Being a success overnight is simply an extremely rare
occasion. The invention of YouTube has
created more opportunity to be discovered as such, but in reality most of those
looking to make it in the music industry will have to do so the traditional
way; growth. That being said, one of the
most important facets of growth that an artist needs to focus on is their
individual brand identity. Many
musicians cannot stand the thought of building themselves as a brand because
they feel it takes away the focus on the artistic value of the content they
create and turns them into just another product. Unfortunately though, without a strong brand,
marketing yourself will be practically impossible and there will be little to
no financial growth. Instantly, many
people think of a brand as simply a logo.
Although a logo is an important concept to branding, it is not the whole
piece of the pie. There are many
important components to an artist’s brand identity that are vital to develop in
order to have a better chance at success, and many of these components are
overlooked. Lets take a look at a
couple.
Before even starting to create an identity for the artist,
some reflection and research needs to be done.
The easiest way to do this is by answering some questions, such as:
Who is the artist’s intended audience?
What differentiates the artist from others in the same
and/or competing genre/s?
How does the artist’s audience receive the content created?
Where can the audience go to connect with the artist?
Why is the artist’s content worth the purchase?
Obviously there are several more questions that need to be
answered, but this gives a general idea.
Sit down, come up with some questions pertinent to the task at hand, and
attempt to answer them. If it’s a
struggle to find answers, then it’s time to go back to the drawing board and
reanalyze the motivation behind the created content and why the artist wants to
share their creations with the world.
Now, as mentioned earlier, a logo is definitely a must. In most cases, the logo is the first thing a
customer or potential business partner sees.
When developing a logo, there are a couple important things to
consider. The most important is to make
sure it speaks “you”. What that means is
that an artist’s logo should be consistent with their look, style, and
feel. Anyone should be able to look at
the logo and have a general idea about what the artist is all about, especially
if it’s an unknown. A strong logo will
also help tremendously with marketing.
An old, grungy logo that looks as if it’s been neglected for decades, or
a bland, basic logo that seems as if it were thrown together in 5 seconds, will
hurt growth opportunity more than one would think. This is why it’s important to keep the “face”
of the artist’s brand updated and consistent with the times. Whatever logo is developed, keep in mind that
it will be used for everything the artist’s name goes on, from websites to
merchandise. Just remember; a successful
marketing strategy has a well developed logo at its core.
Speaking of websites, a regularly
updated webpage is also important. The
average person that is browsing through the Internet will base their first
impression on the look, design, and function of a website. If the site being used by the artist looks
like it was developed in Steve Jobs’ garage back in the 80s, it’s time to
update. Furthermore, if there is no
website at all….well, let’s just say that’s equally bad. You don’t have to be a whiz kid to develop a
strong website. Many companies offer
website services, and virtually all of them have premade templates that their
customers may use at their discretion when setting up their site. The biggest mistake a lot of people make in
terms of website creation is that it will cost an arm and a leg to develop. This simply isn’t the case. There are a ton of options out there, and a
little research will help in that decision.
The second and equally important part of a website is updated
content. An artist that has an
out-of-date website often times makes it look like they’re out of business or
not worth doing business with. Updated
photos, videos, projects, and other content along with a well designed website
will unquestionably give the artist a competitive advantage in the industry.
Keeping content the artist has
current is also very important when it comes to branding. Without fresh material, those shopping for
content will make the perception that the artist is amateur and unmotivated. Even if the artist hasn’t found that big
break, independently creating content to display and help to promote will only
help in the search for that next big project.
With the availability and ease of use in regards to technology,
virtually anyone can create content to be shared on the web, and thus is one of
the primary reasons why companies look for fresh material. What’s the easy way to combat old
content? Always be working on SOMETHING.
All of the aspects above are very
important to a brand strategy. There is,
however, one very important component to building an artist’s brand that often
goes unmentioned. That vital piece of
the brand identity is confidence. Not to
be confused with cockiness, a lack of confidence is extremely noticeable,
especially when dealing with people face-to-face. It’s extremely significant that an artist
100% believes in the product they are creating.
After all, if the artist isn’t confident in his or her ability and
content, why should anyone else?
All and all, it’s quite easy to
see that there is a lot that goes into building a brand. It isn’t just slapping together a logo and
putting it on a t-shirt to wear on stage.
The more we move into this new digital era, the less money labels will
be willing to spend and the more time the artist will have to spend to create,
market, and promote themselves. Although
the work has become that much more difficult, the finish line seems that much
more rewarding. If an artist takes away
anything from here, it’s this; what you put in is what you’ll get out. The question is...
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