AYANA WEBB
if she opted to confine herself to a cubicle rather than chase her real passion , and she didn ’ t like it at all .
“ That was what made me realize that I had nothing to lose if I decided to pursue what I actually enjoy , and figure out the money part later .”
Webb then switched into music in her second year , and after taking up teaching piano lessons on the side , launched The Musical Webb , where she was able to offer courses online and reach a larger audience without physical distance mattering . In order to grow her business , she had to pick up some marketing techniques , which she did through practical , hands-on learning . From there , she discovered this was also something she had a penchant for , and eventually launched The Digital Webb , so she could pass along what she had learned about marketing to other music industry workers who could benefit from some education on the subject .
“ I was really passionate about business , and being able to merge business and marketing with music ,” she says , “ and to be able to take everything I ’ d learned as far as marketing for my business , and be able to help other musicians .”
Marketing is a huge field and it can be difficult to figure out exactly where to start . Webb ’ s advice for musicians and other people in the music business is to first find an email marketing platform with the necessary features . Platforms like Mailchimp , Aweber , and Constant Contact all have crucial features such as the ability to build sign-up forms for websites , creative email campaigns , and track statistics after emails are sent out . Once the basics are covered , Webb says it ’ s then time to start collecting emails from ideal audiences using the signup forms , and she stresses the importance of only adding people who will be legitimately interested in receiving new content . Fan pages , ads , performances , and referrals are all good places to mine for emails and find new customers .
“ Also , stay in contact with them regularly and keep them updated with new content , upcoming events , new music , specials , etc .,” she says .
The pandemic brought challenges to Webb ’ s businesses , like any , but also an unexpected silver lining in that the music industry as a whole has been adapting to more online approaches to business , creating a bigger market for Webb ’ s line of work . While the pandemic has highlighted the importance of online marketing strategies for artists and music industry professionals and brought more attention to the need for it , it was still something that was crucial before and will continue to be afterwards . Webb has made the most of these changes , and seized the opportunity to provide help with marketing to those with a newfound interest .
The pandemic essentially cut Webb ’ s number of students in half , as not all of them wanted to continue taking lessons virtually , so she turned her attention to The Digital Webb . Because lockdowns were causing more people to take an interest in online marketing , the company was seeing rapid exponential growth .
“ What happened was , on the online side of it , in terms of courses , that actually took off ,” she says . “ That was a big silver lining .”
With her focus concentrated on The Digital Webb for now , Webb has been able to provide advice and guidance to music industry workers who haven ’ t maximized the business proper marketing can bring them .
There are several types of marketing music industry professionals can benefit from , that The Digital Webb specializes in teaching and helping with . Organic marketing , paid advertising , referrals , email lists , and social media marketing are all important , and every artist should be taking advantage of all of them , using them each to their full potential and not overlooking any potential avenues for increased sales , according to Webb .
“ Most musicians are having a hard time being able to thrive with their music because they lack knowledge in marketing ,” she says . “ A lot of musicians are under the impression that if they make great music , it ’ ll just kind of grow .”
While Webb says part of that notion is true , musicians can only go so far without having to gain some marketing knowledge in order to progress further and achieve higher levels of success . Webb calls effective marketing an “ untapped area ” for lots of musicians and industry figures , and understanding how to market is essential for those who want to make a living from their music . Email marketing is effective , easy , and sees results , which is why it ’ s something Webb places a particular focus on , especially as it is so commonly overlooked .
The marketing tactics Webb uses can benefit all kinds of workers in the music industry , and none are exclusive to any segment of the business , she says . Everyone from musicians to detailers to manufacturers interacted with her video .
“ For me , that let me know that email marketing is definitely a needed topic for most companies ,” she says .
Webb ’ s future plans are mainly focused around further expanding The Digital Webb . With interest in the company growing and the pandemic giving artists and music industry professionals time to concentrate their efforts on building online presences , there ’ s no better time for Webb to do exactly that .
Right now , The Digital Webb offers a free introductory mini-course called the “ Music Career Starter Kit ,” as well as courses in fanbase building , money-making , and a course bundle with lessons on marketing strategies and ways to amass followers , fans , and even students for teachers of private music lessons . There are more courses on the way as well , focused on gigging , mastering social media content , finding the best ways to teach students , building an effective website , and more . There ’ s a lot that goes into building a career in any facet of the music industry , but Webb aims to help people in any and all of them , often teaching methods that can be applied to several .
Webb is a perfect example of someone who used the issues posed by the pandemic to her advantage , despite the challenges it brought her . With her innovative thinking and business approach , she seized an opportunity to bring desperately needed services to musicians and industry figures who needed them , while they were able to take the time to learn and apply them , propelling her business forward in the process . The importance of marketing has only grown as the world has moved online — and email marketing is one of the most valuable tools music industry professionals can use .
“ Even with things opening back up , I ’ m still able to grow my business online ,” she adds . “ And it ’ s still growing to this day .”
Manus Hopkins is freelance writer and former Editorial Assistant at Canadian Musician .
CANADIAN MUSICIAN 11