Got Facebook? Yes. Got Twitter? Yes. Got Instagram? Yes. Got every other social network? Yeah, of course. OK, all of that is great, but if you consider yourself to be an entrepreneur (or in this case an artistpreneur) who wants to be taken seriously online, you need to have your OWN website. No two ways about it. Yes, you should be on the social networks and yes, they are important when it comes to promoting your music, getting more clients/followers, networking and building relationships, but having your own website is just as important, if not, more important.
Here are the benefits to having your own website…
- You have 100% control over it! No one has 100% control over the customization of any of their social network sites, in other words they’re limited in what you can do with them aesthetically. With your own website, you have full ownership and the ability to customize it however you want.
- It allows you to be you and push your brand to the fullest with no limits.
- You can get traffic, which means fans you already have and new people who can become fans if they like your music.
- It can be monetized meaning it can be made to generate income for you with the right money making tools and resources (merchandise sales, affiliate programs, ads, etc.).
- It can help build relationships with new fans and the fans you already have.
- Your bio, photos, music etc. will be more accessible to the media.
- It’ll show your professionalism and it’ll separate you from the countless artists out there who don’t take their art serious enough to get their own website.
I think one of the main reasons why some artistpreneurs don’t get their own website is because they’re afraid of the cost and the work that goes into getting a website done. Cost should be no excuse because there are many tools and resources that allow artistpreneurs to build their own website at very affordable rates, sometimes even free. There are many templates and platforms out there that will allow you to create a website with relative ease. You don’t have to worry about HTML and coding or anything like that, unless you have the money to pay a designer to do that for you. WordPress is a great tool and platform to use to build a website because ANYBODY can learn how to use it and build their own website with it. Before you get a WordPress and start building your website, you need to get a domain name (yourname.com) and hosting.
Just to recap; in order to build your own website, you need to…
- Get a domain name and hosting
- Install WordPress
- Get familiar with WordPress; whether it be on your own or by using something like WP SetUp Checklist
- Get a professional graphic designer to create a custom-made theme for you or get a free pre-made theme from any free WordPress theme website
- Add content to your site, things like a Bio/About page, Pics/Photos page, Music page (if you’re an indie musician), Merchandise page, and a Contact page
- Add free WordPress plugins to your site to make it more interactive and much easier for your fans to spread the word about your music. Google the best WordPress plugins for artists and they’ll show you sites with many plugin recommendations for an artists’ website.
