Future Producers - Music Industry / Legal / Marketing

Artist nowadays must understand the dire importance of branding themselves. Branding is the initial perception that people think of when your name or business is mentioned. Social Media is the platform for branding. Platforms such as youtube, twitter, and even now instagram are key in exploiting the visibility of your brand to a bigger audience. You are branded whether you like it or not, take control of the process. If you don’t brand yourself, others will do it for you. Appearance counts, both physical appearance and your online presence. Youtube is the prime gateway for gaining visibility to a new audience. Posting quality videos that promote you and what your brand stands for make fans gravitate towards you. Now quality is important because with branding it stands for everything you do. So the last thing you want to be branded for is the artist who keeps low budget videos, with bad quality, and no content. You want to impress your audience so that they take you serious and keep coming back to see what you are doing next. Be proactive in presenting the image that you want others to have of you. This plays in part with networking; a powerful tool in further making your brand appealing. Your network is an important component of your brand that provides a way to further communicate your message through individuals who value you and your talents. Effective networking is key whenever you are out at events and nightclubs. One key tip is to have a 15-30 second personal commercial ready when networking. The attention span of people nowadays is extremely short, so getting your message across quickly and making a lasting impression on the prospect is vital . In business, hiring managers report that 75% of jobs are gained through networking, not through résumés alone. Therefore, job seekers should spend 80% of their time networking and 20% on traditional submission methods. Same goes into the business of music. A brand is not just who you say you are, it has to be backed up with experience and accomplishments. Do something every day that reinforces your brand identity so that all of your actions become consistent with the brand that you wish to project. Personal Branding is not a one-time effort. It's an ongoing career management strategy. Brand consistency enables you to become easily recognizable to an audience. It allows people to form an ‘image’ and idea of you when your name is mentioned. One strategy is to use the same profile picture on all of your social networking sites. Utilize a photo thats both creative and presents a good image of your brand. Even with a strong personal brand, over time it may become outdated. The brand must be updated in order to remain a true representation of who you are. It is critical to continually evaluate your brand and evolve with the times in order to remain relevant to your target audience. Continue to upgrade your skill set and your marketing materials to reflect your personal and professional growth.Stay tuned for my next article on this subject giving you more in-depth steps to effectively implementing your brand to its highest potential audience.