You just can’t beat a live experience, even if you’ve listened to an album a hundred times before. Seeing your favorite band live is an experience second to none, but not every fan can afford time and money to travel to the venue where his favorite band is bound to play. These days, of course, online streaming can take the gig right into your living room without a problem. If you’re a musician looking to offer a livestream to your fans on Facebook, YouTube, Periscope or Stageit – here is why and how:
Live Streaming: How done for musicians
No form of communication is currently growing as fast as live streaming. YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki knows: Livestreams are not only an increasingly popular marketing tool, they are a completely new art form. YouTubers, especially Let’s Play gamers, have already discovered this media for a long time.
For musicians like you, livestreams have really great potential. Live gigs are part and parcel of your art, so why not go live online?
That’s why it’s good
Musicians and fans alike profit from a live broadcast. The technical effort is well worth a splendid opportunity to catch two birds with one stone as you can make money with streaming a gig and use the live material as a video clip later. You can also use livestreams for different kinds of promotional purposes such as studio recordings, rehearsals or exclusive concerts. It’s a fantastic way to let people everywhere in the world participate in your musical development – in real time!
What’s more, it helps create a buzz on your social media channels. By sharing and commenting on your streams, your fans’ friends also become aware of your musical activities. People who like your music but haven’t yet been to your gigs will get a taste of your live qualities and may soon go and see a show in person.
Earn money with your performance
Just like at the door of your real-life concert, you can ask for an entrance fee for your online live gigs. Stageit is a portal that allows you to sell virtual tickets to your audience. If you choose to stream your gig for free, spectators get the chance to donate an amount of money they can chose themselves. On Facebook and YouTube, you can add a paypal.me link underneath your video clip.
Another way of generating an additional income is doing merchandising sales. Just put the website link of the page where you sell your album in the description text under your stream. Band T-shirts, bags and other merchandising products can easily be offered in an online shop with Spreadshirt. The service is completely free of charge and without any effort on your side as Spreadshirt takes care of everything from production to customer service.
Open your free online shop and start by selling your band merch here.
