Why You Need To Learn SEO

So, you got great songs, a great image, a cool website and a cool name. If no one can find you on google or other search engines, then all that hard work could be in vain. Understanding how to get your project on the front page of google is now just as important as any other part of getting your career together for the independent DIY musician.

 

It's all about tuning your website content. This is called SEO (Search Engine Optimisation). When a user places a word/phrase in the google search window, the sites that are tuned to that specific word or phrase will appear. The ones that are tuned the best will appear on page one.

 

Users searching for things on the internet rarely go beyond page one of google because they can usually find what it is they are looking for or an alternative there.  So it is essential to try and get your site tuned so when a new fan is searching for music they can find you, preferably on page one.

 

There are millions of websites out there, and right from the off, your website is competing with all of them. You are jostling for a 'chart position' here just as much as you would be in the music charts, but don't be put off thinking there is a whole 'dark art' to be learned here.

 

 I found a cool article on theunsignedguide.com, going into detail on how to get your site search engine optimised, helping you understand keywords and and keyword phrase structure to get your site tuned up and google friendly.

 

We also have a great article on the Make it in Music website 'Search Engine Optimisation for your Band Website'  going into details with a video on keywording your site.

 

Links

 

http://members.theunsignedguide.com/blog/336/seo-for-musicians---part-1/

 

Part two here http://members.theunsignedguide.com/blog/337

 

http://www.makeitinmusic.com/band-website-seo/

 

How to build an artist website...and profit from cover songs!

Two separate things, entirely.

I'm very proud of this little gem that we unearthed today as it has two truly brilliant articles in it that every musician should read.

It's a monthly bulletin pdf from the UK's independent music organisation, AIM, and in it there's a bunch of stuff.

But, the two things that are bang on for indie and DIY musicians are:

How to build an artist website - by Tony Morley who runs The Leaf Label. This guy has loads of artists that he works with and has seen a lot of artist websites, so he knows what works. This is a BRILLIANT article that covers everything that you need to know about building your artist website. PLEASE READ THIS! Tony also covers the other basics you should be thinking about - Facebook, Twitter etc (he gives our Twitter for Musicians guide a nice nod - thanks Tony!).

A guide to making money from cover songs - by Alex Holz at RightsFlow. Another great article that looks at ways that covers can attract attention and make you money.

There are also other bits and bobs in this 22 page pdf. GET IT here.

 

Even major labels understand the need for the artist website!

There's loads of stuff in this article that you should check out as it's major label digital music marketing people telling you what they do!

But, for me, this was key:

Snowden said he thinks of fans acquired through a Facebook page or Twitter profile as being at the beginning of the process. Ultimately, he wants to bring those people to the artist's website, get them to join a community there, and become a customer who buys CDs or digital downloads.

If even the majors get it, you should to.

Read the whole article here.

If you don't have your own artist website at the hub of what you do, fix it!

Building the perfect band website

Another great post from the Prescription PR website.

Simple yet crucial stuff on how to build the perfect website to promote your music. And I know that the guy who writes these articles, Chris, knows exactly what he is talking about as his main business is building websites - a lot of which are for musicians. He knows exactly what works and what to avoid.

This article covers all the key points and I pretty much agree with the whole thing.

Keep it simple and don't forget to keep it up to date!

Most bands make one of two mistakes when it comes to the aesthetics of their website. Either they let their desire for a funky-looking site trump all other considerations, or they completely ignore the importance of design.

Let’s start with the first mistake that bands make – going on a design binge. There is a huge arsenal of powerful but dangerous tools available to musicians - Flash, Photoshop, After Effects and so on – which can ruin a website just as easily as make it look fantastic. Misuse of these tools can spoil a music site in two main ways: first, by inducing amnesia about the important things that a site should actually do as well as be, or by making a site so reliant on wizardry that it causes problems for users viewing the site in certain browsers.

Read the whole piece here.

 

A simple online space for artists

I tweeted about this yesterday but want to make sure that everyone knows about it.

