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What Is Music Marketing?

Confusingly, the phrase “music marketing” can refer to a couple of different things:

It can be about using music in a marketing campaign.
It can be about artists marketing the music they create.

1. Have a Website

If you’re going to market yourself online, having a website is non-negotiable. It’s the one-stop-shop for everything about your act. If I want to check out your tour dates, book you for a show, read your backstory, or buy your merch, your website is going to be my first port of call.

There’s another big reason you should create your website: It’s a space you have total control over.

Sure, you’ll want to build a following on social media too, but third parties own those platforms. Those third parties can (and do) make frequent algorithmic changes that might dramatically reduce your reach overnight.

You don’t want your music marketing to be completely reliant on them.

OK, so you need a website, but what should it include? Given that it’s your website, it could be anything. However, as a minimum, it should have:

A news hub: A space for you to announce things like new releases, future tours, and media appearances.
Merch store: Presumably, you want to make money as a music artist, so you definitely want an online store to sell things like hoodies, vinyl, or posters.
Tour dates: People want to see you live, so tell them when and where they can do it (and provide information on how to get tickets.)
Social links: Make it easy for people to find your social media profiles.
Contact information: Whether it’s a fan wanting to ask a question or a venue owner who wants to book you, make sure you offer an email address, contact form, or some other way for people to get in touch.
Music player: A built-in MP3 player (or similar) to make it easy for people to hear your music.
Newsletter signup: Provide a way to sign up for a newsletter, which can help you build an engaged fan base.
Your biography: People who land on your site have actively searched for you, so give them some detail about your background, your influences, and who you are as an artist.