Search Engine Optimization
Whether you are an independent artist or a marketing representative for a major record label you will need to advertise online. There are many ways to build hype and go viral on the Internet. The number one way people find stuff online is by searching Google. The process of getting your website on the first page of Google in the natural search results is Search Engine Optimization. SEO can be done by yourself, done in house or outsourced to a professional SEO company. But before you can even begin Search Engine Optimization you will need a website.
Band Website Design
There are a few companies out there that will build you a Google friendly Band Website. However most companies will sell you a cheap band website or if you look hard enough you can find a free band website. But, you get what you pay for and I would recommend purchasing a high quality website for your band or artist. One important thing to remember is that the internet works for all genres of music. From Shock Rock to Hip-Hop, R&B to Reggae all types of music are open game on the internet. If possible see if you can get a blog on your musician website and make sure you get good band website hosting. Don’t skimp on the hosting, it is one of the most important factors in SEO. If you get crappy shared website hosting it will load slow, go down periodically, and can be associated with bad websites that might also be hosted on the shared server. Ask your band website design company if they offer dedicated hosting as it is much faster and more secure. Once you have a good quality artist website you will want to market it on Google, Twitter, Social Networks and most importantly Facebook.
Facebook Advertising
Facebook has quickly became the most popular website on the Internet. With its unique advertising tools you can serve banner ads to people who are already fans of similar music. Facebook Advertising for Bands is quickly becoming a big business and there are professional advertising agencies out there that will generate your ads (some companies will do this for free), run alternating ads, make custom FBML pages and much more. Some of these companies will even manage the wall postings on your Facebook profile but this can be expensive and is usually reserved for bigger budget clients. Advertising on Facebook can also generate a large amount of fans on Facebook which can in tern increase album sales, mp3 downloads and overall brand recognition.
Global Market Exposure has done a lot for Bad Habitat and Surreal Music. As our official advertising and marketing company we get SEO Services, Facebook Advertising and Web Design and Development from them. If you really want to blow up online they are the people to go to. They can build you a really sick band website or if you are on a budget they have some band website templates which are pretty killer and still have all the Google compliant code and blog features. Check them out and tell them Bad Habitat referred you and receive a 10% Discount.
In addition to the company featured above, other Internet Marketing Firms offer similar services at comparable rates. One specific Online Advertising Agency is Total Market Exposure. They offer Social Media Marketing and Branding Services that utilize website design, Facebook marketing, Search Engine Optimization, Branding and other Online Advertising tactics that make sure that your brand is in front of prospective fans effectively.
