Really the title says it all but for those of you who need me to elaborate then here goes.
My Space, the golden zone for musicians, the maker or breaker of viral followings, gig bookings and online presence. In 2008. Ask someone today in their teens about My Space and they’ll be all “like, my what? Do you mean snapchat?”. These days if you type in the URL I suspect there’s just a desert with nothing but tumbleweeds on offer. I know JT brought sexy back but bringing My Space back, we’ll see. And the moral of this story? 1. Don’t rely on social media. 2. Do get a website.
Social Media is the bomb. No doubt about it. For creatives it represents so many opportunities when worked well but it’s an external service over which you have no control. NO CONTROL! Like any third party service provider (think Amazon and Etsy) all social media platforms are an opportunity to build a more diverse and broader following but only if you are using them as a springboard to get people to your website or onto your mailing list. Building your whole business purely off the back of social media (or any third party provider) is risky business and My Space is the pin up girl for reiterating why this is the case. People (mainly musos) built their whole music career off the back of their My Space profile and then seemingly overnight My Space had fizzed out and with it all of the business value it represented.
Back in the day it amazed me how many musicians I worked with relied soley on My Space for their web presence. Today I see the same story over and over again, mainly with Facebook. When I talk online presence so many of the creatives I work with are resting on the laurels of a solid Facebook following. This is a dangerous foundation for building your business. Facebook can, and does, change the rules whenever they like and however they like. Many people who were thriving off Facebook 18 months ago are scrambling to get their posts out to followers and floundering through the ropes of effective Facebook advertising. Lots of them are angry (me too some days) because they’ve spent time and money building their fan base and now Facebook is screwing with their system.
Using social media to drive people to your list and website is such a powerful tool. Sure keep selling directly through social media as successfully and as prolifically as you can (I personally get the majority of my clients and workshop bookings this way). But make sure this isn’t the whole of your marketing, sales and customer building activity. At every stage do what you can to drive people to your website. In every way do what you can to get people onto your mailing list. If your social of choice falls down for any reason outside of your control then you have a solid back up and with a rejig you can be business as usual. Mine the opportunity of social media as effectively as you can but please don’t make it the backbone of your entire arts-business strategy.
The End.
Need help with a multi layered marketing strategy for your business? Check out our artist support or the stARTup e-course.
For more info on the rise and fall (and rise, Justin Timberlake can you do it?) of Myspace this infographic is handy.
http://startupbros.com/myspace-the-rise-fall-and-rise-again-infographic/
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