reposting these photos is a subtle yet significant way to create a stronger connection with your audience and let them know you're listening to them.

Posting new content doesn't have to be a massive production, either. If you have some time to kill, why not record a quick off-the-cuff social video to keep your feed fresh?

Home sweet home in Tennessee for 72hrs' But Georgia’s always on my mind 🍑🍑 #raycharles pic.twitter.com/dsGFhrcsKB

— Larkin Poe (@LarkinPoe) August 7, 2018