In the digital digital age, email marketing has lasted as an essential means of reaching fans with click of a button. For such marketing to be successful however, you must first build a solid list of emails.
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Guest post by Jeanette Kats of the Symphonic Blog
Email marketing is crucial in the digital age. It can help you reach hundreds (or thousands!) of people with the click of a button. Email marketing can help you alert your fans about about upcoming shows, releases, interviews, merch drops and more.
But you might be asking yourself, “How do I acquire a solid list of emails?” It will take some time, but once you get started, you’ll see that it’s not as difficult as it may seem.
Here are some ways to begin building a list of email addresses for marketing and promotional purposes.
Use an Email Marketing Platform
If you already have a sturdy fan base, then you’ll want to convert those fans into email subscribers and there are many platforms in place to help make that happen. Services like MailChimp or GetResponse are the key to gaining, managing and utilizing a substantial amount of contacts.
Mailchimp offers a list of options, such as automation, A/B testing, advanced analytics, landing pages and more. Memberships start at $0/month and go up to an additional $199/month depending on what your needs are. GetResponse starts at $15/month and goes up to $1,199/month depending on the number of subscribers you have.
There are loads of different email marketing services, but make sure to do your research and find the one that works best for you.
Utilize Download Gates
Download gates are one of the easiest ways to convert listeners into email subscribers. If you offer your music for free download, make sure to use a download gate that has an option for collecting email addresses. Services such as The Artist Union and ToneDen offer a variety of options for receiving contact information from fans.
Run Competitions
Competitions are one of the best ways to convert fans into followers! You can utilize platforms like Hive or Gleam to improve your social media followings, attain more visits on your website, and, of course, collect emails. You can give away tickets to upcoming shows, merch items, free music and more.
Collaborate with Brands + Artists
Collaborating with brands and other artists or record labels can help you double your email subscribers! Reach out to labels, music brands and other artists to collab and make sure to share email subscribers when its time for promotion. If there’s no collaboration in place, simply ask a similar artist to email their list with a prompt to sign up to yours, and vice versa in return. It might be tricky finding collaborators at first, but the more you expand your network, the more opportunities you will receive.
Collect Emails on Your Website
If you’re a musician who is serious about excelling your career, then you should absolutely have a professional website. Once you do, make sure to set up a sign-up form for fans to fill out when visiting your site. MailChimp offers an option that allows you to create a form to embed on your website, but there are many different ways to do this. Check out a list of services here.
Last, but Not Least, Ask!
The easiest and least time-consuming method fpor gaining more email subscribers is to simply ask friends and family! Post on social media, ask for contact info when you’re out and about, and ask similar artists or record labels what has worked best for them.
Good luck!