Category: MarketingCategory: Marketing

Don’t assume the level of your fans’ love for what you do.

Don’t assume they lack interest in how you operate and work.

You don’t have to JUST announce the essentials (the facts) of what you do.

For example, if you have a new album coming out, you can send an email campaign with the album art, some facts, and a button for people to click to order it.

BUT… you could also include a few paragraphs about the inspiration behind the music.

A quote from the artist who designed the artwork.

A photo or two of you working in the studio, or even your bedroom recording set up!

Don’t assume that “nobody cares,” or think, “why would anyone be interested in that?”

Maybe casual fans won’t give a f*ck. Fine.

But the ones who LOVE what you do?
The ones that just want to support you and your art and your magic?

They’ll appreciate it.

Nobody knows everything you’re doing.

Most of your followers don’t know about your next course, your next photo session, your next tour, your new shirt.

Here’s some wild things you can do:

➡️ Reply to someone who leaves a comment with a link
➡️ DM someone and let them know about your new project
➡️ Email someone directly
➡️ Make personalized videos with Loom and send to fans (like this):

Approach your social media and email newsletters like a DJ.

A DJ doesn’t open the set with self-promotion; they give the audience a carefully chosen playlist of music, drawing from various sources, sounds, and eras.

Similarly, you can blend your influences and experiences into a cohesive online presence for your audience.

Plan ahead and schedule social media posts on specific days. Set a rhythm for your posts, and tastefully repeat announcing your new songs, tour dates, and upcoming events.

We do this because, “if your social media posts are seen by less than 3% of your followers, that means over 97% of your fans didn’t see it.”

Now, when a DJ is sourcing music for a mix, they draw from their own collection, along with new material. Random discoveries from other mixes.

In a way you’re probably already doing this.

You’re sending new music to your friends, and going to shows.
Dropping links to music videos in the group chat.
Talking about upcoming shows in Discord, on social media, in person.

You’re more of a DJ then you realize.

Your “online presence” is your existence in the digital space, so keep it authentic.

Use your good taste and share that with your audience. Tell them the new album you discovered, the old album that moves you to tears, a book that inspired your creative journey.

This makes “marketing ” feel less gross because you’re just being yourself, reshaping the conversation into whatever online container you happen to inhabit.

This from a Chris Dalla Riva piece called ‘Your Followers are not Your Fans.’

“Your followers – and maybe even your listeners – are not necessarily your fans.”

Riva goes down the rabbit hole of how Spotify plays and TikTok numbers don’t always translate to ticket sales.

Social media vanity metrics don’t always translate to real world fandom.

People who “like” a post probably won’t buy your album, sign up for your course, join your email list, or share something with their friends.

Many followers like you, but they don’t LIKE-LIKE you.

A “follower” starts at the very top of the “marketing funnel.”

Moving the follower down the funnel is an adventure.

One does not simply turn this casual fan into a customer overnight.

Customer. Subscriber. Student. Client. Whoever you’re trying to bring into your world.

You probably know this because of the very few followers that even see your social media posts, very few click anything.

So in our SOCIAL MEDIA ESCAPE PLAN journey, we’ve been doing a lot of ATTRACTING (at the top of the funnel).

Our next move is INFORMING.

Nobody knows everything you’re doing.

Most of your followers don’t know about your next course, your next photo session, your next tour, your new shirt.

They don’t know they can subscribe to your cool email list.

Here’s some wild things you can do:

➡️ Reply to someone who leaves a comment with a link

➡️ DM someone and let them know about your new project

➡️ Email someone directly

➡️ Make personalized videos with Loom and send to fans (like this):

You can directly reach followers, all while watching Ahsoka on a Tuesday night, or watching the Jets season implode in just 75 seconds.

It’s hand-to-hand combat from here on out. It’s gonna take time, and it doesn’t scale, but it can help move casual fans to people who absolutely love what you do.

This from CHRIS DALLA RIVA’s piece called ‘Your Followers are not Your Fans.’

“Your followers – and maybe even your listeners – are not necessarily your fans.”

Riva goes heavy into analytics, but at the surface level, people who follow you on social media are not destined to be your email subscribers.

People who LIKE a post probably won’t buy your album, sign up for your course, or share the post with their friends.

I hate using marketing speak, but followers are at the very top of the funnel, and it takes a lot of time and effort to get them to become more than that.