By: Bruce Wawrzyniak
You’ve been beaten up by the now nine-month long pandemic. You feel ignored because everyone is focusing on the homestretch leading up to Christmas in approximately a week-and-a-half. And you feel lost in a sea (or, more like, ocean) of others doing exactly what you do.
Welcome to the world of being a creator in 2020.
Whether you’re a recording artist or a podcaster, this can
feel like a great time to go into hibernation – if you let yourself crumble
under the aforementioned molehill that has become a mountain taking the form of
the Grinch.
Alas, there is help, however. And it’s found in the fact that you are a
creator, which looks a lot like the word creativity, which is what is required
to get some lights flashing around your notice to people that you’re still
around and still doing what you do.
I loved seeing exactly that being done by the sister duo
REYNA, who I just interviewed last month for Episode 353 of my weekly “Now HearThis Entertainment” podcast. They have a
song called “7’11” and demonstrated their creativity in the way they’ve gotten people
engaged with it. Heck, yours truly fell
for it yesterday, I don’t mind admitting.
They simply told people to screenshot their smartphone’s
home screen when the time displayed 7:11 and post it as an Instagram story –
with their song by the same name playing over it – and to tag them. In return, they would send you a Christmas
card. Brilliant. I say, ‘Bravo, ladies,’ because I love this
idea. (And I’ll be anxious to get my
Christmas card from them. Wink.)
Some artists might be saying, “That’s great, but I’m on the
clock, here. I’ve got a Christmas song
that I’m trying to push through all the others so that people will purchase and
stream mine!”
Here’s my suggestion.
While it would be ideal if your song were called, “(Ugly)
Christmas Sweater,” do a spinoff on what REYNA did. Ask people to post a picture on their story
of themselves wearing an ugly Christmas sweater (or drinking something – maybe a
hot drink – out of a Christmas mug), put your song in their post, and in
exchange you will (insert gratuitous gesture here).
Now more than ever when opportunities are scarce to go out
to perform live and hope to get attention and thus sales for your music, you
need to get creative as to what you can do from home.
Recording artist Natalie Duque posted over the weekend that
if you sign up for her mailing list, starting in 2021 you will get access to
her new releases one week before they’re available to the world.
See? No one is
reinventing the wheel here, per se. Instead,
much in the same way that you would challenge yourself to write a new song or
give your podcast a refresh, of sorts, it’s a matter of digging deep to pull
out something that – again, just like the content you’re creating – will not
only get people’s attention, but move them to take some kind of action, whether
that’s streaming, purchasing, liking/following, or whatever desired result you
want. If you gain ten streams,
okay. If it’s a hundred, even better. But I can assure you that if you do nothing
and hope that fans will magically interact with what you’ve put out, it will be
a long, cold winter. Have a good nap.
What clever tactics have you employed or seen others doing
lately that are great case studies? Tweet
them to me via @NHT_tweets or through Facebook or LinkedIn. Too long to post about on social media? Email me about it instead. Or, if you need help with your challenges and
want a one-on-one, confidential video consultation with me, book it here.
• • •
I am a manager and publicist, running Now Hear This, Inc., an agency that has served clients across the U.S. ranging from music artists to authors to small businesses and even an Olympic athlete. Since February 2014 I have also hosted a weekly podcast (“Now Hear This Entertainment”), which has gotten listeners from 153 countries around the world. Find more about the company and the podcast at www.NowHearThis.biz. I am also a national speaker. Visit www.SpeakerBruceW.com for more information.
