MySpace, Imeem, and other music sharing sites are constantly being hailed as meccas for new talent—the perfect places for up-and-coming artists to make it big. But when it really comes down to how buzz is generated around a particular artist or band, word-of-mouth is the dominating factor, a CMJ panel of music marketers said last week.
MySpace “blasts” and other forms of SNS mass advertisements, Jonathan Schwartz of Zenbu Media Group explained, all end up in one place: the spam box. For bands to break through the sea of online artists and build a fan base, they have to stick to old-fashioned offline social networking, targeting those within groups who can sway their friends to listen to new music. (This is the Sphere of Influence we’ve talked about.) Networks are great for sharing information, but its people, not computers, who shape what others will listen to.
So should new bands start closing their MySpace accounts and hitting the streets with free albums to attract fans? Not so fast. At the CMJ After-party at Blender Theater last Saturday night (which featured Free Moral Agents, White Denim, and Coheed and Cambria), a member of a young Toronto band called High Voltage and I struck up a conversation about his weekend at CMJ. After talking for all of five minutes, he gave me a tiny flyer with one important address: his MySpace URL. Even though I wasn’t sure if his band’s Aerosmith-influenced beat would fit my tastes, I checked them out. It was his personal touch that made all the difference – I met the guy, so I wanted to give him a chance and hear his work. And guess what: his band’s song “Rumor Mill” is pretty good. I might go check out the rest of his album.
Myspace or newer (and better) networks, like MOG, Haystack, and PureVolume are great ways for bands to share their music, but only if they’re used wisely. In the end, a band’s success still depends on creating a one-on-one connection with its fans—making them feel like they’re part of a community. The “social web” is perfectly suited for personal interactions like this, and mobile is getting there as well with services like Mozes. Still, they are just tools to further in-person engagement. Because while it’s never been easier to do outreach to fans, it’s never been easier for them to ignore you. Click.
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