Doing music is not the only way to earn money as a musician! I’m sure we all know that by now. The trick is finding the right options and investing the time to do it. However, earning money with music is not as easy as it sounds. You have to be knowledgeable about opportunities and have the wherewithal to take the necessary actions. As a creative entrepreneur, your success will come from the systems you build. Let me encourage you first and foremost…
You’ve got what it takes! You’ve got income earning potential coming from your pores! Today we’re going to discuss how you can use the internet to enhance your music business hustle. Let’s talk about 5 Ways Musicians Can Earn Money Online.
Fan Subscription / Membership Sites
As an artist and creator, you have a wealth of options you can choose from to share your creativity with an exclusive audience. Having a subscription-based platform creates a ton of earning potential that can be streamlined and scaled. You can offer things like exclusive music, private chats/forums with you, private monthly live shows, behind-the-scenes content, gifts, and more. The great thing about membership or subscription-based options is that you can offer a tier for every budget. Whether a person only has $5 to spend per month or $50, you’ve got something for everyone.
Sites such as Buy Me a Coffee and Patreon offer a plug-and-play platform you can use to get set up within a matter of minutes. The other great thing is that these sites typically don’t require upfront fees. Their fees are collected once you start earning money. Check out these musicians earning money with memberships here and here.
I’m sure a lot of us are aware of Amanda Palmer’s success with Patreon and crowdfunding! Her book The Art of Asking delves deep into the intersection of crowd-funding and running a successful artist business. You’ll find some practical tips on crowdfunding. More importantly, you’ll have a more purposeful intent and a bold new outlook on what it means to partner with your supporters through the transaction of giving. I was blown away by Amanda’s fearlessness, and it definitely rubbed off on me. I was no longer afraid to make the ask which I believe stops a lot of us musicians. I’ll tell you this right now, you’re definitely worth it. Get the book!
The Art of Asking: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Let People Help
Part manifesto, part revelation, this is the story of an artist struggling with the new rules of exchange in the twenty-first century, both on and off the Internet. The Art of Asking will inspire readers to rethink their own ideas about asking, giving, art, and love.
Sync Licensing Platforms
Music licensing is everywhere. It’s in your favorite commercials, in documentaries and TV Shows, in movies, and even on YouTube. If you’re a musician, you have an opportunity to license your music for money. There used to be a barrier to enter this domain by music industry gatekeepers. However, that’s not really the case today. Platforms such as Songtradr and Artlist allow you to license your music without the help of an industry professional.
Check out our friend Caleb’s experience! He’s been in the sync licensing game since 2018 and has a lot of good information to share here.
Streaming Platforms
In this post-pandemic era, there are many streaming platforms you can utilize to earn an income while performing music live from your home or from a location you choose. As long as you have the right equipment, you can put on an amazing show for people who are looking for unique forms of entertainment but don’t want to commit to going out in public. The obvious platforms that come to mind for this is YouTube and Facebook. But there are many other platforms offering musician-oriented features such as StageIt and LiveKrowd. Live streaming platforms allow you to broadcast a virtual show and additionally they provide tools to earn an income through tips and merchandise sales. In one of our previous posts, we share Free Live Streaming Platforms for Musicians to Earn Money. Check out that post to learn about the many different platforms available for musicians to earn money while live streaming.
Related Content:
Best Webcams for Live Streaming
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Marketplace (Job) Platforms
In addition to creating your own music, you may also have skills or abilities that others will want to hire you for. Music engineering, jingle writing, songwriting services, voiceover services, and session work are a handful of services you could potentially offer as a musician. Platforms like Upwork and Fiverr put you in direct contact with people looking for your services. See an example of musicians on Fiverr offering voiceover services below.
If you’re wondering if Fiverr is legit, it is! I spent a lot of time on Fiverr working with small businesses, fellow musicians, entrepreneurs, artists, therapists, and more. I got paid every week and it was a great way to add an extra stream of income to our earnings. See my article 5 Side Hustles for Musicians for even more income earning ideas.
Related Content:
18 Ways Musicians Are Actually Making Money
Give Yourself a Raise: Use This Income Boosting Spreadsheet
At the time of this writing, there are currently 170 different types of jobs available for musicians on Upwork. Platforms such as this allow you to apply for jobs, interview as an applicant, do the job and get paid. Once you get paid, the platform usually takes a percentage for their fees and the rest is yours. If you’d like to explore other opportunities for musicians on marketplace platforms check out Airgigs, Soundbetter, and Melody Nest.
It’s important to remember that with these types of platforms, it may take a while to get a momentum going. In my own experience, I have set up profiles and applied for jobs and saw no immediate results, no job offers and no responses. But as time went along, I did eventually get jobs/gigs and started to build my portfolio. If you choose to go this route, don’t be discouraged if you don’t get a job right away. Hang in there. You’ll start to see activity eventually.
*Members Only Content* Excerpt: As I mentioned above, I’ve spent a lot of time on Fiverr over the past decade. It’s an amazing platform to earn extra income but there are some things I learned from my experience there that really changed my perspective on working with people. It’s taught me how to price my work appropriately, how to vet people, and how to offer the best service to keep (the good) clients coming back for more. I had several bad apples too! Here’s my backstage experience…(This content is for Crafty Community Members Only. To unlock this content either login below or become a member. Memberships start at only $5/month.)
Download the Worksheet
Turn your interests into revenue-generating strategies and start earning more income with your music.
Teaching Platforms
The other way a musician can earn money with online platforms is by offering a workshop or online course. Platforms like Teachable, Udemy, and Thinkific give you tools to create beautiful workshops or courses to offer to your fans. Songwriting Workshops, Singing Lessons, Breathing Lessons, and Instrument Lessons are great ways musicians can bring an interactive form of engagement to their fans and get paid doing it. The great thing about this option is that you’ll put the work in upfront to create the course, but once that’s done you can earn income without doing anything else. This is called passive income. Then, all you have to do is market and promote your course in your newsletter, on your website, or on your blog and allow people to join at their convenience. You can be busy doing a performance and then next thing you know, you get a notification that someone has purchased your course! That’s one of the best feelings! 🙂
If you haven’t already pursued these options, don’t be afraid to dive in. The opportunity is there. Remember to stick with it. Follow through with what you committed to do and you’ll see results. Perhaps by the end of the year, you’ll even give yourself a significant raise!
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