Power of Association
Each musician is unique and cannot be repeated, but still, being present in a group of artists that are similar to you is one of the best ways to reach to the audience that is looking for the style of music that you are producing. Credibility of an unknown music can be gained by associating it to the known music. Although no one would like to be remembered as “That guy that sounds like the singer of that band”, let’s be honest, you can see it as a huge compliment on your way up the ladder as well.
Which is why no matter what style of music, everyone used to aim for the “radio” for recognition. Track lenghts were decided with this strategy in mind (if not they were butchered by the radio producers to fit in the slot). Every album had one or two “possible radio hits”, composed and arranged in a way that they were suitable for the DJ to use in the morning traffic hour.
Today’s listener is listening to the radio in a different way. We are now consuming playlists as much as (if not more than) we consume the radio. Either done by the streaming platform itself, or by individuals, the playlists are the new way to discover new material. Because playlists give the audience the chance to check new stuff out without having to choose or commit to an unknown album of an unknown person. Because the audience still wants to discover material just by bumping into it. So how to reach to that audience? One of the answers to this question lies in playlists.
Prepare playlists that have an aim to gain followers.
Like everything in life, consistency is the key. Creating catchy playlists is serious business. Be commited to the cause and gain attention and praising from strangers, simply by your taste in music. Title your playlist with clarity and with a spark of uniqueness. Put a cover art to it instead of the ready made layout the platform provides.
Don’t fill in your playlists with hundreds of songs! Listeners of succesful playlists often use them as albums and listen to them multiple times.
Do your best to co-exist with your heroes and heroines.
Your band released a single. It has stylistic similarities with an all time favorite track of a super duper popular band. Be bold and don’t fight your inspiration sources. Make playlists that includes that well known track from the well known artist and put your single right under it! Chances of people running into your playlist is going to rise if there are already famous tracks in it. Promise of similar style and the chance of bumping into a new track will motivate listeners to take a look at your playlist and discover you in the middle of it.
Share your playlist around.
Send the playlist to your friends for it to gain momentum; the credibility of the playlist provided by famous musicians in your playlist will help you hit more people than your close circle. Someone looking for a song of an established artist will see the song appearing in a playlist that is listened by hundreds of people and will be interested in your playlist. This way you don’t only show your track to some random listener that you have no idea of what his or her taste is like, you are showing your music to the person has a taste very similar to your own. What better way to advertise your music to a targeted audience than this?
So here you go, now enjoy the selection of covers in AlbumCoverZone with this idea in mind! We are sure that your future album’s marketing strategy will be covered by us. 😉
