Moving Your Career Forward One Day At A Time

Published: Fri, 09/19/14



 

Sometimes musicians are so focused on trying to find their "big break" that they miss many smaller opportunities to move their career forward and make money from their music on a daily basis. I don't think there's ever been more tools available to musicians to promote their music and build their careers than there is now.  

One of the things I've been doing recently is finding at least one thing I can do every day to promote my music and move my career forward, both as it relates to licensing and my music in general.  And guess what, it's working!  I'm making more money from my music and more importantly I'm feeling more and more inspired.

Today I thought I'd share a list of ideas I've generated of things you can do on a daily basis to generate more interest for your music and make more money from your music.

In no particular order, here they are:

1) Post creative videos of your music on Youtube that link to Itunes or other online places people can buy your music - Someone else recently made a stop animation video of one of my songs that has gotten hundreds of thousands of hits.  I've noticed a definite spike in my Itunes sales since then despite an actual link to my music or even being properly identified. Seeing this boost in sales has inspired to make more videos to generate more exposure and sales.

2) Submit your music to one new licensing opportunity every day - This is an idea I explore in my 90 Day Challenge I program.  If you're doing this on your own, you can use my directory (http://www.howtolicenseyourmusic.com/2014-music-licensing-directory.php) or if you have the time, you can Google "music libraries" or "music supervisors" and find some leads that way.  Whatever you route you go, get in the habit of connecting with people who can license your music on a regular basis.

3) Write a new song - I don't think this needs explaining.

4) Book a gig - As much as I like writing songs, having my music licensed, selling music and so on, I don't think there's any aspect of what I do that I enjoy as much as I enjoy playing live. I've been playing out regularly lately and in addition to making extra money, which is always nice, it's so much fun! 

5) Write A Keyword Rich Article For Your Site Linking To Your Music - One of the challenges of being an original artist is that you might have the best songs in the world, but if no one knows who you are, no one knows to search for you in Google, Youtube, etc...  You can drive more traffic to your sites and videos by embedding keywords that people are searching for in your videos and content on your site.  If your music is influenced by better known artists, mention that in your site so that you'll show up in search engines when people search for those artists.

6) Post Your Music On Itunes - I get royalties for my music sales every month from Itunes and other similiar services. Sometimes I make a little and sometimes I make much more, but I always make something.  There are several different ways to get your music on Itunes.  I use a company called Tunecore.
 
7) Network With Other Like Minded Musicians - No man is an island.  Networking and collaborating with other musicians and people working in the business is both fun and good business sense.  All of my biggest steps forward have been a result of working with other people.  Whether signing with my publisher (and former Berklee Songwriting Professor) or collaborating with other producers and musicians, all of my successes have been a direct result of working with other people.
 
What else can you think of to do to move your career forward?  Are you doing things every day to push your career forward?  Like all great endeavors, making music isn't about arriving somewhere, but it's about the journey along the way.  The memories you make, the goals you achieve and of course the music you create, make the entire journey worthwhile.
 

Resources For Licensing Your Music

2014 TV/Film Music Business Directory - The most comprehensive directory of contact information for the TV and Film markets on the planet.  Period.  Over 2,300 up to date listings for music supervisors, publishers, music libraries and video game companies.

More info:
http://www.howtolicenseyourmusic.com/2014-music-licensing-directory.php

The A To Z Of Music Licensing  - The original program on music licensing that includes The 2014 TV and Film Music Business Directory, A Songwriter's Guide To Music Licensing Ebook, How To Audio Program,Three Audio Interviews with music licensing professionals, sample contracts and much more! The entire program is accessible online upon checkout.

More Info:
http://www.howtolicenseyourmusic.com/the-a-to-z-of-music-licensing.php

The Music Licensing Toolbox - Get The Entire Collection Of How To License Your Music.com's resources about the music licensing business.

More information:
http://www.howtolicenseyourmusic.com/combosale13.php



For a complete list of How To License Your Music.com resources about the music licensing business visit:

http://www.howtolicenseyourmusic.com/online-store.php

 

Happy Songwriting!
Aaron Davison
 
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