Being an indie musician is different now – you don’t need a major label to push your stuff anymore, and you don’t always need traditional radio. Get a following of hardcore fans (see Kevin Kelly’s classic blog about obtaining 1,000 true fans), get your music up on iTunes, and you can make a living doing what you love. Sounds easy, right? But the fact is, it’s a lot of hard work. I’ve outlined a few simple things you can do to put you on the path to success.

1. Build Your Brand

This takes a lot more thought and work than you might imagine. What is your band about? If you could describe your band in one or two words, what would they be? Find out what is at the heart of your music and put it out there in everything you do. I knew one band whose entire image was to wear turn of the century clothes (bowler hats, ascots, spats…the whole nine yards) and eyeliner. It worked perfectly for the style of music they had and what they were trying to convey – it was probably also hot as hell under the stage lights. But they branded themselves – you could look at an album cover or website and never confuse them with someone else. It also drew new fans in simply from curiosity. Something that dramatic may not work for you, but even something simple can have a profound impact if you use it right. Stand out from the crowd in any way you can.

2. Buy Quality Merch

Merchandise can be the lifeblood of an indie band – you might drive four hours to play a free gig for hundreds of people, and the only way to recoup expenses are what you have at your merch table. It’s hard to get someone to part with $10-$20 bucks, so it better be pretty damn cool.

Some questions to ask yourself: Would I buy this/wear this if it wasn’t my band? Does it represent the style and brand we are putting out there? Is it a quality product? Nobody wants to spend money on a t-shirt only to find that the logo peels after one wash or the stitching is coming out before you even wear it once. It leaves a bad taste in the mouths of fans who just spent hard on money supporting you. It gives the impression you’re not a serious, top- tier band if you can’t even afford to put out good stuff. Use Google – or better yet, ask the advice of some friends in other bands who they recommend (for fantastic shirts based in Nashville, check out Friendly Arctic).

3. Connect, connect, connect

There are hundreds of ways to connect these days – Facebook and Twitter are just two. Designate someone in the band (or maybe a couple of someones) to be your “social media contact”. They should tweet, message, like, retweet and promote a minimum of a couple times a day. I know people who have built a strong fanbase just based on twitter or connecting with people on internet forums like Reddit. Be sure that the things you are liking/tweeting/etc. are relevant to your fans and fit with your brand. Mostly, this is just using good common sense. If you’re a hardcore, Satanic death metal band, retweeting Hello Kitty is probably not going to fly (unless it’s ironic, in which case…you’re really funny). Take some time to Google the algorithms of Facebook and Twitter to determine when appropriate times to post are. But here’s something even more important than promotion – always, always, always take time to personally connect with potential fans. Nobody wants to see a Twitter account flooded with requests to listen to one of your songs. Nobody cares, unless you give them a reason to. You need to make a connection with them first, then they will care about your band and music.

4. Present Yourself Well

Have a banner at your merch table, and maybe some cool thing to lure people over (one band had an old 30’s radio which got people coming over to check it out. It also dovetailed nicely with their brand). Have a banner behind you on stage if possible. Don’t forget to tell the crowd that you have merch, and who you are. Introduce yourselves. Don’t be afraid to open up a little and tell the crowd what you’re about – what music means to you, how much you appreciate their support, how cool it is to be in their state, etc. If it fits with what you’re doing, you can even talk about politics (be careful, though, this is often a minefield) – I’ve seen lead singers go on political rants that really drew the crowd in, but it happened to work well because they knew their audience. Just remember to be humble and authentic – you want to leave a good impression and these people will tell other people how cool you were – or what a jackass you were.

5. Have a Great Website

Part of your brand should include a website and logo – something quality, not something your cousin did in MS Paint. If you want to be taken seriously, be serious. When I had an indie band, we got a ridiculous amount of paid gigs and street credit because we had a really nice website, logo, and press kit. Even though we weren’t anywhere close to a signed band, we came off as though we were – and perception counts for a lot in this industry. Hire a great designer, and don’t be afraid to drop some money on this – this is going to be a main place for your fans to interface with you. They’re going to be watching videos, buying music and T-shirts, and reading about news and shows. A poorly built website with rotating gifs and cheesy MIDI music won’t keep them long. So make it quality, and make it interesting.

Dan out.

(Feature image by Lance Neilson )