It’s pretty much a given that effective e-mail contact is an indispensable part of growing and communicating with your fan base. No news there. But now that everybody is onto that game (let me see now, how many e-mails am I getting from musicians every week? Too many to count…), it might be worthwhile to take a moment to review some important points re: maintaining an effective – and regular – e-mail campaign.
I ran across this item from the CDBaby “DIY Musicians” blog (which I follow regularly with my Google Reader), and one point struck me in particular, so I’m posting it here as well:
2. Give them something – Don’t just send them a bunch of words on a page. Give your fans a picture, a YouTube video, a link to download a live song, b-side, or demo. Heck, even a picture that relates to your topics or catches their attention is better than nothing.
The rest of the post is pretty straightforward, maybe even obvious (“Don’t spam!” Well, duh!). But that point seems worth noting. Your messages should be more than “I’ve got these shows… I’ve got this new CD… please send me some of your money thankyouverymuch…”
The central principal of the new paradigm is “contact and engage.” And that means doing something more than listing your shows. If you’re going to contact your audience, make sure the contact is as worthwhile for them as it is for you. Even if it’s just sharing a photo that one of your fans posted to flickr.