how to maintain a fan base

[WP14]

-1 like some days + 47 on others. Its important to know who your real fans are and its even more important to communicate with them. If your just starting off make all of your songs available for free download. The sad truth is there are a lot of selfish wannabes out there that just wanna sell you shit beats and cheesy songs. They don't give a shit about giving back to their fans. If you are a wannabe mc and your not as successful as you think you should be perhaps you should re-evaluate the situation before spamming peoples mail.

 

[acetheface954]

-1 like some days + 47 on others. Its important to know who your real fans are and its even more important to communicate with them. If your just starting off make all of your songs available for free download. The sad truth is there are a lot of selfish wannabes out there that just wanna sell you shit beats and cheesy songs. They don't give a shit about giving back to their fans. If you are a wannabe mc and your not as successful as you think you should be perhaps you should re-evaluate the situation before spamming peoples mail.

naw man. I would have to disagree about giving away your music for free. unless you[re going to get something out of it like hundreds of followers, tweets, DJ drops or something I'd have to say no. try to get away from that word free. nobody respects anything that it free. the only free I give out these days is unofficial remixes because the content doesn't belong to me.

 

[agivens]

I strongly disagree.

How do you get potential fans to give your music a chance if you don't let them have access to your original material for free?

The market dictates a lot of this stuff so if people as big as Frank Ocean Rick Ross and Lil Wayne give out free music I think an indie needs to explore this option as well. Do you think that they should give out free music?

From my experience artist and songwriters with this mentality are really facing a productivity issue; they can't supply a stream of constant recorded music.

Any thoughts?

 

[SFTRAXX]

Big artists already have established a loyal fan base so giving out their music works out great for them in terms of promotion but for a lot of indie artists the free tactic might do more harm then good.

Now don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that free can't work - Free can work as a promotional tool but Its up to you as an artist (same rule applies to you even if you're a producer / beatmaker <== because you're an artist in this context) to find a way to offer your fans a value regardless of the angle you are using to push it. [eg: leaking a new single vs. exchanging emails for downloads / etc.]

...Lets not forget that people will pay for quality even when free is an option...

1

 

[acetheface954]

I strongly disagree.

How do you get potential fans to give your music a chance if you don't let them have access to your original material for free?

The market dictates a lot of this stuff so if people as big as Frank Ocean Rick Ross and Lil Wayne give out free music I think an indie needs to explore this option as well. Do you think that they should give out free music?

From my experience artist and songwriters with this mentality are really facing a productivity issue; they can't supply a stream of constant recorded music.

Any thoughts?

i don't know how long you've been at the business end but for myself i know that giving out free music is a sucker's game man. that kind of move only applies to people, famous or unfamous, with a lot of fan support. sites like soundcloud and reverbnation i do not consider places to get real fans because 90% (not a real percentage) of people on there aren't fans because they're musicians just like us. the only chance you're going to have is if you find an outlet that let's your music get played by the big dogs. but before doing that you have to have tour music available for consumption via sites like pandora, beatport, or google play. distribution my man.

Big artists already have established a loyal fan base so giving out their music works out great for them in terms of promotion but for a lot of indie artists the free tactic might do more harm then good.

Now don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that free can't work - Free can work as a promotional tool but Its up to you as an artist (same rule applies to you even if you're a producer / beatmaker <== because you're an artist in this context) to find a way to offer your fans a value regardless of the angle you are using to push it. [eg: leaking a new single vs. exchanging emails for downloads / etc.]

...Lets not forget that people will pay for quality even when free is an option...

1

yo you better take that soundcloud link down lol. one of the moderators said you can only showcase your sounds only under the showcase thread. but yeah man you took the words right out of my mouth. every word. big brand named artists are already established. and there is a reason why they release free content. and that reason is to get more fans as well as obtaining free publicity. why would i give out music i worked on tirelessly for free only to get back a few likes and six downloads? those days are over. i remember when we were hardly any good and got a hundred downloads in like two weeks on soundcloud. its too saturated and no one cares for free things unless they had to work to get it for free i.e. your email for me song.

 

[On Target Records]

Great thread!

I agree with most everything here about the distribution being the key, but on a low budget, free promotional material is good to get people to know about you.

However this all depends on your end goal and how successful you want to be. You have to invest (financially) in distribution, press, and word of mouth in order to get maximum results.