One Sheet is a very simple online presence for artists. The cleverest thing about it is that it links to the API (the exchangable information) in all your other online profiles at places like Facebook, YouTube, Songkick etc and therefore it updates itself.

It takes 2 minutes to set up and, in theory, you can leave it alone after that.

I also like the clean and simple design with a single large image background and the clarity of the layout and usability.

Genius.

I expect most artists to build one and use it as an online business card. I can see industry folks using it as a quick reference on any band as well.

Check out One Sheet here.

Here's what Billboard said about it.

And this is Mashable's take.

And watch the video here.

Keep your band website simple!

This is a GREAT post from @cbracco on his TightMix blog.

Basically, keep your website design simple - that's what your fans want - to be able to find what they're looking for.

As you can see, an overwhelming 76% of participants want their web experience to be easy.

A lot of musicians want their website to be a work of art, with noisy header images, Flash animations, splash pages, automatic music players, and other gimmicky things. While they can seem cool at first, all of that stuff just ends up getting in the way and degrades the experience your fans want to have when visiting your website. Do you think your fans will be able to access your gaudy Flash website from their iPhones? Think again.

Read the whole thing and see examples here.

8 reasons why you need to have your own website

Well, the first reason (so that makes 9) is because everyone who knows what they're talking about says so!

I just got off the phone with an artist asking me to manage them. Good online presence with 50,000 YouTube views and 1500 fans on Facebook. He wanted to know what he should do to sell his album that he's just completed.

I asked where his site was and how many fans he had signed up to his mailing list from there.

Nothing!

Well, then, I don't think you're going to be able to sell your album yet!

You need a band website as the place on the web that you control, the hub of your activity and where you can build your email list of fans who are going to be the bedrock of your support.

Facebook and Twitter (and others) are great for regular engagement and are vital but having your own place to focus activity on is ESSENTIAL.

Michael Brandvold explains this in more detail on the Mic Control site here.

It’s 2011 and you would think it is obvious why you need your own website. I can’t tell you how many conversations I have had where the other party says “I have a MySpace page, or I have a Facebook page or I have a Reverbnation page… I don’t need a website.” Or how many people have their own website, but spend all their efforts driving everyone to Facebook. All they seem to care about is how many Likes they can get. You should care about how many visits you get to your website. Some people don’t look at a website as a significant part of their business or brand. They may see it as a afterthought, something they guess they should do. If you were to open your own restrauant is the building and location that last thing you would think about? It is your future, everything you hope to achieve depends on it. Your website is your bit of real estate on the internet and it will be yours potentially forever. Make sure you treat your online presence with all the seriousness you can.

Read the whole piece.

Hostgator extend 50% off offer for Cyber Monday

Just a heads up - we mentioned this hosting offer on Friday.

Look at my post again and read the comment that I added yesterday - I was shocked by some of the questions people had about building their artists website.

50% off Hostgator hosting here.

More photos on your site......say the fans

I think I tweeted this before I started doing the Daily site but it bears repeating as it's a cracking little insight into online music promotion best practice.

Jeremy Welt from Warner Bros revealed that the most visited part of their artist's sites was the photo section. So, his suggestion - have hundreds of photos regularly updated. Makes a lot of sense!

Push aside your complicated, interlocking 360-degree marketing strategy for one moment.  Because the simple photo is one of the most critically important assets for an artist today.  "On artist websites, our number one section is usually photos," said Warner Bros. Records SVP of New Media Jeremy Welt.

Read the post here.

A musician's website checklist

I am an expert in what you should include in a band website.

I see endless streams of people building sites to promote their music that are awful and don't communicate with potential fans. You can just about get away with something odd and very little content if your band are amazing and you're trying to be different. But it's a risk. And for most bands there are a certain series of elements that you should cover.

It's very easy - and very important - for every band or musician to connect with fans online. But a lot of bands seem to create profiles on social networking sites but never update them, or only use one platform instead of taking advantage of the many different places fans listen to music online. Here are some things you should think about when you're creating your website or social networking profiles:

Alex White's post looks at this in more depth.