Branding for Musicians: What It Is and Why It Matters…
When a musician comes to me with a troubled marketing campaign, 9 times out of 10 the issue is in the branding…
However, branding is one of those ambiguous words that most people think they understand but seldom truly do. Musicians tend to associate it more with the simpler concept of “image”, “genre”, or “niche”. But branding goes much deeper than that.
Ultimately your brand is your core identity; it’s what makes you unique and stand out from the hundreds of thousands of other musicians out there making similar music.
Your brand is the succinct expression of your unique qualities, and when well crafted, it creates a shortcut to the mind of your potential fans and makes all of your career decisions much much clearer; from the font you use on your website, to the targeting options you choose, to the content that you share with your fans.
If you’re not completely clear on what your brand is, then you’re winging it. And if you’re winging it, the odds are stacked against you…
In episode #37 of the Music Marketing Manifesto Podcast I go into depth on my concept of “brand”. I explain what it is, why it’s so important, and outline a few actionable steps that you can take right now to better develop your brand.
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Hey John, thank you for this podcast it was very helpful!
What is a good exercise one can do to find their usp on their own?
Thank you!
Glad you enjoyed it! I have exercises in MMM 4.0 and the Insider Circle, but they are a bit too involved to post here in a comment. However, you might find this article I wrote on USPs helpful.
https://www.mmmanifesto.com/is-my-usp-any-good/
All the best.
Glad you enjoyed it! I have exercises in MMM 4.0 and the Insider Circle, but they are a bit too involved to post here in a comment. Howeer, you might find this article I wrote on USPs helpful.
https://www.mmmanifesto.com/is-my-usp-any-good/
All the best.
Hey John!
I’ve been doing lots of research on similar direct-to-fan marketing programs! Yours seems to have everything an artist really needs to create a sustainable business with the least amount of confusion. I’ve recorded an album with a critically acclaimed producer, but I want to make sure not to waste the finely crafted content on a poor marketing strategy.
Hey Roland,
Thanks for saying that. Means a lot. There are many different strategies and teachers out there. It just comes down to finding an approach, and a teacher, that you resonate with. If ever I can help, please let me know. All the best.
I’m planning to execute a fresh plan in the new year, and would love your feedback on some songs.
Hi Roland, we get a very large amount of email with similar requests each day, and I need to limit my time on things like this outside of consulting sessions. But if you email in some links I should be able to take a quick listen and offer some general feedback. Cheers.
This was really helpful John. So much branding advise I have found lately focuses on colors, image, fonts, etc. As a music artist, rather than a visual artist, I have had a lot of trouble understanding how to develop a brand in a visual manner. But the story concept that encapsulates the beliefs of the artist, I can relate to that a lot better, and maybe then it will be easier to decide on the visuals.
Hi Kevin, glad you were able to get a lot from this episode. I agree… That’s the beauty of approaching branding from the prism of the USP rather than focusing on image. When you know what the unique selling proposition is, then you know WHO you are selling to. And when you know who you are selling to, it’s easy to make choices about everything from fonts to producers, because it’s all about appealing to the buyer. To my mind, this is a much less cryptic way of talking about being “on brand” or “off brand”. Thanks for listening!
Also, it would be really interesting to get a podcast about how to turn the story into the essential “nuggets” for the point of sale pitch. And then how to turn that into a content stratergy for social media 🙂 with examples – I know I´m asking a lot- but this would be HOT:) 🙂 especially how to harness a story thats not “Rock Star” narrative. I keep hearing bout Lewis Capaldi and how he blogs about being successfull but still having to live at home with his ma. cos the cash takes so long to filter down…. real warts n all rock and roll 🙂 🙂
Hey Chris, as it happens I have this exact subject on my list of upcoming topics. I refer to these as “hooks”. So keep an eye on your inbox 🙂
As always, really in depth and thought provoking John. Although I worked through the section in the MMM course already- this gives additional perspective and gave me some ideas about turning things that I was viewing as “negatives” in my brand into positives by thinking about the “story”. Much appreciated and on point.
Thanks Chris, Glad you enjoyed the episode!
