Music has long been an integral part of many people’s lives, and even those who don’t consider themselves musical connoisseurs have likely stumbled across a song that made them feel a certain type of emotion. When I like a song, album or artist, the first thing I do is get to know about the artist’s musical journey by watching and reading articles, interviews, magazine films and vlogs. As someone with a strong appreciation for the musical arts, I’m always looking to delve deeper into my favorite artists’ creative process to gather every bit of insight about their life experiences and how these manifest in the music they make!
As I learn how my favorite artists produce their own music, I find it interesting that music production and content marketing have a lot in common! Music production, surprisingly, has some techniques that any business can adopt when creating content in order to engage and convert customers. The best producers and musicians are the ones who know how to connect with their target audience, just like businesses need to do through their content. After all, the goal of both producers and businesses is the same — to connect with their target audience and convert them into fans!
What’s The Connection Between Content Creation And Producing Music?
After looking at the similarities between music production and content marketing, it’s easy to see how my two passions are actually quite similar. Both involve crafting a story and producing something to engage and capture the audience. By observing how my favorite artists accomplish this, I learned five things that are equally applicable to creating engaging and effective content:
- Quality over quantity: Take your time to assess your own brand’s voice and create genuine content around it.
- Use the right tools to make the content creation process easier and more productive.
- Don’t be afraid to experiment!
- Get feedback from colleagues and adjust your work accordingly.
- Track your progress.
Music production can be a great source of inspiration when creating content your audience will appreciate. With the right notes, you’re sure to produce something special!
Take Your Time And Get It Right: Quality Is More Important Than Speed
Content marketing is no different from music production in that with both you must take the time to work thoroughly and accurately in order to produce high-quality results. Rushing through a piece and slapping it together won’t get you the end result you desire, whether you’re creating a social media post or a viral video production. Just like when you hear a piece of music that is badly written or off-beat, your audience can spot a lack of effort and care in your digital content — particularly typographical errors and shoddy design.
When you take time to craft content marketing that speaks to your brand and audience, you will be rewarded with better engagement.
Quality beats speed every time, and content marketers should remember the old adage that patience is a virtue. When you take time to craft content that speaks to your brand and audience, you will be rewarded with better engagement. Perhaps you can get more inspiration from the following artists who took time to create their own music and came back stronger with interesting content, eventually enthralling both new and existing fanbases.
Paramore
After several years of releasing albums at a prolific pace, Paramore, the celebrated pop-punk band, took an unprecedented five-year break before dropping their latest project. They had taken active parts in writing lyrics and producing music, and eventually decided to take a necessary break after battling depression and burnout.
Vocalist Hayley Williams took the break as a way to dive into various creative endeavors which included releasing solo albums. This helped her discover Paramore’s unique sound again and the enthusiasm to write and create music. The band was inspired after taking this break, allowing them to put their refreshed emotions into writing and producing. Paramore’s fans are excited the band is back with a new album.
Adele
Adele is well-known for her lyricism and how each word and melody strikes a chord with listeners. With her touching lyrics and voice, did you notice the long gap between her last album and the latest one? It took her five years to release a new album. This gap allowed her to find happiness, assess her direction and spend time on herself. This personal journey eventually became the fuel that inspired her to pen music for her latest album.
One thing that marketers often forget is that content marketing isn’t just about meeting deadlines or churning out posts at lightning speed; it’s about taking time to reflect on your brand’s voice and creating pieces around it that will leave behind something substantial that resonates in people’s lives. This does not mean that you can also take a five-year break and put a hold on writing or creating graphics, but rather use your time wisely to find your brand’s voice and personality and align your content with them.
Use The Right Tools For The Job
When it comes to creating high-value content, effective production tools are a must for any music producer. Having the right instruments is essential for capturing a stellar performance and sound.
This is true of content marketing as well — it is like a symphony and can be quite a challenge to create, especially if you run into a wall. If your business has the right tools in place, writing will be easier and the results can be amazing! When you invest in quality tools and software, it not only makes the content creation process more efficient, but it also eliminates unnecessary frustrations that make it difficult to produce noteworthy results.
Anyone can make something incredible with the right tools! Follow these creative titans’ lead and let them show you how these can make all the difference in producing top-notch content.
Electronic Dance Music (EDM) DJs
These days, Electronic Dance Music (EDM) has become a household phrase. With the world’s top DJs behind it such as Zedd, Armin van Buuren, Marshmello and David Guetta — to only mention a few — it is no wonder that EDM can be heard far and wide, from festivals all around the globe to small house parties.
Have you ever wondered what it takes to create a DJ’s own distinct beats? Professional DJs use software like Traktor, Ableton and FL Studio — each offering an array of features designed for creating unparalleled electronic music experiences.
