The Importance of Building a Fan Base

Hey, everyone!

I pray that you are in great spirits, at a great time in your life and enjoying yourself more than you ever have!

I've started contributing content to various sites and here is one post that I thought would be great to share with my blog readers. Enjoy!

The Importance of Building a Fan Base
At some point in your life, you absolutely loved a band, musician or singer, right? Did you ever stop to ask yourself why? Was it the way the music made you feel? What it something about the singer, musician and/or band in particular? Whatever it was it obviously influenced you to buy the music so that you could have it whenever you needed to dance, to reminisce, to relax, to dream or to travel with. It motivated you to buy every offering made available by that artist. It inspired you to see a live performance and anticipate their performances on television. You essentially became a lifelong supporter of that artist. This is exactly what your want from your fans.

In the last decade, it seems we've gotten away from the true meaning of why music really matters because the focus as been on the music industry, commercialism and exploitation of music. As a musician, you have to get back to the deeper meaning of music in order to understand why it is important.

Let's really think about what a fanbase is.

You are essentially building a community. You are serving this community by making music that matters to them. Why should it matter? Because they can relate to the expressions you bring forth to them. It's no different than what a church is to some people. There are literally hundreds of thousands of churches, a number of different religions and tons of followers in each of them. What makes someone choose the one they are apart of? It can be any number of reasons, but most revolve around a) how the church makes them feel (welcomed, safe, and happy) and b) that they feel they belong (whether through someone else's recommendation or through self-discovery of that church). They are accepted just as they are. This is the same type of feeling you want to give people that encounter your music. How can you do that? By being yourself. Show your listeners the emotion you have within and express it through your music. These types of feelings can't be manufactured in a studio. It comes from the most humble part of your soul that can only truly express what you truly have within you. This is why reality shows are so popular. People get a glimpse of real people like themselves, for which they can relate to what is being shown or heard. Your music should deliver the same type of experience for them.

How can you deliever this experience?

You can do this through constant interaction with your fans. Video tape some footage of your performances. Do an interview in your rehearsal studio, sharing the reasons why you made a particular song. Let them see you rehearse. Start a blog to share your thoughts about life with your supporters. Whenever they purchase a song, personally tell them how much you appreciate it. Whenever you get a positive comment, mention their names in the next blog personally thanking them for their support. Give them advance notice of your performances and special VIP treatment at the next show with a free t-shirt, free cd or downloadable ring tone. You like feeling special right? Show them that you, too, are human, just like them. This is how your fans relate to you. This is how you build a solid following. Make them feel like you care about them. Make them feel like they belong here.

Real music tends to create a movement, something meaningful to be shared for generations to come, not just on some fly-by-night mission to please or based on trends and fads. Study superstar musicians and bands. There is something special about them and they each have something in common. It's not just about the talent. It's how the music makes the fans feel. Let's face it. Your fans choose how they want to spend their time and their money. You are competing not only with other musicians/bands/artists, but also with other forms of entertainment (sports, movies, etc.) You want to own that space in their minds for music that they can count on to make them feel however they want to feel at any given point in their day, at any given point in their lives.

Music is and should be an experience for both the listener and the creator. Do you make music for yourself? You could, but what grand purpose would it fulfill? Music is meant to be shared with others. If you build it they will come…but what exactly are you trying to build? A fan base or a career of longevity? Building a fan base can involve marketing strategies, hype and advertising, all of which at some point or other cost money. Building a career of longevity means building a base of lifelong supporters that can't be bought with money…your music delivers the value. Long after the major labels have folded and websites have shutdown, nurture the connection you have with your fans and they will always be there to support you.

Many wishes of success to you in your career.

Ms. Mill Davis