Any thoughts??

 

[soundconsort]

I agree with the other posters. It's important to have a good balance between free and paid stuff. You dont wanna give too many freebies cuz then people will undervalue you, but you should still have some kind of free offering for promotion.

 

[acetheface954]

Great thread!

I agree with most everything here about the distribution being the key, but on a low budget, free promotional material is good to get people to know about you.

However this all depends on your end goal and how successful you want to be. You have to invest (financially) in distribution, press, and word of mouth in order to get maximum results.

Any thoughts??

distribution, press, and word of mouth are king. get those going for you, mainly distribution and press, you've got it made in the shade.

I agree with the other posters. It's important to have a good balance between free and paid stuff. You dont wanna give too many freebies cuz then people will undervalue you, but you should still have some kind of free offering for promotion.

i do. every now and again i'll put out a free remix. they're easy to make, popular, and you don't have to worry about people making money trying to sell it behind your back. those are the only free tracks i don't mind putting out. this one dance label wanted t sign me to a 10yr deal but i declined. why would i work with people who force their artists to produce free remixes that only get a few hundred clicks and tens of downloads? to a fanbase made up of mostly your peers? that's a marketing plan??? smh

 

[agivens]

I've been working in the music industry for 13 years just to answer the previous question.

I agree with SFTraxx that if you have quality product fans will opt to pay for music even if they can get it for free, but how do you turn someone into a fan, short for 'fanatic'?

I wouldn't say every buyer of Drakes single is a fan of Drake, I'd say that most buyers just like the song they purchase; how many people like Lourdes' 'Royals' but don't even know her name?

Also, can someone explain this idea that fans undervalue free music? I just don't feel like potential music purchasers ever go through the process of thinking that because music is free it's not good (even though most music that isnt good is free) especially considering like SFTraxx said, if it's quality people will pay for it even if it's free.

I have found that peers within the music industry think that something has no value if it's free which I think is a more salient point than music purchasers who I think just but what they like and has been marketed to them.

 

[acetheface954]

I've been working in the music industry for 13 years just to answer the previous question.

I agree with SFTraxx that if you have quality product fans will opt to pay for music even if they can get it for free, but how do you turn someone into a fan, short for 'fanatic'?

I wouldn't say every buyer of Drakes single is a fan of Drake, I'd say that most buyers just like the song they purchase; how many people like Lourdes' 'Royals' but don't even know her name?

Also, can someone explain this idea that fans undervalue free music? I just don't feel like potential music purchasers ever go through the process of thinking that because music is free it's not good (even though most music that isnt good is free) especially considering like SFTraxx said, if it's quality people will pay for it even if it's free.

I have found that peers within the music industry think that something has no value if it's free which I think is a more salient point than music purchasers who I think just but what they like and has been marketed to them.

how do you turn them into a fan? consistency, word of mouth, and being proactive within their lives. fans are really more friends and family members you don't know. if they like you, if they truly do like you for you (and that goes beyond your craft btw), they'll support you whether they pay or not. i have heard some of the most amazing songs and i've created songs that have done far better than some popular professionals and i have the numbers to prove it. but because they have yet to see us as their own, we have yet to lend us their ear.

lol @the drake and lorde quote. if people know your that's still a great thing. what you create is still you. its you without a face, voice, or face. if you walked into best buy and you heard someone blasting your music to a fried of theirs and said, "wow this is good". i think you'd be happy as a clam. this has kind of happened to me.

they may not say it but their actions do when they don't acknowledge what you create. in the past i would direct people to listen to my music from other social sites to soundcloud just to download my music for free. they'd download but no one was active on soundcloud enough to share, like, follow me on fb, etc. but eeeeverybody followed the celebrities just because they know them. after i stopped giving out free music labels started to hit me up as well as music listeners asking for either my john hancock on a contract or where can they get a purchase link all in a matter within two months this year. and on another note other artists have reached out asking to work with me professionally. i have never in my four years had it this good.

to me giving out free material is like a mastering engineer selling their soul for $5 per mastering job. get the bleep out of here. why are we stooping ourselves so low? has it really gotten that bad? unless you're famous no. the only way i'll give out free original music is if someone messages me asking for it if its not available for consumption yet or if an industry type contacts me with a plan on how they plan to use it that will benefit me in the long run. we've proven ourselves time and time again and should act like we matter.