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Why I Hate to Love MySpace
Brad Trew What exactly is MySpace? I have to keep asking myself this question for a variety of reasons. On some levels, it's the greatest thing since sliced bread. At other times, it's a great reason to throw your computer against a wall. At its root, it's an open-concept promotion tool so people can say or do as much or as little as they like. In the broader sense, it's a structured anarchy controlled by very little restrictions on who and what can be posted. MySpace becomes what you chose it to be. A browse through 10 profiles will give you a sense of just how customizable your profile can be. From the musician's perspective, it is a forum where you can interact with, and build your fan base. It is an anchor to demonstrate who bands are, what they do and a place where fans can find them. In the very least, it is a spot where you can post up a couple of your songs so everyone can hear what you are all about. In the extreme, it can serve as a band's only web presence where all information about the band can be found like upcoming shows, blogs, bulletins, etc. It can also serve as a band's only means of promotion in lieu of mailing lists, posters, and advertisements. Bands have complete creative control as to how they are presented. This can be good or bad depending on a band's marketing skills because as more and more bands jump on the bandwagon, some will stand out more than others. The savvy bands with a good business sense can make their careers by using the internet as a resource. While MySpace can be the be all to end all, it has to be an end to a means. It is a necessary evil, but necessary all the same. Its just one of the tools available to working musicians that want to broaden their exposure. Never should a band live by MySpace and MySpace alone. The flakiness/instability of its user interface and its archaic method of customizing its pages is a perfect reason why it can be more trouble than it is worth. It's true that MySpace has its own inherent problems, but constantly I see mistakes made by users that make me question why they are there at all. One thing I don't understand are the people that limit their friend requests to just their friends. What is the point of using a networking site when you shut the door to anyone and everyone? Another pet peeve I have is bands that won't request friend requests from other bands. Who better to understand, appreciate and promote a band than another band? Every band that I have worked with have been either sourced through, or confirmed through MySpace. If a band does not have a MySpace page, then shame on them. If a band has a MySpace page and limits who can be added to their ever-expanding group of friends then there is something even more wrong. Record labels, radio stations, web and print magazines, management firms, publishing/licensing firms, film companies, etc. all operate under the band side of MySpace. I am a fan of music and having the door slammed in my face gives me a great reason to never look at that band again. As a record label, I use MySpace daily for a multitude of reasons. Because of the open structure of the MySpace format, much can be learned about a band by how they present themselves, how many fans they have, how many plays per day they receive, whether their tracks are downloadable or not, what type and volume of upcoming shows they have. In essence, this paints a picture of band and how they are comparable to every other band out there. What is the true measure? Is it the number of visits to your profile? Perhaps. But if you don't have consumable content then it was a wasted opportunity. The bottom line is how many times does your songs get played. After all, your intent is to present yourself based on the music you produce. But all this has a dark side. I have been on the profiles of some up-and-coming and some major acts who have thousands of plays per day. For instance, U2 has about 10,000 plays per day. While that is a testament to the power of MySpace and the popularity of U2, it has also given fans 10,000 reasons not to buy their music. Today's society is all about instant gratification. MySpace delivers by allowing users to surf through dozens of music profiles, listen to as much music as they like and move on. In many cases, the user has no clue who they just listened to because it becomes an endless string of nameless music. There is nothing in the band/fan relationship that encourages the fan to take their commitment and support of the band to the next level by buying their music. Bands need to make MySpace work for them. 1. Add as many friends as possible…it doesn't matter who as long as you now have another potential fan to reach out to. 2. Update your page often with new shows and blogs. 3. Make sure you send invitations to your fans to subscribe to your blog so that they can stay completely up to date with anything going on. 4. Use the Events option to alert people of significant happenings, whether it be upcoming shows, new releases, media coverage. 5. Use the Classified Posts to recruit new members, locate a videographer, producer, etc. 6. Most of all change your songs regularly. Even if you only have 8 songs recorded, circulate through them regularly so that fans have an ever-changing song list to listen to. By the way, my MySpace profile is at www.myspace.com/cyclonerecordsca and my podcast is at www.myspace.com/eyeofthestormpodcast. Drop by, say hi and add me as a friend. |
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