Stephanie G. Mathis It’s easier than ever to make a great beat. It’s not that it’s easy, but there are many tools available to you – such as MIDI chords, sample packs, software synthesizers, etc.
For most, the greater challenge will be to figure out how they can market and sell their products. There are many distractions in a noisy, busy world.
You may already be using some of these websites to sell your music online.
Your Website
It’s important to have a website that helps you sell beats online.
Search engine algorithms, social media platforms, and laws may all change.
If you own a website, you can reduce risk and make sure that you always maintain a relevant online presence to which you can refer prospects and customers. You have full control over your platform.
A website can give you credibility by elevating your status as an expert. If you develop a strong brand, you may even be able to build a following.
Capture the email of visitors to your site by offering something free (e.g. an opt-in offer). Your email list is your best source of revenue in the long run.
You can also sell beats for free on your own website, and you have complete control over the price. This is not the case with the other marketplaces listed below.
Airbit
Airbit is considered by many to be the best place to sell beats on the internet. It has a powerful beat search engine that’s built in, and it gets coverage from Forbes, CNBC, and other major publications.
If you want to test out Airbit, you can do so for free. You can only upload 10 beats on the Basic plan.
The monthly Platinum subscription offers a great value, including the ability to upload unlimited beats, sound packs and promo credits (annually) as well as YouTube Content ID monetization.
There are also other subscription options depending on the way you use Airbit.
Airbit has over 800,000 users and two million beats, plus, sold. Over $45 million in production has been delivered to producers.
Airbit is a great platform, but you need to use it regularly, keep updating the content, make contacts and promote your work.
You get out of it what you put in, but you will see the results if you are serious about it.
Airbit can be added quickly to your Bandzoogle site if you use it for music promotion. This will match your website design and let you sell directly.
Facebook wants to be your first choice for… everything.
Facebook has everything you need to find your next buyer. From dating to classified ads to playing games and connecting with friends, Facebook will help you spread the word.
It’s standard to set up your page, profile (pages have become less effective in recent years), group, post daily, interact with other people’s postings, connect with friends, ask them to spread the news, and send DMs to specific prospects (even if you’re just trying to get an appointment)
Facebook advertising is another way to reach a wider audience on a budget.
Fair enough, it is true that the complexity of the platform and the cost of advertising continue to rise. It may take some time before real results are seen in the business world (constant tweaking will be required).
Facebook Ads are a great way to advertise your music on Facebook.
Even if you only want to integrate your Facebook account with other platforms, such as Airbit, it is worth the effort. Facebook is a great place to find valuable information, especially since it has all our data.
You can watch videos on YouTube
YouTube, if you choose the right topic, will give you more exposure than any other social media site or video sharing website (even podcasts are not comparable).
What is the challenge? If your channel is brand new and your video content is not interesting to anyone, then you are lucky to get 5-50 views per video. It might be sufficient to get the occasional customer, but not enough to reach critical mass.
Building a YouTube channel is a long-term process.
If you are able to find your own voice, your format and your content focus, then you can grow your channel consistently.
Here are some ideas for content that will help you get started.
Your favorite music beats
Demonstrate how to make a beat
Talk about your favorite recording gear, DAW, VST plugins, MIDI packs, etc.
Share artists that you admire or who have influenced you.
Document the whole process of making a beat.
Twitter may seem to be lagging behind in the social media wars, but its users are devoted beyond reason.
Every tweet, even if it’s a small or brand-new account, has the potential of reaching hundreds and thousands of people at once.
Do you expect to see business benefits from each tweet? Most likely not. It does, however, mean that you can significantly increase the exposure of your beats.
You can re-share content you create to attract an audience on Twitter.
You can also network with media contacts, potential collaborators and prospects. You’ll get the most traction here.
SoundCloud
SoundCloud is based on a solid foundation and still offers one of the most powerful audio players available. It is for this reason that SoundCloud has gained popularity with podcasters, as well as artists and beatmakers.
There are many other artists on SoundCloud. But it is safe to assume that there are fans who are searching for new music. If they find your music, they might become a fan.
It’s difficult to predict the return on investment that you will get from SoundCloud. Some people are very successful, but these are the exceptions.
SoundCloud can still be very useful for bloggers, reviewers, and networking.
