All about Music Marketing - Not Everyone's Game

As you come across this piece, your first thought might be that the headline is too bold. You might be thinking, What’s the difference? If I know music and marketing then music marketing is an easy job. If I can create marketing strategies for an entire brand then a song is not going to be that difficult. Read on, allow me to burst your bubble.

Music Marketing is not just a number game. It is about setting a trend. A Label approaches you (a marketeer) to promote their song, create a high recall value, curate a creative and unique campaign, seamlessly execute the said campaign and in the process generate numbers. (reach a wide range of audiences)

After having worked with the leading labels of the country, curating and executing 150+ music campaigns in a year, here are a few takeaways that help to ace the game:

Set Your Priorities Straight: When a Label approaches you to market their music, it’s your responsibility to ensure your work actually values the hard work of the artist and the investment the label is making (time & money). Making a checklist with all you want to achieve through this campaign and prioritising it is the key to curating a trend.

Know Your Audience and Platform: Music will never have a specified target audience. As a marketeer it is your choice to determine who you want to focus your campaign towards. The lyrics, beats, vibes, artist and the visuals are key playing factors that determine the audience of your song. What you need to do is understand the current trends and mindset of your audience. This will help you determine the platform for your campaign. It is essential to know the current weather on your chosen platform and how it will help you reach your goals.

Quality > Quantity : The best marketing is when it doesn’t feel like marketing. Everyone believes that thinking outside the box is the way to go, but honestly it’s about relatable creativity. If you analyse your audience, platform and priorities correctly, then curating a creative and unique campaign is a piece of cake. One major factor that creates a trend is relatability. Does the content and the song match well? Is it easy for everyone to recreate this concept? Is it a concept people would actually want to recreate? If yes, go ahead, by all means. If your focus is quality (campaign idea), quantity (reach) is the least of your concerns.

Along with all of these tips, your work will only be appreciated with the kind of experience you can provide. If the influencers you work with are holding you back, if there are several delays from your end, the label is not going to come back. They have a million other investments to look into than a single song. Seamlessly executing a campaign, pleasing both the creator and client is not easy. A good campaign is a flop with poor execution.

There are a million takeaways from every campaign, but if everyone could comprehend them then the title to this article would not make sense. A reason that this stream of work is not for everyone is because marketers presume that this is an easy way out. One of the biggest avenues to innovate is music marketing. If you are not constantly looking for new ways and platforms to reach your audience, you are bound to be a one-time wonder. YouTube Shorts, Snapchat, Ambassador programmes, there are several under/un - explored avenues to reach out. Giving the same-old, tried & tested ideas and creators is gonna leave you behind.

Read, explore, hunt, it’s not about playing the game, but leading it. It’s really not about the lack of skills, it’s about the lack of the ‘right’ skills. If you figure out what is actually useful and not just a glorified resource, it’s a child’s play ahead.