I just read an article over at ArtistsHouse about how artists are reaching out to their fans via iPhone applications.

The question I have is this: are these applications used only by existing fans, or do they actually reach out to new listeners?  I think it depends on the application. Artists like Lady Gaga have their apps instantly featured in the iTunes application store, and as a result sail right to the top of the most downloaded list. This portrays the image that their music must be good. A consumer does not even need to download the application. Just by seeing the artist on the list of most downloaded applications, they will remember their name.

Apple has always been quick to promote musicians like this, but what if you’re not as popular as Lady Gaga or The Jonas Brothers? In this case, its less likely that your app will take off. Without being promoted by Apple or having a fan base that will immediately go download your application, there is not much chance of growing your audience from the app store. Most features included in these applications are bonus content that fans want, such as interviews, new tracks, exclusive music videos, etc.  Consumers simply will not want to pay money for these things unless they are already fans.  For this reason, in my opinion, the app store cannot help grow your fame, unless you already have a reasonable amount of following, or are featured by Apple themselves.

I came across an interesting article over at wired.com about new ways that artists are marketing and selling their music. Check out the article here.

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According to the article, teenagers are less frequently downloading music and more frequently using online radio sites like Pandora. To combat this trend, artists are trying to find more creative ways to market and sell their music. Some of these are a bit absurd, and range from offering a free music download when you purchase a can of soup, to selling music in older formats (8-Track anyone?). Some artists are even offering t-shirts that include a download of their album. The question is “Is any of this effective?”.

It’s anyones guess which, if any, of these things will catch on. However, I’m willing to bet that at least a few of them will NOT catch on. Especially the ones that use older media formats…

While selling music on a cassette tape would certainly make you different, I don’t think it would necessarily increase sales. I doubt that the current generation of iPod users would trade their iPod that carries multiple thousands of songs, for a walkman just to listen to one cassette. In fact, check out another article on that subject here. The same is true of artists who are offering their music on the now ancient 8-track.

Some of these methods, on the other hand, have great potential.

Some artists are offering iPhone apps that allow users to not only listen to their music, but remix it as well. In my opinion, something like this could really take off. It can be downloaded instantly, used wherever you are, and is compatible with an iPod. I can fully imagine many teens using something like this, where I cannot with something like an 8-track version of an album.

Make sure to check out the article here.

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Michael Tuschman

COPYCATS Media Marketing Intern