Since 2010, I have been running the RCM Unsigned Music Blog. This article will give you a glimpse of how it works behind the scenes. What does blogging mean for musicians?
How does it work
RCM is published on WordPress. It was the best solution back in 2010. Our blog can be submitted through a website hosted and built on Wix. Wix is easy to use but could be better for SEO. We would prefer to have only one solution. However, this allows us to get the best of both without coding. It’s simple to navigate between the sites by clicking on the menu.
Who reads music blogs
You quickly realize that most of your visitors are fans and artists when you have a music blog. While you may get some music nerds who visit your blog regardless of the artists featured, the vast majority of your visitors are bands and artists reading their features. Unfortunately, the utopian dream of having a large number of music lovers seeking you out is just that: a dream. We are a small minority of true music explorers.
What is the purpose of a music blog, and why
The role of the music review blog is mainly about affirmation at this level. IE Your Mum, Girlfriend, or friend thinks your music’s great!
Blogs allow musicians to quote each other for their press releases, social media posts, websites, or EPK. Blogs, or at the very least, they should show up in Google searches.
How can you tell if a blog has been Google indexed? You can go to their page and search for the name of the artist/track that they have reviewed. If it does not appear, you can search Google for it. Or, simply search for the blog on Google.
What number of people have read my review
Many unsigned blogs have a smaller readership than the sites you visit daily. RCM works hard to optimize our SEO and socials in order to drive website traffic. This number continues to grow every year. We have attracted nearly 9,000 page views in the last month.
A blog review is the best! It remains online and continues to receive views throughout its life. Since 2013, when Google Analytics began tracking, our most popular artist has received more than 14,000 views. Don’t assume that a review is only about those who read it the day it was released.
If your name is mentioned by someone in the future, for good or for bad reasons, they can still click on Google to review you.
What drives a music blogger to be a musician
While I cannot speak for everyone, in my case, it is a passion for music. The radio doesn’t play my music, which is why I don’t enjoy it. RCM was set up so that I could receive amazing new music every day.
My morning routine is to get up at 5:30 am every day. As with any passion, you can only do it if your heart is in it. Bloggers are instantly out of pocket once they have paid for domain names and website hosting each year. I am not motivated by money.
A blog gives you an opportunity to listen to music more closely. It is possible that you will listen to the album five times or more, look at all bios, and visit all social media pages when you review. You rarely have the opportunity to pay attention this close or as intently. Great music will quickly stand out when you put your focus.
What can artists do to support blogs
There are several ways that you can help us help you.
Backlinks are crucial. Google will recognize a trusted and authoritative website if we write about your band and add our quote to it. This means that we rank higher in Search results. More people will see us and visit our site to read your review.
You can share our content via your social media. This will help you attract more people to your review. People who know you well will be more likely to read your review. It promotes your blog to other artists and bands that follow you, which helps us.
A thank you note is a great way to show appreciation. Artists who take the time to thank us are always remembered. We are more likely to support your future endeavors if we establish a trusting relationship.
What is the scale of a music blog
Views are driven by keywords and content. Website visits are driven by lots of content combined with the right keywords. However, Google searches for most unsigned artists are not very popular. We also provide lots of content on music marketing to counter this. These posts attract people to the blog, and they then discover new music.
RCM was my first venture. I was the only person involved. I soon realized that there was a limit on how much I could write. I hired a few writers to assist me. Lucky me, I was able to work with a writer who had been writing for many years without any payment. It was a great opportunity to expand her portfolio. It’s rare that writers work for free for very long periods of time.
A team is essential if you are looking to scale a blog. You also need a submission process that does not rely on personal email. To address this issue, RCM switched to an online submission database. This allows freelance writers and partners’ blogs to access our submissions database. Currently, we have approximately 25 writers who are able to access our submissions.