After you’ve made your first music video, how do you get it out there in the world? Here are some helpful tips for how to promote your YouTube video from Brooklyn, NY voice teacher Liz T...
So you’re a singer, and you’ve just made a killer music video, but perhaps you are feeling overwhelmed and not sure how to promote your video? Follow these simple steps to make sure your music video gets the attention it deserves!
1. Establish a strong social media presence
In order to get your name, image, music, and brand out there, it’s important that you upload your content onto the various social media channels so people can see and hear you! YouTube is the most obvious, but there are so many more options. I recommend using as many as the social media platforms as you can to promote your video, including:
- YouTube
- Vimeo
- Vine (Instagram and Vine don’t usually let you upload the full length of the video, but you can do little snippets as a trailer or sneak peak!)
- We Are The Hits (a network for cover song videos)
- Your personal website
Don’t forget other music platforms such as PureVolume, SoundCloud, and ReverbNation, where you can upload your videos too! Of course, make sure your content is original and you own 100% of the rights before uploading.
2. Target your audience
Now that you have your music video on all these great social media sites, now it’s time to start targeting those fans! Think about who you are really trying to target. What age range and demographic would enjoy watching your videos?
Once you have decided on your audience, it’s time to build your SEO (Search Engine Optimization). SEO is all about your video content coming up in searches. This may sound scary at first, but it’s really quite simple. To do this for YouTube videos specifically, in Video Manager, under Basic Info, you’ll see a box where you can type in keywords to target your audience. Not many people know about this, but having the right keywords will help people find your music video among the millions of videos on the internet!
Think of adjectives and nouns when you watch your video. With my original music video “Ciao Bambino”, I added keywords that described the video, such as Italian, Boston, Berklee Alum, Breakup, etc. Having all the right keywords may lead you to getting all those views you want!
3. Make your music video/channel stand out
In order to get a lot of unique views, you want to make sure your video is creative. Here are a few tips to help make your video and channel stand out:
- Include great photos, clips, and art to promote your video. Often, viewers will just see a thumbnail preview of your video, and if it’s blurry or not interesting, they will not click on it.
- Follow or subscribe to other singers, musicians, and artists! When you show that you “Like” or support their material, they are very likely to follow you back.
- Add lyrics and links to your other social media platforms, so your fans can follow you everywhere! The great benefit of online media is that you can have fans everywhere in the world, and many sites will let you track this to see in which countries your friends are watching your videos. Go big, and think global!
If you follow these basic tips for promoting your YouTube video, I guarantee you will start seeing more views, likes, and subscribers! It may not happen overnight, but with a little work, you never know who may see your video — songwriters and A&R reps are always on the look-out for new videos on the web. Good luck!
Liz T. teaches singing, acting, and music lessons in Brooklyn, NY, as well as online. She is a graduate of the Berklee College of Music with a B.M in Vocal performance and currently performs/teaches all styles of music including Musical Theater, Classical, Jazz, Rock, Pop, R&B, and Country. Learn more about Liz here!
Photo by Rob Boudon
Suzy S.