Understand where your coming from John, And i have the squeeze page in place and maybe i need to put more into the blog part to send more of my story to people but I feel that i have a pretty story grabbing squeeze page but just not getting the ROI i expected. Also been trying to use Facebook to drive traffic like MMM3.0 talks about.
Hi Dwain,
I really couldn’t comment without seeing your squeeze page, and spending some time analyzing what you have done so far. All I can really say is that if you have a good product, and a compelling offer, these strategies will work if properly refined. If they aren’t working for you, then something is off in the chain. It’s just a process of determining where the break is, and refining things until the numbers are where you need them to be. But as is the case with every business, success is not always easy.
squeeze page is http://www.dwainmessermusic.com
Hi Dwain, I can spot quite a few potential issues, but tweaking a squeeze page is really an involved process that requires getting acquainted with the artist, honing in on the USP, and analyzing past performance. It requires time, and is not something I can do in the context of a blog comment. But in MMM 4 I go into great detail about the USP and branding, and hopefully the info in this podcast will help you a bit.
Great podcast John! Great info as usual! Always am blessed to hear and read your new content as you do such a great job informing musicians.
Thanks John, that means a lot!
Awesome, as usual! IT’s all coming together! : )
Thanks Marc!
Really an informative post, learned a lot from this. Great thanks for sharing.
That’s awesome to hear Edg. Thanks for listening!
Thanks John, thoroughly enjoyed the episode and yes please create more of these short topic-centric podcasts. Very helpful.
Thanks George. Will do!
Great job as always John!
Dan Foster – Studio X Music
Thanks Dan!
Thanks John!
This is something I’ve been struggling with for years. What the hell is so interesting about ME?!? I’ve had a hard time answering that. This podcast really helped clear up a lot and something clicked. Thank you!
John, I purchased music marketing manifesto about 6 years ago. I’d finally like to get my current music out there. I also, during the 6 years time, have gained some insight regarding the music industry. What’s the chance that we could schedule a time to meet about some of my musical goals for my album?
Hi Patrick,
I offer one on one consultations here: https://www.mmmanifesto.com/work-with-john/
Let me know if you have any questions, or if I can help with anything else.
That’s awesome Kevin. Really glad to here this episode helped. Thanks for listening!
Hey John, always excellent insights! Sometimes I think as artists we are too close to the work which can make it hard to ID ourselves. I am constantly intrigued by what people tell me “my” music is to them and that also tells me maybe more help is needed to find the distance to form a clearer picture and USP.
You’re definitely right. As artists we tend to focus on what our intentions are, and less on how what we create is experienced and perceived. I think outside perspective can be really valuable when it comes to brand. You just need to make sure you’re getting an opinion from someone who is good at seeing things through the prism of others, rather than just their own. Otherwise, the perspective is as limited as one’s own. Good point though.
Thanks for this John. This is very helpful.I had somewhat overlooked this.when I created my blog on my website I did include this usp aspect,but it’s buried away on my site and you still have to try and get people to read it,so I’ll try and devise some ways of getting it into my posts.This has really made me think because most of my songs are informed by my personal background.Many thanks for this.
Glad you enjoyed the episode John. Thanks for listening!
John thank you very much you always been on point and helpful
Thanks Carl, glad you enjoyed the episode.
Timely and useful. Thanks John. Ngā mihi nui.
Ka mau te wehi Trevor!
I have a whole project I’ve been waiting to put out how can I go about using your program?
Hi Derrick,
The simplest answer is to simply follow the steps outlined in Music Marketing Manifesto 4.0. Please let me know if you have any questions or I’m misunderstanding what you are asking. All the best.
Very informative! I believe I’ve discovered my USP after this podcast. I’d often come to the conclusion that my music deemed to be universal in many aspects with its Pop and RnB appeals. I’m now sure that it represents self identity, inclusion and perhaps a little revenge, all stemming from adversities overcame throughout my childhood and in everyday life scenarios. I’m glad u tuned in. Thanks 🙏🏽 John!
Happy Holidays!
Love your podcast. Keep the episodes coming!
Thanks Lawrence. Episodes will be coming out much more frequently in 2020. Should be at least once every two weeks.
Thanks for listening!