There is no doubt that the music industry has been one of the hardest hit industries by the Covid-19 pandemic. Live music makes up over 50% of total revenues in the music industry and up to 95% of an individual artist’s revenues.
We are seeing more independent musicians than ever coming out with quality music created within their own homes. But what is the next step musicians can take to monetize their talent during Covid-19?
While live music is opening back up in some areas, it still isn’t completely safe in most places including some of the biggest cities for live music like Los Angeles, New York City, and Nashville. Musicians have had to get creative in ways that they can still share their music and interact with fans while staying distanced.
While live streams have checked off the box for fan interaction and showcasing the artist’s music (to an extent). It hasn’t been able to make up for the revenue lost from live performances. Artists have had to get a little more creative than just live streaming to earn a liveable wage through their music. Here are ways musicians have been and can monetize their talent during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Virtual Ways Musicians Can Monetize Their Talent During Covid-19
Meet-and-Greets
Meet-and-Greets have long been a part of the live show experience, giving fans the option to pay extra to meet their favorite artists, get an autograph, and snap a picture. Musicians have now gone virtual with their meet-and-greets on apps like Cameo and Zoom, charging anywhere from $30 to thousands of dollars. This is a great way to connect with your fans in a safe way from your own home. Enhance the experience by mailing the fan a signed poster, CD, or some other cool merch. Think about bundle deals too.
Music Lessons
Zoom has exploded in use since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, allowing schools to go on, companies to continue meetings, and musicians a place to monetize their talent. Apart from meet-and-greets and private Zoom performances, musicians are giving music lessons through this free platform.
Artists are able to advertise their lessons through their personal social media as well as apps like Fiverr, a marketplace for freelance services. Figure out what you’re really good at and start seeking out people who might need some help at that exact thing. A good place to start is $20-$50 per hour of training depending on the subject.
Fiverr
Speaking of Fiverr, there is an abundance of ways musicians can monetize their talent during Covid-19 on this marketplace other than music lessons. From production, mixing & mastering, and beat making to songwriting, jingles, and audio advertisements, there is room for any type of musician to monetize their talent on Fiverr. Tip: start with lower prices while you are building up your reviews and credibility. The reviews and credibility part are important so make sure to stay on top of each project you take on.
Topeka
Topeka is another freelance marketplace but is strictly “hang sessions” which are private video calls rather than paid jobs to do on your own time. Fans are able to book artists for meet-and-greets, conversations, music lessons, workshops, concerts, serenades, and more. These sessions are personal, between the artist, the fan who booked, and whoever the fan invites rather than a live broadcast to all fans. This is a great new platform to get apart of early on!
Twitch
While live streams won’t ever come close to the live music experience, it is the best we have during the Covid-19 pandemic. Twitch is a great way to connect with your fans and showcase not just your talent but also your personality! It may not be much, but there is money to be made on Twitch. You can set up paid subscription tiers for your viewers to get access to exclusive emojis, chat rooms, and more. You can also set up a donation button linking to a third-party app like PayPal.
Once you gain popularity you can partner with brands to advertise their products with compensation. You can also become a Twitch Affiliate and gain compensation. We encourage you to put in some time learning about how others became successful on Twitch, or stay tuned for some special guides courtesy of our team at RMR.
Publishing
A publishing deal can be one of the best ways to monetize your music. Publishers will find promotional opportunities and secure deals for your songs to be used in television, movies, advertisements, video games, and much more. This is not just a great way to make consistent money, but also a great way to promote your music in various industries.
Start by researching music publishing companies that you believe fit your style and brand. This is a great article that can give you more direction. If you need more direction, reach out to us directly via email at info@respectmyregion.com ATTN Joey: Publishing Help
Merchandise
With hundreds (or even thousands) of dollars saved on concert tickets, fans are looking for alternative ways to support their favorite musicians during the Covid-19 pandemic. Stick to your brand and create some simple designs on Canva or Illustrator.
Think about what your target market consumes and create a shop on your website or a platform like Bandcamp. You can feature products like t-shirts, hoodies, sweatpants, hats, stickers, posters, CD’s, vinyl, cassettes, and even Covid-19 related products like masks and hand sanitizer.
With more people stuck at home than ever, vinyl sales have soared. According to Statista, “In 2020, 27.5 million LPs were sold in the United States, up 46 percent compared to 2019 and more than 30-fold compared to 2006 when the vinyl comeback officially began.” Don’t miss out on one of the best profiting opportunities during the Covid-19 pandemic and also after when everything opens back up.
Invest In Yourself
A successful career as a musician takes 50% good music and talent, and 50% promotion, marketing, and advertising. Invest in yourself with paid promotion like press releases and interviews, as well as paid social media advertising.
See how it pays off by gaining news followers, listeners, fans, and sales on your merchandise and physical music. Promoting yourself to different communities of fans in different cities is an important part of building your brand and growing a fan base. Treat your music career like a business. Investing in yourself is necessary to take you to the next level as an independent musician.
Networking
You never know what opportunities networking can bring whether it’s performance gigs, lessons, promotion, brand deals, or other opportunities. Look for brands and people you would like to network or collaborate with on Twitter, LinkedIn, Clubhouse, and Instagram. You can even ask around within your own network for people you can connect with. Nothing beats creating a personal connection and having your friends and family refer you in the right direction.
Other Unique Ways Musicians Can Monetize Their Talent During Covid-19
Local Farmers Markets
With outdoor activities deemed a lot safer than indoor activities according to the CDC, outdoor Farmers Markets have now begun to re-open with large quantities of people attending more now than ever. After not hearing live music for almost a year, you are guaranteed to catch people’s attention (and likely tips) just by walking around or hanging out at local markets. We highly recommend you contact your local Farmers Market to ask permission to perform and put out a tip jar.
Restaurants
Depending on your location, restaurants have now been able to offer at least outdoor seating. While this doesn’t compare to ticket sales, you can make a chunk of money from the booking fee as well as tips. Be proactive and go talk to the manager in person. It is a major bonus if you can find a restaurant that your target market regularly attends!
Many restaurants also have social media profiles on Facebook or Instagram. A simple and creative idea would be to pitch a live stream takeover of a restaurant’s social media pages using Restream and OBS.
Weddings
Weddings will continue to go on, pandemic or not, you just can’t stop love! While it may not be smart to perform at an indoor wedding as that might be breaking CDC guidelines, there are plenty of engaged couples putting on smaller outdoor weddings following local rules and regulations.
You can’t have a wedding without some form of music, and live music always enhances the experience! Post on local Facebook pages and use word-of-mouth marketing around your community to find clients and book performances. Film a video of you performing or upload some snippets of a past gig.
While the Covid-19 pandemic may have shut the doors on the most interactive and well-paying aspect of a musicians career, it has opened doors to less demanding virtual opportunities that were never really considered or focused on before.
You can no longer use the Covid-19 pandemic as an excuse on why you aren’t successful. There is more time and more opportunities than ever as a musician, so take advantage of this list and monetize your talent during Covid-19. If you have any questions about how to grow your brand or increase your followings, please reach out directly to us on Instagram @RespectMyRegion.us or via email at info@respectmyregion.com
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