Starting a career as a singer-songwriter is one of the most satisfying things you can do for yourself because you are pursuing an opportunity to follow your passion. There are a lot of options to choose from on which route to go as far as branding and how to market yourself and what types of gigs you choose to do or if you want to gig at all. In this article, I share the 10 things you need to have in place to build a successful career as a singer-songwriter.
Equipment
In order to start a career as a singer-songwriter there are some pieces of equipment you’ll need to keep your business flowing smoothly. Let’s start with the basics. You’ll need a laptop for day-to-day business flow. A good laptop equipped with graphics capability for displaying flyers, colors, and promo pictures in their best light is essential. You’ll also need a laptop that has lots of drive space and memory for handling large files like videos, MP3s, AIFF files, large posters, and banners. In addition to a laptop computer, you’ll need some accessories. A reliable webcam would be great for making professional-looking videos along with a microphone that plugs into your computer for recording vocals as well as achieving crisp audio for YouTube and live-streaming presentations. If you are recording your music at home with your laptop, you will need a good pair of headphones for recording and a set-up for a small home recording studio. Check out this article that details everything you’ll need to set up a decent home recording studio on a budget.
This gets you to a good working level for conducting general business. If you’re preforming live, you’ll need a sound system along with a mic stand and a good vocal microphone.
Instruments
Let’s not forget instruments! If you are planning on doing a significant amount of performing or studio recording, then you should have at least one instrument at your disposal. Guitar or piano seems to be the standard for singer-songwriters. However the cello, bass, ukulele, and mandolin are all popular options as well.
Songwriting Tools
Songwriting Journals are great for singer-songwriters because they help us keep track of all of our song ideas in written form. The other thing that helps out tremendously is a voice recorder. That way, if you’re on the go and you have a melody or lyric idea, you can simply record it and come back to it later. There are many voice recording apps available if you have an iPhone or Android. A rhyming dictionary may come in handy as well when you are trying to find a perfect rhyme. The other thing that has helped me find different notes and interesting chords to create depth in my song instrumentation is a chord book like this one.
Music
As a singer-songwriter, you will definitely need music to showcase and sell as part of your artistic portfolio. When people look you up on your website and don’t see any music, it creates confusion. They don’t know if you’re just starting out, or if you are in the middle of a re-brand, or if you are playing some sort of sick joke. Either way, without any music to show for yourself, you will lose some credibility. Before doing any marketing, promoting, or trying to get gigs, you need to work on getting a comfortable amount (at least 3 to 6) of songs up and available to stream and download.
Business Model
A business model is the set of activities you conduct in order to bring in money for your business. It is your plan for making a profit. It identifies the products and services you plan to sell, along with who you are selling it to, and how you’re going to not only cover expenses but earn a profit from your efforts.
Armed with a business model, you can execute a business for yourself that achieves your financial goals and creates stability for you and your family. While you may still find some success without a business model, you’ll be able to maximize, better target, and streamline your efforts for optimal results with one. For help building a business model that suits your needs, download the Build a Business Model Worksheet here.
Download the Worksheet
Turn your interests into revenue-generating strategies and start earning more income with your music.
Online Presence
The best way to establish an online presence is through a website and domain that you own. This gives you ultimate control over how your information is presented and how your brand is portrayed. You can set up a domain and hosting starting at only $2.95/month with Bluehost. In addition to your own website, choosing which social media profiles you will establish a presence on is recommended to enhance dialogue and engagement with your followers. Social media options are aplenty. Choosing the right social media platforms that suit your engagement goals is key. For example, if your audience is a bit older and into engaging in long-form dialogue, Facebook might be best. Alternatively, if your audience is younger, TikTok may be better suited for your music.
Marketing and Promo Strategy (to Build a Fanbase)
Any business person should be actively engaging in some form of marketing to get their product or service in the eyes of those who need it. Being a musician is no different. Finding ways to get your music in front of those who need to hear it can help you grow your fanbase exponentially. The larger your fanbase is, the more opportunity you have to sell your products and services.
A marketing strategy consists of a timeline of efforts you will make both online and off to increase exposure. It can be for specific launches or it can be generalized. Here’s an example of a marketing strategy…
- Social Media – Posting to YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram on a weekly basis.
- Email Marketing – Building an email list and providing consistent bi-weekly email content.
- Blogging and SEO – Creating weekly blog posts that attract search engine traffic.
- Community Involvement – Hosting local events, putting up flyers around town, street team activities.
- Collaboration – Co-Promoting opportunities with other musicians, reaching out to local venues about my music, reaching out to event planners.
- Paid Advertising – Advertise specific posts on Instagram
- Online Placements – Adding a music profile to various online platforms for gigging purposes
These are just some examples. There are many more to choose form. A well-rounded marketing strategy includes activities that you will engage in online and offline and it utilizes various forms of promotion platforms and activities.
Direct Line for Engagement (Email Newsletter or Texting Service)
You’ll need to decide how you will engage with your followers directly. Having a social media and website presence is great, but in order to effectively communicate and engage with your followers a form of contact is needed. This includes an email platform or it can be a texting community, Discord, or even a Messenger (Facebook) or Close Friends (Instagram) list. While email is the traditional route, there are many more ways to reach your followers directly. Whichever you choose, make sure that the majority of your fanbase has access to it.
Gigs
As a singer-songwriter, one of the best ways to earn money is through gigging and maintaining a gigging calendar. Traditional gigs at venues can be quite profitable if you can manage to get booked, do some touring, and get into weekly rotations in your local area. Check out our free Course – How to Book Profitable Gigs, if you need help in this area. You can also pursue alternative gigging options such as virtual live streaming. You can also build up a significant clientele for private gigs in your regional area doing house concerts, weddings, and private events.
How to Book Gigs
4 Day eCourse
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- Learn how to keep your gigging calendar full of gigs you love and
Contact Management System
Keeping track of all of your contacts can be a challenge if you’re not organized. As a singer-songwriter, you have many different types of people in your network that you connect with on a regular basis such as followers, venue contacts, industry professionals, your street team, members of the press, etc. Having a CRM database or a platform to manage all of your contacts in one place can save you a lot of time and help you stay organized. There are some platforms, such as Hubspot, that even offer free CRM services.
Building a career based on your artistic endeavors is not easy because it is a very personal venture. Be patient with yourself. It may take a few tries to find the right mix of product / service / marketing to figure out what works for you. Because artistic business ventures are so personal and highly customizable to the individual, there may not be many ‘proven-models’ to follow verbatim. However, many artists have done this (including myself) and are still doing it. So it can definitely be done and it is in your reach! If you need help customizing a business model and a marketing strategy to fit your needs, schedule a strategy session with me. I’d love to help you brainstorm ideas for earning money with your skillset and passion as well as how to present them as a marketable product or service. Schedule a strategy session here.
Have any questions or comments? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.
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