This post was written by Allison Sharpe and originally appeared on the Bandzoogle Blog.
As a band or musician, your website is one of the most important tools you have. It sets you apart from all the rest and gives you your own little slice of the internet to show off your music.
[Musicians: 10 Reasons Why You Need a Website]
When putting your website together, it’s a good idea to ask yourself who your audience is, and how you can set it up the right way from the beginning.
The three primary audiences you’ll want to keep in mind are:
Your current fans
Potential new fans
Industry & media
Let’s break down each of these:
You’ve worked hard getting fans, now you’ll want to do everything you can to keep those fans coming back for more. The key here is consistency. It doesn’t matter how small or large, if you aren’t posting updates fairly often fans might forget about you.
This slow trickle of updates nudges your fans to check out what’s new with you. When you get them to your website, you need to grab and hold their attention. Here are a few things you’ll want to have on your site to keep current fans engaged:
What’s new?
If you don’t keep your Homepage updated, when a current fans visits your website they might leave because they think nothing new is going on.
Make sure your Homepage lists everything you’re doing with your music. Even small updates like “working on lyrics for a new song (include image of notepad)” or “just booked a tour van (image of van)” are valuable.
Make sure to sprinkle in mentions of any new tracks, albums, or merch you’re selling. You can even do this with a built-in Twitter feed to let fans know you’re active.
Fan Loyalty
Nothing makes a fan more loyal than when you do something special to let them know they matter. Fans appreciate the little things, so why not give them access to limited edition products or package deals.
With our sale pricing feature, you can easily set this up on a password protected page that only current fans get access to through your newsletter.
Get those emails
In addition to fan perks you’ll want to get them on your mailing list so you can stay in touch. According to a study conducted by McKinsey & Company, email is 40 times more effective than Facebook and Twitter combined.
Getting your fans on your list allows you to send frequent newsletters to keep them thinking about you and your music. With our built in mailing list tool and download code feature, it’s also a great way to send your loyal fans free music.
[Why Email Newsletters Are Still a Vital Marketing Tool for Musicians]
Blog Updates
In addition to smaller updates on your Homepage, it’s also a good idea to maintain a blog. There you can add frequent updates and include images, videos (vlogs) and even a podcast.
[13 Topics That Musicians Can Easily Blog About]
Photos
You’ll also want to keep a photo gallery of promo pictures and live performance shots. Make sure to rotate out old photos to keep things fresh. You can even add our Instagram Gallery feature to keep a regular feed of fresh photos on your site.
When a potential fan finds their way to your website from a friend or social media post, you’ll want to grab their attention right away. This is their first visit to your website, so help them get acquainted to you with these tips:
Who are you?
On your Homepage you’ll want to add a short welcome message with a two or three line bio. This gives your new visitors a quick idea about your music genre and where you’re from.
Ask to be friends
Once you get someone new to your website you want to make sure you have a way to stay in touch. Make sure you have a mailing list signup at the top of your Homepage.
This is a perfect opportunity to give them a free track or album in exchange for their email address. You can choose this setting right in our mailing list sign up form feature.
Front and Center
Since you want to make a great first impression, you’ll want to put your best songs and videos upfront. Once new visitors hear and see what you’re about, they’ll want to explore more of your pages.
You can then have a dedicated Music page for all your tracks and a Video page for music videos and recorded gigs.
This last category of visitors is probably the hardest to impress, so you’ll want to take a bit more time to think this one through. If you think of it from the perspective of an industry professional it’s all about time, and the WOW factor.
Music bloggers, reporters, bookers, producers, and music executives get inundated with bands and artists vying for their attention. If you’re lucky enough to have them visit your site you only get one (quick) shot to make a big impression. Here’s what you need to stand out:
Time Savers
Industry professionals generally won’t spend the time digging through your site for great content or music. Make it easy on them by dedicating a full page to an electronic press kit (EPK).
This gives an at-a-glance view of who you are and what you’re doing. This page should be a sampling of your best stuff and should include the following:
Band or Artist Bio / story written in third person
High-quality images (promotional and live events)
Music (set a few of your best tracks to free download)
Video
Press quotes
Career highlights
Contact info
[The 8 things that should be in every band’s digital press kit]
Stay Current
Keeping a blog on your website is a great way to share updates and news on your site. The most important thing with blogging is to stay consistent.
It’s better to not start a blog at all than to start one and not keep it updated. If an industry pro comes to your site and the last entry was a year ago, they may think you are no longer pursuing a music career.
[Musicians: 5 Tips for Developing your Personal Blogging Voice]
As you can see, all three audiences share common traits, the most important of which is to have a great Homepage. By taking the time to organize your Homepage you’re setting yourself up for success with any visitor that happens upon your website.
[How to Build the Perfect Homepage for your Band Website]
Keeping your site up-to-date is also vital. It let’s your visitors know you’re still pluggin along doing cool things with your music. Making these few changes can have a big affect on your fan base and the attention you get from industry pros.