There are thousands of music blogs out there, covering every genre you can think of. So obviously, blog marketing should be a cornerstone of your digital marketing strategy.
If you’re new to the blog-marketing-game keep on reading because I put together a few Dos and Don’ts that will help you get started. Some Don’ts might sound trivial but believe me, they happen … a lot.
Do your homework
If you’re not working with a professional PR person you might not have access to a big network of blogs. So your first step is research. Hype Machine and Submithub are great tools to identify blogs – simply select the genre you’re in and click your way through their blog-archive.
Before you go for the big tastemaker blogs like Pitchfork or Stereogum, research local blogs and get in touch with them. If you’re lucky one of these blogs created a blogroll which lists other blogs of the same area and genre. Here’s a great example for a blogroll from the Austrian music blog Walzerkoenig.
Also talk to fellow artists and ask for recommendations ir check the social media pages of artists you like for blogposts they might have shared there.
Store your findings for future use.
The first impression counts
After you’ve identified blogs it’s time to get in touch with them. Most blogs have a contact page and even state if they are open for PR material. Read through the information on the contact page closely to find out how they’d like to be contacted, which information they need, what their lead time is etc.
And even if it does sound trivial: pronounce the editor’s name right when you get in touch. They’ll appreciate the effort you’ve put into this.
Deliver a story
Always keep in mind that you should deliver a story. Especially a lot of the smaller, local blogs are run by dedicated individuals in their leisure time. Spare their time by only getting in touch with them if you have a story to tell. This could be a new single/album/video or a tour – you get the idea. Provide them with all the information and assets they’ll need to compile the post.
When you get in touch with blogs you should have a press-kit ready including:
– Streaming-links to the music or video you’re promoting
– A short biography/PR text
– 2-3 presspics
– Tour dates (keep your live information up to date with Songkick or similar services)
– Your contact information
– Data from your socials – show them that you and them have the same target group
Make sure to share the love and spread the blogpost on your socials!
Do the aftermath
Check your stats after a couple of days to find out about the impact of the blogpost and the surrounding campaign. Ideally your plays, followers or faves grow faster than before and your social media channels and website experience higher traction.
Compare the performance of the release promoted in the blog to previous releases to learn how different promo-efforts work out. Especially if you don’t see the result you were hoping for you should dig into the stats to find out what went wrong and avoid these mistakes in the future.
I hope this short introduction to blog marketing was helpful and will boost your blog coverage. Let us know about your experience with blog marketing in the comments.
0 be the first one to show some appreciation for this!