SEVENTEEN
Korean pop group SEVENTEEN cemented their place in the global music industry with captivating choreography, incredible lyricism and an unbreakable bond between members. What’s even more remarkable is that although they now have access to top-tier equipment for producing quality tracks, it all began when one of the group’s producers, Woozi, got his start by composing melodies on one of the members’ laptops using GarageBand software! With a lot of work under his belt, he eventually advanced from novice tools to establishing his own studio.
When you talk about tools for content marketers, they now have access to amazing platforms such as Jasper, Copysmith, Grammarly, Hootsuite and Thesaurus that make content creation a smoother and speedier process. These incredible resources efficiently revolutionized the way we develop content. Equally important are analytics tools and platforms such as Google Analytics, Meta Insights and Sprout Social, which give you a complete view of what kind of content is resonating with your target audience.
Once you get the hang of the basics, you can eventually progress and invest in more advanced platforms to increase content creation efficiency at work.
Experiment And Have Fun With It!
Experimenting can be fun in both content marketing and music!
Content marketing can be a real drag if you don’t approach it with an open mind and a sense of adventure. It’s always a great idea to try out new strategies and even better to have fun with it! If content marketing were a song, wouldn’t it feel nice to crank up the volume and experiment with different sounds, beats and instrumentation to create the perfect melody? Who knows where those creative detours can lead? Content marketing doesn’t have to be just another boring album filler; make sure you experiment and have fun with it!
From music legends to modern artists, it’s clear the key is in experimenting. Discover how these artists pushed the boundaries which opened the gateways for something fresh and new.
The Beatles
The legendary rock band started their music career with a distinct bubblegum pop sound in 1962. A few TV appearances and stadium tours later, their music eventually shifted to harder rock, ballads and the experimental — all thanks to various experiences that made their sound distinct.
Although they were initially told to refrain from performing their complex new songs in a live setting, this did not stop the group (and each of the members) from experimenting and developing their own sound. While it was devastating for fans to learn the band had broken up due to musical differences and the increasing pressure of fame, their bold move to experiment with their music led them to earn a seat in the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame and they remain one of the most popular bands of all time.
BTS
In 2013, a global pop powerhouse from Korea burst onto the scene with hard-core hip-hop and ego-filled lyrics. BTS broke the boundaries of the mainstream music industry when they decided to challenge traditional hip-hop with a brand-new sound. After honing their musical style and fine-tuning the message and lyrics, it didn’t take long for fans worldwide to embrace this K-pop powerhouse’s infectious energy and willingness to try something different. From hard rap bangers came heartfelt songs full of genuine emotion; an ambitious move that secured international fame as well as legions of devoted followers!
In content marketing, taking creative risks is what makes content creation exciting! Who knows what kind of magic could happen by stepping outside of your comfort zone? If you have not tried creating short-form videos or memes, for example, now is the time to do so and see how your audience will engage with them!
Get Feedback And Adjust Your Work Accordingly
Multiple brains are better than one! Don’t be afraid to solicit opinions from people who may not fully understand a topic or your brand. Content marketing and music production are two creative processes that require audience feedback to reach their fullest potential. Without getting outside perspectives, your work can become too homogenous and one-dimensional.
If the content you’ve worked on does not embody your brand’s voice or personality, keep an open mind and adjust your work accordingly. If a specific post does not garner enough attention from your audience, don’t be scared to go back to the drawing board and create another one.
Keep Track Of Your Progress
For musicians, they know they’ve hit the sweet spot of listeners when they reach the Billboard Top 100 or achieve multiple downloads and streams on various music listening platforms. Content marketers and businesses should find it equally important to keep track of progress in creating content. This helps you stay motivated and shows tangible results over time, like a musician mastering a snare hit or an influencer with more followers. When you measure your progression, you’ll be able to find out what works and adjust accordingly for maximum success!
Content Marketers Are Like Musicians
Crafting content and composing music share a somewhat unexpected similarity: they both require the same careful attention to detail in order for their message or story to be well-received. To create effective marketing, it’s important for marketers to familiarize themselves with what resonates most strongly with their target audience and their brand.
Content creation isn’t easy, but it’s definitely worth taking the time to get it right. Keep these points in mind the next time you sit down to craft your next big marketing campaign: know your audience and brand voice, use the right tools and be creative. With attention to detail and a little bit of trial and error, you’ll be able to create content that hits all the right notes.
Need Help With Content Creation For Your Business?
If you need help getting started or crafting a cohesive and effective content strategy that will resonate with your target market, we’re always happy to lend a helping hand! Contact us to get started on your winning content marketing plan that works for you and your audience.