In case you haven’t heard, Snapchat is taking off for the mainstream public. It is a great way to make personal contact and to receive instant feedback from your fans. This means that it’s prime time for musicians to start building their Snapchat following and learn how to use it to benefit their music careers. Assuming you already have a Snapchat account, here are 10 tips to get the proverbial ball rolling.
By musician and successful Snapchatter Mike Gibson
Tip #1 – Download your Snapcode by following this link >> https://accounts.snapchat.com/accounts/snapcodes
HINT – Your Snapcode is essentially a QR Code that people can scan to easily add you to their Snapchat following.
Tip #2 – Customize your snapcode in your favorite graphic editing program – make sure you don’t alter the QR code (dots) and be careful if you change the colors. Some colors will make it difficult to scan (see the next tip).
Tip #3 – Scan your new snapcode with Snapchat to test it. You can either take a picture of the code and add it by clicking the ghost at the top of Snapchat. Select “Add Friends” and then select “Add by Snapcode”. You can also use the Snapchat camera and hold your finger down on the Snapcode when it is in the viewer. This is what happens when you scan your own code 😉
Tip #4 – Design fliers and stickers with your snapcode and put them EVERYWHERE your fans might see them! Give them out at all of your shows for free and have a snapcode sign on your merch table. Here is an early example of what I did:
Tip #5 – Sign up for Ghostcodes – IOS ONLY
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ghostcodes-discovery-app-for/id1083057569?mt=8
Tip #6 – Let people on your social media pages know you are on Snapchat but don’t overdo it. Remember, if someone is on Twitter they usually don’t want to be sent to Facebook.
Tip #7 – Send a personalized video message to everyone that adds you on Snapchat. Brand it with your music playing in the background, write a song with your new fans name etc. Be creative! Be cool. Be personal. Remember you are creating a meaningful connection with your people. Don’t ask them for ANYTHING when you 1st make contact. That’s like asking someone to marry you on the first date.
Tip #8 – Don’t send general messages meant for everybody to individuals. Most people on Snapchat will view that as spam. Publish your snaps to your story unless they are specifically for an individual.
Tip #9 – Don’t put a letter or number in front of your Snapchat name to move yourself to the top and to get people to watch your story. It cheesy and people with think you are a flake. Trust me on this one 😉
Tip #10 – Add snaps to your story daily. Respond to everyone that interacts. Be creative. Follow popular accounts and see what they are doing if you get stuck. Promote your friends. If you are an endorsee, let your companies know you are actively using Snapchat. Maybe you can do a snapchat takeover! Take my friends at D’Addario for example…
There is so much to teach and learn about Snapchat that I just can’t cover it in one article. Your creativity is the limit. That said, I feel certain following these tips will put you miles ahead of the competition. If you like guitar, social media and music business tips, you can add me on Snapchat at mattgibsonmusic or by using the Snapcode below! Be sure to check out Kingdom of Rock to hear my weekly music business themed interviews with legendary rock stars, social media titans and successful entrepreneurs. http://www.kingdomofrock.com