E-Mail List

Since the advent of the e-mail, the e-mail list has been an essential tool for artists. E-mail lists provide a means for artists to directly speak with fans the world over. In an attention economy in which folks are inundated with content and ads all throughout the day, e-mail lists continue to be a powerful tool for direct access to your fans.

Many artists believe that large social media followings will help them stay connected with fans. And, for the time that is true. Large followings on Instagram and TikTok in the year 2022 are powerful tools for getting your music to fans. However, recent history indicates that social media companies falter and, when they do, artists who rely too heavily on these tools can suffer the consequences. We can look at MySpace as a case study. When the tides of social media shifted and Facebook ascended as the dominant social media company, large MySpace fanbases did not shift over and artists who built their following on MySpace suffered the consequences. The same might happen in the future with Instagram or TikTok.

Therefore, it behooves artists to begin compiling their e-mail lists as soon as possible. Doing so will give you a tool that you are in total control of. You can bypass shifting algorithms and shifting trends in social media usage to speak directly with your fans. You can use the e-mail list to announce shows, new merch, and new songs. Make this a priority.

You can begin building your lists by doing the following: pass around an e-mail list at your shows, have an e-mail collecting widget on your website, utilize pre-save campaigns for new songs that report e-mails to you, leverage your following on other social media sites to collect e-mails, and create compelling newsletter content or sales based incentives that draw your fan base toward e-mail.