13 Reasons For A Band Website

This article by Make It In Music explains 13 different reasons as to why it is important for a band/producer to have their own website. When I read this article, it helped me understand what kind of stuff I would need to include in my website, but also the reasons behind why I would create my own website and for what purpose and style I would require in order to make it personal to me and my fan base however big they were and that it is the hub to rely on rather than various social media platforms.


1) You have to have at least one place where people can find you and your music:

This means that you need one place where you can collaborate everything together. This means links and utilities available for people to listen and buy your music. It also includes such 3rd party plugins for social media so people can see everything you post in one area, for example people would be able to view and access your Facebook page and your Twitter feed in one place.

In addition, it is a way for you to post links to tour dates, locations and meetups and in addition your bibliography and your personal messages to your fans without any interruption from 3rd party companies whether its record labels or social media websites. The main aim of the site is to have the one core place where you can control what you post and not have any interference by other companies.


2) You need to be in total control:

You have the freedom to create your own website and design it exactly how you want it. This means you are able to create the message for your audience on your website, whether it is informing them about what you are doing or what is happening or if it is to get your audiences to sign up in the long term such as an email subscription or for regular updates onto your website which will draw your audience to view your website regularly.


3) You can build a coherent brand and image:

You can design the website to fit to your artist style. This means that you can make your website suite a specific genre of music which will reflect on what you do. For example; on Deadmau5's website, it is mostly dark colours which show his personality as mostly dark sided.

It also allows you to make a site which your audience will expect to be from you. This means if you are a boy band, you wouldn't make your websites appearance look similar to a heavy metal band etc. In addition, the websites brand and image should fit those of the pictures and logos of your band and by doing so would make a house style of your band which would look significant in all the works you do and will show to your audience that you are organized and devoted to your band.

4) Having your own artist website looks professional:

Having a professional looking website opens your band to a wider audience, this is because people who may look at your website may see it and think if the website looks professional, than their music is worth listening to. A professional looking website also shows that you are serious about your band and that you are committed to making it successful.


5) You cannot rely on social media platforms:

Social media platforms don't last forever, an example of this is MySpace, it was very popular a few years ago but it has been in decline ever since. This means it is crucial for your band to have a website, if you only rely on social media, it means you may lose your fan base if the platform goes into decline or if it has significant changes which people will oppose.

With a website rather than social media platforms, it will not decline unless you allow it to and if you make news about yourself exclusive to your website, it makes your fan base incline to return every now and then which is where you can draw them in more and keep them as part of your fan base. Some social media platforms have rules which could effect your pages or feeds and negatively effect it.


6) You can use SEO to rank and get new fans:

SEO or Search Engine Optimisation is away of promoting your posts on search engines, its a way of advertising which is useful for band websites, when you post on your site, you can optimise your page so that people will see when searched for on google. An example of this is by optimising your page so it is focused on House music, when people search House music on a search engine, your website may be quite high up opening yourself and the site to a wider audience and an increased fan base.


7 & 8) You can do whatever you like with it & do everything with it:

With your own website, you are free to try out things that you wouldn't normally be able to do on social media platforms due to rules that are in place and the policies you agreed to on creation of your pages and hubs on the platforms. There wouldn't be any consequences behind this too as you haven't made any agreements when you created your own website.

In addition to doing whatever you want, you can do everything with the site, whether it is having a massive teaser countdown or having a forum section on your forums, it means you can open your site to more than pictures which would normally be posted on Facebook and Twitter. It means you can put exclusive content on the site, for example; behind the scenes content and extra audio content which only people going to your site will be able to view or hear.


9) Sell what you like at whatever price you like:

Selling your music on your website will make you much more money. This is because digital retailers take a cut of the profit every sale that is made. An example of this is when someone buys a song for 99p on iTunes, the artist only gets 70p of the sale and Apple will get the remaining 29p.

Once the website has a big enough fan base, it will be far more easier to sell music on your website as it gives you the freedom to promote specific content and that you will get the entirety of the sales without having some of it given to the middle man or digital retailers..


10) You can make money from other sources:

Your website, unlike digital retailers, is tailored for you and only you, this means that your website can make money from other non-song sales. Most artist websites have ways of buying merchandise which your fans can buy. In addition to this, if your website becomes a huge success and you have a wide fan base, you can open your sites to advertisements or partnerships with other companies or platforms in order to promote yourself or make some extra money on the side.


11) You can build a members area and forum:

With the band website and the fan base, you are also making a place of interaction, although Twitter and Facebook make that possible, a personal forum on your website can make the difference as it means the fans which are there because of you can discuss with other fans just like them and create friendships, it also means you can interact with your fan base, this could be used for criticism, contests or just general chit chat.

In addition, a members area could be used as a way of making some pay more for exclusive benefits. An example of this is live.deadmau5.com where if you pay for the premium membership, you get access to pictures, videos, free music and a chance to message deadmau5 himself which non-premium members do not have access to.

12 & 13) You are investing in yourself & it’s yours forever:

With the creation of yourself, you are also creating a part of yourself, with all the effort you put in to make the website, it is a symbol of you as an artist and it is the most central hub for your work you can get. As a result, you are making a website that can last forever and to carry your legacy. It also means that your fan base can view you as you grow from the band that practiced in the garage to being a headlining act at Glastonbury.