This article was written by Cyber PR®’s Director of New Artist Relations, Corie Kellman (@coralman808)
Sometimes when describing the new music business to people, I say “The ‘music video money’ is gone.” This is the generalizing statement I use move people away from fetishizing the idea of high-production music videos they have memories of from the 80s-early 2000s.
I get it: when I was a kid, I remember the days where I would sit in front of MTV and VH1 for hours and watch shows like TRL and Making the Video; the MTV Music Video Awards were one of the biggest shows of the season when I was a teenager. Those days are a thing of the past– the investment in high-dollar music videos are no longer (with the exception of a few, where the overly-apparent product placement cannot be denied.) It doesn’t mean that the music video is dead, though. It’s just as important as ever. Your fans aren’t expecting a million dollar music video anymore and video content can be an important marketing tool for your music or brand; the production and delivery has just adapted, and you should adapt, too.
YouTube is the second largest search engine on the web. That means, that next to Google, YouTube is a the second most used tool when your fans (and potential fans) are searching the internet. Videos should be used to connect people to your music or brand and it doesn’t have to cost you a lot, and it doesn’t always have to be a music video, either. I get a question about video strategy on about 3 out of 10 calls I take with artists. Sometimes just knowing some different types of content you can post is half the battle. Here are some ideas to inspire you and get you started:
1. Lower-budget music video for your focus track(s)
OK Go – Here It Goes Again:
2. Live videos to showcase
The Wild Feathers: Got It All Wrong (Live):
3. Fan-Content or Fan-Curated Videos
Ellie Goulding – “Anything Can Happen”:
4. Lyric videos
Jason Mraz – I Won’t Give Up (Lyric Video):
5. A day on tour, in the studio, or in the life of …
The Maine – Album #4 Studio Update 12:
6. Cover songs
Look at Me Now – Chris Brown, Busta Rhymes(Cover by @KarminMusic):
7. Special breaking news announcement like tours, album dates, & personal milestones
P!nk Album Announcement:
8. Tutorials
The Hard Lessons Guitar Tablature Series: 002 BAMBOO:
The possibilities are really endless, so get out there and start creating good content. See what your fans like the best and start to make more of those kinds of videos. It will take some time to get to know what your viewers like the best, but the point is– it doesn’t have to be expensive or stressful to use YouTube as a part of your marketing strategy; don’t let it be!
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