How do you find even more ways to expand your fanbase?

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As an artist, growing a loyal fanbase can take a huge amount of time and hard work, especially if you are just getting started. It may be disconcerting at first, when you struggle to get your music heard by the masses, but with some strategy and targeted promotion, you will quickly see your audience growing exponentially. With social networks requiring a substantial budget in order to reach a large number of people, it can be difficult to get your music off the ground without a large budget. We’ve taken a look at some of the methods you should be using in order to organically grow your fanbase.

Contact influencers

In order to expand your fan base, you must first reach out to those who are influencers in the industry. Influencers include DJs, journalists, and bloggers, all of whom have a high degree of influence within the dance music industry. In order to catch the attention of influencers, it is vital to send out a personalized email, rather than a mail merger that their inboxes will be flooded with on a daily basis. When pitching your music, do your research; find a track that they recently posted about that is a similar style to your music. Everybody has their own taste, so make sure you’re reaching out to those who are most likely to enjoy your tracks. A personal, well-written email will go a long way, and you will find that the more effort you put into writing a thought-out message, the more likely you are to receive a response.

High-quality releases

Make sure that the quality of your tracks is right. Without the right quality, you will fail to receive the response you desire from listeners. Reach out to industry professionals and other artists for feedback, send your track to a few promo inboxes. If your tracks have potential, you will no doubt find that people are happy to nudge you in the right direction with some constructive feedback. While receiving criticism may be disheartening, there is always something you can do to improve your production, and learning from feedback is one of the quickest ways to develop as an artist. Plus, it creates a relationship with those already established in the industry, make sure to put across a professional image and show that you are willing to learn. Keep in touch with those who provide feedback, take their criticisms on board and send them the track again once you have acted upon their thoughts, keep your name fresh in their minds. Even the most established artists face heavy criticism, being able to accept negative feedback and learn from it is one of the major assets of a talented artist.

Focus your audience

Ensure that you are contacting the right people, people who are likely to appreciate your style. Make sure that they are associated with the genre you are producing, conduct thorough research to find the right people. Reaching out to bloggers who have no interest in your genre will be a waste of your time and theirs, utilize that time by conducting thorough research and writing a personalized message to someone who has a real chance of liking your style. If you’re producing trap, you don’t want to be emailing a blogger who is only into techno. Contacting somebody who clearly isn’t interested in your style will appear careless, giving industry influencers a bad first impression of you.

Be recommended

When trying to expand your fanbase, you should endeavor to be recommended by trusted sources. A recommendation from a highly regarded artist, blogger or news outlet will go a long way in attracting more fans. Often, a recommendation will completely change a listener’s perception of you and your brand, and will allow them to listen with an open mind. Always try to encourage high-profile industry professionals to pay attention to you; keeping them on side is vital in expanding your persona.

Network with industry leaders

Another major aspect of expanding your fanbase is networking. Events like Amsterdam Dance Event (ADE) or the International Music Summit (IMS Ibiza) can be a great opportunity to network. Meeting new people and building on the relationships you have already founded is imperative in securing your position in the music industry. Talking to people in person about your music is a great way to connect with new influencers, as in person it eliminates the possibility of them missing your emails or not checking out your tracks. In person you are able to put across your personality in a more personal way than through an email, giving your pitching more meaning. Making a personal connection with someone influential in the industry is one of the most powerful moves an artist can make, as the potential reward for doing so has no limit. Naturally, it is vital to always remain polite and courteous during these encounters, giving a good first impression is vital. Remaining humble is key, coming across as big-headed can take the shine away from your talent.

Connecting with influencers and industry professionals really is the key to the expansion of your fanbase. With the weight of their approval behind you, you will quickly begin to experience growth in your audience. The most important aspect is thorough research, and taking great care when approaching people, show that you value their opinion, and be careful not to spam their inboxes. Most of all, you should exhibit a positive attitude, and show that you are willing to learn and eager to develop, this will set you on the right path.