Hello and welcome to the latest installment of our Advice series. We plan on covering YouTube a lot in the next month or two, and this afternoon we’re kicking off those efforts with a look at what makes this video sharing network such a great tool for artists on the rise. If you have a recommendation for a future installment of this column, or if you have a question you would like us to tackle in the weeks ahead, please email james@haulix.com and share your ideas. We can also be found on Twitter and Facebook.
There are arguments to be made for the importance of a well-maintained presence on any major social media network, but in 2013 there may be no channel more important for artists on the rise than YouTube. Since launching in the mid-2000s YouTube has risen from humble beginnings as a place to watch silly cat videos to being the number one destination for people under 18 hoping to discover new music. Yes, YouTube tops Facebook, iTunes, Pandora, Spotify, Rdio, terrestrial radio, and even your brother’s ‘awesome’ music blog when it comes to attracting music fans hungry for new ideas, and today we’re going to look at why it’s important that you take an active approach to controlling how your music is seen (and heard) on the world’s number one video sharing site.
How did YouTube outpace all its competition for new music discovery with the younger and arguably most important demographic of fans? One word: Sharing. Not long ago, anyone hoping to share a song they heard on CD or radio would have to put in quite a bit of effort to give or otherwise tell the world about that material. You needed to make a copy, upload that to the internet or burn it to a cd, and then find another service (digital or physical) to deliver it. In a world where YouTube exists sharing is no longer a hassle. It has become as simple as copying and pasting a URL to any friend/network/email/etc. you can imagine, and it will probably become simpler still. Anyone can share any song or clip from YouTube with countless people in the time it takes to breathe a single breath, and that has made a major difference in the site’s popularity. Additionally, you have to consider that YouTube is essentially available anywhere you have an internet connection. If I see a clip from our offices here at Haulix that I want to share I can send it to my mom’s iPad in Michigan, my brother’s cell phone in Iowa, and to half a dozen industry friends worldwide on their preferred devices with a single link that works (almost) 100% of the time. No other streaming service comes close to that kind of universal connectivity.
The ease of sharing and connectivity that YouTube has given music fans has allowed them to play a more immediately active role in the success of artists, and by pairing great music with matching visuals you can leverage that ease of action to help your career. People love sharing great content, and if you put extra effort into your digital content (video updates, lyric videos, etc.) people will notice and help you get the word out. Think OK GO, Justin Bieber, or Gotye would have found success nearly as fast without the aid of thousands of curious music fans sharing their videos? Probably not.
There is no downplaying the importance of having a website, writing great songs, playing gigs, doing interviews, and running smart PR campaigns, but there are opportunities available to creative minds through YouTube that were previously unavailable to unsigned talent as recently as a decade ago. In a way similar to great covers, great video content can make your art accessible to people who otherwise may have never given you the time of day. Don’t take that for granted.
As if all of this was not reason enough to join YouTube and dedicated extra time to crafting video materials, it’s worth mentioning that YouTube is one of the few social networks that allow artists to monetize the content they create. Through YouTube’s Partner Program allows channel owners to monetize their content through advertising, but that’s just one of many ways the service can put a few extra bucks into your new van fund. Head over to Billboard for a rundown of additional money-making opportunities offered by YouTube.
We are nowhere near done covering all the great opportunities offered by leveraging the power of YouTube and its audience. Stay tuned for additional advice columns on this powerful social tool in the weeks ahead.
