2. Create a Flow

While some artists have managed to build their career on one channel, most of us need to find a balance. Maybe you use Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Instagram and Soundcloud as well as performing in your locality. The key is to consider how to transfer fans from each profile and eventually to purchasing music and tickets to your shows from your website - a flow of human traffic. 

3. Write Posts Yourself

Don’t completely outsource Twitter and Facebook to a third party - fans can tell the difference. It’s important to inject personality into your posts. If you have a band, get members to sign their posts with their name so fans can get to know everyone’s personality. 

4. Be Conversational

On Twitter, engineer your tweets so they go two ways. If you just make a statement, it’s difficult for your fans to engage. Consider these two approaches - “We have a gig tonight at this location” versus “We have a gig tonight at this location. What songs do you all want us to play?” Clearly, the latter evokes a sense of conversation encouraging your fans to engage with your content, creating a discussion. 

5. Be Genuine

Talk about your life and what you advocate as well as your music, although again be wary of spam. Open yourself up so your fans can get to know you. The occasional humorous or personal post will generate significant amounts of interaction as your fans become more familiar with you as a person, or at least with your brand. 

6. The 80/20 Rule

A general rule of thumb is that 80% of your content should be personal, funny, interesting or entertaining, and 20% should be reserved for marketing pushes. Go beyond 20% and people will consider it spam and simply scroll past. Keep it social and keep it fun. 

7. Choose Your Platforms Wisely

Dependent on your image and brand, certain platforms are more suitable than others. If you’re a pop artist aiming to appeal to young teenagers, your main focus should be on Twitter and Instagram. If you’re a post-rock band appealing to a slightly older audience, you should consider Facebook and Email. YouTube is an exception insofar that it is essentially compulsory. Picking the platforms you emphasise your output on is important in securing the listenership of the most fitting audiences. 

8. Use Your Platforms Appropriately

It is important to recognise that social media platforms are all different. This implicates that they should all be used slightly differently, in a way that maximises their potential to appeal to potential fans. Be creative in your usage and tie the different ways you use social media together, increasing the flow between each profile as mentioned above.