As an artist or musician, a robust email list is one of the most important marketing tools you can have. But if it’s something that you’re just starting to build, or have been neglecting for awhile, it can be hard to suddenly build one up from scratch. Here we look at an easy roadmap to a bigger better email list.
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Guest post by Bobby Owsinski on Music 3.0
Your email list is one of the most powerful online tools that an artist can have, but how do you build one if you’re just starting out or you’ve neglected it for too long? Here are 5 tips from my Social Media Promotion For Musicians book that provide an easy roadmap to a larger list.
“Just like with your social media follows and Likes, building your mailing list takes some work. In general it comes down to the following:
1. A trustworthy site. If your site or social page makes people uncomfortable in any way, chances are they won’t give you their email address.
2. An incentive of some kind. Generally speaking, people don’t want to give their address out unless they’re get something in return. Don’t think about the fact that you’re getting their email address, think of what’s in it for the fan. He only may care about regular communication, but usually access to something free (a song, video, ticket, ebook, article, etc.) gets better results. Be careful if you’re paying to advertise a signup for your list though. Both Google and Facebook have been know to consider this “email scraping,” which could lead to your advertising account being suspended if you trade something for an email.
3. Make it easy by not asking for too much information. The more info you ask from a potential subscriber, the greater the chance that he’ll give up during the signup process. Asking for just an email address gets the greatest response, but adding a first name allows you to include a personal greeting. More than a simple name and email address makes the chances of a successful signup decrease.
4. Cross-promote across social media, business cards, banners, and anywhere else you can think of. Anywhere you get a chance to mention your email list, do so.
5. Reminders in your content. Mention your mailing list in any podcasts, blogs, or videos, because sometimes even if it’s right in front of a viewer or listener, a reminder is still needed.
Your email list is extremely powerful for communicating, interacting, and promoting to your fans. Put sufficient time and effort into it and you’ll be richly rewarded.”
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You can read more from Social Media Promotion For Musicians and my other books on the excerpt section of bobbyowsinski.com.