Part Six

This the sixth of ten tips and chips I plan to impart for any interested listeners, starting out on his/her journey to work in the music industry. There are a lot of people providing access to joints that help to build your skills, and most do a great job. My goal there is not to try and compete them. I will stay in my lane. From time to time, I might suggest and recommend others, these tips and chips are aimed at your mindset, and behaviors that will either make you or break you. Whether you aspire to be a songwriter, an artist, a musician, and or producer, these tips and chips apply:

Some Chips To Dip Into:

1. You got to put in the time.
2. You can only do two or three things very well, so focus.
3. Once you are focused, decide on what value you offer to others.
4. Determine how you fit in.
5. Determine how you can market what you offer.
6. Develop a marketing strategy. (See Below)
7. Provide quality service or products.
8. Follow up and communicate with your customers.
9. Always try to anticipate what your customers, followers, or clients need.
10. Keep trying, you can always do it better.

DEVELOP A MARKETING STRATEGY

Now that you have determined how you can market what you offer, you have to put other actions into play to further expose your intellectual property. In today’s world, advertising is a very important aspect of your marketing strategy. The act of making music alone will not get you heard or known, or develop a fanbase for your music or product. The metaphor of just build it and they will come will not work, and is not true reality in music.

So, what do you do? Luckily for the independent musician, online advertising is cheap and affordable when compared to the traditional methods and strategies of advertising. It only takes around twenty dollars, for example to initiate an interactive banner ad campaign where you target top music sites, like CMT, VIBE, Pitchfork, or Billboard.

According to an updated article in Bandzoogle by Dave Cool, on Sep 7, 2021: A marketing budget is first and foremost. According to Dave, “a music marketing budget will help to create a clear roadmap of your financial goals, how you’ll reach them, and help you to monitor your progress along the way. This topic is beyond the cope of this intended effort, but y ou can read more about it at: https://bandzoogle.com/blog/how-to-create-a-music-marketing-budget-in-4-simple-steps?utm_source=non_members_list&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=marketingbudget. However, information in this article of relevance would be the different types of vehicles for publicity and promotion, such as graphic design photo shoots, posters, flyers, a website, mailing lists, videos, advertisements.

Therefore, initially I will point you to the MiJen Publishing Resources Section which provides my links to market, promote, collaborate, or improve your intellectual property. Other than the obvious sites like Spotify, iTubes, YouTube, etc., I have also uncovered links that are not currently listed on my website at this time which I have found from a mastering class I am currently taking that you may or may not have heard of. Here are some that I have found and often ue myself:

Procollabs.com – provides the ability to find and collaborate with artists around the world.
Fiverr.com – provides a means to advertise your services and find services by others.
Songsplits.com – helps manage split for contractual purposes.
Popsongnow.com – is a community of songwriters.
Soundbetter.com – provides world-class music and production talents at your fingertips.
Vocalizr.com – connects you with vocalists and producers.
Busyworksbeats.com – provides courses on music production, downloads, and more.
Easykeys.com – good resource for keyboardist, guitarists and songwriters.
Splice.com – good resource for beatmakers and songwriters alike,
Sounds.com – good resource for beatmakers and songwriters alike,
Broadjam.com – good resource for song placement opportunities in flim/TV, commercials, etc.
BeatAcademy.com – provides courses on music production, downloads, and more.
Brianfunk.com – good resource for beatmakers and songwriters.
Cliffgoldmacher.com – good resource for beatmakers and songwriters alike,
Musicianonamission – provides courses on music production, downloads, and more.
RecordingRevolution.com – provides courses on music production, downloads, and more.
SoundGym.com – provides tools for ear training.
Sonicacademy.com – provides courses on music production, downloads, and more.
SoundOracle.com – provides courses on music production, downloads, and more.
Mastering.com – provides courses on music production, downloads, and more.
Masteringinthemix.com – provides courses on music production, downloads, and more.

All of these websites will help further your career, your sound, or your music career in some form or fashion. Most of them have been invaluable on my continuous music career journey. What is next? In Tip/Chip 7: Provide quality service and products, we will delve a little further into a mindset needed to better service customers, drive traffic, and increase marketing and sales. So keep reading and stay tuned.