Why Refusal to Engage Is No Longer Acceptable?

In the constantly evolving digital music world, it has become clear that artist engagement is key to ensure successful career development and survival for artist, manager and recording labels. If an artist is unwilling to engage with their fans online and via mobile, it is TMV’s view that perhaps they should reconsider being an artist as a career path.

Gone are the days where an artist could remain at arm’s length from engaging with their fan base. This is the 21st century now, and fans DO expect more from the artists they idolise. Artists have to rise to the challenge, or risk having their fans move on to find an artist who will satisfy their craving for engagement. Fans can no longer be taken for granted and artists need to earn fan loyalty.

Whether we like it or not, social media has changed the game of breaking an artist forever. From the launch of Myspace into the stratosphere in the early Naughties, as well as Last.fm, Bebo, Facebook and tweeting on Twitter, social media has changed the way in which we all engage.

Yes, established and up-and-coming artists have busy schedules on tour – doing PR! However what is five minutes out of every day to post a little picture from backstage or a rambling update? The value it brings in driving fan loyalty and sales cannot be understated. Labels realise this, managers realise this, yet still some artists are not getting the message.

Obviously, the music has to be good. But social media traffic and engagement is playing an increasingly important role in the decisions record labels make in signing artists, and the same goes for booking agents.

Why should an artist make a commitment to engage with their fans? Artists want their music to be purchased by fans, right? Well, in this new digital world, artists’ fans expect to be shown respect. If that artist is not engaging with their fans, then they risk losing their fans, the same people who purchase tracks, merchandise and concert tickets.

Yes, there are so many tools an artist needs to employ. And yes, that does take up valuable time. Using record company staff to post on behalf of bands is, in TMV’s view, anathema – most fans can smell a fake a mile away. Record companies, if your artist will not engage with their fan base using all the social tools at their fingertips and mobile phone, drop them. They have no place in today’s music world.

With today’s technologies and tools it only requires a 5-minute per day commitment from your artists. If they do not see the value in fan engagement, quite frankly, they do not deserve to be artists. Building a career in music is costly and a lot of hard work. With the advent of social media, competition has increased, and whether established or not, artists have no option but to engage.

Furthermore, if an artist is finely tuned and engaged with their audience, there are numerous options at their disposal.  You do not necessarily even have to sign to a label. A number of artists have built up fan bases using social media and have used that to leverage deals whereby they do not necessarily require a record deal.

Check out Noush Skaugen, for example, who has over 1.5 million twitter followers, yet has turned down recording contract offers. How does she survive, you ask? Film, TV and advertising syncs. It’s all in the publishing, folks.

Without mentioning names TMV are very aware of a number of popular global artists that have staff posing as them and generating social media engagement with their fans. However, as an artist, spare a minute to think about how you would feel if you were a fan and you initially believed you were communicating directly with the artist you idolise or respect. Then you find out that you’ve been fooled/cheated and that engagement was all a lie. Not a very nice feeling is it?

Numerous mobile apps, like Mobile Backstage for instance, allow the artist to upload a comment, photo or even track via their mobile phone and it is instantly accessible across their social media footprint. As previously stated, all the artist needs to commit to is 5 – 10 minutes a day. Is that really too much to ask? If they answer “yes” to that question, they must ask themselves whether they are cut out to be an artist in the 21st century.

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