Net Worth: Web 2.0 helps market the songwriter’s craft

by David McPherson, Winter 2008

Thanks to Web 2.0 and its myriad of free websites, the opportunities for songwriters to gain exposure, sell songs, post gigs and reach new fans have never been easier. Whether it’s popular social-media sites such as MySpace, Sonicbids (where artists can create and post electronic press kits) or Facebook, the range of online tools for songwriters to market their music is endless.

Access to fans from every corner of the globe is one of the biggest advantages these new media tools offer. “As an artist, you’re expected to have a MySpace, Facebook and Sonicbids presence,” says Astrid Young, Neil Young’s half-sister and a seasoned songwriter. “It’s a shame some songwriters haven’t embraced these media, since not embracing them can significantly reduce the people who have access to your work.”

Rob Szabo is a Toronto-based songwriter and artists who plays more than 100 gigs a year. His most recent album, Life and Limb, was released this fall and he used his website, MySpace page and Facebook to help promote it. And while he admits he’s a “curmudgeon,” in the sense that he would prefer to spend as much time as possible on the guitar, writing and playing, he’s definitely involved in new media and sees the value.

“I first became aware of MySpace in 2004 when I was on tour in the U.S.,” he recalls. “People in Brooklyn and Long Island were hip to it, but I didn’t understand how it could be useful. I was like, ‘I don’t have time for this – I don’t want to screw around on the Internet that much.’ Then, the next thing you know, I’m booking gigs and making connections with other songwriters through MySpace in a way I wasn’t doing over e-mail and I started seeing how it could be useful.”

Romi Mayes, a songwriter from Winnipeg, raves about this wide new world of online promotion, and she agrees with Szabo and Young as to its usefulness. “As an independent musician who is attempting literally to reach the world via my laptop, I find every outlet possible on the Internet a valuable tool for promotion,” she says. “When I have a show or tour coming up that I want to promote, I don’t bother getting posters made, printed and put up in the city any more. Instead, I do a mass e-mail using Facebook, MySpace, my website and area-based e-mail lists I’ve acquired over years at shows and online.”

Mayes knows the amount of time people spend on their computers these days, so she takes advantage of the power of these online marketing tools. “Anyone will tell you free marketing is the most ideal marketing,” she says. Beyond marketing, Mayes uses her laptop and the power of Web 2.0 to book tours, send out digital posters to venues and send press releases and promo photos to media members. She also keeps fans updated on current and upcoming tours online. “It’s like a one-stop shop,” she says. “Due to the accessibility and commonality of groups like Facebook, MySpace and YouTube, it’s very easy to reach everyone from a promoter to a radio DJ and hear back within days.

“With little capital to work with, I have to try to keep up with the masses and bust my butt to use all the resources I can that don’t cost me thousands of dollars. While Facebook, MySpace, YouTube and others continue to grow in popularity, I will definitely use them until they no longer prove effective or free.”

Shannon Lyon, a soulful songwriter originally from Kitchener, Ont., who currently lives in Berlin, Germany, says another effect of Web 2.0 is that MySpace and similar social-media sites have allowed artists to eliminate record companies from the musical equation. He believes this is positive since it gives musicians more control.

“This has inspired songwriters to create and control their own musical microcosms,” he says. “Hopefully, with such freedom, this allows the artist to be as true to their craft as possible – getting back to the important stuff without having to deal with record executives and their molding and marketing techniques. As well, through these sites, songwriters can find networks of like-minded artists and fans, which has helped artists develop large numbers of fans without leaving their homes.”

From reaching more fans and gaining global exposure to distributing their songs, songwriters need to continue to harness the power of Web 2.0 to help advance their careers. “These sites are indispensable to what I do as an independent artist,” says Szabo. “I couldn’t do what I do, the way I do, without them.”

On the SOCAN website, there are a many informative tools and articles in the Resources section, listed under the "Resources" heading on the Music Creators page, and similarly helpful webcasts in the "Watch" box on the Music Creators page.

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