One of the most successful things I ever did during my running of a previous record label was to set up a mailing list. We started with a little tiny box in the corner of the website saying "if you'd like to stay updated...blah, blah blah". A few people noticed it, and signed up, but a mailing list containing all of 12 email addresses isn't exactly going to bring a huge amount of traffic when you send a newsletter, so I decided to offer an incentive for people giving me their email addresses. It's simple really, and I'm certainly not claiming to have invented this idea - every time we had an E.P in the pipeline, we'd release a track for free a couple of weeks in advance, all the punters had to do to consume this tasty download was put an email address in a subscribe box. Not just simple, but fair, and more importantly, targeted. We got the email addresses of people who are interested in the genres we specialised in, they got a free track.
Free tracks is just the start. As you grow as an artist you'll be able to collect email addresses from downloads, from CD sales, from Merch sales. I went to a Cribs gig recently, as we queued to enter somebody was giving a way free Cribs comic strips, what did you have to give them in return? Yup, an email address. Quirky, persuasive, fun and useful. Not many refused.
Now for that sticky, sticky subject. Spam. I'm gonna leave this paragraph short. If I get an email address from some random company trying to sell me watches or insurance, I ignore it, and yeah, it annoys me. If I get an email from a band, or a music magazine, or a label, I read it. I'm probably there for a reason! And the chances are I'll be interested. It only benefits you to have relevant email addresses anyway, so don't go offering metal fans free chocolate bars for email addresses so you can send them info on your latest leftfield electronica project, everyone will be happy.
"But I don't want to fork out on a mailing list host!" No, of course you don't, why would you? Well fortunately you won't have to, at least not to start with. If you have a website, many web hosts, 1 and 1 included, offer newsletter building and sending as a part of their packages. If not, try using something like Reverb Nation, if you don't already. You can embed the code in your own website, myspace, even facebook I think. Look:
Shameless.
Hope this gives some ideas. In summary, I think you just have to know how to collect email addresses, and try and be quirky about how you get them. A list of 2,000 interested fans can increase your sales when it comes to release day, or attendance at your gigs when it comes to touring. Be creative in your promotion as well as your tunes.
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